2017 Modular Building - "Celebrating Modular Buildings' 10th Anniversary!"

bmwlego

Ha! I am fortunate to own all of the modulars but the last one I built was Pet Shop. I've got TH, PC, PR, DO and BB still waiting to be built.

my spare time isn't what it use to be and I don't have shelving or displays for more more modulars.

CapnRex101

I have now published the review on the homepage so I hope you enjoy it. It almost goes without saying that it's a terrific set!

josekalel

Considering the availability of most modular sets and how (in my opinion and very limited knowledge) have had a short shelf life (because of high demand and low supply), how long do you all think this set will last before it is retired/OOS and not available from any major retailer at regular price?

My point is, I do not want to wait on buying it to later learn is not available anymore and that I have to pay 3x its price through eBay or another reseller. Based on most reviews they like the set, so I don't know how 'sought after' it will be. 

stlux

Availability of the previous modulars (US [email protected] as reported by Brickset):

• #10190 Market Street: Oct 2007 - Apr 2009
• #10182 Cafe Corner: Oct 2007 - Dec 2009
• #10185 Green Grocer: Mar 2008 - Nov 2010
  
• #10197 Fire Brigade: Sep 2009 - Dec 2013
  
• #10211 Grand Emporium: Mar 2010 - Oct 2014
  
• #10218 Pet Shop: May 2011 - Nov 2016
  
• #10224 Town Hall: Mar 2012 - Oct 2014
  
• #10232 Palace Cinema: Mar 2013 - now
  
• #10243 Parisian Restaurant: Jan 2014 - now
  
• #10246 Detective's Office:  Jan 2015 - now
  
• #10251 Brick Bank: Jan 2016 - now
  

For the already retired sets, that's an average of 3 years availability. Outliers are MS and GG with 1.5 years, and PS with 5.5 years.

Personally I don't have PR/DO/BB yet of the current modulars, so I will prioritize these in 2017. YMMV etc :)

Standard disclaimer: As ever with TLG though, don't count on past retirements to predict future retirements with anything close to 100% certainty. The higher piece count and RRP for this set might also make it behave different from the other modulars. Then again, the Death Star lived/lives forever, and so seems Tower Bridge...

oldtodd33

I completely agree with stlux. The high price point might keep it from selling well like Town Hall did but with other companies stealing the Lego modular designs they night keep it around for as long as they can so people can buy a legitimate copy from Lego. The point is with everything else, if you want it, get it now. If I remember correctly, Lego will do double VIP in April. 

sid3windr

^ Interesting, I never realized Pet Shop was older than Town Hall! That does explain the jokes about reselling it etc ;)

I'll definitely be getting Assembly Square in 2017, but not in February as I already totally blew my budget for that month... in 2016. :D

josekalel

@stlux Thanks for the info, it's very useful. Like you implied, there is no certain rule, and with lesser 'liked' sets (I'm looking at you PS), it might not be a problem. 

bandit778

My only worry with this is that being a 10th anniversary set it will have a short shelf life , especially as its a bit of a departure from the normal modular sets (build wise). I hope it isn't but I am aiming to get this before the end of next year just in case.

madforLEGO

bandit778 said:

My only worry with this is that being a 10th anniversary set it will have a short shelf life , especially as its a bit of a departure from the normal modular sets (build wise). I hope it isn't but I am aiming to get this before the end of next year just in case.

I see this set on par with the Town Hall. It is not a 'typical' mod, and I would not be surprised to see it gone in 2 years, being a '10th anniversary' special or not. I say get it if you have a ton of VIP points to unload or there is a double point event this year, as I doubt this set will be like the Pet shop where they have to discount them to move them at its EOL.

Fauch

when I heard the stories about town hall, I always figured it had been retired after like a year maybe.
2 and a half year doesn't sound that bad.

Briking

Day 1 purchase.  For me.  And my TFOL.

pharmjod

My prediction on Assembly Square, 4 years minimum.

SumoLego

pharmjod said:

My prediction on Assembly Square, 4 years minimum.

Since it's a 10-year anniversary, why not ten years?

ARo2891

pharmjod said:

My prediction on Assembly Square, 4 years minimum.

I was gonna say, I don't think there's any way this doesn't last at least four years unless there's some type of production catastrophe with parts or with the packaging/advertising that forces them to shut it down (and even that's unlikely considering its size and cost.)  There will be a shortage early on as all us nerds flock to pick it up before it levels out and is consistently available (across the U.S. at least, I can't speak for anywhere else - even some parts of the U.S. honestly). 

Personally, I don't like that they've shrunken the size of these things in favor of more intricate detailing.  I do love the much higher level of detailing but I think they've sacrificed size a little too much, the BB comes to mind as just being an incredibly small bank.  May not be a January buy for me but we'll see, I might cave once work bonuses come in...

Legoboy

SumoLego said:

pharmjod said:

My prediction on Assembly Square, 4 years minimum.

Since it's a 10-year anniversary, why not ten years?

How about one year, given it can only be a 10-year anniversary for that long?

weeksuk

It's available now on the official U.K. Shop - order placed 

AdeelZubair

William_Townsley said:

the modular will be £170

I just had a look and it's still not listed for £169.99, I guess the price is £179.99.

https://shop.lego.com/en-GB/Assembly-Square-10255

dbrouge

10$ increase in Canada too, it's listed at 339.99 instead of 329.99 from press release

Patrik78

Great, it has just reappeared on [email protected] for my country, 259 EUR current exchange rate, same as in November when it was added for the first time.

BTW I have already issued an order, couldn't resist... 

thebeermonkey

Live on UK [email protected]

£179.99

William_Townsley

Now it's just the long wait until Monday. To go and pick it up from the Lego store 

madforLEGO

ARo2891 said:

pharmjod said:

My prediction on Assembly Square, 4 years minimum.

I was gonna say, I don't think there's any way this doesn't last at least four years unless there's some type of production catastrophe with parts or with the packaging/advertising that forces them to shut it down (and even that's unlikely considering its size and cost.)  There will be a shortage early on as all us nerds flock to pick it up before it levels out and is consistently available (across the U.S. at least, I can't speak for anywhere else - even some parts of the U.S. honestly). 

Personally, I don't like that they've shrunken the size of these things in favor of more intricate detailing.  I do love the much higher level of detailing but I think they've sacrificed size a little too much, the BB comes to mind as just being an incredibly small bank.  May not be a January buy for me but we'll see, I might cave once work bonuses come in...

I'm sure many said roughly the same thing about the Town Hall.

flord

I will at least wait for double points if I'm spending $330.

Sethro3

^That is probably wise. Part of my Christmas present was Assembly Square...but I think I will wait until March/April for double points to get a better bang for my buck.

dspigel

I couldn't help myself. I placed my order as soon as I could.

chrisalddin

going to see what i can get saved up for the Easter bonus VIP points.
still need DO, BB, and now i can add AS to that list.

gratefulnat

Order placed, hope to be building next weekend and get 2017 off to a rockin' start.

AdeelZubair

30 minutes left!

Legoboy

I do hate the way the baseplates curl up on the corners. 

bandit778

Legoboy said:

I do hate the way the baseplates curl up on the corners. 

Although to be fair, raised and ill fitting paving slabs is fairly accurate to most town centres.
;)

AdeelZubair

xwingpilot

Stop tempting me TLG. I don't even collect modulars...

SumoLego

72%?  Such an overachiever...

Patrik78

Legoboy said:

I do hate the way the baseplates curl up on the corners. 

Damn this has never happened to me, thought you can only see this on pictures of a Lepin modular, not genuine Lego... 

blogzilly

Maybe to save money they used a LEPIN in the window display... LOL

Jody

I've had it happen on both Lego and Lepin with Lego baseplates. It has a lot to do with tile clutch and the pattern of the tiles around the corners. Just bend it back the other way and it flattens out. 

Paperballpark

Legoboy said:

I do hate the way the baseplates curl up on the corners. 

It's not just baseplates though. Connect a load of normal plates (e.g. 16x16 plates) together, and you'll find the same thing - they curl up a bit at the sides. It's only once you've built quite a lot across the whole thing that it flattens out.

It's more noticable in baseplates because they're thinner, and bend much more easily.

ryjay

I still cant get beyond the $279 price tag.  Lego makes it easy to walk away....unfortunately :(

bluedragon

bought mine!
with VIP points!
in the UK!

Briking

The nipper and I both bought our copies at Westfield this morning.  Car park was deserted when we arrived at 11:30.  Brunch at Five Guys.  Sauntered across to the Lego store at 11:55.  Must have been at least 30 queued up.

They hadn't even bothered putting Assembly Square on the shelf.  Stacked behind the check out desk, with a member of staff going back and forth to get them from the stock room.

When we left at 12:20 the car park was over-flowing.  The early bird, etc.

Really enjoying this one.  Half way through step 2. And time for bed.

pharmjod

madforLEGO said:

I'm sure many said roughly the same thing about the Town Hall.

You are not wrong, but this is a completely different beast. I stand by my prediction of 4 years minimum. And, if the Pet Shop and other sets are any indication, I suspect we will see sale prices on it as well. I'm probably gonna wait until I can get it 20% off somehow.

CircleK

ryjay said:

I still cant get beyond the $279 price tag.  Lego makes it easy to walk away....unfortunately :(

I hear ya. I love the model and I'm not saying it isnt worth it, but this would be the most I have ever spent on a single new set. This is $300 bucks after tax for me. For someone who mainly buys select Creator 3in1, that's a shit load of sets. 

oldtodd33

Bought Assembly Square and 20 LBTM polys plus the Batman freebie minus VIP points minus Christmas gift card = $4.92. 

madforLEGO

Will be waiting until the Batman poly promo in February to buy. I would wait for double points, but if I did that for every expensive set I would never use my points.

Leopard

It's been on backorder for the last 3 hours, very interesting 

AdeelZubair

starfire2

I'm going to wait until double VIP points.

Bumblepants

I am plotting my work travel to have a layover long enough in Vienna to race to the Lego store and back on a trip in March to get mine.

AdeelZubair

bsiu922

thinking about wait until next month for the Lego Batman polybag or wait for double VIP