Is this sacrilege, crazy, or smart?

[srm_520]

So this may be more of a general build and lego philosophy question rather than an investing question: Question #1: I really want to Bricklink a grand lego EOL set like the Eiffel Tower, Taj Mahal, or the Statue of Liberty. Seems to be a pretty common desire for many builders. Do you believe something like this is a worth it in pure dollar sense, or is there always some piece or something that makes it a wash compared to buying it used online? Example on the Eiffel Tower, piece 3633 a Dark Bluish Grey fence piece is probably the biggest obstacle since you need 255 of them and they typically sell for .40 - $1.50 depending on your seller. (And who want to pay $300 bucks for 255 fence pieces) And heck 3450 SOL, all those sand green pieces are a lot of money too. So would attempt this - do you ever think you could build for under the average? Question #2: The sacrilege part - so the 3450 SOL set would be pretty cheap and easy to build using a different more abundant color i.e. dark bluish grey etc... So you build it... and then spray paint to your desired color. Would you ever consider this? Is it a dumb idea? Does it go against your lego moral ethics? I saw it done on YouTube of course, and seemed like a pretty out of the box idea. It think it would be hard to resell, but just for display purposes what you do think? Also, do you think someone would buy it? Do you think the paint would fuse pieces together?

[Fcbarcelona101]

So this may be more of a general build and lego philosophy question rather than an investing question:

Question #2:

The sacrilege part - so the 3450 SOL set would be pretty cheap and easy to build using a different more abundant color i.e. dark bluish grey etc... So you build it... and then spray paint to your desired color. Would you ever consider this? Is it a dumb idea? Does it go against your lego moral ethics? I saw it done on YouTube of course, and seemed like a pretty out of the box idea. It think it would be hard to resell, but just for display purposes what you do think? Also, do you think someone would buy it? Do you think the paint would fuse pieces together?

Nothing wrong with that IMO as long as you want to display it. I know I wouldn't do it with the intention of reselling it simply because I have no idea if it would be worth it and if someone would even pay to get a modified version (it's possible, I just don't know)

But if you only want for display, I would definitely choose similar but cheaper alternative pieces.

[TheOrcKing]

I can't even imagine wanting to spraypaint a Lego at all, but I am more of a purist. I'm not sure if anybody else would be willing to pay for 'modified' bricks either. It think the spraypaint can make the pieces stick together almost like glue. It may not be exact but I'd rather go with the cheaper alternative of using easier to obtain colored bricks then go broke buying the correct ones.

[terrymc4677]

I can't even imagine wanting to spraypaint a Lego at all, but I am more of a purist. I'm not sure if anybody else would be willing to pay for 'modified' bricks either. It think the spraypaint can make the pieces stick together almost like glue.

It may not be exact but I'd rather go with the cheaper alternative of using easier to obtain colored bricks then go broke buying the correct ones.

if you are going to do something, then do it right. no shortcuts.

[rcdb1984]

I agree with the purist thing...As much as of a bullet it is to bite with the price, we are all investors here, if you really want it for yourself, just get it. You can make it up elsewhere. It's a luxury of corse, but its your desire.

[comicblast]

I think that Bricklinking the Taj Mahal is relatively easy. Most of the pieces are pretty common to find, only a few "rare-ish" pieces, and you usually only need 1-5 of those. Not finished Bricklinking mine, but I have heard numerous success stories on that one, so I think it is a safe bet, if you are willing to go through the trouble.

[sadowsk1]

Spraypainting? Hm, I don't suppose I would do this. People should do what they want to enjoy their hobby.

[Blackjack]

SACRILEGE!!!!!!!!!!! Shun the spray paint! ...unless your using MB... ;)

[StarPod]

I mean if you wanted to spray paint your green base plate to blue id understand but an entire lego set could be slightly risky. Wouldnt the paint over time peal? if thats the case it would just ruin the lego peices as a whole

[dakotahorn]

Please never paint LEGOs. We lose enough every year to KFOLs chewing on them.

[Blackjack]

And babies... And couches... And cracks... And...

[srm_520]

I think I'll probably go the cheap route, but I honestly don't know if I could bring myself to paint them after it was built. I think it would have to really look bad in the color I chose, or I would have to be pretty drunk. I think I would be scared of screwing up what spent me so long and so much money to assemble. Thanks for the input! Oh, and has anyone seen those custom bases for the 3450 SOL. The one that is around 6500 pieces and weighs 11 pounds. I think I should do that do, and place the entire constructed piece in my yard and start going all legoland. Wonder if there's something in the deed restrictions......

[gregpj]

I'd never attempt to spray paint something like the Statue of Liberty. With it's height, you'd have to spray the underside as well and with just regular old spray paint, it would be next to impossible to get a nice smooth finish like a real piece of Lego. If you bought really good paint and didn't leave it outdoors, it wouldn't peel. I spray painted my boiler's hot water radiators and the paint sticks no problem - but I used a really thick enamel-like spray paint. To get a nice smooth finish, you'd want to use a pretty premium paint and put on a _very_ thin coat which would make it more prone to scratching.

[kerrmando]

sacrilege, crazy and not smart