Craft Your Own Magical Nutcracker from JMBricklayer (Set 70143)

 

Hey fellow brick fans!  We are back to showcase a new set courtesy of  JMBricklayer!  Although Christmas has just passed us by, we can still relish the Christmas spirit by building the Fantastic Ideas Nutcracker!  The set number is 70143 and it has 721 high quality brick pieces and is fully Lego compatible.   

Not only does the Nutcracker make a nice and festive display, it also has a cool play feature.  You can load an assortment of coloured balls into his hat and when you turn the golden key, the balls are dispensed through the Nutcracker's mouth!   

Let's take a closer look at how we put Nutcracker together!

Set Details

Set name and number: JMBricklayer Nutcracker 70143

Theme: Fantastic Ideas

Piece Count: 721 pieces

Age Rating: 14+

Stickers: Yes

Printed Parts: Yes

Numbered Bags: Yes

Where to get it: 

For US Amazon, the website link https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CRD98QNZ , the coupon code JMBVIPXINH for US Amazon applies only to the non-discounted Nutcracker 70143 and is valid for one month(It goes into effect on March 18th), offering a 15% discount.  

In addition, as for the online store,the website link https://www.jmbricklayer.com/product/nutcracker-70143/ , the coupon code VIPLEGS15 applies to all non-discounted products and offers a 15% discount. The code is valid until December 31, 2024. 

Other deals available on the JMBricklayer Spring mega sale event: https://www.jmbricklayer.com/offer-sale/

Unboxing

The JMBricklayer Nutcracker comes in a colourful and sturdy box and comes complete with everything shown.

The 54 page instruction booklet comes with easy to follow instructions.   There are a total of 5 stages of construction and the bags of parts are numbered accordingly.

There are a total of 12 numbered bags of brick parts to assemble the Nutcracker.

There's also a brick separator tool and a bag containing the Nutcracker's white hair and moustache.

There are three pieces of two sided sticky sheets used to affix the hair and moustache to the nutcracker's head.

The set includes a sticker sheet to decorate the arms and legs of the Nutcracker.  I didn't end up using them because the Nutcracker looked great without them.

Assembly

As mentioned earlier there are 5 sections in the manual.

Section 1 builds the Nutcracker's torso.

You can see that there are a few printed parts that make up the belt and belt buckle.

Section 2 adds some details to the Nutcracker's tunic and builds the contraption that dispenses little balls.

There is a cylinder that rotates inside the head that catches a ball and then lowers it onto the tongue.

Section 3 builds the head assembly.

The cheeks and eyes are printed parts.

While most of the build process is fairly standard and easy, putting the back piece onto the head was the most difficult part of the build for me.  You have to line up the studs properly, so take your time on step 91.

The balls will come out of the Nutcracker's mouth.

For section 4, we construct the hat which is actually a storage space to hold the balls that will be dispensed.

The lid is hinged so that you can refill the balls easily.

The key turns a gear inside the hat, the gear rotates the cage that captures a ball and discharges it through the mouth.  You can always check on your ball supply by looking in the little window in the hat.

Here's the final section.

We make some balls and place them into the hat.

Now we attach the hair piece to both sides of the head.  You can also leave the hair off if you want to.

And here's how the nutcracker looks when completed.  We add the final detail which is the moustache.

Simply turn the key and watch the ball come out of the mouth.

Oh wait, the nutcracker also has a decorative sword.

You can choose to hold the sword in his hand like this.

Alternatively, you can display the Nutcracker with his sword by his side.

Final Thoughts

The JMBricklayer Nutcracker was a fun set to put together.  As mentioned earlier, there is one step which might be troublesome, otherwise it's an easy build.  I would say this is an average sized set with only 721 pieces, so it's not too daunting for your average Lego builder.   The set looks great even without the provided stickers.

The brick pieces were high quality and they fit together very well.  As you can see from my pictures, the Nutcracker is able to stand properly without tipping over.   The only thing I lament is that the Nutcracker has balls for hands if you display him with the sword at his side.  I would have liked to have seen some proper hands on him instead of balls.

Speaking of balls, I think one could replace the plastic balls with some candy gumballs or similar sized candy and the Nutcracker would make a cool candy dispenser!

The Nutcracker stands just under 11 inches tall, so he doesn't take up much room on your bookshelf or mantle.   I'm going to give this set a rating of 4.6 out out of 5.   Thanks for checking out my review!  See you next time, bye!

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