What are your weirdest building habits?

[Guest davewager78]

The only time i've used the numbered bags was the mobile crane mk II.

 

Apart from that, i want to appear hardcore and make it look like i'm enjoying sorting for 1 piece in 2000. I do sort of enjoy it, but after a long day at work, when you want to de-stress by building, and making progress, maybe it's not the best idea.

 

I buy quite a few second hand big sets, so i do get used to sifting through huge piles of mixed bricks.

 

The think my obsessive behaviour is to NOT get obsessed over the fine details

[segreto]

I open all the bags and give the minifigures to my son to build and lose the guns, tools, helmets, ect.  Then I dump the bags and organize by color.  I start handing pieces to my daughter 1 or two direction numbers ahead of where she is.  While she is building, I sort the pieces further by shape and size.  I try to fit all the same type of pieces together so they don't get lost when my son is done building the minifigures.  When I am several steps ahead of my daughter, and all the bricks are organized, I start helping my son find the lost pieces.

 

When building alone, I do pretty much the same thing, only I work bag by bag and have several glasses of scotch. 

[TheOrcKing]

I must confess, whenever I open a fresh bag whether it is from a box set or just a plain polybag, I take a good long whiff. ....I have no idea what that says about me really although I am pretty sure of all the ways it can be taken as. Haha. :pardon:

[XCool]

So I'm interested to see if anybody is brave enough to divulge their weirdest building habits/rituals to the community. I was building the Fire Brigade this morning when I got to thinking about this. For me, I make sure all of the brick studs with the tiny word "LEGO" molded onto it are facing the same way. I absolutely hate when the words are all jumbled together! So all bricks that go East/West I aim to the right, and North/South bricks I aim to the top of the base plates. 

 

Another weird habit of mine is that I spend an estimated 2-3 extra hours on any given set making sure all 1x1 tiles, studs, and bricks are perfectly lined up with the bricks below and above them. I ALSO HATE SEAMS IN MY BUILDS!

 

So, what are the weird things that all of you do?

 

 

Just stumbled upon this thread. And yes, I did the same too!

[junkrigger]

MOst of my sets have never been apart from my first the black knights fortress and wolf pack, inter coastal and launch and load seaport to all my trains, bnsf, santa fe, ect. I just can't stand scratched up pieces, after I display for a while they go built into rubbermaid tubs, but it is out of control to have so many tubs in the garage.  When I buy used sets I specifically look for super dusty ones cause dust washes away but scratched up pieces never come clean. Though I do partially disassemble the biggest star wars sets that won't fit otherwise. I really like to be able to pull out anyone at anytime and display but sometimes it takes forever to find even with the tubs labeled.

[kishidan69]

Using my teeth to take apart pieces. Did this since i was a kid, which left tooth marks on bricks. Now, i still do it (even though i have a few brick separators handy) but just with enough pressure to do the job but not damage the studs, works most of the time.

[MartinP]

I must confess, whenever I open a fresh bag whether it is from a box set or just a plain polybag, I take a good long whiff. ....I have no idea what that says about me really although I am pretty sure of all the ways it can be taken as. Haha.

I do the same, but it is when I open up the box of a new Lego set. I don't know why, but I just enjoy the smell of a freshly opened Lego set.

[knarrff]

I must confess, whenever I open a fresh bag whether it is from a box set or just a plain polybag, I take a good long whiff. ....I have no idea what that says about me really although I am pretty sure of all the ways it can be taken as. Haha.

What you smell is the money you just lost, the difference between "new" and "used" - the smell of money. No wonder you like it.

 

Someone else might say that it is the air from the factory, maybe filled with all kinds of stuff you might "like".

 

Or you are just a romantic LEGO lover - the most likely possibility.

[kunfuzd]

I double/triple check each opened bag for stuck Lego.

I learned my lesson early on when putting together the MF and "lost" pieces (temporarily).

Dumpster diving = not fun.  

[TheOrcKing]

I do the same, but it is when I open up the box of a new Lego set. I don't know why, but I just enjoy the smell of a freshly opened Lego set.

Oh yeah, the fresh box smell. That's a good one as well. However it can go bad on those sets that have been passed around from store to store a lot. I found a set once that was so dirty, my fingers turned black as if I just grabbed an old tire which is pretty much what it smelled like. Yuck.

 

What you smell is the money you just lost, the difference between "new" and "used" - the smell of money. No wonder you like it.

 

Someone else might say that it is the air from the factory, maybe filled with all kinds of stuff you might "like".

 

Or you are just a romantic LEGO lover - the most likely possibility.

Eh, I'm just weird and like smelling stuff.

 

I double/triple check each opened bag for stuck Lego.

I learned my lesson early on when putting together the MF and "lost" pieces (temporarily).

Dumpster diving = not fun.

I'm an obsessive quad-checker when it comes to those part bags myself.

[Maerskfan]

- Talking randomly to any observers

- Moving around my table while building (I would start at one end and finish building at the other)

 

[chinchy]

Nope, no weird habits.  I haven't built anything for myself recently, and everything that I build is whatever the kids got.  So my habit is to open it and let them build the minifigures so that they're occupied, then build the set as fast as possible so that I don't have to tell them to be quiet every time they ask if it's done yet.  Although I guess it does bug me if the 1x1 pieces aren't flush with all the rest, and if the pieces are not firmly seated on top of each other...

 

Oh and I admit to Kragle-ing.  But it's not my fault.  Lego may test pieces for Clutch Power, but they must not be testing for Playability Adhesion.  Some of those pieces really don't stay together.  Yeah I'm looking at you Golden Mech.  Whichever designer thought that a flat 2x4 would be sufficient to keep the legs attached to the pelvis while rotating the legs, obviously didn't play with it after they built it...

[leenoack83]

Using my teeth to take apart pieces. Did this since i was a kid, which left tooth marks on bricks. Now, i still do it (even though i have a few brick separators handy) but just with enough pressure to do the job but not damage the studs, works most of the time.

 

I catch myself doing this every now and again as well.  Used to do it all the time as a kid.

[Ranion]

Another weird habit of mine is that I spend an estimated 2-3 extra hours on any given set making sure all 1x1 tiles, studs, and bricks are perfectly lined up with the bricks below and above them.

 

I am the same way.  Have you built the Architecture set "Farnsworth House 21009" yet?  If you haven't, and you plan on it, I suggest you steel yourself for several hours of OCD goodness.

[jbacunn]

I am the same way. Have you built the Architecture set "Farnsworth House 21009" yet? If you haven't, and you plan on it, I suggest you steel yourself for several hours of OCD goodness.

Agreed. This one has A LOT of 1x1 tiles. I can't stand it when any of them are crooked.

Sent from my iPad using Brickpicker

[jrivera2002]

So I'm interested to see if anybody is brave enough to divulge their weirdest building habits/rituals to the community. I was building the Fire Brigade this morning when I got to thinking about this. For me, I make sure all of the brick studs with the tiny word "LEGO" molded onto it are facing the same way. I absolutely hate when the words are all jumbled together! So all bricks that go East/West I aim to the right, and North/South bricks I aim to the top of the base plates.

Another weird habit of mine is that I spend an estimated 2-3 extra hours on any given set making sure all 1x1 tiles, studs, and bricks are perfectly lined up with the bricks below and above them. I ALSO HATE SEAMS IN MY BUILDS!

So, what are the weird things that all of you do?

I think i was the only one doing this jajaja

:twitch:

[nerdsforprez]

I know that it is incredibly inefficient, but I do it anyway. I build part of the build, skip ahead, build another part, go back, build more, go forward, repeat... etc. I am not talking about building modules.... I move forward and backward in the booklet order.... just because :)

[TheOrcKing]

I know that it is incredibly inefficient, but I do it anyway. I build part of the build, skip ahead, build another part, go back, build more, go forward, repeat... etc. I am not talking about building modules.... I move forward and backward in the booklet order.... just because

I've actually done that a few times especially when it appears a few sections would be put together the same like all the rock formations that form the base of The Orc Forge. I just went ahead and built those bits at once then proceeded through the rest as normal. Doing so made the whole thing go even quicker.

[Bold-Arrow]

I always build sitting on the carpet with 3 to 4 trays surrounding me and tv running in the background (though i never pay attention to it)

[dubzero]

All bricks have to be sorted by color first and all minifigs must be built and off the building area before I start. Also, the bags must be opened and assembled in order. Thankfully my son is good at helping me with the minifigs. That's his deal.

[TheOrcKing]

I wipe down the work area of my desk to get rid of dust, cat hair, and other debris then I will wash my hands before touching a single brick. I will actually take a break after some time of building to wash my hands again because they can get sweaty between normal perspiration added with the increasing excitement of nearing model completion.

[jaisonline]

I wipe down the work area of my desk to get rid of dust, cat hair, and other debris then I will wash my hands before touching a single brick. I will actually take a break after some time of building to wash my hands again because they can get sweaty between normal perspiration added with the increasing excitement of nearing model completion.

Yeah, I also wash my hands before and during each build especially when it's sticker time.

I also keep my trusty good old toothbrush & a small cup of water within reach for dusting. Brushing not only helps avoiding cavities but helps with "element clutch".

I also let my son always start with the minifigs.

[gopalkrishnan]

I always ensure that whatever I have built is in perfect order as I hate to see when they have space or gap which make figure not appealing at all. Another thing I always give more preference to colours.

[brickelements]

For the previously owned set or a rebuild I sort all the pieces by type, then start to build.

 

2 x 4 plates or longer get grouped, 2 x 2, 2 x 3 and 2 x 4 get grouped

similiar with 1x plates and bricks

 

Large plates get grouped etc

 

Color is not a major factor when I use this method of sorting.

[dubzero]

For the previously owned set or a rebuild I sort all the pieces by type, then start to build.

2 x 4 plates or longer get grouped, 2 x 2, 2 x 3 and 2 x 4 get grouped

similiar with 1x plates and bricks

Large plates get grouped etc

Color is not a major factor when I use this method of sorting.

LOL - I'm doing this with my son tonight.