Miniature Ball Joints!

[Katanga]

I am interested in acquiring a sizable number of the small ball and socket pieces primarily featured in the Mixels theme. I know some themes, like Ninjago, have sets that contain a lot of these parts too. So, I was wondering what current sets have a large collection of these pieces for a low price. I would like to build a humanoid figure using these parts, this means I'll need enough pieces to have at least ten points of articulation.

 

For those of you curious what those points will be, they are; two shoulders, two elbows, two hips, two knees, and two ankles. I was considering using a minifigure head for the figure's, well, head. However, this will depend on the completed figure's size and proportions.

[Pohaturon]

Bricklink? I mean, unless you plan on buying up a ton of mixels, this would be a very costly endeavour if you seek to collect the parts by buying full sets that contain them.

 

[Katanga]

Ch'yeah, Bricklink isn't an option for me. Otherwise I wouldn't be asking. I was hoping to find an alternative to buying a bunch of Mixels though, since they don't exactly come with other parts I desire to have.

[Bfahome]

Chosen wisely, a couple of Mixels should be all you need.  A couple have fully articulated legs, and some are practically loaded with ball joint pieces.

 

The trouble being that, aside from the current wave, you may have to turn to the aftermarket for the sets anyway.  But I don't think any other sets will give you the parts you need for a low price.  It seems like most others are either big sets with large figures or polybags that only use one or two.

[Aanchir]

Wanting to build a humanoid figure with those joints is well and good, but really which of those joint pieces you need may depend as much on the scale you have in mind as on the number of points of articulation. That would determine, for example, which of these three parts might be most useful to you and which might be too big or too small. It might be useful to first try building a figure on LDD to figure out exactly which parts you might need before you worry about how to purchase them most efficiently.

 

Just in terms of sheer number of balls and ball cups per dollar, the retired Mixel Chilbo tops the list with 7 small balls and 7 small ball cups for $5. Close behind is Geoffrey & Friends (a Toys 'R' Us exclusive set), with 12 small balls and 12 small ball cups for just $10. The Mixels Glomp, Footi, Hoogi, Jinky and Kuffs each have 6 small balls and 6 small ball cups for $5. Cole's Dragon has ten small balls and ten small ball cups for $10. The Mixels Niksput, Snoof, Tungster, Dribbal Camillot, Trumpsy, and Sharx each have 5 small balls and 5 small ball cups for $5 (though one of Sharx's small ball pieces is a hook piece which might be tough to integrate into a typical humanoid build). Although some of those Mixels are retired, most of those that are can be bought online for at or below their original price.

 

There are some useful parts that you won't find in any of those sets, though, like 15460. That part appears in just three sets, of which the Nya Fun Pack from LEGO Dimensions is the cheapest. If you're limited to buying sets in stores, people have reported seeing Dimensions Fun Packs at Five Below for $5 each, which is a great bargain.

Edited September 15, 2016 by Aanchir

[Katanga]

I took your advice and installed LDD this morning. Did a bit of building just to get familiar with the program, so I should be able to build my model once I have more time. Cole's Dragon is probably the set I'll be picking up though. It has a few other parts I'd like to have and the minifigures are definitely a bonus. I would get Geoffrey, but I haven't seen him at my local Toys 'R' Us at all.

[Crunchyn]

You could check to see if your local LEGO store Pick-A-Brick has them. My last trip, they had one drawer for the ball part but the socket part was hidden inside a drawer for misc. parts. 

Edited September 16, 2016 by Crunchyn

[Katanga]

During my last vacation to Disney World, I was told by one of the staff working at the Disney Springs' Lego store that these types of pieces were not included their store's Pick-A-Brick inventory. The closest Lego store to me now is in a neigboring state. That's not exactly a trip I want to make just to risk being told the same thing. Thank you for the advice though.

[tourmalinex]

We have a store 1 hour away that a that’s sells used Lego by how much you can fit in a bag a basic hold 2 lbs.  It’s called bricks and mini figs you might have one in your state. if you have a part list I can take it to them and see if the would ship them to you.

[Katanga]

We have a store 1 hour away that a that’s sells used Lego by how much you can fit in a bag a basic hold 2 lbs.  It’s called bricks and mini figs you might have one in your state. if you have a part list I can take it to them and see if the would ship them to you.

The nearest one is a couple of states away, so no luck there either. Ordering things isn't an option for me either. Thank you for the recommendation though.

[Aanchir]

It's been brought to my attention via Facebook that 14417 and 14704 might be available on Pick-A-Brick walls at LEGO stores due to being used in one of the latest "Pick-A-Model" sets, the Turtle. Getting a Pick-A-Brick cup with these pieces would be by far the cheapest way to obtain them in quantity!

 

EDIT: Whoops, missed the earlier posts about this and about you not having a LEGO store nearby. Guess I need to pay better attention.

Edited September 30, 2016 by Aanchir

[Katanga]

I actually already bought Cole's Dragon anyway. At the very least, I appreciate the information. And just out of curiosity, how long do those "Pick-A-Model" sets stay in stores?

[ToaTImeLord]

You could place a special order with customer service?