I tested for you: LEGO Star Wars 75192 UCS Millennium Falcon (Part 1)

Here we are, the set LEGO Star Wars 75192 Millennium Falcon (Ultimate Collector Series) is now available out of stock for members of the VIP program and it's time to take a look at this box of a dozen kilos which will make many dream, which will leave some unmoved and which will relieve the most motivated from 799.99 €.

As a preamble, I would like to point out that I ordered my copy of this box as soon as it becomes available on the LEGO Shop. Even if I'm not sure I want to assemble a second copy in the coming weeks, I will save this opportunity for later without having to regret not having decided earlier ... *

That being said, the purpose of testing this product is not to convince you to buy it or not. I am just giving you my opinion in my capacity as a fan of the LEGO Star Wars range AND as a consumer who offers himself a high-end product or at least presented as such.

This Millennium Falcon is presented as an exceptional product, it is also a show of force which highlights all the know-how of a brand and which in the process gives a big blow of old to the set 10179 which remained until here a reference model. It is therefore advisable to take a little height for the occasion.

799.99 €, it is indeed a sacred sum and we can find all the valid excuses not to buy this box. We can also list all the arguments in favor of this expense. But the public price of this box places this set in a position where all the arguments in the world will have their chances. The truth is that everyone will especially need to have a very private discussion with their wallet.

Let's tackle the few points that pose a problem to me right away, so that we can then return to the pleasure of construction ...

My first contact with this box sent by LEGO did not come under the best auspices. Smooth delivery, apparently intact packaging, the plan seemed to go off without a hitch.
Until the thing is unpacked. I note in passing that the bags are packaged in four white boxes wisely arranged. It is nicely decorated and each box bears a mention from the dialogues of the saga. Original.

And here is the drama. The cardboard insert that holds the enormous instruction booklet in place is recessed. The 466-page booklet seems too heavy to be properly maintained in transit and it too has suffered some damage. The box of the set has nothing, the outer outer packaging either. I deduce that it is linked to shaking during transport.

My first thought was for the conditioning of the set LEGO Technic 42056 Porsche 911 GT3 RS which had the same problem in its day, problem corrected later by LEGO to limit the crushing of the internal under-packaging. The LEGO quality department has been notified, I haven't had any feedback yet.

If you buy this set to never open it, that's okay, you'll never know what's going on inside. Otherwise, check immediately that everything has gone well during transport.

Another disappointment, the instruction booklet contains much more than the assembly steps and over fifteen pages it delivers a lot of information on the genesis of this set with several interviews, a summary frieze of the different versions of the Millennium Falcon produced by LEGO , etc ... in English.

If you want French, it's as usual, manage to download the PDF file (when it is online ...) that you will find on the manufacturer's website. If I can understand that this technique is used on some lambdas sets, I am disappointed that this exceptional product does not benefit from preferential treatment on this point. A manufacturer of the stature of LEGO is obviously able to localize its products according to the market in which they are distributed. Even the Porsche had benefited from an instruction booklet in English and German (we can see why).

To finish with the contents of the box, let's not forget the "traditional" sheet of stickers. In 2017, what is the excuse for not pad printing the elements of a high-end model intended for the exhibition? Being able to reuse the parts concerned to build something else? Limit production costs? You can try to convince me, you will not succeed. Finding yourself sticking stickers on a product priced at € 799.99 marked "Ultimate Collector Series"is simply unacceptable.

LEGO didn't go so far as to let you stick a sticker on the canopy of the cockpit. It is therefore pad printed. Anyone who has tried to put the sticker on the canopy of the set correctly 10240 Red Five X-Wing Starfighter will be relieved not to have here to employ improbable techniques to get a correct result. It is always that taken.

As you can see, this first contact with this set is not really up to my expectations. But whatever the setting, it's the content that counts. I am demanding about the condition of the products I buy but I am not a packaging fetishist andunboxing languid tires me. If I open a box, it is to assemble what is inside. So now is the time to get down to the basics, building this Millennium Falcon.

No way to give you a guided tour of the assembly of the set, others will do it better than me and if that's your thing you will quickly find online long real-time assembly videos of the 7541 pieces of this set. No question of racing either, I take my time, I have fun. The dismantling, however, promises to be laborious ...

We therefore start with twenty or so sachets numbered 1 to 6 (in groups of 3 or 4 sachets). In total, there are 17 groups of bags to assemble and 1379 assembly steps ...

It's not a surprise, the structure of the ship is based on Technic parts and it will bring back some memories to the owners of the set. 10179 UCS Millennium Falcon released in 2007.

Here we find a cross design similar to that of the previous model. The result is extremely solid and the structure is easily manipulated at this stage by grabbing it by the center.

You will not escape a few repetitive sequences during which you will have to build the same sub-assemblies several times, such as the landing gear of the ship which also partially take the design of those in set 10179. Thanks to the spiral system used for the instruction booklet which avoids having to block each page with a heavy object to prevent it from turning while putting something together.

However, the designer made sure to vary the assembly sequences so as not to generate too much weariness during the assembly phase of the internal structure. You will quickly have to shift a part or two of a tenon, vigilance is required. The risk: you realize a little late of the mistake made and have to backtrack. Connection points not visible on the perspective of the booklet visuals are often highlighted in separate insets, which is convenient.

Along the way, you also need to assemble the few internal spaces of the ship before attaching them to the structure. The 2007 version only had a cockpit to install the minifigs. This new model offers other "playable" spaces and it is in my opinion a major evolution, in addition to the significant improvement of the aesthetics of the model.

These intermediate sequences are entertaining enough to forget the hundreds of pine Technic to set up. A few stickers to apply to give the illusion of the depth of the corridors of the ship, the effect is successful. Dejarik's table is pad printed.
Be careful to press each part well on the tenons of the adjoining part to avoid having to leaf through the enormous booklet in the opposite direction if a part falls while handling the assembly. It is annoying.

By inserting the different modules that come to dress the interior of the ship, we start to get something substantial. It's pretty rewarding after a few long hours of assembly. We then move on to the outline of the ship and we start to put in place the countless details (greebs) which give this particular look to this model. Lots of small, varied pieces to set up, little symmetry between two elements that are nevertheless similar, you have to be careful and meticulous.

To be continued...

* Note: We do as usual, with a small change in passing: You have until October 1, 2017 at 23:59 p.m. to express yourself in the comments of this first part and the second which will be published in a few days. The comments will then be accumulated for the draw (One comment per article / IP / email will be taken into account, ie two chances of winning).