PinBlock - a different type of building system

The place for General LEGO Discussions such as the LEGO website, video games, movie, general LEGO inquries and everything else not included in our forums.
Post Reply
User avatar
vynsane
TnB Forum Moderator
TnB Forum Moderator
Posts: 3402
Joined: Tue Feb 09, 2010 10:38 am
Location: Beacon, NY

PinBlock - a different type of building system

Post by vynsane » Tue Feb 17, 2015 8:43 pm

This was an interesting find - these guys made sure every kiosk at every entrance to Javits Center had a stack of small boxes, about the dimensions of a business card from the top and about half an inch deep, containing an assorted handful of their building system pieces. It worked on me, my interest was piqued right after entering the convention center.

Since I didn't have a meeting with LEGO until the next day, I figured I'd check out their booth. They were still setting up when I got there - we were both first-timers, so neither of us had to feel the pressure to impress each other, which was great for all of us involved.

The first thing I noticed was the enormous Empire State Building on their central table:

Image
PinBlock by vynsane, on Flickr

Flanked on either side by bins of loose PinBlocks, sorted by color:

Image
PinBlock by vynsane, on Flickr

Image
PinBlock by vynsane, on Flickr

Along the back wall was a trio of spaceship looking models (dubbed the Silver Falcon, I'd soon learn), each the same design with differing color accents:

Image
PinBlock by vynsane, on Flickr

Other model kits lined the back wall of their booth, along with some other, more whimsical designs:

Image
PinBlock by vynsane, on Flickr

ImagePinBlock by vynsane, on Flickr

Image
PinBlock by vynsane, on Flickr

Image
PinBlock by vynsane, on Flickr

Image
PinBlock by vynsane, on Flickr

They're really very cool. Manufactured from ABS plastic, their single-brick system is designed to allow 45 degree angle connections as well as a good deal of flexibility. The end result of the builds generally looks like 8-bit videogame graphics, which is not a bad thing by any means.

Check them out at www.pinblock.com, or support their Kickstarter which is nearly fully funded with about two weeks left before the deadline. This is the first thing I've ever supported on Kickstarter and I hope to see them succeed, because they're just really nice guys who love building in plastic.

When I get the chance, I'll post some pics of some things I've built with the sample blocks I hoarded ;-)
ALL HAIL THE BLACTRON EMPIRE!

Flickr Photostream | Dropbox - LDD files and instruction archive

slacker
Royal Guardian
Royal Guardian
Posts: 956
Joined: Tue Jun 22, 2010 6:23 am
Location: Rockland, NY

Re: PinBlock - a different type of building system

Post by slacker » Thu Feb 19, 2015 9:50 am

Interesting. I had something similar to this when I was young. Lost alot of pieces. I may still have some. I need to look in the attic now. Thanks for sharing.

md99an
Peasant
Peasant
Posts: 20
Joined: Fri Mar 01, 2013 7:55 pm
Location: Canada

Re: PinBlock - a different type of building system

Post by md99an » Thu Feb 19, 2015 5:08 pm

Thanks...just signed up and made my first kikstarter donation because of this post!!
Looks cool.

User avatar
vynsane
TnB Forum Moderator
TnB Forum Moderator
Posts: 3402
Joined: Tue Feb 09, 2010 10:38 am
Location: Beacon, NY

Re: PinBlock - a different type of building system

Post by vynsane » Thu Feb 19, 2015 7:11 pm

Some examples of creations I built using the PinBlock system! Of course, I started out with a microscale spaceship because my default answer to everything is "spaceship". If Benny wasn't directly inspired by me, I'm definitely the target demographic ;-)

Image
PinBlock lavender luxury liner by vynsane, on Flickr

Image
PinBlock lavender luxury liner by vynsane, on Flickr

A couple of things created with the explicit intent to NOT build a spaceship:

Image
PinBlock building by vynsane, on Flickr

Image
PinBlock tree by vynsane, on Flickr

And then another spaceship because spaceship.

Image
PinBlock Battlecruiser by vynsane, on Flickr

Image
PinBlock Battlecruiser by vynsane, on Flickr
ALL HAIL THE BLACTRON EMPIRE!

Flickr Photostream | Dropbox - LDD files and instruction archive

User avatar
StClair
Count
Count
Posts: 1239
Joined: Sat May 25, 2013 5:25 pm
Location: KY (US)
Contact:

Re: PinBlock - a different type of building system

Post by StClair » Sat Feb 21, 2015 2:36 pm

Love the tree

User avatar
vynsane
TnB Forum Moderator
TnB Forum Moderator
Posts: 3402
Joined: Tue Feb 09, 2010 10:38 am
Location: Beacon, NY

Re: PinBlock - a different type of building system

Post by vynsane » Sat Feb 21, 2015 3:04 pm

Just FYI - they just broke through their initial goal of $10,000 a few days ago and announced that the rewards are all being increased by 50% more pieces. They also announced a stretch goal of $12,000 that will allow them to fund the development of the packaging for a smaller retail set (400-500 pieces) because they got a lot of feedback about an intro-level sized set at Toy Fair. Their funding period ends on February 25th, so if you want to get in on the ground floor, pledge now!
ALL HAIL THE BLACTRON EMPIRE!

Flickr Photostream | Dropbox - LDD files and instruction archive

User avatar
dr_spock
Royal Guardian
Royal Guardian
Posts: 723
Joined: Fri Jul 16, 2010 9:16 am

Re: PinBlock - a different type of building system

Post by dr_spock » Sun Feb 22, 2015 1:04 am

I turned my iPad 90 degrees. Now the building and tree look like spaceships. :-D

Post Reply

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 16 guests