Super Star Destroyer (10221) - Sourcing the Parts

Now that I have my spreadsheet set up with (hopefully) all the parts I will need, I have to research where I can get them and how much I am going to have to spend to get everything.

I started with Lego's Pick-A-Brick. Unfortunately, they don't stock all the pieces - only the newer and more popular ones. Of the 3,152 pieces required for the set, I was only able to find 1,839 on Pick-A-Brick. Even then, those priced in at $380. Assuming equal pricing on the remaining parts, that puts the total at roughly $655 (not including shipping). Not a cheap build.

I decided to look at other options, like going through a 3rd party site like Brick Link. Not only are the prices a little more reasonable but there is also more variety available via 3rd party sites as Lego tends to stock only newer and more popular pieces.

I am only partway through my list right now. I am going through and making notes on each part so I can get a ballpark feel for how much going this route may cost and whether it's even possible to find all the pieces. Given that I am planning on displaying this and not necessarily playing with it, I've pretty well decided not to bother with getting any of the mini figurines.

Additionally, I've already found 1 set of pieces that I will be substituting with a different color as the exact ones called for in the kit are prohibitively expensive due to their rarity. The kit calls for 6 of the Right Angle 5x5 Yellow Technic Bricks.

Unfortunately, Pick-A-Brick does not carry these and Brick Link has them selling at almost $12 PER PIECE not including shipping. The thought of spending more than $70 on 6 pieces of Lego makes me want to puke so these will be swapped with the same piece but in black (which I can get for a mere $1.15 each). While still considered pretty expensive for a Lego piece, it is at least palatable.

Of course, before deciding whether to do a substitution, one must consider where the piece will be in the final product. These yellow pieces are internal to the SSD and not visible from the outside so I am not too concerned about the departure from standard.

As luck would have it, I found a dealer who lives in the same city as I do so I am hoping to pick up as many pieces from him as I can and saving on the shipping costs.