Full disclosure… I’ve had this set for a long time… like a few years. It took a long time for me to finally start building, then to finish building, and then to add a light kit. So this review is long overdue, but the good part is this set is still available if you are interested in purchasing it. If you’ve read the blog or followed it, you’ll know that i spent some time living in Europe. I had a trip planned for Paris, but sadly, this pandemic shut down the borders and I never made it there. I did however pick up set number 10307-1: Eiffel Tower a few years ago. This set was released on 25 November 2022. It contains 10,001 pieces (the additional piece above 10,000 is the brick separator. This set retails for $629.99 which works out to $0.063 per piece which isn’t too bad. I picked this one up a few years ago when LEGO ran a sale on it around Black Friday. I used some Insider Points as well so in the end I think I paid like $200 out of pocket. There was a GWP so even better. I don’t think I could have swallowed the $630 in one chunk so I’m glad I scored it when I did and that I had the points to help.

The box is huge. The set come in it’s own box and I had it shipped so the box was in another box. Here are the various sides of the box.

Here’s the top and then when you open the first flap, the next flap has a quote from Mr. Eiffel along with his picture.

Inside the box are three numbered boxes that fit together to form the Eiffel Tower as a picture. The other cool part is that you assemble the sections of the tower on each box using the parts in those boxes. So box one builds the base and the four legs. It’s not an exact match, but it’s pretty close.

The set comes with 74 numbered bags, a few bags without numbers, some parts not in bags, and then three instruction books (one in each box). Below are the contents of each of the three boxes.

With 74 bags, I decided it best not to go through each bag. If you want a full up review that goes step by step, you will have to look elsewhere. Sorry.

The builds starts with the base of the tower. This is created with Technic pieces and system parts. The first picture is from bags five and six. You can see the four spots where each of the legs of the tower will connect and then the center section which will become the area where there will be trees, lights, and benches. Of note, throughout this build, there are multiple bags for each instruction section. I’m not sure why they didn’t just number it step five and have two bags numbered five, but it works.

Bags 17 and 18 show a finished off center section and then they start to form the base of the tower in each of the corners. While the majority of the build from here on out is with gray pieces, it was nice that they used a few other colors so you can tell different corners apart.

By bag 28, you finish all four legs and you connect them with an initial frame. The legs are all built in a similar fashion and you use various gray pieces to build the internal frame of each leg. The frame does not actually provide any structural support. It’s just there for looks.

By bag 32, you add more of the detail of the structure connecting each of the legs. I like how they came up with the curved section by using flex tube and then different pieces connected to the frame at different lengths.

Bag 50 finishes up the next level and the next section of the tower. Each of the sections are similar to the legs using various parts to make the framework that doesn’t actually provide structure.

Bags 62 and 63 finish another section of the tower. In the center are little elevators. This section goes on top of the section from bag 50.

There is another level on top of the previous level. Then there’s the top. Bag 73 and then 74 build the very top (as seen in the next two pictures). It was great to have color at the very end with the flag at the top after all that dark gray.

Here’s the final build. It looks incredible and it’s so tall! I enjoyed the build although it was spread out over quite a bit of time. There are a lot of repetitive sections and you build with a lot of dark gray so that can be a turnoff for many. Also, once you are done, you need to have a place to put this. It won’t just fit on a small shelf or table in the corner. It takes up some space!

Getting this set with the discount and Insider points helped. I’m not sure I would have picked this up without a substantial discount and GWP.

What are your thoughts? Too gray? Great model of a landmark? Too expensive? Fun build?

When I bought this set, Light My Bricks had a light kit for this set on sale for about half off. I forget the total price. It originally was $260 and I think I got it for $130, plus they threw in some extra lights. (Note I purchased the 1.0 kit, not the 2.0 kit). I have reviewed a light kit before from a different brand and that one wasn’t too bad to install. This one was a beast! Besides all of the very small wires and connections, it was a challenge to thread all of the wires into the right places and to follow the instructions of what to remove and where to hook things. I definitely made incorrect connections along the way. The 1.0 kit starts with lighting up the base of the tower with little lights on many of the small lamps (you remove a bunch from the original build). This part took a very long time for me to get right. I ended up breaking a few pieces and had to ask Light My Bricks how to purchase replacement pieces. They were kind and send me new pieces for free. Once I got the base complete, you start to light up the legs of the tower. This uses some thicker strands of LEDs that make the set look awkward in the day time. At night and in the dark, you can’t tell and the lights look great. You also add in some RGB strips for color at each of the levels of the tower. I installed a few wrong so the colors aren’t all synchronized like they should be. Finally, at the very top, I followed the instructions and the two white lights don’t come on. At this point, I’m done messing with it so it will stay dark at the top in white mode, but will look great in color mode. Here are two pictures below of the lights. The white looks great (except for the very top) and the color is a cool function with the ability to set different levels at different colors or to have it continuously change color.

After this experience, I don’t think I will do another light kit. While the end product looks cool, it was too stressful for me to build. I enjoy assembling LEGO sets, but adding in the light kit was more frustration than it was worth. Light My Bricks has a 2.0 series out now which they claim is better. The instructions are supposedly better and it’s designed to show less wires. Has anyone tried them out?

Happy building!

The folks at LeLightGo reached out to me and asked if they could send me a light kit so I could review it on my blog. So here goes.

I was given a choice so I selected the light kit for #42083-1: Bugatti Chiron from the Technic line. In case you’re not familiar, you can see my review of the LEGO Technic set here (part 1) and here (part 2). Also, you can get up close and personal with a real Bugatti Chiron at that link (okay, maybe not super personal, but closer than I’ve ever been).

The company’s web site lists a UK address, but the shipment I received came from California. The box was roughly 6 inches long by about 5 inches wide and a little over an inch tall. It was labeled as the 42083 Classic Version.

The box just contains a bag with parts bags inside so I went to their web site. They have some general instructions for how to handle their kits under a section labeled USER GUIDE. I scrolled down and there were two instructions for set #42083. One was labeled as the “new version” and the other was just the number. As you recall, the box I received said “classic version.” I was a bit confused as to which instructions to use. I ended up opening them both and used the process of elimination to figure out what to use.

The box contained eight parts bags. One through six were labeled and then there were two others. One contained the battery container.

The build started with taking apart a few pieces in the front of the car to get to the headlights. Then you place an LED under each 1x1 clear plate. Having a wire in the way makes the connection not as solid, but it holds. You connect four LEDs on each side and then all of the wires run into the front trunk space.

The next build installs a light above the seats. This one has a wire that you then connect back to the front trunk as well. I didn’t do a good job making the connections tight so it is more obvious that I used a light kit here.

There are a number of connections in the back. You install one on the spoiler, one along the brake light, and then one underneath the car. The one on the spoiler was tough as the wiring had to connect down through the car to the bottom to make some additional connections to lead to the power connection in the front. The one along the brake light requires you to change around the build a bit. The kit includes some knock off pieces that you install so there is one clip on the back versus two. Then you tack on the two light strips. The strips are a little too long in my opinion so getting them to fit was a bit sporty, but I eventually got the fit to work. The lights on the bottom required removing some more parts, but I eventually got all of this to work.

Once the lights in the back are attached, you have a long wire that you run to the front of the car. From there you connect all of the wires together to then connect to the power source. I didn’t have the three AAA batteries required on hand so I connected the USB plug to a USB to American power cord adapter and…

I was shocked that it all worked on the first try. It was actually fairly easy to put together despite having never done a kit like this before. The front headlights really look awesome. I think the one above the seats is a bit bright, but it does the job of lighting the cabin. You can also see the red LEDs in the rear spoiler which looks pretty good.

I think the back looks awesome. The red LEDs along the brake lights looks great and the blue that shines down on the ground is a cool contrast from the red right above it.

Thanks to LeLightGo for sending this set for me to review. Overall, it was a good first experience at LED lights and I think it helps to make the Technic Bugatti Chiron look better. I have nothing to compare this to so I can’t say whether it’s better than other companies or not, but no big complaints on this one after I figured out which instructions to follow. This set would originally cost $48.99. As of the writing of this post, it’s on sale for $38.99 plus a buy one, get one 30% off sale if you buy another kit. If you’re looking to get a light kit, definitely watch for sales and opportunities to save some funds.

Have you used light kits before? What are your opinions? Have you used LeLightGo or others? Let me know in the comments.

Happy building!

Set Review - #10307-1: Eiffel Tower - Icons (and a light kit!)

Light Kit Review - LeLightGo - Kit for #42083-1: Bugatti Chiron (Technic)