Brickmania Is Coming to Chicagoland!
Brickmania will be back at Cantigny Park for the NILTC‘s annual LEGO Train Show on December 14-15th. We take over the entire visitors center with massive LEGO displays and invite some of the best vendors from across the country. Admission is free and the $5 parking fee is waived with a donation for Toys 4 Tots. See you there!
Happy Chanukah from your Friends at Brickmania!
About the image: The TCLTC (Twin Cities Lego Train Club) set up a holiday train display today at the Jackson Street Roundhouse in Saint Paul. The display, sponsored by Brickmania and Brickstuff and, is part of their Santa’s Train Shop event running weekends through December 22nd.
Important Holiday Shipping Information for Brickmania Customers.
First word of advise – don’t wait until the last minute! Not only will you have a better selection by ordering earlier, you will save tons on shipping and have your items delivered on time! While we usually get all packages to the post office on the same or next business day the order is placed, heavier seasonal volume may cause an additional 1-2 days delay in processing. We’ll make every attempt to keep up on orders, but can’t guarantee every order will be shipped the same day or even the next business day. Weekends are the busiest times for us, so your order placed on Sunday may not make it out until Tuesday. Keep that in mind and plan head. Here is a link to the US Postal Service official Holiday Mailing Deadlines, but past experience suggests you treat it with some skepticism!
Domestic Shipping
Our default shipping method is by First Class US Mail for packages weighing 13 ounces or less, and Priority Mail for heavier packages. This generally takes 2-5 business days for your package to be delivered anywhere in the continental USA, longer to Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, etc. The US Postal Service does not deliver on Sunday and holidays.
Domestic UPS
If you would like to have more control over delivery date and better tracking information, we do offer several UPS options. Our UPS pickup comes in the late afternoon, so if you place an order for Next Day Air delivery at 5pm, it will not go out until the following business day. UPS does not delivery on Saturday, Sunday and most major holidays. These days also do not count against your guaranteed delivery date. For example, if we ship a Next Day Air on Friday, it will be delivered on Monday. Second Day are shipped Friday will be delivered on Tuesday, etc.
International
Our two default shipping options for international shipments are Economy (maximum 4 pounds) and Priority. While Economy is supposed to be airmail service, we have found it may take as long as eight weeks to reach certain countries. While we are supplied with tracking numbers for international packages, we are not able to track packages beyond the point of departure from the USA (Chicago). Canadian Customers: If you order with Economy shipping, don’t expect any packages shipped in December to arrive before Christmas. Priority Mail packages to Canada may be subject to delays up to 10 business days for customs clearance.
International UPS
We do offer UPS options for international customers. Keep in mind that you will be responsible for all taxes and fees levied by your local Customs agency. Some countries like Canada will also make you pay a bond fee for your customs clearance. This is not something we are able to pre-pay on our end and you will have to pay these fees upon delivery. UPS is very fast and reliable but it is going to cost you more for the service.
Brickmania-Sponsored Displays This Holiday Season
Brickmania is sponsoring several LEGO displays around the Twin Cities throughout the holiday season. This includes a special holiday display at the Brickmania Toyworks during our open house events through December, plus the following additional events and locations:
Landmark Center, Saint Paul, November 30, 4-6pm — the Landmark Center will be officially opening its outdoor skating rink and celebrating inside with their annual Winter Courtyard party. We will have the TCLTC’s LEGO Landmark Center and LEGO holiday village with working lights and a trolley on display. We will also have bricks to play with and gift-sized LEGO and Brickmania sets for sale. Directly following the event will be the official Christmas Tree lighting ceremony, across the street in Rice Park.
Twin Cities Model Railroad Museum, Saint Paul, Saturday Evenings from 6-9pm, November 30-February 28th — “Night Trains Season comes to the dozens of model railroad layouts in a magical way, the lights are turned down, the buildings and street lights glow warmly, setting the scene for specially lighted models of vintage passenger trains.” The TCLTC has built a special layout designed for low-light viewing that will be on display at the TCMRM through February. This is a display not to miss!
Minnesota Transportation Museums / Jackson Street Roundhouse, Saint Paul, December 7-8, 14-15, 21-22 10am – 4pm — “Before Santa skirts the rooftops in his sleigh, he’ll stop by the Jackson Street Roundhouse in his very own full size luxury train! Visit Santa and Mrs. Claus, tell him what you want for Christmas (you don’t have to be a kid to share your secret with Santa!), get your photo with Santa and Mrs. Claus, check out interactive model railroad layouts by the Greater Midwest Lego Train Club and the New Brighton Connection Model RR Club, make some cool kids crafts, enjoy music, entertainment, refreshments, and of course, unlimited train rides.”
Great RiverCenter Train Show, Saint Paul, December 28-29 — “We hereby announce the formulation of Choo Choo Bob’s GREAT RiverCentre Train Show, a two-day train extravaganza at the RiverCentre in St. Paul. This one-of-a-kind train festival is to be held on December 28th and 29th, 2013, and will feature two full days of live performances by Choo Choo Bob and the Holy Smokestacks Revue, tons of incredible layouts from model railroading clubs, a formidable lineup of hobby vendors, free inflatables and ride-on train for the kids, plus all kinds of discounted goodies from Choo Choo Bob’s Train Store. All aboard!
Special Words of Appreciation
Brickmania would like to extend a special thanks to Brickstuff, who have been our gracious co-sponsor and provider of LEGO compatible lighting for all of these events. Brickstuff will have a table at our December 7th and 21st open houses, with all the supplies need to light up your LEGO creations.
New Release: SdKfz 234/2 Puma Scout Vehicle
One of the most anticipated new Brickmania kits, of which only 50 will be available before the holidays, sold exclusively through Brickmania.com!
The German military developed a series of highly-mobile 8-wheeled armored vehicles during World War II. The SdKfz 234/2 “Puma” was designed to be a fast scout vehicle that combined the good mobility of the 8-wheeled platform, with the same 5cm long-barrel anti-tank gun of the Panzer III tank. While less than 100 Puma’s were made before the war’s end, it is widely regarded as the finest scout vehicle fielded by any army during the conflict.
The Puma is being released as the lead model of Brickmania’s Battle of the Bulge series of kits of 2014, the 70th anniversary of the Battle of the Bulge. This was the biggest battle ever fought by the United States military in any conflict, and was the deciding battle of the Europe’s Western Front in World War II. We plan to release an entire Battle of the Bulge series of kits and minifigures in 2014. This will also be the theme behind Brickmania Elite group activities planned for selected Lego events in 2014.
Additional information about this Brickmania custom Lego® kit:
The SdKfz 234/2 Puma kit has the following features:
- Fully rotating turret with elevating main gun assembly
- Opening commander’s hatch
- Custom pad-printed German army soldier from Citizen Brick
- 1/35 scale to match other Brickmania models
- Includes 304 genuine new-condition LEGO bricks and BrickArms elements
- Comes with a signed and numbered certificate of authenticity
- Sophomore Skill Level (2-4 years experience with LEGO is recommended)
NEW: World War II US Navy Seabees Heavy Tractor Kit
During World War II the US military had a great need for construction equipment and turned to the best manufacturers in the civilian market. The Caterpillar Company provided a wide range of construction equipment for the US Army and Navy needs, with the D-8 being the heaviest tractor available. The D-8 was mainly used by the US Navy construction battalions (Seabees) for such projects as airfield and forward base construction. At least eight examples of the D-8 have been documented on D-Day at Normandy beach, having been used to clear obstructions placed by the Germans to impede Allied attacks. This model is dressed in US Navy haze gray color and equipped with a LeTourneau cable dozer blade. This is a much bigger and beefier tractor to back up the M1 Light Tractor kit we released a short while ago.
Additional information about this Brickmania custom Lego® kit:
The Heavy Tractor kit has the following features:
- Two rows of fully articulated Lego chain link treads
- Working cable winch to raise and lower the dozer blade
- Includes custom pad-printed US Navy Seabee minifigure
- Includes BrickArms M1 Carbine and M1 Steel Pot Helmet
- 1/35 scale to match other Brickmania models
- Includes 329 genuine new-condition LEGO bricks and BrickArms elements
- Comes with a signed and numbered certificate of authenticity
- Intermediate Skill Level (4-6 years experience with LEGO is recommended)
All Brickmania model kits are made of new-condition LEGO bricks and this one includes compatible accessories by BrickArms. This model comes disassembled and includes complete full color printed building instructions, signed certificate of authenticity, and comes packaged in a sealed box.
Three New Holiday Train Ornaments for 2013
Brickmania has been partnering with local LEGO & train enthusiasts to release custom train holiday ornaments since 2009. We are introducing three new designs for 2013 and they will only be available for a limited time.
A holiday ornament based on the Pennsylvania Railroad’s famous Pacific series of passenger train locomotives. This has a particular local connection to Brickmania, because one of the real Pacific locomotives was on display for decades at the Como Zoo in St Paul and is currently under restoration at the Jackson Street Roundhouse.
Blue Locomotive: A holiday ornament based on a 0-6-0 European tank engine.
Green Locomotive: A holiday ornament based on a 0-4-0 European tank engine.
Sneak Preview: Five New Kits Coming Monday, November 25th
This is the first kit in our 2014 Battle of the Bulge theme. A preview batch of 50 kits will be released exclusively at Brickmania.com and no others will be available until 2014. Includes a German soldier custom pad-printed by Citizen Brick.
Our second in a pair of US Navy Seabees bulldozer kits, this time based on the Caterpillar D8 tractor with a LeTourneau cable blade. This is a much bigger and beefier tractor to back up the M1 Light Tractor released a short while ago. Includes a custom pad-printed Seabee minifig from Brickmania.
We also have three new holiday ornaments of which only 25 copies of each will be available on the web site:
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- Pacific Loco
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- Blue Loco
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- Green Loco
None of these kit will be available from our resellers in 2013. Be ready with your fingers on the order keys because these are going to sell fast!
Brickmania Toyworks’ Open House Times and Dates for December 2013
Brickmania Toywork’s will be open two additional Saturdays in December. Here are our complete hours for December:
Thursday, December 5, 5-9pm (tree decorating party)
Saturday, December 7, 10am-4pm
Saturday, December 14, 10am-4pm
Saturday, December 21, 10am-4pm
Help Decorate Our Tree @ Brickmania Toyworks on December 5th
The elves at Brickmania are extremely busy and need your help decorating the Christmas tree in the Toyworks! Join us on Thursday, December 5th from 5-9pm for our annual ornament making and tree decorating party. We’ll have ornaments on hand to build and hang from the tree. You will receive a raffle ticket for your effort, with prizes that include building sets from Brickmania and LEGO. Brickmania Toyworks is home to the largest fan-built LEGO displays in the country, including two large train layouts, Brickmania’s historical dioramas, a play area with building bricks, and a store filled with LEGO, and select premium after-market products. This is happening as part of the NEMAA’s (Northeast Minneapolis Artists Association) First Thursday Open Studio initiative. Snacks and refreshments will be provided. Click here for directions.
Brickmania’s new 2013 holiday ornaments will be on sale at the First Thursday Open House. They will also be for sale on the web store November 25th.
Latest Brickmania® Release
