LEGO Sopwith Camel x2 (#3451)

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by Anura Guruge

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Related posts:
>> LEGO Advent Calendar.
>> LEGO watch.
>> LEGO movie.

**** Search ‘Lego‘ for MANY other related posts >>>>

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Attribution of images a MUST.

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As I mentioned in this post I am a HUGE fan of LEGO and have been for nearly 25 years — i.e., since Danielle was about 2 years old. I would buy BIG fancy LEGO kits and build them for her — and I remember this really great (and large) Miami Police Boat — while she watched. All 4 kids went onto become LEGO aficionados — with I ever happy to aid their interest. Devanee and Teischan are still into LEGO — Teischan right now making her daily advent calendar (for 2015). I like LEGO too — though in my old age I don’t indulge that often and only do BIG kits.

Well, as I describe in detail in this post, I was very FORTUNATE to get an UNOPENED LEGO Sopwith Camel (#3451) kit at the 2009 ‘Alton Town Wide Yard Sale‘ for $3! As I pointed out I did intimate to the lady that it was a collectible BUT she was HAPPY to get rid of it for $3. Well unopened kits were selling on eBay, at the time, for ~$250 and Deanna wanted me to list it. That never happened. I built it and it had pride of place in our semi-formal sitting room.

About 6 weeks ago Teischan who was trying to measure the length of the wall (in that room) knocked it off its perch and it broke into about 400 pieces. Pieces were all over and given ALL the heavy furniture in that room we knew that we would not be able to find them all!

I was devastated. I was not happy. Checked eBay. Unopened boxes were now going for $450. I was NOT going to pay that much. Found two ‘kits in pieces‘ — both around $90 each. I only needed one to get me the pieces I was missing. But being who I am I could NOT resist getting BOTH — so that I could have two MODELS. Remember what I have said about myself before. I have a great will power, I can resist ANYTHING but TEMPTATION.

So we ended up with three kits in pieces, and I still had the instruction book (and box — with the $3 sticker) from my original. Given that she broke it and she is quite a proficient LEGOist I coerced Teischan into trying to build one of them for me. She, to her credit, persevered for days. But this puppy is very finicky to say the least — and it does say 12+, and Teischan is still 9.

In the end I built them. One of the kits, from e-bay, was 70 assembled. So that was pretty easy.

So now I have two Sopwith Camels and a box full of spare parts. I haven’t checked to see how much I can build with the leftover parts. Maybe I could build a CRASHED Camel!

Well, one Camel is back in the sitting room and I have the other on ONE of my TOY SHELVES. Yes, MY TOY shelves. I have about 6 of those with genuine toys. Unlike other adults I can’t afford ADULT toys. All I can are old kids toys and that amuses I.

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Back On Display.

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Spare pieces for the ‘Crashed Camel’.

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