Clutch Power

Three months after moving houses, I still haven’t unpacked all my LEGO. When I look at the massive piles behind me I can’t help but wonder: am I a hoarder?

Two great guests for this one.

First, Nathan Sawyer of Sawyer Studios on YouTube. Nathan is a rare LEGO content creator who A.) genuinely admits there’s a problem and B.) takes steps to address it. He has twice now cleared out a bunch of his LEGO after coming to a similar realization as me.

Second, Professor Nick Neave of Northumbria University Newcastle. I lucked into finding one of THE hoarding experts in the world. Nick approaches this disorder with empathy and compassion and it’s so refreshing to hear someone finally taking steps to help hoarders - not just shaming them.

Nick is part of the UK Hoarding Partnership which provides resources to people who need help. He encourages anyone who thinks they hoard to fill out this self-assessment survey. There aren’t many resources out there for people who hoard, so any data you can give Nick will help!

I also want to link to Ace’s post on From Bricks to Bothans that inspired this episode. It’s a really fascinating look at someone who realizes they have too much LEGO.

• I Have Too Much Stuff And Need To Get Rid Of It (FBTB.net)

For Clutch Power supporters, you get a bonus section about the use of the word “hoard”. It’s had a winding road from its original meaning to now, where many TikTokers with a lot of one thing use it.

Usually this is where I’d provide the MOC for this episode, but it didn’t feel ethical to do an episode about hoarding and then say: GET THIS BUILD! So while I did build one for socials, it isn’t available (unless you email me personally). We’ll be back to the normal builds next episode!

It’s $2 / month to become a Clutch Power supporter, and you’ll get bonus content + a MOC for every episode!

• Join the Patreon!

Music by Nihilore (www.nihilore.com):

• Alter Ego
• Nonexistent
• Anti-Nostalgia
• ápeiros
• Found Poetry

If you haven’t had an existential crisis over LEGO, then you haven’t listened to enough of this show.

Find episode notes and more at clutchpower.substack.com.

All music by Nihilore (www.nihilore.com)

• Do Not Look Back

25 episodes. 43 guests. One year of Clutch Power. And I’m putting three previous guests to the test: how much do they REALLY know about LEGO?

Four guests in this one!

Three you are familiar with if you’ve listened to the show before:

• Caleb of Cheesey Studios: LEGO Masters contestant, Minecraft aficionado, and Power Miners fanatic.
• Wes of BLACKLUG: world traveler, MOC-displayer, and the only Monkie Kid fan I know.
• Kevin of KDX Brick Analytics: LEGO investing wizard. spreadsheet expert, and an all-around genuine and nice guy.

If you want more of these guys, check out the previous episode of Clutch Power they appeared in:

• LEGO and Minecraft: A Match made in Heaven (Caleb)
• What Race is a LEGO Minifig? (Wes)
• Can LEGO Outperform the Stock Market? (Kevin)

I also pull out a fourth, surprise guest - who is it? You’ll have to listen to find out. I so appreciate him coming on the show; I know it’s a long trek from that dimension!

For Clutch Power supporters, you get a bonus round where I grill each player on their favorite LEGO themes:

• Caleb on Power Miners
• Wes on Monkie Kid
• Kevin on LEGO Ideas

You’ll also get a MOC specially-designed for this episode: Clutch Power’s new logo!

It’s $2 / month to become a Clutch Power supporter, and you’ll get bonus content + a MOC for every episode!

Join the Patreon!

Music by Nihilore (www.nihilore.com):

• Broken in Two
• Glimmer
• The Absurd

Ch-Ching.wav by hgernhardt -- https://freesound.org/s/402651/ -- License: Attribution NonCommercial 4.0

Upbeat Theme Loop.wav by Mrthenoronha -- https://freesound.org/s/506893/ -- License: Attribution NonCommercial 4.0

rbh Applause 05 big.WAV by RHumphries -- https://freesound.org/s/1925/ -- License: Attribution 4.0

LEGO won’t make realistic guns and minifigs. People want realistic LEGO guns and minifigs. Meet the custom companies stepping up to fill that void.

Two guests today!

First: Payton Dean, founder of BrickTactical. Payton manufactures dozens - maybe hundreds - of custom weapons and minifigs of all sorts: from video game weapons to customizable .50 caliber sniper rifles. If you want a gun, odds are BrickTactical has you covered.

Payton also runs the BrickTactical YouTube channel, which showcases new batches of minifigs / weapons. A lot of these are limited run, so keep your eyes peeled for new uploads! Recently, he did a batch of sand red Scout Troopers and I’m kicking myself that I didn’t grab (at least) one.

My other guest is Joe Trupia of Citizen Brick. It’s another custom minifig website, but his offerings couldn’t be more different from Payton’s. A lot of joke minifigs with a handful of military stuff thrown in there.

For Clutch Power supporters, you get a bonus segment with Joe about why Citizen Brick has military stuff at all. And why are there no guns?

You’ll also get access to a MOC of Uncle Sam. This is straight up my favorite MOC I’ve built for this show so far. It came together so well and I love how unsettling and aggressive he is. If that don’t represent America, I don’t know what does!

It’s $2 / month to become a Clutch Power supporter, and you’ll get bonus content + a MOC for every episode!

All music by Nihilore (www.nihilore.com):

Who let me in front of a crowd? A badly-needed analysis of how, why, and when LEGOs got so complicated I held at Dragon Con 2026!

Joining me on this panel were two familiar faces for viewers of Clutch Power 18: What Race is a LEGO Minifig?:

• Corey D. Samuels - LEGO Masters Contestant and LEGO STEM Teacher
• Christine “Tacos” Blandino - LEGO Masters Contestant and LEGO STEM Teacher

I can’t thank them enough for coming on the panel with me! They have done so many cons and panels and they brought a much-needed air of confidence and professionalism to the panel.

I also want to thank John Christian, head of the Maker track at Dragon Con. Thank you for taking a chance on me! LEGO has had 0 representation at Dragon Con, but based on the turnout and amount of questions, people wanna chat LEGO. And I am happy to oblige.

if you’re a Clutch Power supporter, you get an entire other panel I did solo, with the intriguing title ILLEGAL LEGO (oooooh). This one was more casual, sillier, and you can see me in a big dumb LEGO brick costume. Who doesn’t want that?

It’s $2 / month to become a Clutch Power supporter, and you’ll get bonus content for every released episode so far - along with a companion MOC for most episodes.

• Join the Patreon!

All music by Nihilore (www.nihilore.com):

• Alter Ego
• Nonexistent

Olivia Rodrigo has a LEGO set. BTS has a LEGO set. Where is the LEGO set for the biggest pop star in the world?

Today’s guest: Olivia Sheane aka my fiancée! We got engaged on August 12th and I want you guys to get to know her. She is a Taylor Swift fanatic in the same way that I am a LEGO fanatic. Once she named 300 Taylor Swift songs off the dome which I don’t even think I could do for LEGO.

If you’re a Clutch Power supporter, you’ll get a bonus act called: “Idol Merch”. Olivia and I walk through Taylor Swift’s recent merch offerings (for Life of a Showgirl) and hold it up next to her best stuff.

You’ll also get access to a special MOC just for this episode! I asked Olivia what icon best represents Taylor Swift and she said her famed rhinestone guitar. Turns out there are not a ton of rhinestone-adjacent elements but I did my best!

It’s $2 / month to become a Clutch Power supporter, and you’ll get bonus content + a MOC for every episode!

Music by Nihilore (www.nihilore.com):

Some LEGO sets are worth their weight in gold. Some LEGO sets are worth more than that. And a small cabal of LEGO Investors is finding ways to make serious profit.

First, the incredible Phil Edwards. If you haven’t seen Phil on Youtube yet, consider this your formal invitation. For a data / culture fiend like me, his videos are a feast every single time. Here are some of my favorites from his recent videos:

Of course, the video that prompted me to reach out is The secret economics of LEGO, which takes a different look at this whole weird world of investments.

My other guest - Kevin of KDX Bricks Analytics. Kevin’s videos are very straightforward, very numbers- and facts-based, and, as someone who had no exposure to this world, fascinating.

If you want to dip a toe into the LEGO Investing pool, he told me people can get started here:

Kevin says, and I quote: “it’s a game changer for anyone doing over $10k of profit annually”.

For Clutch Power supporters, you get a bonus segment with Kevin all about the green flags and red flags of LEGO themes. One theme he mentioned surprised me…makes me want to do an episode on it. Which theme? You’ll have to join to find out!

It’s $2 / month to become a Clutch Power supporter, and you’ll get bonus content + a MOC for every episode!

All music by Nihilore (www.nihilore.com):

It seems like a no-brainer collab, but LEGO and Nintendo have a history messier than your one bum cousin. On this episode, a look at LEGO and Nintendo’s first time butting heads in the 60s, and how that evolved into the beautiful partnership of 2026.

Today’s guest: Chris Byrne, AKA The Toy Guy! Chris is a genuine talent who’s appeared on Live with Kelly and Mark, Oprah, Good Morning America, and a million other shows! He loves talking toys.

Here are a few of my favorite Chris Byrne appearances:

A hundred thousand thanks to Chris for talking with me. Nintendo has such a fascinating history that they don’t really talk about; it was fun looking back!

If you’re a Patreon supporter, you’ll get a bonus act called: “I Dreamed a Dream”. My old podcast collaborator Joseph Thomas and I brainstorm LEGO sets for some lesser-known LEGO themes including:

You’ll also get access to a special MOC just for this episode! I learned how to draw Mario when I was eight and I’m happy to share that those skills transfer to LEGO!

It’s $2 / month to become a Patron, and you’ll get bonus content + a MOC for every episode!

Join the Patreon!

Music by Nihilore (www.nihilore.com):

Loretta Veney had been building LEGO with her mom for decades. And even after her mom was diagnosed with dementia, their love of LEGO kept them together.

Today’s guests: the wonderful Loretta Veney! Loretta is an inspirational speaker, author, and LEGO Serious Play facilitator. Her mom was diagnosed with dementia in 2006, and in the years after, through the highs and the lows of the disease, LEGO would help ground her mother.

Here are a few links if you want to see more of Loretta:

Loretta is such a jolt of positivity; I feel honored to share her story.

For Clutch Power supporters, you’ll hear a bonus segment with Natalia Kasperovich. Natalis runs Bricks for Better Brains and ran a study about the relationship between people living with dementia and LEGO. It’s really interesting stuff.

I have experience working with people with dementia and they are often treated like children, so it’s super important to give them agency whenever possible. I love that Natalia’s work is doing that!

You’ll also get access to a MOC I built just for this episode! It’s a portrait of Loretta’s mom, Doris. I hope it does her justice.

It’s $2 / month to become a Clutch Power supporter, and you’ll get bonus content + a MOC for every episode!

All music by Nihilore (www.nihilore.com):

LEGO Universe shut down on January 31st, 2012. But a group of players are dedicated to keeping the lights still running - 14 years later.

Today’s guests: HailStorm and aronwk from Nexus Universe. Nexus Universe is a public server where you can experience LEGO Universe like it’s 2011 again. It’s extremely simple to set up - only took me a few minutes. All you’ll need is a Discord to get the game key, and you’re on your way!

Both HailStorm and Aaron warned me of what they call the “scam server”. I won’t get into specifics, but they say it’s another LEGO Universe server that will charge you money for stuff as simple as like levelling up. I can personally vouch that Nexus Universe is safe, credible, and constantly moderated, so if you want to experience LEGO Universe, go with Nexus.

If you’re a Clutch Power supporter, you get a bonus video. My buddy Joe from Jeez! joins me as we play through the opening of LEGO Universe. If you’re not sure if LEGO Universe is for you, check out that video - you’ll get the answer!

You’ll also get access to this MOC I built just for this episode! is a recreation of the Nexus Force symbol (the good guys in LEGO Universe). If you, like me, thought making a five-pointed star would be simple, then you, like me, might be struck but how not true that is.

It’s $2 / month to become a Clutch Power supporter, and you’ll get bonus content + a MOC for every episode!

All music by Nihilore (www.nihilore.com):