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Star Destroyer Built Before Your Eyes

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the own-the-force-now dept.

hardcoredreamer writes "These people spent 10 hours constructing their very own Imperial II-class Star Destroyer from LEGO and capturing over 7000 frames of the process with their webcam. The images were encoded with divx5 and are available to download in a 4 minute .avi. mirror 1 , mirror 2 , mirror 3."

62 of 235 comments (clear)

  1. heh by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    i swear i saw the guy eat a piece. in frame 3857.

    1. Re:heh by BlackMesaLabs · · Score: 5, Funny

      In frame 313, you can clearly see his head move BACK, and to the LEFT!
      BACK, and to the LEFT!
      BACK, and to the LEFT!!

  2. Geeks don't RTFM on the first attempt! by Hungus · · Score: 5, Insightful

    This would have been far more interesting if:
    A) it had not come as a kit with all the parts in neat little bags
    B) They had not kept looking at the instructions.

    Putting together legos using the manuals really doesn't take that much does it? Now a to scale ISD out of 3m expanding foam carved with a hot wire and plumbed with LEDs .. now that would be cool AND you could float it on a pond.

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    1. Re:Geeks don't RTFM on the first attempt! by cybercobra · · Score: 2, Funny

      Where did you steal my plans from?
      I'll get you for this!

      Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to change my pgp key.

    2. Re:Geeks don't RTFM on the first attempt! by FidelCatsro · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Yes , but you know how many problems are caused by people not RTFM .
      That said , LEGO models like this are just collectors pieces for display(I have about 50), I make other models from my spare LEGOs going by models and so on this is where the real fun is. Designing and building your own .
      If you pay 300 (I have seen this kit go for anything from 200-400 roughly) then your not going to want to risk losing pieces

      --
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    3. Re:Geeks don't RTFM on the first attempt! by badboy_tw2002 · · Score: 5, Funny

      Do you know how many Bothans died for those plans? They damn well BETTER use them!

    4. Re:Geeks don't RTFM on the first attempt! by The+Grey+Clone · · Score: 3, Informative

      It goes for $299 on Lego.com right now. Ouch.

    5. Re:Geeks don't RTFM on the first attempt! by kf6auf · · Score: 2, Informative

      I wouldn't pay more than $300 for it. But that's just me.

    6. Re:Geeks don't RTFM on the first attempt! by ciroknight · · Score: 4, Funny

      *clears throat*, excuse me? I just clearly watched a video of them doing it in less than five minutes. So that whole "record" thing is wrong ;)

      --
      "Victory means exit strategy, and it's important for the President to explain to us what the exit strategy is." G.W.Bush
    7. Re:Geeks don't RTFM on the first attempt! by Inda · · Score: 2, Interesting

      I was expecting something different...

      It would have been more interesting if they started at the bottom and glued the first section to the table. They could have made a time-lapse animation of it being built a few pieces at a time.

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    8. Re:Geeks don't RTFM on the first attempt! by ciroknight · · Score: 2, Funny

      Hate to reply again, but does anyone see this ironic? The day we're supposed to be blowing things up, we instead put Lego things together? Weeird..

      --
      "Victory means exit strategy, and it's important for the President to explain to us what the exit strategy is." G.W.Bush
    9. Re:Geeks don't RTFM on the first attempt! by ciroknight · · Score: 2, Informative

      Erm, the design of the model's kinda prohibitive; it has an inner framework and panels that attach to the outside. It'd be like a navel ship designer starting at the bottom and building the frame at the same time as they built the outer panels; while the ship might get built, it's horribly inefficient if the work is divided up evenly, and might not even get the same expected outcome if a problem arrised during construction.

      Of course, I'm speaking in general engineering terms, but specifically, you have to turn the thing over to attach the bottom panels. Also, while applying the larger body panels, a certain amount of force is acceptable, and too much could certainly break the model, especially if trying a bottom up approach as you pointed out.

      Don't get me wrong, it'd be hella cool, it's just not feasable :-/

      --
      "Victory means exit strategy, and it's important for the President to explain to us what the exit strategy is." G.W.Bush
    10. Re:Geeks don't RTFM on the first attempt! by apa666 · · Score: 2, Funny

      Geeks don't RTFM on the first attempt!
      Don't you mean idiots?

    11. Re:Geeks don't RTFM on the first attempt! by Goth+Biker+Babe · · Score: 2, Insightful

      I was given the Back Hoe excavator LEGO technics set. It's both technics and pneumatic. Even with the instructions it took several sessions and I got the piping wrong. Some of these big sets would be difficult unless you're a very experienced LEGO builder.

    12. Re:Geeks don't RTFM on the first attempt! by leuk_he · · Score: 2, Informative

      strange, for me it shows Price: EUR 369.99 , which is considerable more then $299 (looks like they got the euro dollar ratio in reverse since 354 dollar = 299 euro ?)

    13. Re:Geeks don't RTFM on the first attempt! by welsh+git · · Score: 2, Funny

      The geek WAS the girl, and the bloke was her b/f

      It's the girls site!

      --
      Sig out of date
    14. Re:Geeks don't RTFM on the first attempt! by John_Booty · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Gentoo: Like Deb, but faster and with none of the overzealousness. POWER TO PYTHON!

      I like how your signature contains an implicit criticism of Debian for "overzealousness", immediately followed by "POWER TO PYTHON!" in all caps. Pot, kettle...

      --

      OtakuBooty.com: Smart, funny, sexy nerds.
  3. Re:/,-ed by Lord+Duran · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Try one of the mirrors - they're slow, but working. Downloading it right now (at 8kb/s -_-) from mirror 3.

  4. Benny Hill by njcoder · · Score: 5, Funny

    Anyone else start humming the theme song for the Benny Hill show while watching this?

    --
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    1. Re:Benny Hill by SamMichaels · · Score: 4, Funny

      Anyone else start humming the theme song for the Benny Hill show while watching this?

      I expected Tux to come out of the back room, smash it to pieces, and then see the 3 of them chasing each other around for 3 of the 4 minutes.

      That gives me an idea for a new sketch...

    2. Re:Benny Hill by doyen2000 · · Score: 3, Funny

      Yep. Once it was finished I expected him to chase her with the star destroyer. The benny hill music playing while he looked at the camera and giggled everytime he touched her with the pointy bit of the cruiser.

  5. Nice by ATAMAH · · Score: 4, Funny

    Now witness the firepower of this fully armed and operational /. battle station

    1. Re:Nice by gkwok · · Score: 2, Funny

      Don't be so proud of this technological terror you've constructed.

  6. Re:/,-ed by The+Grey+Clone · · Score: 2

    I pulled it off mirror three. The slowest transfer rate I saw was 362 kB/s. Not bad for a comcast connection.

  7. Ice cream.. by Paska · · Score: 5, Funny

    These guys like their ice cream a little too much, they got down a whole entire bowl in 1 second flat.

  8. Web server destroyed before your very eyes by gkwok · · Score: 5, Funny

    These people spent 10 hours constructing their very own Imperial II-class Star Destroyer from LEGO...and we spent 10 seconds taking down any server brave enough to offer movies of it.

    1. Re:Web server destroyed before your very eyes by jcuervo · · Score: 2, Funny
      These people spent 10 hours constructing their very own Imperial II-class Star Destroyer from LEGO...and we spent 10 seconds taking down any server brave enough to offer movies of it.
      But our server is peaceful! We have a bandwidth cap, you can't possibly...
      --
      Assume I was drunk when I posted this.
  9. Here's Why ? by Gopal.V · · Score: 4, Interesting
    Have you ever wondered why geeks do all kinds of impossible and silly things ?. It's my theory that geeks without any problems will create some of his own - like I don't have my own star destroyer made out of lego or my kernel should blink SOS using keyboard lights when it oops() (etc..). My programming guru has recently taken up buidling models too - crazy I tell ya !.

    Considering how cool the dark side is recently - I'd have thought someone would've built the death star too - with a Nuetrino torpedos here in neon ?.

    --
    Quidquid latine dictum sit, altum videtur
  10. Re:Very nice by yobbo · · Score: 4, Funny

    That's what I thought when they dropped all the bags on the table. I thought they were drugs :(

  11. Fun but... old? by The+Grey+Clone · · Score: 5, Funny

    It looks really fun, however, it's from 2003. We're a little late, guys. There is a girl, though. I'm going to go watch it again.

  12. The headline could be better by MadFarmAnimalz · · Score: 5, Funny

    I watched the video.

    I couldn't help thinking that that was what I'd have been like if it wasn't for my girlfriend's constant vigilance...

    I kept on looking for someone holding a gun to their heads but I don't think there were any.

    --
    Blearf. Blearf, I say.
  13. oh my by Francis85 · · Score: 3, Funny

    omg i'm wearing that same AYBABTU shirt at the moment o_O

    best part was when they ate, i felt like i was playing the Sims or something O_o

  14. Re:Interesting, but... by dan+dan+the+dna+man · · Score: 3, Informative

    Nice lift from wikipedia there ;) I guess that's what it's there for, plagarising for that all important +5 Informative?

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    I don't read your sig, why do you read mine?
  15. huge mirror by RoceKiller · · Score: 5, Informative

    Mirror of the "huge" movie

  16. Shameless by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    I watched the video, found it very amazing and interesting, and at the end was incredibly impressed.

    Then, I watched it again, and this time I actually watched them build the ISD, rather than simply stare at the breasts on the RHS of the screen.

  17. Try it for yourself! by sinneb · · Score: 5, Informative

    http://shop.lego.com/product.asp?p=10030

    Give it a go. For as little as 360 euro's you can try to beat the 10 hours! (if you have no friend(s) - the time to beat is 20 hours)

    1. Re:Try it for yourself! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Informative

      Give it a go. For as little as 360 euro's you can try to beat the 10 hours! (if you have no friend(s) - the time to beat is 20 hours)

      You must be kidding:

      http://www.legofan.org/

      "Lately we have been making quite a stir in the community, and we're not about to stop yet. Earlier this year, LEGOLAND California hosted a Star Wars® Weekend . Part of this event included 2 Imperial Star Destroyer (ISD) speed build contests. The times for the two contests, held on separate days, were 1 hour, 34 minutes and 1 hour, 21 minutes respectively. (for more information about LEGOLand California, please go to http://www.legolandca.com/"

      I think the world record for the star destroyer is somehting like 46 minutes...

    2. Re:Try it for yourself! by mcbevin · · Score: 2, Interesting

      3104 pieces at 1 piece per second is 51 minutes something. So 46 minutes is quicker than 1 piece per second - if thats for one person thats crazy.

  18. That's nothing by gowen · · Score: 5, Funny

    I once assembled some flat pack furniture in less than three days.

    --
    Athletic Scholarships to universities make as much sense as academic scholarships to sports teams.
  19. Star Wars Again ? by Kartoch · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Am I the only geek here who are not interested in all the star wars stuff in ./ ?

    This place is becoming a marketing heaven for Lucas.

    --
    Ceci n'est pas une signature.
    1. Re:Star Wars Again ? by felonius+maximus · · Score: 3, Funny
      Am I the only geek here who are not interested in all the star wars stuff in ./ ?

      Yes, you am.

      This place is becoming a marketing heaven for Lucas.

      Yes, it are.

    2. Re:Star Wars Again ? by Stormwatch · · Score: 2, Funny

      Your geek license has just been revoked. Be sure to turn it in before leaving the building.

      --
      Circumcision is child abuse.
  20. The real speed by octafed · · Score: 3, Funny

    I saw a similar recording from a sweatshop in china.

    The video looks exactly like when chinese people assemble it, but they don't speed up the footage :)

  21. Nice job, but... by hidispenser · · Score: 3, Funny

    ...that red-headed geek at the top better lay off the ice cream. He's developing man-boobs.

    1. Re:Nice job, but... by DamienNightbane · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Actually, I think that might be a girl.

  22. i want my 5 minutes back! by Hes+Nikke · · Score: 4, Insightful

    ok.. so lego has a kit to make a star destroyer... yawn

    if they had made it out of generic bricks it *MIGHT* be interesting, but in the mean time.... i want my 5 minutes back... and i'm sure they want here 11 hours back.

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  23. Re:Very nice by ciroknight · · Score: 4, Funny

    Indeed.. Three mirrors on a Slashdot story. That's gotta be some kind of record!

    --
    "Victory means exit strategy, and it's important for the President to explain to us what the exit strategy is." G.W.Bush
  24. That's no moon! by Maavin · · Score: 5, Funny

    ...and no Deathstar, either.

    sorry..

    I once built "Airwolf" out of standard Lego bricks. That was nice. Until my cat tried its "landing capabilities", off the bookshelf... oh, well..

    --


    Crivens! I kicked meself in me own heid!
  25. Somehow this makes news by Osmosis_Garett · · Score: 3, Insightful

    and the Deep Impact coverage doesnt? Slashdot once again moves down a peg. ... and why is two people following instructions news in the first place, even if there wasn't a far more noteworthy geek event taking place? Come on mods.

  26. Re:/,-ed by lxs · · Score: 4, Funny

    Unfortunately, because I'm at work I've got Windows XP, which doesn't support playing back video.

    Congratulations! You have first Windows XP-N post! Now go back to work.

  27. RE: Even more obligatory quotes... by Sabathius · · Score: 3, Funny


    If this is a Councillor ship, where is the ambassador?

    *crunch*
    *thud*

  28. Talk about old news .. by Errtu76 · · Score: 3, Insightful

    look at the date on the top of the article: Tuesday, 14 January 2003 !!

  29. Observe Gentleman.... by meatflower · · Score: 2, Insightful

    ...the only known 4 minute stop motion video of life long virgins known to man!
    Yes, I realise the hypocrisy, this is "News for Nerds". But seriously, "Hey baby, check out this 4 minute video of me and my friends building a giant Imperial Star Destroyer from Legos! Yeah, its perfectly to scale! We set up this webcam to take a picture every 5 minutes and...."
    The "girl" has left the room, she is never coming back, all hope is lost.
    I'm a nerd, but not this kind of nerd. This is a nerd of higher caliber.

  30. The bigger news... by Vladan · · Score: 4, Funny

    I think the bigger news is that he convinced a woman to join him in this endeavour or maybe that he was able to concentrate on building a plastic replica toy after she agreed

  31. Re:Very nice by xortw · · Score: 2, Funny

    Next week on slashdot: She how his little sister 'breaks the record'.

  32. I'd prefer to see a... by ratta · · Score: 2, Funny

    "Star Builder Destroyed Before Your Eyes"

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  33. Somebody set up us the bomb! by core_dump_0 · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Anyone catch the "All Your Base" T-shirt the guy was wearing? I'm surprised nobody mentioned it here!

    Anyway, awesome video!

  34. I'm so torn by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    Part of me is thinking, "These people must have no life. Imagine spending so much money on that."

    But another part of me is going INSANE with jealousy.

  35. Lazy by otter42 · · Score: 2, Informative

    One of those guys (the one in the dark shirt) was a slacker. He lets the other one do all the work.

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  36. Stealth by martalli · · Score: 4, Funny

    Lucky for them they weren't building a stealth fighter in 2003. Think of the trouble they would be in now!

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  37. What is he designing? by Actuator+Man · · Score: 2, Funny

    A navel ship? Oh yes, that would be cool!

  38. WTF? by KoReE · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Okay, I'm *really* not being a troll, but how is building a Star Destroyer from a *kit* front-page news on Slashdot? Big fucking deal, they know how to use legos. I guess next we're going to find out that they can wipe their own asses...

    --
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