kids-toy

On November 26, on Black Friday, Star Wars fans will finally be able to become the owners of the long-awaited designer 75313 LEGO Star Wars UCS «AT-AT». The people allow you to assemble a prototype of a massive combat vehicle with almost impenetrable armor, which, according to the plot of the film, was built to gain a tactical advantage over the rebels. Along with fighting qualities, she produced the effect of a psychological weapon on enemy forces, capable of instilling fear in any rebel with her very appearance.

How does the new model of the AT-AT walker attract the attention of all fans of the «world of cubes», except for the stunning price of 800 euros? Let’s figure it out.

Let’s start with the fact that the finished model largely met the expectations of most construction enthusiasts. And, first of all, its size. The dimensions of the built copy of the massive combat vehicle are really impressive: height is 62 cm, length — 69 cm, width — 26 cm.

Look, a real monster, not otherwise!

However, after the first amazing impression, the question involuntarily arises in my head: how stable is this original toy for adults? Fans of the thematic series are frankly afraid of repeating the story with the previous version of AT-AT, presented in the designer of the Danish manufacturer under the article 75288. According to the owners of the model, it topples over with just one look in its direction.

Plus, a relatively recent expert opinion gives reason for doubt, which said that it is basically impossible to build such a model of huge dimensions with the ability to stand steadily on four legs from Lego parts. The set in question proves the opposite: now it turns out that the impossible has become possible! To verify this, click on the playback of the following picture in GIF format.

As you can see, the giant AT-AT survived the test and did not collapse, that is, a small experiment showed that the model has sufficient stability. And this despite the fact that it cannot be classified as a static toy — the legs of the combat vehicle are movable.

What are the secrets of the stability of the giant AT-AT?

The main secret lies in the fact that the specialists of the Danish company have come up with special mechanisms of «stability» when moving joints with natural flexion. This is achieved, for example, with the help of a worm gear mounted in hinges. Here’s what it looks like.

The shortened screw used in it (an old long screw is shown on the right for comparison) rotates the gear, and when the rotation stops, it blocks it. This mechanism is used in the hip and knee joints of the newly appeared AT-AT model. A wrench is included with the toy, so that the owners of the set can, if necessary, adjust the position of the hinges to their liking.

However, this is not the whole mechanism. The stability of the structure is given by the so-called arc stabilization elements specially developed by Lego designers. It is they who keep the AT-AT from capsizing. The arches installed on all four legs of the walker contribute to the even distribution of the giant’s weight.

More stability and strength of the structure is also provided by the relative update of the technical flip-flop beams, which are attached to each leg, allowing you to instantly fix the joints in the desired position. A new element here is a detail that is a quarter of a jagged circle, two parts of it create an arc above the feet

It should be noted that it is the assembly of four giant legs in the constructor 75313 LEGO Star Wars AT-AT in fact, it will take half the time of the entire work on the project.

The main difficulty lies in the requirements of high precision in the technical procedure for creating internal mechanisms in each leg of the walker. Their design involves gear wheels, worm gears and rotary tables.

However, the hardest thing will be that you will have to do the same repetitive, laborious and methodical actions in four circles. But in general, the lesson is very useful and informative: a kind of master class on acquiring new engineering skills.

About other features of the new model

Let’s move on to a brief overview of other important features of the novelty from the set. 75313 LEGO Star Wars AT-AT. The model has a movable head. This is achieved due to the fact that the neck is a rim wound on a movable frame with a flexible tube in the core. A kind of steering control is installed on the shoulders of the walker, which allows you to move the right and left axes, leading to a turn of the head in one direction or another.

Careful reviewers of official AT-AT images have identified potential problems that owners of the toy model may experience. So, due to the use of softer materials in the neck of the combat vehicle, and not standard ones, which are used in the usual designs of the Technician line, the head leans heavily down. Outwardly, it seems that this enhances the realism of the walker. In fact, after a few months, the neck structure may deform and cease to support the weight of the giant’s head.

The rest of the device head AT-AT does not raise any complaints, especially in terms of internal content. Having removed the side panels, it is easy to look inside, study the interior, compare all this with the arrangement of the on-screen prototype, and also place miniature figures of pilots in the cockpit along the way.

From the pictures below, you can compare the interior of the pilot’s cockpit, presented in the movie, with Legov’s design.

As you can see, the creators of the toy copy managed to achieve an almost identical resemblance to the on-screen prototype.

Largely due to the impressive size of the toy, the creators managed to reflect in it the maximum number of functional abilities characteristic of a real walker. So, with laser systems attached to the sides and a blaster cannon under the head, you can change the angle and direction of firing. The monster is able to successfully repel the attack of enemies literally from any direction.

Great scope for imagination is provided by the equipment of the AT-AT model with opening and removable panels — they are removed not only on the head, as mentioned above, but also on the sides of the «torso». So, without any problems and special efforts, armed minifigures are placed inside the formidable combat vehicle, and several lighter vehicles in the form of speeders are driven into a special garage compartment.

And again, the developers of the model managed to achieve similarities with the original version of the imperial walker. The most accurate copying of the «cine» prototype gives the toy for adults a full-fledged realism when playing different scenes. For example, the same battle in Hoth from the series «The Empire Strikes Back» of the movie saga, during which for the first time on the screen the audience saw AT-AT

During the existence of the line of Star Wars designers, the Lego company offered dozens of models of various military equipment to fans of the film. Among them, several works were specifically devoted to AT-AT. Each project was the next step towards excellence. But it seems that only the 75313 LEGO Star Wars AT-AT set will be able to showcase the image of the imperial war monster so realistically. And here all the characteristics are intertwined into a single one:

• monstrous dimensions of the combined model,
• maximum detail in form and device,
• intimidating appearance of the walker.

And here is what the on-screen prototype of the toy looked like:

The first large-scale AT-AT set in terms of dimensions and complexity belongs to the thirty-fourth model of the collectible series of LEGO Ultimate constructors, or otherwise UCS. The products in this line are designed for adult Lego fans and Star Wars fans.

The toy is accompanied by a demonstration plate with information about the prototype combat vehicle from the movie.

By the way, the creators of the toy came up with an original approach to the creation of the plate, turning it into a stand for the wrench attached to the set. The owners of the model will not have problems with storing the tool, and it will always be, as they say, at their fingertips.

minifigures

Into the constructor 75313 LEGO Star Wars «AT-AT» 9 minifigures included. All characters, except for Luke Skywalker, belong to the soldiers of the Imperial army: these are 2 walker pilots, General Veers, a commander and 4 snowtroopers. The appearance of a rebel in the camp of the enemy is explained by an episode from the film, when he penetrates the territory of the armed forces of the Empire as a scout.

There are no exclusive Star Wars minifigures in this set, although the characters have new features. In particular, the four snow troopers have different facial expressions, and they also differ in skin color. The uniform of the fighters is made in the classic style, which has already been seen in previous designers.

The figure of the commander of the snow troopers differs from the rest of the fighters only by the badge on the left chest. Despite this, the presence of the character is of undoubted interest. Perhaps because it appears in Lego sets for the first time after a six-year hiatus.

The overall design of the pilot minifigures is very reminiscent of characters from previous releases in the series. The only difference is that this time the creators of the toy made them with different faces, which is revealed after removing the protective helmets from the heads.

Among the characters in the set there is a personalized minifigure of Imperial General Maximilian Wiers. His presence on board the walker is no coincidence. It was he, according to the plot of the original film, who was responsible for the destruction of the shield generator in the rebel camp on the planet Hoth.

In general, the miniature figurine is almost identical to the one that was the former 75288 LEGO Star Wars AT-AT. The only difference is that it is provided with double legs — dark gray and black.

The minifigure of Luke Skywalker does not stand out in any way. Rebel wearing the same pilot gear as seen in 75301 LEGO Star Wars Luke Skywalker’s Type X Fighter.

But even this monotony of miniature figures in no way spoils the overall impression of the main model of the new designer. A grand scale toy will truly turn into a spectacular highlight of any home collection. However, she is able to become an attractive decoration even without any environment, that is, remaining in the singular.

Looking at this gigantic, massive, huge buildable adult toy makes you wonder about the future. Now, it’s even hard to imagine what other Lego combat vehicles of this modification will be like. In particular, if you consider that the presented in the set 75313 LEGO Star Wars AT-AT the model reflects the image of the smallest walker from the movie «Star Wars».