Jedi Training - Lighting Things UP !

 This is the final post covering the Degobah diorama.  This one concerns the addition of a touch of LED lighting to Yoda's hut.

The lighting device of choice comes from one of those flicker votive candles.

The LED used for this item has built in circuitry to produce the flicker effect, making it the perfect choice to simulate a fireplace flame in a LEGO set.

After carefully extracting the LED from the candle base, it was only a matter of wiring it up along with a limiting resistor, a battery, and a small two-position switch. 

A 270 ohm resistor was perfect for achieving the right brightness for the LED, and the whole thing is powered by a 3 volt lithium battery.

The LED assembly was hot melt glued to a black 2x2 plate to facilitate its mounting inside the structure.

I had to disassemble a substantial portion of the model to reach the area where the LED would go.

The unit was originally installed in the section where the original trans red and orange tile 'fireplace' resided.  This detail was buried way off to the left side of the hut and was not even visible from any angle from the outside.

Once I had the entire set re-assembled, I switched on the lighting feature and saw...nothing!

The LED was too far buried behind other interior elements to shed any light at all.

So, the model came apart a second time....

On this round, the LED was moved to the very center of the hut, out in the open.  I also sealed the large opening at the back of the diorama with white bricks that would reflect more of the light forward.  

Of course, this now prevents the interior details of the hut from being visible, but I am willing to sacrifice that in order to have the lighting effect, instead.

Engineering always involves some degree of give-and-take. 

Once the model was re-assembled and switched on, the results were very satisfactory. The lighting effect has a nice orange glow that flickers as if there's a real fire burning inside.

The Degobah Jedi Training diorama is now completed!

Thanks for looking.

'Filming Jedi Training On Degobah' Comic Strip

 OK, blog readers.

Now that I've finished building the official 'Jedi Training' set, it's time for a bit of a whimsical photography session featuring the mini-figs and an additional cast of characters.  

Enjoy....

CHEERS !!!

Jedi Training - The Final Touches

 Bag number six of the Degobah set consists of the parts necessary to add all the small details that will complete the diorama scene.

Of course, the first thing to do is to knock together the R2D2 minifig.

This one is notable because of the added pre-printed mud splatters obtained during the droid's little dip in the pond and subsequent rejection as food from the large denizen of the deep that captured it.

The rest of the parts add in various items such as the shoreline swamp plants, a couple of reptilian and amphibian creatures, some of the tech equipment that Luke extracted from the X-wing, and of course, the protruding wing tip of the submerged ship.

The latter is the only feature in the entire set that includes any kind of Technic parts.

The Final Analysis....

Overall, this has been one of the most satisfying and enjoyable LEGO sets I've put together to date.

In an 18x34 stud base, the set designer managed to put together the complete essence of the Degobah sequences from the film.

As I was building this set, the detailing brought back vivid images of the movie.

As soon as I stuck the last part on this diorama, I ran downstairs to the basement La-BOR-atory to fire up the big screen TV that resides therein, and re-watch the entire Degobah section of 'The Empire Strikes Back'!

It's uncanny how closely the set so superbly mirrored the onscreen action!

 An Added Bonus...

When the diorama is turned around to show the back side, one discovers that the rear of Yoda's dwelling is open to show the detailed interior!

Here can be found a low sleeping mat, a cooking surface complete with a kettle of "good food, yes?", and above, attached to an overhead shelf, Yoda's light saber!

Hidden behind the low wall is a small fire pit.

Methinks this would be a good place to plug in some LED lighting to illuminate the interior.

Be on the lookout for a future post.....

Jedi Training - Parts Bag #5

 This part of the build finishes off the top of Yoda's humble dwelling, and completes the hoary old swamp trees that serve as a backdrop.

Yoda's hut and the trees are perfect examples of the set designer's mastery of creating irregular and organic objects out of LEGO elements - not an easy task. There is not a blocky, squared off corner to be found anywhere, including in the shape of the swamp shoreline.

The trees are a work of art, with the gnarly forms and multiple root features rendered with various arches, slopes and log bricks. The placement of the deep green leaf and moss elements adds  just the right atmosphere to the set.  

Included in this bag is the Yoda mini-fig. 

This version is different than the Yoda figs from other sets. The Degobah Yoda's homespun attire is adorned with printed  tears, stains, and spots acquired from his exile's life in the swamp.  Yoda also carries the famous walking stick that he used so expressively in the film.

Tomorrow - the final bag....

Jedi Training - The Big #4.

 This part of the Degobah diorama consists of laying down the final 'dry land' plates and starting the build-up of Yoda's dwelling and the background tree features.

Spread over two bags, there are a substantial amount of pieces at this stage.

Surprisingly, there are no new or unusual parts in the lot - it's all the standard plates, bricks, slopes, arches, and tiles, with a few SNOT pieces thrown in. 

Here is a progress pic:

Moving on...

Jedi Training - "MMmmmm, Swamp Water!"

This imaginary Homer Simpson quote describes the contents of set bag #3.

Seeing as how it is entirely made up of 1x1 trans green plates and tiles, I know this part of the build will be devoted to building the Degobah swamp water surface.

After rolling up my sleeves and shooing away the 'Skeleton Crew', it was time to get to work.

Over 200 tiny green pieces later, I have a very proper swamp.

And it doesn't even stink!

I am really struck with the clever way in which the designer of this set rendered the water. The different colors of underlying plates gave the effect of varying degrees of  depth.

After plugging in the many tiny pieces, I was not satisfied with the overall progress of the build, so I broke open bag(s) #4.

Normally, when I do a large set build, I limit things to one parts bag per evening. Tonight was different.

The parts in the new bags constitute the meat and potatoes of constructing the swamp shoreline, followed by Master Yoda's dwelling and background trees.

I managed to click together about two-thirds of the bag 4 parts before realizing it was way beyond my 'lights-out' time.

The remainder will be finished this evening.

Here is the progress pic...

Cheers!

Jedi Training - Putting The 'Bog' in 'Blog' !

 

Bag number two of this set build begins construction of the swamp base that will give the overlying water surface the proper appearance of depth and murkiness.

The left side of the diorama base is given over to the areas of 'dry' land upon which Yoda's dwelling and the tall vegetation will later be constructed.

This stage of the build is done entirely with plates in gray and earth tones (Degobah tones?). In the front right corner are the simulated swamp water splashes and the clip-modified plate that marks where the protruding X-Wing wing will be later mounted.

Of course, me being me, I had to MOC-atize this stage of the build with a little bit of whimsy.

Out came my recently acquired 'Skeleton Crew' to invade the mud-filled wading pool.

The 'guys' are having a great time frolicking and slogging in the muck while a somewhat dismayed Luke Skywalker looks on.

More to come....

Jedi Training - Starting At The Beginning

Last evening, I tore into the box to begin building the Degobah diorama.

After perusing the set's back-story in the instruction book, out came the parts bag labeled '1'. 

Of course, the first thing to do is to assemble whatever minifig comes in the bag.

This one is pre-Jedi Luke Skywalker. 

Not a light saber in sight....

The remainder of the bag contains the parts for building the diorama base.

This proved to be extremely easy as it is entirely basic plate n' brick construction with a handful of SNOT thrown in to support some decorative silver grill tiles and a pair of printed tiles, and enough long 1x tiles to smooth out the top row.

It took me all of fifteen minutes to knock out this section.

At this point, the build resembles a brand new over-sized wading pool.

It gets more interesting from here.

Stay tuned....

A New Set To Chew On....

 ...and maybe even build !!

Yesterday, a package arrived on my front doorstep, a birthday gift from one of my daughters.

The box contained a very interesting LEGO set - Degobah Jedi Training, (#75330).

This offering depicts the iconic scene from 'The Empire Strikes Back" in which Luke is attempting to use the Force to levitate his X-wing from the swamp while Master Yoda looks on.

A major part of the scene includes the exiled master's humble dwelling on the planet Degobah.

This 1000 piece set is a perfect addition to my growing collection of Star Wars-themed LEGO.

I intend to start work on it tonight.

Stay tuned....