Brickarms M16 Prototype Variants Review!

Our favorite Brickarms video reviewer, KingofPumas, has a brand new look comparing all of the M16s now offered by Brickarms!

BrickArms Minigun Review with MASSIVE amounts of information!

One of my very favorite toy reviewers, Beanmeister22 reviewed the Minigun awhile back, and I learned a lot from it. From the practical uses and details about the ammo to it's appearance in a few movies, this video is a must-see for anyone with questions about the minigun, or for anyone wanting to learn a lot more about this weapon.

[GIVEAWAY] JD's Custom Giveaway - Hand-painted Snakeskin Testprint!

- GIVEAWAY ENDED -

Thank you to everyone for participating! I've drawn a winner and the lucky commenter is LANDO! The Lando, of Lando Swirl fame!

Congratulations!

IT'S ANOTHER JD CUSTOM!

We'll pick a random winner Monday, 11/14/11 - and add a different prize to win. This time, JD put his brush to work on one of our snakeskin test prints to create this:

To enter, just reply to this post and answer the question: YELLOW or FLESHY? You know what I'm talking about! Which is better, which do you use in your own minifigs? Feel free to discuss the merits of each, if you like!

Good luck, everyone! Our standard contest rules do apply!

 

[GIVEAWAY] HEY What's in the box? (Brickarms Proto Reveal at Midnight)

It's true, you can't see the prize til midnight and we can't ship it until tomorrow, after the release. BUT we promise it's a GREAT proto that's going to be very popular! You won't find out what it is til midnight, but enter to win it today ;)

For a random chance to own one of these fine.....<Brickarms>, just reply to this thread with an answer to this question:

WHAT would you most like to see on BrickArsenal.com?

This can be anything - a sale, a promotion, an item...news, reviews, you name it!

ALSO - don't forget we have FREE SHIPPING to the US and Canada right now with code WELCOME at BrickArsenal.com!

*Standard giveaway rules apply - void where prohibited, must be 18+ or have parental permission.

FOR ANOTHER CHANCE TO WIN, ENTER THE GIVEAWAY ON THE BRICKARMS FORUMS TOO!

Bansheeshee, you're getting a new proto! - yours was the first name drawn :)
Eric, you're getting a new proto! - yours was the second name drawn :)

*And the winners are in! Bansheeshee is the first winner Eric (second post) is the second, and Matthijs rounds up the list here on the blog! Congratulations guys, and a HUGE thanks to everyone who came :) I appreciate it a lot!

We're also still giving away 10 of the new proto in 10 random orders between midnight and 5pm!

 

Okay - you can see it! One last name to be drawn shortly!

[GIVEAWAY] It's another JD Custom today - the M1 Carbine full stock! [ENDED]

WE HAVE A WINNER!

Congratulations to Shadowrush97, this fantastic weapon is yours! Please claim your prize by replying to my email.

And THANK YOU to everyone who participated! We have more fun giveaways all the time. ANOTHER GIVEAWAY will begin here in just one moment!

Also be sure to check out our Banana Nunchucks giveaway on Facebook and our Spokesfig contest on the Brickarms Forums for more chances to win!

________________

Hey hey hey, it's another giveaway!

 

We'll pick a random winner tomorrow afternoon (11/2/11) Next Tuesday, 11/8/11* - and add a different prize to win. Today: A Custom Painted M1 Carbine full stock

[caption id="attachment_1578" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Touched by the brush of the master..."][/caption]

All you have to do is comment on this post with your response to this:

If you could only have ONE Brickarm, what would it be and why?

Good luck, everyone! Our standard contest rules do apply!

*Sorry for the edit on the draw date - I was mixed up! Please bear with me.

 

The Beast from the East Grants a Boon! [JD Custom Brickarm]

EDITED TO ANNOUNCE: Congrats to Blockburn! You've won this one :)

Thank you to everyone, but stick around - within 30 minutes I should have the next giveaway up and running here.

_____________________________________________________________

Hey to all from the Brickarms Forums! Since the forum reset, we are moving the giveaway here this week!

This time, we're giving the prizes one at a time, and FAST! We'll pick a random winner tomorrow afternoon (11/1/11) and add a different prize to win. Today: A Custom Painted Snakeskin ARC! Just reply to this post with your answer to this question:

What is your favorite theme for a MOC or minifig? Apoc? WWII? Pirates? Castles? Another? Just tell me what you most like to build!

Good luck, everyone! Our standard contest rules do apply!

Bricks of War Lego Gears of War Animation

This is one of the best stop-motion LEGO films I've ever seen!

And Will Chapman stood atop a mountain and held the child aloft...

and named it an M16A1GL - or an M16 with a curved magazine & Grenade launcher.

Okay, perhaps I'm exaggerating the birth of a new BrickArms prototype, but he did put a "birth announcement" on Flickr this morning to let everyone know we'll be getting some of these at ToyWiz soon!

 


So let's talk about this gun - it is a wildly popular one in our new prototypes, and a little history shows why.

The M16 was used by the US Military starting in 1963 and quickly  became the standard service rifle in the Vietnam war. Ever since then, it has remained the primary service rifle for all branches of the US Armed Forces, and is widely used by militaries world-wide. Wikpedia estimates that over 8 million M16's, in both full-automatic and semi-automatic versions have been made. In 2010, however, the M16 began to be phased out in favor of the M4 Carbine, which BrickArms already produces in it's regular line.

Will remains true to history with this new incarnation of his prototype too - a grenade launcher was produced to be mounted on the M16. And if you noticed that he produced both straight and curved magazines - good eye. The difference between the two is that the short, straight magazine is like the 20-round versions used during the Vietnam War. The longer, curved magazine is a more modern style that is in current use, and holds 30 rounds.

Ultimately, this BrickArms version of the M16 has uses for almost any military builder, and also for fans of modern combat games like Call of Duty. Of course, Will created the specific model M16A1 for his prototype, but it is similar enough to other versions, especially at Lego size, to suffice in most builds. And for some builders - especially those wanting to make Vietnam War MOCs - this weapon is almost a necessity.

It is also a fantastic base piece for modifications. Because so many have been produced for so long, there have been many variations of the M16 in service, and it wouldn't be out of place to mod it with different parts for specific purposes.  If you wanted the M16 from prior to 1967, for example, removing the forward assist is a simple modification to attempt.

The Wikipedia entry for this weapon is a great starting point for research into how to modify your BAP into a weapon appropriate for your era, setting or conflict.

Brickarms new D.O.G Pack coming tomorrow!

The Brickarms just keep coming, and we're going to keep bringing them on! This time, the D.O.G. Pack, Series 2 - That's "Dark Olive Green,"  if you didn't know - the perfect hue for a ton of military/combat purposes.

We'll also be bringing them at a HUGE discount off the retail price, so keep watching! We've got a deal on this like you won't believe!

This time, the pack comes with a huge variety of weapons for lots of uses, with both realistic and Sci-fi potential.

The pack has 25 Dark Olive Green weapons:

• X2 HCSR


• X2 AC8


• X2 M1 Carbine


• X2 Combat PDW


• X2 Sawed-Off Shotgun


• X2 M203 Grenade Launcher


• X1 Spy Carbine


• X1 Longslide Pistol


• X1 BAR


• X1 Apoc SMG


• X1 PPSh


• X1 Claymore Sword


• X1 HSR


• X1 Cricket Bat


• X1 Space Magnum


• X1 StG44 Vampir


• X1 MG42


• X1 M1917 Revolver


• X1 P08 Luger

Here's a look at the sweet olive goodness:

So what do you think? Is this another must-have from Will Chapman's Brickarms workshop?

Brickarms Mystery Pack V. 2 - "Case Break" video

We opened a sealed bag of 25 packs of these new Mystery Packs - take a look at the contents and the surprise prototype chase!

Brickarms Mystery Pack, Volume 2 FAQ!

We're getting so many questions about the newest version of the Mystery Pack from Brickarms, I thought we'd do well to offer a handy FAQ for everyone.

[caption id="attachment_1468" align="aligncenter" width="275" caption="This time, there's prototypes!"][/caption]

How much does it cost? $10

How many weapons do you get? 4

Are there gold weapons again? Yes! This time, there are other random weapons too: Prototype weapons, a blood-spattered 24K gold weapon, or a regular 24K gold-plated Tactical Sword or Ray Gun!

What variety of common weapons will be in these? This time, you will get a specific mix: a Minigun, a Ray Gun, a Tactical Sword and one of 8 Bloody Spattered camo weapons.

What are the Bloody Spattered Camo Weapons? Paint gun, Dadao, Combat Knife, Damien Blade, Chainblade, Machete, Combat Shotgun or M21 Sniper Rifle.

What special colors are coming out? We don't know all of them, but we do know that the Tactical Sword can come in chromes, including red, blue, light and dark chromes. We also know this:

• Tactical swords come in 25 colors


• Miniguns in 20 colors


• Ray Guns in 25 colors


• Bloody Spattered Camo is on 8 different weapons: Paint gun, Dadao, Combat Knife, Damien Blade, Chainblade, Machete, Combat Shotgun or M21 Sniper Rifle.

What are the odds of getting a special weapon? 1 in 25 packs will have either a prototype or a 24k gold weapon. These are the "chase" weapons in the Mystery Packs, volume 2.

What are the odds of getting a prototype? 1 in 100!

Will you be selling the pack contents separately? Yes we will!

Will you sell them by the case? Yes! A case will contain 25 packs this time, instead of 20. In any case of 25, you are guaranteed to get either a gold weapon or a prototype. *This is only true if you order the case! If you order 25  packs, you may or may not get a chase weapon - or you may get more than one. But the only way you are guaranteed to get one of the rares is in a sealed case purchase!

Are the bloody weapons the same as the ones ToyWiz gave as prizes on the Brickarms forums? No! This is a different blood pattern that Will has created - and in a truly awesome move, you might  even get a super-rare Blood-Spattered camo Gold Weapon!

Does the Minigun come with an ammo chain? No.

[caption id="attachment_1465" align="aligncenter" width="275" caption="Miniguns...many guns! "][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1466" align="aligncenter" width="275" caption="Sweet colors here!"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1467" align="aligncenter" width="275" caption="Just a sampling of what's going to be available!"][/caption]

 

Brickarms Trivia, Facts and...oh yeah, 108 of them on SALE!

We were talking about Brickarms on Friday and realized a lot of things. First and foremost: We're #1! We love that, and it's because of you! So we decided to celebrate with a sale and share a little Brickarms trivia!



We've had a long and awesome relationship with Brickarms and Will Chapman, so here area few fun ToyWiz/Brickarms facts:

• ToyWiz was Will's very first reseller for Brickarms! We saw the product and fell in love with it, so we wanted to support the business from very early on!


• ToyWiz remains the #1 reseller for Brickarms worldwide. I'd love to tell you how many we've sold, but I can't count that high!


• On the Brickarms forums, ToyWiz's section is the third most popular for posting - right behind the Vignettes & Dioramas and the Minifigs sections! And we think that's the perfect place to be - after all, Brickarms are all about the builds!


• The ToyWiz section is far and away #1 on the forums for post responses! That may sound silly, but it means that we're not just posting to get post counts - it means that the activity in the ToyWiz resellers section is real - we're a hot place to be!


• ToyWiz has employees who really love Brickarms, just like you. We've got over 60,000 toys and games to play with, but we keep coming back to Brickarms for our own hobbies. JD and Bebs do customs, and we have others who enjoy building and making minifigs too!


• The owner of ToyWiz loves Brickarms so much, we're allowed to post on forums and work on our customs at work. That's right! We sometimes get to play with Brickarms while we're on the clock. IT IS AWESOME!

That's all I can think of for now, except this: THANK YOU! If it weren't for community support, we wouldn't get to have so much fun with our own Brickarms! We love you guys!

ToyWiz under zombie attack!

Our friend Sam over at the Brickarms Forums created a fantastic MOC of the ToyWiz facility, complete with zombies...because yeah, zombies! We really appreciate the effort put into this vision of our workplace!

 

[caption id="attachment_1438" align="aligncenter" width="368" caption="From the prior MOC - before the zombie invasion. Look at all those Brickarms!"][/caption]

A big thank you goes out to Sam/asdkk for creating this fantastic Lego version of  ToyWiz!  Click here to see all of the images at the Brickarms Forum!

More New Collectible Brickarms Available Tomorrow!

Here's a great preview of the next round of rare, collectible Brickarms going up for sale in our Rare Collectible Camo section! They should be available to purchase at around 9:00 a.m., EST, while they last.

[caption id="attachment_1394" align="aligncenter" width="200" caption="White Longslide with Early Winter Camo"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1393" align="aligncenter" width="350" caption="White AC8 with Monochrome Digital Camo"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1392" align="aligncenter" width="204" caption="Trans Green Space Magnum with Forest Camo"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1391" align="aligncenter" width="350" caption="Trans Clear AC8 with Jungle Camo"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1390" align="aligncenter" width="350" caption="Trans Blue AC8 with Christmas Camo"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1389" align="aligncenter" width="350" caption="Tan AC8 with Early Urban Camo"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1388" align="aligncenter" width="350" caption="Tan AC8 with Urban Digital Camo"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1387" align="aligncenter" width="350" caption="AC8 with Striped Camo "][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1386" align="aligncenter" width="350" caption="Tan AC8 with Dirty Digital Camo"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1385" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Tan Machete with Early Desert Camo"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1384" align="aligncenter" width="350" caption="Tan AC8 with Blotchy Camo"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1383" align="aligncenter" width="350" caption="Silver AC8 with Monochrome Digital Camo"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1382" align="aligncenter" width="350" caption="Silver AC8 with Early Muddy Jungle Camo"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1376" align="aligncenter" width="200" caption="Bronze Combat Knife with Desert Striped Camo"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1377" align="aligncenter" width="170" caption="Tan Space Magnum with Urban Digital Camo"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1378" align="aligncenter" width="350" caption="Tan AC8 with Striped Desert Camo"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1379" align="aligncenter" width="350" caption="Tan PPSh with Urban Digital Camo and Desert Camo Drum"][/caption]

 

[caption id="attachment_1381" align="aligncenter" width="607" caption="Silver M1 Garand with Forest Camo"][/caption]

 

Energy-Swirled Brickarms Plasma Blade Tutorial

A lot of people really liked my custom Brickarms Plasma Blades, but nobody guessed how I did it or what I used on the Brickarms Forums! It's pretty easy, so I created a tutorial for anyone who wants to try it themselves.

First order of business: the big reveal: It's NAIL POLISH! That's right, like a manicure for Brickarms! Now before you start thinking "ewwww girly!" let me tell you who first inspired me to try it: the manliest man I've ever known. He's a retired US Navy fighter pilot who did 3 tours of Vietnam, then worked as a game warden on a 5,000 acre preserve for another 20 years before retiring again. He's a skilled hunter, a firearms expert, and an all-around take-charge sort of man. And his nail polish? Well you'll find him shopping the colors at the beauty counter from time to time, and I dare you to say anything about it. He uses it to paint fishing lures! It turns out that polish is better than paint because it comes in a crazy array of finishes and colors, including iridescent and glitter, and it's durable, water-proof and has a smooth, hard finish.

Now the other part of my inspiration is simple too: Paper Marbling. This is as simple as floating colors on water, swirling them around, then transferring the result to paper. You can also use this method on fingernails too. So with nail polish, a few Brickarms, and a lot of trial-and-error, I've settled on a way to make this work!

Step 1: Gather supplies:

A few notes on choosing nail polish:

• Don't get anything that says "Quick Dry" or "Fast Drying." You'll need time to make the swirls before it sets.


• With brands, you may have to experiment. Some dry too fast even if they're not labeled "fast dry." I bought tons of cheap 99 cent polishes to get an array of colors, and found that some worked well, others didn't, even within the same brand. With more expensive brands, I got more consistently good results (OPI, specifically).


• Assuming that some people trying this have no nail polish experience, let me tell you this: Cream = usually thick and not transparent. Glitter = usually a color of glitter in a transparent or translucent base. Sheer = translucent. And if you want areas that show the original color of the weapon, you can also try a clear polish for those. Most polishes will be sheer or semi-translucent with this method because the layers are so thin.

Step 2: Tape off your Brickarm:

The easiest way I found is to cut a piece of masking tape at a taper so it fits through the handle of the weapon. It serves two purposes - it will mask off the areas where you don't want color (be sure that you leave the grip of any weapon paint-free so that it won't chip or wear in the hand of a minifigure). It also provides a handle for you to hang onto while you work.

 





Step 3: Get the polish into the bowl.

• Fill the bowl with warm water, then shake and open all your bottles. You need to work fast, so having them all ready to go is important.


• Start by dropping one drop of polish onto the surface of the water. Sometimes the drop is too big and heavy, and will sink to the bottom. If that happens, just try again with another drop. Don't bother trying to stir or move the drop that fell.


• That first drop should spread out thinly across the water and float. Put your second drop right in the middle.


• Continue with all your colors, making circles if you can. If they don't come out as perfect circles, that's okay too.

In this second picture, I've added an iridescent light blue to the darker blue (it looks like a bubble just above and left of the center). That's why my end result isn't quite as swirly as I'd like - the two colors were too similar. Once the darker blue spread thinly, it became lighter and more sheer than I had expected.



Step 4: Swirl it!

This is the tell-tale step, when you'll know for sure if your polishes are good for creating this effect. If they've dried too fast or you worked too slowly, they'll just lift off the water and you can try again.

• Use a toothpick, broom straw or any skinny object to start swirling your colors gently.


• Don't stir! Just insert your stick and slowly pull through the pools of color until you're happy with the result.

Step 5: Let's dip that Brickarm!

First, line up your weapon over the pattern you made to see where it will look best. If you dip it into an area that is too solid, you won't get the swirled effect.

Then just push it into the pattern and under the water. At this point, you've coated just one side with a pattern - the side facing away from you.

• If you want to leave the other side clear (it will show through the pattern on the opposite side if you're using a trans weapon), then while holding the weapon under water, take a cotton swab, a tissue, or anything and just "pick up" the remaining color that's on the water before bringing your Brickarm back to the surface.


• Otherwise, look at the surface to choose a swirly area for bringing the Brickarm back up. This will coat the part facing you.

Step 6: Bring the weapon out of the water & do any touchups.

As you can see, this one needed a little help. I used my hairpin to scrape out the openings so they'd dry smoothly. It's easier to do this when the weapon is wet, and if you get any rough areas, you can later smooth them more with nail polish remover and a layer of clear polish on top.



If you get a weird string of polish trailing behind your weapon, just gently scrape it off on the side of your bowl.

I just tape my Brickarms to the side of the bowl by the masking tape handle I made to dry.

And after all that, you just need to do any touch-ups with nail polish remover, and possibly paint it with one coat of clear polish to seal it, make it shiny and fill in any small imperfections!



A few important notes:

• One reason this looks less swirled than I'd like is because the colors were very similar. More contrast would have helped.


• Another reason it looks too solid is because I coated both sides. Since the weapon is transparent, I could have just coated one side and left the other clear. That would have made the swirls more distinct. Instead, now you see the band of color on both sides through the weapon, so it looks more like a solid-colored weapon than a swirl. It is, however, still translucent!

And that's all there is to it! It takes a little practice, but I ran out of Plasma Blades before I was quite happy with the result. Next time, I think I'll have it perfect!

So what do you think? Would you try using nail polish to customize a Brickarm?