I underestimated this set big time!
PROLOGUE
LEGO Set 31165: Panda Family was released last year (2025) and despite the sheer number of piece count, I decided to give that a pass last year due to uninspiring color scheme (black and white), and limited ball joints. (6 is the magic number, this set has about 4).
Since its release.... I received more than usual requests to build a Transformer (read: free tutorials) using this Panda set. But I wasn't really confident in pulling this off.
WHAT MADE ME SUCCUMB
Last month.... when I was scouting for new LEGO sets to buy, I bumped across this Panda set at a cool discount. Then I paid a visit to rebrickable to actually see how many members there owned this set. The number is pretty high, and so does the alternate builds! This sent a strong signal that I should finally pay attention to this set!
ABOUT THIS PROJECT
Space cruiser mode is my preferred mode of choice due to low hanging fruit. I kinda mastered the art of building this mode that's inspired by one G1 Transformer character named
Brainstorm (below)
This project started off by trying to become Brainstorm but ended up as a generic Transformer!
Brainstorm iconic feature is having both his guns mounted on the nosecone. My creation here is unable to pull this off as it will cause the nosecone to sag.
Rounded , semi-domed pieces are usually hard to utilize in my Transformers. Here they ended up at the back as engines/rocket booster . Purely accidental!
Initially I followed Brainstorm transformations where hinged wings and tailfins are mounted on the robot arms independently. I struggled to design smooth wings because there are no tiles and wedge plates for me to use! This is where I decided to pivot.
As mentioned earlier, set 31165 has few ball joints and its not adequate for my need. Luckily, after about one hour into this project , I discovered ways to build joints using a few parts with range of motions equal to a typical ball joint.
With gun mounted
TRANSFORM
I turned the whole wings to become the forearms! And the tailfins folded away to the back of robot mode.
ROBOT MODE
MORE ACTION POSES
To be honest, the following poses even though are cool, some of them are hard to pull off , no thanks to weaker small ball joints for the pelvis.
With gun.
Aiming his gun straight ahead is almost impossible due to weak elbow joints. However, this can be improved by rotating the arm 20 degrees or more to either direction.
With my recent
Cyclonus
using LEGO Fierce shark set
VIDEO TUTORIAL
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