seen on Darth Ray's flickr gallery, a new promotional mini set released by the American chain of stores Target, the reference 30054: AT-ST.

This is not really a novelty, this mini was already released in 2003 in the set 4486-1: AT-ST & Snowspeeder, this time with a change of color on some parts and the absence of serigraphy on the front panel of the machine.

In short, nothing very exciting, but as usual, we will be feverishly looking for this set on eBay or Bricklink at the best price in the coming weeks.

Click on the visual for a larger version.

Rumors are rife about possible sets not yet announced and which could be released at the end of the year.

Obviously, these rumors are to be taken in the second degree, because they circulate from forum to forum, without really having a reliable source at the origin of the wildfire.

Evidenced by this rumor on 2 exclusive sets planned for the end of 2011, coming from RebelScum forum, peddled on Eurobricks, and finally relayed everywhere:

A reference set 7985 - Republic Stun Tank, with 3 minfigs (Clone Commander Jet, Obi-Wan and an ARF trooper). which should look like the image above.

Another reference set 7986 - Yoda's Hut with 3/4 minifigs (Yoda, R2-D2 and Luke Skywalker - possibly a swamp creature from Episode V).

In short, the rumor as we see every year, enough to wait while waiting for the sets that we already know .....

New Star Wars Keychains have appeared on the Shop:

 

 

 

 

 

 

Even if I'm not a fan of this type of "goodie", many collectors are snapping up these minifigs, thus avoiding investing in sometimes very expensive sets for one or two coveted minifigs.

With the new magnets glued to their base, and taking off without damaging the minifigs having become more than haphazard (Many methods are popping up everywhere, but none are entirely satisfactory), these key chains become an acceptable fallback solution.

However, you still have to remove the "pin" embedded in the minifigure, without destroying the latter. Some employ the barbaric method and use pliers to pull the "pin".

Below, I share with you a method presented by TheBrickBlogger in an interesting article on the subject, which consists of using a soldering iron and briefly heating the loop of the "pin" while pulling to extract it cleanly.

 

Be careful not to leave the soldering iron too long in contact with the "pin", otherwise the plastic of the minifig may melt.

Watch the video below carefully to understand how to do this:

 

 

Just a note to let you know that the two new Star Wars magnet packs are available on the LEGO Shop for € 9.99 per pack.

Suddenly, at this price, and for minifigs whose legs are glued to the magnetic base, the case is much less beautiful than in the past for those who want to complete their collection of minifigs without having to buy the relative sets.

In short, if you still want to add these packs to your collection or decorate your fridge, here are the direct links:

853130 - Anakin Skywalker, Thi-Sen and Clone Pilot

853126 - AT-AT Driver, Ben Kenobi, TIE Fighter Pilot

Everyone has long agreed that LEGO has always oversized its boxes in relation to their content.

Many criticisms have already been made on this subject and in particular this year by the magazine 60 millions de consommateurs which evoked deceptive packaging for the consumer (See this news).

It seems that LEGO has decided to significantly reduce its packaging as evidenced by this photo taken by a Toys N Bricks forumer in a Wal-Mart store in the USA.

Apparently this compact box from the 8093 Plo Koon's Starfighter set has a different barcode from the classic model.

 So, is this an exception, or is LEGO reviewing its packaging policy. And if so, is it only for environmental and economic considerations, or under pressure from customers who feel cheated by a few bags of coins in an oversized box? 

I remember my son's reaction to opening some Star Wars sets. 

His disappointment at the scanty content was blatant as the big box made huge promises ......