30654 X-Wing Starfighter LEGO Review - Star Wars, 2023

 

A classic build for a great price.

TL;DR:

• Original Price:  $4.99
• Pieces: 87
• Minifigure(s): No
• Sticker Sheet: No
  
• Pros: Effective part use
• Cons: Unusual scale, a little simplistic

Assembly: 

• Interesting Steps:
• I appreciate the strength and design possibilities of the plate-layered muzzle (vs horizontal 1x1 bricks used in microbuilds). This build in general is very strong for its size.

• Step 8 interestingly uses a Mixel joint for the upside-down backside element to hold the lower pair of wings. This is locked into place by the 2x2 plate in Step 9, and strengthens the modified 2x3 with hole used for the upper half (Step 7).

• Interesting Techniques:
• The four exhausts are created here by lightsaber hilts (vs the carrots in used in the polybag of Poe Dameron's X-wing Fighter) on 3L bars, threaded through the friction pins holding each wing in place. It's a very simple solution, but also elegantly compact...and hey, if Luke ever needs an extra lightsaber, now he's got four close at hand!

 

On the whole, this was a satisfying little build. It's bigger than the microscale X-wings you get in seemingly every Lego Star Wars advent calendar (not that I'm complaining, it's neat to see all the build variations), but smaller than the accurate minifigure-scale sets...it's also less than a tenth of the price. This is a perfect stocking stuffer or Easter basket type set, with creative techniques making the most of the pieces without being too complex. The end result is sturdy, and a good size for little (or bigger) hands to zoom around the room. It's too small for a minifig, obviously, but this does make it a good size for backpacks or pockets; I can see this being part of a road trip entertainment kit, and with a bit of wire it can also be made part of a mobile or hung on a Christmas tree.

Score (out of 5 🧱):

• Price: 🧱🧱🧱🧱🧱
• Process: 🧱🧱🧱🧱🧱
  
• Presentation: 🧱🧱🧱🧱🧱
  
• Play: 🧱🧱🧱🧱🧱
• Pieces: 🧱🧱🧱🧱

• Total: 🧱🧱🧱🧱🧱 

Lego Instructions: here