Pretty much all of us played with Lego at some point during our childhood, from small shapes and experiments to larger, more intricate structures that left parents cursing as they stepped on the pieces. But some people kept going well past that point, until they started to build some incredibly complicated creations.
Two men recently spent weeks making a full-size replica of a Volkswagen T2 Bulli camper van, and it looks incredible. Legobuilder Rene Hoffmeister (of of the 12 certified LEGOmodel builders across the world) and his colleague Pascal Lenhard painstakingly put it together using 400,000 Lego bricks - ensuring the finished product was insanely detailed.
The duo reportedly spent six weeks straight working on the project, before it was revealed at the German leisure and tourism fair F.re.e last week in Munich. The incredible creation includes working headlights, an easy access step and a kitchen unit inside - coming with its own resident Lego spider.
The details go so far there's even a toothbrush and toothpaste set in a washbag, and pictures adorning the walls inside.
The 1,543 lb campervan matches the dimensions of 1967 original, and even includes that classic pop-up roof. It also beat the world record for largest Lego camper van ever made, hitting 197 inches long, 75 inches wide, and 118 inches tall. Yet the project didn't go ahead quite as planned, project manager Daniel Keppler revealed.
"With the help of 3D programs, the two builders created a construction plan in advance, from which the exact quantity of bricks required was calculated. The stiffness of the side walls and windows was decisive in order to guarantee stability later.
"The first brick was set quickly, and the start went without a hitch. However, around three weeks into the project 20,000 transparent bricks for the windows of the Bulli were missing and all constructions were stopped for a short time. In spite of the exact pre-planning the two model builders got into time stress, so that the missing time could only be made up by night shifts and weekend work."
"Essentially, we would have needed a nine-day week," Hoffmeister said of the hectic schedule "However, as they don't exist, the only option was night shifts."
"For the model builders, this meant 'playing' with LEGO bricks from morning to night and on weekends. The effort was worth it," Keppler continued. "In the end, the LEGO camper van was on time. The details of the camper van are mind blowing. Even the refrigerator is filled with things of daily camper life - of course made of LEGO."
With this level of craftmanship on display, who knows what this Lego builder team could create in the future!
