New Brickforge Items!

[CoR3Bu]

On March 18, Brickforge added new items to his online store!
If you are a LOTR fan and you have bought from B-Forge before
then you will want to buy some of these. http://www.brothers-brick.com/2009/03/18/6485/
Goblin Sword, Goblin Shield, Sorcerers Staff (wallet busters ),
Tribal Sword, Tribal Spear (some "Tribal Meh"), Crowbar(Half-life lovers
like me will get this one), Microphone(cough*waist*cough), Nightsticks,
Plasma Blaster(Plasma Pistol for Halo lovers who don't want to spend 20$ on B-A
stuff ), Particle Gun and Pack.(Ghost Busters! ) See Rotta in the backround!
This stuff is great and I think you shouldn't waist your money B-A's Plasma Pistol.

Colonel Reaginal Bulstrode, to attent- woooowww!

[Morgan19]

FYI– I was going to buy a few of their dark grey pieces until I discovered they're actually old grey. I'd asked on the BF forums and it appears they have plans to release some dark bley items in the near future as well.

m19

[GIR3691]

Crowbar and proton pack? Sweet. Might have to make an order. Interesting that we will have two molders making the plasma pistol now.

[baby_yoda]

Wow! I absolutely love the new items! LoL

I think I might get a few of the Goblin swords and the backpacks!

Thanks for informing me!

[JPCJedi]

Yeah, the Halo plasma pistol gets me. Even though I don't really like the plasma pistol, they really beat BrickArms to the punch. I can't wait to compare the designs up close after the BrickArms design goes to full production.

The microphone? All I can say is:

[Joedward]

I received my very first order the day before they announce new stuff
I really want the crowbars, they look brilliantly done.

[enigmabadger]

Yeah, the Halo plasma pistol gets me. Even though I don't really like the plasma pistol, they really beat BrickArms to the punch. I can't wait to compare the designs up close after the BrickArms design goes to full production.

Just a small point of clarification here: no one at BrickArms was aware Brickforge had plans for or had designed a "Plasma Blaster" until after Will had completed and displayed to the public his designs for the BrickArms Energy Pistol. Given that Will had previously explored similar-themed firing accessories before and they had been fan favorites, it was natural for him to follow-up with even more given both the demand for such items and his continued interest in sci-fi based custom accessories.

In terms of the timing of release, the development of new custom accessories takes many months' worth of work, especially with the size, complexity, and detail Will requires (nay, demands! ) of his production items. For him to design a new accessory and produce a prototype is often only a matter of weeks or days, but to fill a production mold with finalized designs, make sure that mold is up to his standards, commission production runs of those molds in various colors, and ready the BrickArms business to add the new items to the line-up takes much, much longer not to mention a tremendous amount of effort. Ultimately, Will prefers to take his time to ensure everything is absolutely perfect with a design before releasing it to the public to ensure the BrickArms name remains synonymous with high-quality, detailed custom accessories.

That said, Will definitely plans to release the Energy Pistol (and many of the other sci-fi BrickArms items that have been showcased recently, including the Plasma Blade) as mass produced, single-color items. What others have done with similar designs is interesting work, but Will is happy and quite proud of his own original take on these items, and I think, as has been said, fans will enjoy comparing the different accessories and seeing which best suits their building needs.

Hope that helps clear a few things up!

[Solo]

I think the real point is that while BA has been showing off the prototypes for a long time now, BF crossed the finish line first by making these available for order. No one was saying that BA was just copying them.

[enigmabadger]

I think the real point is that while BA has been showing off the prototypes for a long time now

Not that long in regards to production timing; these items were first displayed in November, making them only a few months old. The purpose of displaying prototypes so early is to early is to judge fan reaction to designs as well as get feedback on the design itself. The ability of Will to produce his own ABS prototypes and "road test" designs has proven to be exceptionally effective in improving the overall quality of the accessories, particularly in playability.

Will often has designs (and even prototypes) for accessories that don't see production for some time, similar to how LEGO can take years to develop new lines of sets. Developing a production mold requires an incredible amount of time and financial resources, and once work starts on a production mold, designs not included in that mold won't see production until Will is ready to make that kind of investment again for another production mold.

BF crossed the finish line first by making these available for order. No one was saying that BA was just copying them.

With the limited-edition multicolored version of the BrickArms Energy Pistol was actually the first custom accessory of this type to market, you are correct in that BrickArms does have yet to make the Energy Pistol more widely available as a single-color, mass production item. That said, I'd argue that with custom accessories, being first isn't necessarily as important as getting it right. Builders have consistently told Will they appreciate the care and level of detail and playability he packs into every accessory, and ensuring that high level of precision with every addition to the BrickArms line takes time. Considering the quality of the results, I'd say it's time well-spent!

[Solo]

I know it's not a long time considering the production times, but for the general fan populous it's been ages since we've seen the idea and it's still not for sale. I knew about the special run ones available but the prices speak for themselves. I don't doubt it's worth that to make, but it's not really something just anyone can grab. I can safely guess a good number of people will grab these just because they're the first readily available, quality/style preference aside.

[Rayman]

I don't believe that the excellence embodied with Brickarms' methodology, design, and production were ever in doubt. I am glad that Will does indeed take his time with his designs -- I suppose it's the with all these professional production-run ABS custom accessory makers. BA has proven time and time again that great accessories need time to mature and perfect.

It is just as Don said, fans who have been waiting for a nice looking version of the plasma blaster avaliable. In my experience people don't necessarily lean towards the best avaliable product on the market, but rather to the ones that are more readily accessible.

Although Badger I was wondering why Will had made the two special edition BA Halo weapons avaliable on that third-party website as opposed to BA directly. When it comes to custom firearm accessories BA are my custom weaponsof choice The international shipping on that third party site is pretty steep for a few Brickarms accessories, which has kind of put me off from purchasing them.

I would have expected the new BF particle pack/ gun combo to have attracted the most attention too! Most elegantly crafted!

[enigmabadger]

In my experience people don't necessarily lean towards the best avaliable product on the market, but rather to the ones that are more readily accessible.

Certainly, the BA Premium items are meant to be collector's pieces that fully-express Will's design and production skills as opposed to the types of accessories you'd use for everyday building. That said, when the BA Energy Pistol and other items are mass produced, they'll be at a price point that's similar to other BrickArms custom accessories.

Although Badger I was wondering why Will had made the two special edition BA Halo weapons avaliable on that third-party website as opposed to BA directly.

Originally, Will planned to only produce a few overmolded items as special convention items. However, when Toywiz contacted Will to become a BA reseller and Will included a few overmolded items in the samples he sent them, the company expressed an extremely strong interest in offering them for sale. Toywiz primarily caters to a collector's market, and the price point those overmolded items need to occupy given the complicated, time-consuming nature of producing them seemed more appropriate to that market than general custom accessory collectors.

That said, Will has been considering bringing the BrickArms Premium line in-house. While I personally cannot post updates regarding development related to this (and other BrickArms news) given I respect FBTB's rules regarding promotional materials, I can say the best place for BrickArms news remains the BrickArms Forums.

I'm a bit busy right now with a few other things, so I'll have to leave this thread be from here on out. I'm sorry to have somewhat hijacked the discussion away from some of these interesting new developments from Brickforge, but then I think it's telling that when that "Plasma Blaster" was first made public, discussion solely focused on BrickArms, the name builders know and trust for that theme of weaponry.

[onions]

okay this topic needs to be locked for two reasons:

threadjacking: this is not a BA Q&A session, it's a BF thread

advertising: this is a bit of a grey area, but this is smelling like an advertising post. intentional or not, brought to you by a third party or someone directly associated with BF, this is advertising.