It's Friday, and that means we're back with another new member of the 10K Club! Today we celebrate Taylor, a.k.a. Krackenator4 and his rustic OGEL CREEK SAW MILL. Inspired by the mill owned by a relative, Taylor has attempted to immortalise a mill in LEGO form - and with wonderful results. Let him know what you think in the comments!
ABOUT YOURSELF
- Who are you?
Hi, my name is Taylor.
- Where are you from?
Atlanta, Georgia.
- How old are you?
I am 25 years old.
- What do you study or do for a living?
I work for a local builder and help to manage the construction of houses. I don’t think I would be working in the building industry if I hadn’t grown up building with LEGO bricks!
- What hobbies do you have?
Besides the LEGP hobby, I enjoy working on and restoring cars, woodworking, and basically anything involving the outdoors.
- Do you have a personal LEGO portfolio website that you can share with us?
I recently started a Flickr account. There isn’t much on it yet, but I’ll be uploading more projects soon!
- Have you created any LEGO MOCs (my own creations) that you’re particularly proud of? What is it, why are you proud of it and do you have a photo of it?
Most of my recent projects have all been digital but I am constantly working on something. One of my favourites is an upgraded 30-gun Black Seas Barracuda. I loved pirate ships as a kid but never had the right pieces to build exactly what I envisioned. But now with Stud.io, I can build anything!
- How and when did your interest in LEGO products come about?
My parents introduced me at a really young age. I think around 4 or 5. The first set I can remember getting was 6755 Sheriff’s Lock Up.
- What is the LEGO hobby to you? What does it mean to you? How does it fit in your life? E.g. build, display, meetups, play the games or 'just' watch the cartoons.
LEGO building is just a fun and relaxing way for me to get my mind off reality. It allows me to create my own stories and worlds as if I were still a kid. As a home builder, I love what I do but am really limited to one genre of building. The great thing about LEGO bricks is that there really are no limitations. I can build an Aztec temple, spaceship, castle etc.
- What is your favourite LEGO theme (current or past)? Why? And has any theme inspired your building style or preference in any particular way?
Well, I think Star Wars is my favourite theme just because I have been a major fan of the series since I was very young. It is what originally led me into creating my own MOCs by recreating movie scenes and battles. However, Creator Expert/Icons is a close second. It has really helped me learn new building techniques and styles over the years.
- What is your favourite official LEGO set ever? Why?
I think Pirates of Barracuda Bay has got to be my favourite set ever. I loved the pirate sets as a kid, but the ships were always too expensive for me, so when I l found out this set existed, I bought it immediately. It’s such an amazing model to display and the inclusion of an updated Black Seas Barracuda was a great touch. This is the set that got me out of an 8-year LEGO dark age!
- What is your favourite LEGO element? Why?
Probably the plant leaves 2417. I know it might be kind of a funny part to have as a favourite but I always loved adding foliage to a scene I built. For me, proper landscaping makes a model feel so much more real.
- Is there a LEGO designer (official LEGO designer or fan designer) who you are inspired by and look up to? Who and why?
I am not all that familiar with the designers but I do enjoy seeing the builds from Mark and Steven who won LEGO Masters. They build some amazing castles and are very imaginative!
- Is there one or more particular LEGO-related websites (not official LEGO websites) that you visit often and/or are inspired by?
I enjoy looking at Flickr, Bricklink gallery, and Reddit for inspiration. Its fun talking with other builders and seeing all the techniques people come up with.
ABOUT YOUR PROJECT
- Where did your interest in this particular model come from?
A relative of mine owns an 18th-century grist mill that is still operational today. It was the original inspiration to build a working mill. However, I decided to have it be a sawmill instead because it offered more functionality opportunities than a grist mill (grist mills grind grain into flour).This styling of a mill is heavily influenced by the light-up Christmas Village buildings that I used to love seeing in stores and at my relative’s houses when I was younger.
- How long was the process of making the project, and what did you have to research as well? What kind of prep, research and design phases did you go through to produce your creation?
It took about a month and a half to complete the project. I watched a lot of videos on what kinds of saws were used in mills and how they all functioned just off simple mechanics. It’s amazing how people found ways to make these mills work! I also had to figure out how to use Blender to make renders of the model. That took me two weeks alone while watching lots of YouTube videos!
- What special challenges did you face creating the model? What was the most difficult part to recreate?
I don’t have a lot of experience building roofs so getting the angles to line up correctly was very difficult, especially with the cupola. This, along with including all the details I wanted while trying to stay around 3000 pieces, was challenging.
- If you could talk to yourself before you started on this project, what would you tell them? What do you know now that you wish you knew then?
If I could go back, I would tell myself to spend a little more time on the interiors. Throughout the gathering support process, I always felt unhappy with the details and layout of the mill’s interiors. I eventually updated it, but I should have experimented more before posting the project.
I also would tell myself to prepare milestone updates to post along the way.
- How long did it take to complete the model? Did you finish it fairly quickly, or did it take a long time? And how did the build time compare to the time you spent promoting your Product Idea to reach 10,000 supporters?
The building portion took about a month. I ended up designing two versions because the first had too many pieces! It took about the same amount of time to build and render as it did to gather support. I was really surprised as to how fast it reached 10,000 votes!
- How did it feel when you reached the magic 10,000 votes and how long did it take?
It seemed surreal when it reached 10K in only about 40 days. When I was a young kid my dream job was to design LEGO sets, so seeing that something I made could one day become an actual set is so crazy!
- Approximately how many LEGO bricks did you use to create your model?
About 3000.
- What is your favourite building technique or part/section that you’ve incorporated into your Product Idea?
The water wheel is my favourite. I think it took about six different versions to finally reach a design that I was happy with. I wanted it to be the first thing people notice when they saw the model.
- If you built your model digitally, what software did you use to build and render your model?
I built the model in Stud.io and rendered it with Blender.
- If you used custom stickers or prints for your design, how did you create them or where did you get them?
The ‘Ogel Creek Saw Mill’ sign is the only custom print I included and I made it in paint.net.
ABOUT LEGO IDEAS
- Do you have any useful advice about creating a successful LEGO Ideas project?
Don’t rush. Build multiple versions of your idea until you reach one you are 100% happy with. Every time you make a variation you will discover a better way to make something. If you are building digitally, take renders along the way. It helps to visualize how it would look in real life and oftentimes can reveal a problem that you otherwise would not have seen in the digital version.
- What (if any) methods did you use to advertise and attract support to your Product Idea?
I advertised my project on Reddit a lot. It received lots of support and positive comments. I got three million views on one post about the project! I think it’s a great way to spread awareness of your idea. It allowed me to get my idea in front of a large audience of people. Some were already LEGO fans as well as many who were unaware of all the 18+ and LEGO Ideas sets up to that point.
- What is your favourite LEGO Ideas Product Idea (besides your own of course)? Are there any Product Ideas you think have been overlooked?
The Roman Warship by Iyan Ha is probably my favourite idea which unfortunately wasn’t approved. I love ancient Roman history and a detailed set like that with the number of figures it included is an army builders dream!
- What is it about the platform that attracts you? What tips would you give to anyone who is thinking about uploading an idea?
I think most AFOLs and TFOLs have probably dreamt of being a LEGO designer at some point. And the fact that the LEGO Group is actually allowing so many people to do so is such an incredible opportunity. The level of fan engagement LEGO Ideas has is unlike any company I have seen. This, and being able to see so many unique and creative projects is what has attracted me to Ideas.
To anyone who is thinking about submitting an idea, I say go for it! Just do some research first. There are some good tutorials on YouTube to help you ensure your project has the best chance of getting enough votes! And don’t be afraid to reach out to other builders if you have questions!
- Do you have plans to submit any other Product Ideas in the future? If yes, can you give us a hint what that might be?
I have multiple projects I’m working on right now. The one I am most excited about has something to do with an empire that existed a few thousand years ago.
