Buying Soldering Equipment

Managed to do a bit of after work research, and found these:

So that kinda takes care of the soldering aspect of wiring.  Of course, without wires & LEDs in the 1st place… well, that’s a problem for another day.  At least good to know that I can easily find soldering stuff at Home-Fix. 😀

I Bought A LEGO Designers’ Tool Set

It’s basically the brick ruler packed with a brick separator (set no. 852690).  Yes, I know I can count the no. of studs and brick height myself, or even DIY a ruler but I figured since it’s not expensive (RRP: S$10.90) and I could save some time and effort during building then why not?

For those interested, the ruler can measure up to 10 bricks tall, 20 studs length, 15 technic lengths (the ones with holes) and 12 technic axles lengths.

Anyway haven’t tried using it yet – still trying to preserve my french manicure… yeah, the perils of being an AFFOL… 😛

I love my brick separator

I love my brick separator. It has saved me countless times from painful fingers and cracked nails (tho I still can’t play with Lego when I have manicures). 

It’s something I wish I knew about when I first became an AFOL, which is why I think I should create a post about it even though experienced AFOLs probably have several.

First, how do you get one? If you stay in a location where S@H is available, you could very easily get one.  It’s set #630.

It’s trickier if like me your country’s toy shops don’t stock the brick separator.  Ebay is always possible, as is Bricklink, but for instant gratification, you could get Lego Deluxe Brick Box set 5508 that comes with one.

Next, how do you use one correctly so you don’t damage your bricks/tiles?  A great “how-to” use brick separator site is Philohome.  The images are animated to show you how to use the brick separator for various scenarios.

The brick separator is also mentioned in the Unofficial Lego Builder’s Guide, and you can get a preview of the book’s contents from google books.

So there you go, the trick of how to separate two hard to get apart plates without resorting to nails, teeth, pliers, or any other tools you have been using (and probably damaging the bricks in the process!).  I’ll recommend getting 2 so you can use one on top and below for tricky bits, but 1 is already really helpful.  It’s probably really good for kids too for those who get Lego sets for their kids to play.

With that thought, I’ll share a cute vig made using brick separator by Yang and Yun’s Album‘s on Flicker: