Purchasing official Nico71’s products

If you like my creations, they are available to purchase for yourself or as a gift! There are only one official retailers for Nico71’s products: Buildamoc. He provides complete kits for my creations, including genuine and new Lego parts as well as PDF building instructions.

Brickomania is a Spanish company selling parts and sets though Bricklink. In 2020 they launched their Buildamoc service, a platform which enables designers to sell their designs, using genuine Lego parts and be paid through royalties.


Image-buildamoc

Check the collection of available kits at Buildamoc here.

Buying fake Nico71’s Product

Mochub or Buildamoc are not the only stores who sell Nico71’s creations (see exception below). There are many others selling through Amazon, Ebay, AliExpress, Wish and so on. However, all these other stores are unauthorized and have simply pirated my creations and plagiarized my instructions. The sets are also made of cheap and poor quality (often Chinese) copies of Lego parts, which had not been tested for my products and can lead to a poor build or malfunctions.

Please also note that all these companies have been notified to cease trading in these products in accordance to French legislation n°92-597 relating to intellectual property and copyright. Buying such counterfeit Lego creations, is encouraging piracy and infringes legislation relating to intellectual property.

Exceptions

Some companies have legally acquired the copyright to produce my creations and own the right to use the IP content for their own purpose, including make respect the copyright according their country regulations. Here are the lists :

  • Articulated 8×8 Offroad Truck – Copyright owned by Ningbo DreamFish Tech Co., Ltd (Reg n°91330283MA2H49MF57)
  • Citroen 2CV and Mehari – Collaboration between Buildamoc, Nico71 and Mehari Club of Cassis (VAT n°FR 73 385 081 161)
  • Telescope –  Collaboration between Buildamoc, Nico71 and MEDAS INSTRUMENTS (VAT n°FR83310914544.)
  • Any creations with my Name made for CADA Brand – Doubleeagle Industry Limited (Reg n°91440515665033317L)

How to make the difference ?

For the official Lego sets :

  • Check on Rebrickable if it is an official set. If it is, compare the price with the official Lego product. If the price is too good to be true, it’s probably a counterfeit with unofficial Lego clone parts. Also consider the price relative to piece count. You should typically expect 0.07€ to 0.15€ per piece for genuine Lego sets.
  • Look for an explicit statement about using Lego genuine parts. If it is not there, it is most probably a counterfeit. “bricks” or “blocks” are not Lego parts in themselves, look out specifically for the “Lego”.
  • • Don’t trust all reviews. Fake reviews are often short, unspecific to the product and may look odd due to robot translation into English. You can use Reviewmeta to check if they are true or not.
  • Enquire on the Lego Technic Facebook page if the product is fake or not. There are many experts who can answer you.

For other creations :

  • If the price is too good to be true, it probably uses Lego clone parts or uses a someone else’s design (or both!). Also consider the price relative to piece count. You should typically expect 0.10€ to 0.20€ per piece for independent designer sets using genuine Lego parts. Basically, a 2000-piece supercar for €100 is just not possible.
  • Look out explicit consent of the designer on the product page or the store webpage, even if you can see the designer’s original videos or pictures.
  • Look for an explicit statement about using Lego genuine parts. If it is not there, it is most probably a counterfeit. “bricks” or “blocks” are not Lego parts in themselves, look out specifically for the “Lego”.
  • These unscrupulous companies sometimes even embed the author’s YouTube video or pictures, or the Rebrickable ID (MOC-XXXX format). If so, check on the designer’s website if they authorise that particular trader. You can also contact the designed directly via their website or Rebrickable.
  • Do a Reverse Image Search by downloading a picture. You should see what other websites use the picture, including the designer’s website.
  • Enquire on the Lego Technic Facebook page if the product is fake or not. There are many experts who can answer you.