Turning a Roller Skate into a Boombox
This set is not mine, it's my Wife's - about 6 or so weeks ago she built it into the a Roller Skate as per the instructions. It's lego set 31148. Now this is a set from one of the best lines of Lego, certainly the best value - the creator 3:1 series. This means that along with the main model build, in this instance the Roller Skate it comes with instructions for building two alternative items. And if you go to rebrickable you can find another 11.
But I choose to make the Ghetto Blaster. There was something that appealed to me about this and I think it's that my sister had a very 80's cassette recorder type thing which she had for many years and I thought was pretty cool (even if it was pink) and this although lime it's got the same vibes to me.
I'm consifident it looked a little like this
So let's get building. The first part of course is to take apart the original model. I like to organize the piece by colour to make them reasonably easy to find again. I'm always amazed at this point a how many pieces are in even a small model like the roller skate (it's was about 340) I should also mention it almost takes as long to take sets apart as it does to build them.
And then it's building time again. None of this is too complicated, it is interesting that you build it a little backwards, starting from the rear and then doing some stuff in the middle. But then building the back from the back if that makes any sense. The top is a little clunky and ends up somewhere between art deco curves and 80's boxiness, also I would say that the scale is not quite there, it ends up fairly small, as did the roller skate. And of course my favourite part the middle of the wheels becoming the two speakers, but it's all still pretty cool.
I've always admired how LEGO can bring everything into its environment. This collection of skateboards and the 80's tape recorder looks great. The truth is that one can spend hours entertaining oneself putting these pieces together, the only thing is to be attentive or you get back over the past to see where you failed.