 | Sidney Crosbrick: A model of Sidney Crosby in LEGO bricks |
After winning the S.W. Randall LEGO competition last year with the LEGO Cathedral of Learning, I had been mulling a few ideas over for my entry this year. A fellow member of Steel City LUG, Evan, makes these wonderful humanoid shapes, and I really wanted to attempt the art form. Once Sid had his jaw broken, a piece came to mind for his new protector, and that pretty much solidified the idea that I would move forward with Sidney Crosbrick.
The Pens had just sealed their spot in the playoffs when I started making a parts list on bricklink for parts that I needed. I wasn’t confident in my ability to create anything that even vaguely resembled a hockey player, so I wanted something that could be a safety net. I made a few bricklink orders for sid parts, and began experimenting with different techniques to pull of a lego stanley cup. I had to tinker a few times to get the scaling right and the connections to all be hidden. I also found a lot of the pieces in metallic silver, but a few were only in gray…It would have been SUPER in all metallic silver…
anyway, I started out with building a ball and joint frame to help me get the scale in mind. I kept this together along side my actual build just to keep for reference. Once I built the frame, I started looking around at pictures to mimic. I settled on this one, which has him leaning forward.
As you can see from that picture, the legs were the first thing to get built. I loved them. I was so motivated and proud of myself at that point. They were simple, light, and sturdy enough…at least I thought.
The original intent of creating a poseable figure turned out to be a lofty ambition. That was mainly due to the weight of the torso that I would create. Secondly due to the connections I used for the joints after abandoning the ball joints. The ball joints just didn’t have enough friction to stay in place with the weight, and I’d also have to design this thing to stand still in a window display for a few months.
I’d need to support the torso. So, I build the boards behind Sid. I was pleasantly surprised at how well the addition of the wall added depth and detail to the model. It wasn’t just a model now, it was a scene, especially with the white ice. (as an aside, a LUG member later suggested I cover the ice in clear tiles…I love that suggestion, just didn’t have the time and money for that now, but I may revisit that idea if I win). In that wall, I jutted out a technic brick that connected to the hips that would support the weight of the torso. At this point, I did question the chosen pose. If I didn’t have him crouching and leaning, I might be able to keep his center of gravity over his feet. I was just so drawn to that pose though, I couldn’t abandon it. The day before I submitted it to the contest, I am glad I didn’t abandon the pose, because it was JUST under the 10″ height requirement – Something i forgot to monitor during my building progress. If you turn his head upward, it breaks 10 inches. PHEW!!! THAT WAS CLOSE!
I made a last minute bricklink order for the letters to spell out Crosby on the back of the sweater. I had thought about spelling out crosbrick, but that was just too long of a name for, in my opinion, a torso that had already broken it’s desired width. The reason I allowed the wider torso was to fit the SNOT (studs not on top) number 87 on the back. Doing this certainly created a lot of gaps that produces an appearance of a robot/machine moreso than a human…but I still like the intense edges. Out of all the things I said about the hobby, the figure, and the work involved, that’s the only quote the Tribune Review decided to publish…
Voting starts Tuesday, June 18th at the Squirrel Hill S.W. Randall store and the last day to vote is Sunday, June 30th. There are 2 other LUG members also in the event, so I won’t FORCE you to vote for me, I’ll just encourage you to stop in and check out all the creations and vote for your favorite. Thanks!
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