Classic LEGO M-Tron Mega Core Magnetizer 6989 review! Surprisingly clever set from 1990

[@JANGsLEGOreviews]

Radio bits. Nothing else matters 👍

[@wkhan5555]

😂😂 I thought my audio was lagging

[@hajkie]

Radio bits. :D

[@michaelg1237]

Need more Radio Bits

[@Nio744]

Radio bits.

[@erevo1722]

Radio Bits 🫡

[@zackakai5173]

There's something about the way these old sets had a lot of complex features hidden in a relatively simple design that a lot of modern sets really lack. Nowadays you'll get a more complex shape and maybe one major mechanic if you're lucky. As an adult who mostly wants display models that's fine, but I kind of feel for kids today who might value having more play features over a more detailed model.

[@joshhull5286]

They should put creative things like this set in modern sets. Not everyday you see super cool magnetic features in your Marvel/Star Wars sets. This 1990 set is amazing 👏🏼

[@n_ex13]

Or the creative use of the base piece to create a cockpit for everyone to sit in

[@Brixxter]

What I really like about these sets is how seemingly everything serves a purpose beyond simple combat. Whether it's research, transportation or exploration (often sets stayed vague enough to allow all three), the vehicles felt like they were more than the battle machines we see today, like they were serving important purposes in a universe. I really miss that aspect in modern sets.

[@cyanimation1605]

the near future City-Space sets are focusing on the research at least. But yeah. Alien Conquest, Galaxy Squad, Mars Mission, and Space Police III really veered into the combat. especially problematic with Space Police where it's humans dominating countless alien races

[@xeron_7433]

I usually don't subscribe to the "Lego was so much better in the 80s/90s" camp, but this is an exception for me, I feel like we never see play features this extensive and versatile anymore. The set looks awesome overall, I always liked how M-Tron's flagship set was a ground vehicle and not a base or spaceship, feels fitting for a faction that's supposed to be miners and/or utility workers. Great review as always, Jang!

[@SezMisery]

Lately I have started to appreciate this era of Lego even more. I was born into it, so I didn't have much Lego from back then myself. But looking back on it now there was a lot more creativity with the different themes. These days I feel like every major theme (except City and Ninjago) is something licensed. I feel like there was a lot more originality back then, and variation in different themes. New original themes come and go too quickly now, and they're rarely that interesting to me. I mostly stick to Star Wars, but I'd love a full reboot of the classic castle theme. The upcoming castle looks like a good start, but I'm hoping we'll see more in the near future.

[@adriansue8955]

Was really hoping to see Jang grab the 'steering wheel' (the pivoting dish with the grey thrusters) at the top and drive it around on the table. its not just a decorative gimmick, its meant to be a 'hand of god' steering function

[@TerminalChill]

Aww, this one is special to me! My grandfather bought this set for me when I was a wee lad back in the 90s. For some reason he would glue all the parts together, I guess maybe he figured they were better off as models and should never be taken apart. He passed back in 2016 but every now and then when I come across one of these parts in my lego bins, I know it's from him because the parts are stuck together and it puts a smile on my face! :) Very nostalgic!

[@parallax88]

This set was probably my second favorite Lego set I had as a kid. The pre-Star Wars era Lego Space always had great large vehicles. Maybe if the Galactic Explorer sells well enough Lego will consider reviving other fan favorite space themes like Blacktron and M-tron.

[@Jasonwolf1495]

The magnets are just so dang good for lego. You said it yourself the fact it works with so little handling makes it feel that much more real, rather than a thing you gotta fiddle with all the time to make the cool stuff happen.

[@user-yk7sg9vw2b]

I love how the older sets had secret areas to store stuff in. I remember that being very fun to play with as a kid and very immersive. Alot of the old sets had that, with places to store things in fire trucks, or in the Aquanaut ships. I dont feel like Modern lego does this as well. I went back and collected many of the 90s space, pirates and castle stuff and I find my children, who are 4 and 6, keep coming back to the older sets. They get bored of the newer stuff very quickly, but will play with the old space sets for hours (including the Futuron Monorail). I wish lego would lean into this design and the classic themes more often then some movie IP. My kids love the wonder of those older sets and themes because they are so open for them to use their imaginations. Great Review!

[@electromistress]

Me: "Oh dang yes, Jang has finally reviewed the Mega Core Magnetizer!" Also me: "Oh no, now that Jang has reviewed the prices on Bricklink will only go up!"

[@KaraBlackk]

i had this one.. loved so much ... now 38 years old with a 625 hp car and still missing this lego space car :)

[@bdonaghu]

I was too young (born in 1991) to fully appreciate a lot of the classic sets, but I enjoy the insight you give in these vintage reviews.

[@benchui580]

Big wheels and super large vehicle? Sounds like a toy that every boy want!

[@empatheticrambo4890]

I’m so incredibly happy to see this, I love it when you do the old sets. I get to live vicariously for a bit, and your perspective is always fresh

[@B.N.Paranornal]

This is my all time favorite lego set

[@Isteak80]

Lego Space in the early 90s was a great time with so many sub-lines with interesting concepts behind them. I used to be an avid collector of the Space Police Line, but I really liked the gimmicks of the M-Tron line.

[@zacharyvance2365]

This set in one of the reasons why I fell in love with LEGO. Would love to see imaginative builds like this again!

[@henrik3141]

I got this for christmas as a kid and I loved it

[@WilhelmScreamer]

Man, no old school space set sparks joy and imagination in me like this one

[@natef15]

The birthday I thought I would get this my parents bought me the Galactic Mediator instead. Can't complain! Now I finally got the Mega Core Magnetizer for Father's Day, yes!

[@adriansue8955]

Don't forget the Magnets! The little buggies can totally carry cargo, use the magnet on their back to attach to the small cargo box. (the one in the center that was 'stuck') Not immediately obvious, but that's why the M-Tron magnets system is so great.

[@sejagaming]

I still have this set complete in its box from my childhood. This was one of the best lego set I had when I was a kid. Wonderful christmas present.

[@blackbird71a]

The idea of the turning dish on top is to use it as a steering wheel - you can drive the whole vehicle by holding this piece, pushing it along, and turning it to direct the wheels.

[@vexorian]

The Helicopter-like ship from M:tron (6923) is REALLY good. I've owned tons of ships in my teens and that's the one that I remember the best for swooshability and the build techniques. And I do mean it, I had the Exploriens Star Ship and the Deep Freeze Defender. Both great sets, but I think the Particle Ioniser was really, really good at looking like more than a brick-build ship

[@Christjs27]

I have this set. Wish I never took it apart. I recall having a blast with it as a kid. Great review!

[@jondavidtheauthor6318]

Got this set. It's amazing.

[@YoungestGo1st]

M-Tron was my introduction into Lego as a kid. Thanks for taking me back down memory lane :)

[@Kastrenzo74]

I know a turkish guy who was so obsessed with M-Tron that he made an army that has from my last count like 4000 minifigs and god knows how many MOC vehicles.

[@maxtreme131]

This is s set I would love to see a remake from!!

[@Jaypes1]

Agreed, but it's also good enough to be a modern set as it is.

[@Styreta]

Man this tickles my nostalgia bone hard. I was born in 87, so this is one of those sets I drooled over as a child but was out of production by the time I had allowance money etc. I do have the big ice pirates ship though!

[@koendecrock]

To all those that say that LEGO has only grown more expensive, if I understood Jang correctly, this set was 60 USD in 1990, which is approx 140 USD today, for 500 pieces. Granted, there are quite a few large pieces, there are magnets, and quite a few prints. But, I do not think that LEGO would attempt to charge 140 USD for such a set nowadays. It could be that this is an exception, but it still kinda shows that LEGO has always been expensive.

[@Coffeephile]

There is something about these sets from 1990-1998 that is just pure fun to me, i dont know what is it but its missing in modern sets. Maybe parts selection (many parts are not used anymore which sucks, love magnets everywhere) or building techniques are just right i dont know. They use low amount of elements, but every single one is used so efficiently that the final product is just one sturdy, fun and interesting to discover toy. Modern stuff often looks great as display piece, but they are either overengineered for a toy or just uninspired and not fun.

[@lbricks7631]

A set with many nostalgic memories.

[@Spaceboy709]

Thank you DC for this! Thank you Jang. I'm one of those 90s kids and I adored this set. Still do.

[@anthonyducre2603]

Seems Jang had way too much fun reviewing this one. Thanks for showing this one off, I'm glad you enjoyed it!

[@TygonPanthera]

The coolest Lego thing ever! Had almost all the M-Tron stuff back then. Was missing only one of the smaller spaceship, but this one was my favorite. I should check with my parents if they still have it...

[@d0ublemischiev0s]

This was one of my favorite sets as a kid! I still have... Most of it. 😭

[@kibavee3295]

Such a cool set! I had this when I was tiny I love the aesthetic of mTron. It's what really got me into Lego :)

[@AJBa83]

One of these still tucked away up in my attic and you've really made we want to fetch it down and brush off the dust. It really is a beautifully elegant and well proportioned design with quite a thin spine and frame underneath the wheels and that windscreen. It definitely wears its 30+ years well.

[@DragonaxFilms]

Man, what a cool set. There's so many features packed into it, and it looks great too. Classic space was just the best.

[@22NF2]

The M-Tron spaceship sets from the 90s were really well done, especially 6923!

[@hajkie]

I didnt have this one, but i remember someone else having it when i was a kid. I described it as a moving base pretty much back then. I love the control area.

[@drascious7594]

So cool. I had this as a kid

[@Tequila4Two]

I had quite a few of the M-Tron sets when I was young, this brings back some good memories. Thanks for posting this!

[@sebk2669]

Missing all those old sets , mtron, space police etc . So much memories for me who is born in 1977!

[@johnshepard8387]

It reminds me the Blacktron Spectral Starguider set i had as a kid, in 1991.

[@PltOffPPrune]

Like you, Jang, I was in my teens when this came out and did my growing up with the earlier space themes. Thank you for bringing us a great overview and review.

[@narcolipze8586]

This set is an amazing example of the simple but clever designs of the LEGO crew

[@kopmis]

This being 140$ adjusted for inflation I think reflects positively on current pricing. Compare it to the upcoming AT-TE Walker that’s also 140$. They’re about the same size but the AT-TE has more than double the amount of pieces, way more detail, doesn’t rely on mega pieces, many more mini figures with unique and better prints. I remember even as a kid (born 90) my parents used to complain about how expensive Lego was.

[@bricksnblocks]

You don't know how long I've been waiting for this. Excitement overload!

[@slugbiker]

wow! what an amazing set. love all the functionality with the magnets and how all the components work together. thanks for showing us this set!

[@Benjamin0119]

Ah I was so happy when I saw this thumbnail in my notifications, Jang. I was one of the kids who looked longingly at the catalogs and wish I had this set! I had some Blacktron II, Space Police II, Ice Planet, and Spyrius, but no M-Tron unfortunately. But I definitely wished I had an especially this set. The thing is huge and has huge wheels (the largest space wheels and for a long time were only used on this set and the original UCS Star Destroyer, for its engines) and uses one of the giant dome pieces from the bases as its cockpit canopy. This thing was insane! And the crane is even better than I thought with how you can use it to pick up and offload stuff! Since I never bought it when I was collecting vintage LEGO as an adult in past years and it may be beyond my means now, I'm very grateful to enjoy it vicariously through your review, Jang. And it would be awesome if you reviewed more of the M-Tron stuff!

[@Powerhouse1]

I love your classic reviews the most! It's always cool looking at things from a retrospective lens.

[@SteadfastRC]

awesome to see you doing another one of the classic sets, they were far better back in the day

[@Insane_IK]

I think this set really holds holds up today! Thanks for the review!

[@Pattamatt1998]

Also, it's worth mentioning that 6896 Celestial Forager from this theme uses a similar pivoting "waist" with a hub that you can hold on to and use to steer, it's a really clever play feature.

[@n_ex13]

I absolutely love m-tron it's my favourite space sub theme

[@k0sm0smm4]

I've never heard of M-Tron before but I know if I see this as a kid I would really really really want it. :( The prints, that yellow glass, all that removable vehicles would definitely appeal to me as a kid! It's cool to see these sets get visited and each part explored in detail, satisfied all the mystery!

[@DouglasParkinson]

Big, bulky, utilitarian vehicle with a variety of secondary vehicles. How very Thunderbird 2, I like it. Honestly, this set looks like it would only need minimal adjustments to see a modern release, it's such a good design.

[@Icypenguigo]

When I was a kid, my best friend had a big collection of Lego space sets, including this one. I used to play with it all the time, thought it was the coolest thing ever. It still looks awesome today!

[@WarpigA23]

I was 21 when this set came out. Still my favorite of the 2000+ sets I own.

[@jonasfermefors]

Now I'm imagining a modern version with an electromagnet on the crane so you can switch it off to drop the cargo.

[@theflippingflip]

I had this set as a kid, Im still trying to find all the pieces to rebuild it. Thx for the nostalgia!

[@davidspencer8701]

I still have this set! One thing to add for the 'vehicle' at 6:20 is that it's designed to hold a minifigure. They can slide in while wearing the air tank.

[@MD-jj1eh]

Great work Jang, great to see this review. I went on a nostalgia trip for Lego during lockdown, discoverd Jang, and being of the classic space and m-tron era, binged your space theme review series, but was sad it didn't include all of M-tron. I never got this set as a kid, but now have the complete M-tron line-up (and a lot more Lego now). Keep up the good work!

[@TediI47]

Very nice to see! I never realized how well the magnets were integrated.

[@kentslocum]

Thanks for helping me appreciate this old set!

[@manireik]

This was the one big Lego set I ever got, as a kid, from the one year my Dad wasn't struggling financially. Greatest X-mas present I ever got.

[@nym5qu17]

super nostalgic for this series even tho i was a 00s kid, this sort of stuff was still around and i just found it so fascinating as a little kid.

[@PuuberZ]

I only have some small M-Tron sets from when I was a kid but I always wanted this big set.

[@paulfischer9722]

I'd be way more excited to get this set as a kid than regular current sets, there are so many features and creativity around this one!

[@haveaseatoverthere3326]

I loved the black tron. Omg this brings back memories of being a kid. However I always like the castle sets. From 89-2001 legos were my favorite toy.

[@defenderprime8046]

Woow! Simply an astonishing throwback from the 90's! I don't really remember this set, I must have been interested in other stuff at that time, but it really is interesting to look at and play with it, amazing review, Jang!

[@maweitao]

Does anyone remember Starcom? It's a space-themed toy line from the late 80s that also featured extensive use of magnets. This set gives me that same vibe. These come from an era when toy lines incorporated all kinds of interesting gimmicks.

[@wich1]

This is seriously one of the best sets ever, loved it ever since I got it in ‘90

[@imaginaryopposition]

this thing was on my wish list as a kid, along with black knight castle, such nostalgia right here!!! 😊😊😊

[@legochick2000]

This set was so detailed and functional.

[@skyborne80]

I had the Spectral Starglider, the Blacktron 2 compliment to this big boy and I was fortunate to even have that because of the unfortunate financial situation when I was a child. I saw this in stores sooooo many times and almost cried every time I saw the price because my mom just couldn't afford it. I wanted this so badly! It's great to see this review of it!

[@BetaRayBill32]

I wanted this so bad when I was a kid. The M-Tron sets were my favorite.

[@dwightmitchell5109]

Would love for Jang to add more vintage reviews. The Particle Ionizer was a template for some many ships I made. And PLEASE JANG, review the DEEP FREEZE DEFENDER. The best ship from that era IMO

[@WilhelmFang]

This is my all time favorite space set... and yet I never owned one. It was great to get an in depth look at the magnet features. Thanks for the video!

[@Entertaininglylame]

Also loving the moments of triumphs shirt from destiny 2. Great review, I too saw this set outside of my era and was impressed. Did not realise the features. So cool.

[@EmperorsTeeth]

Good lord I loved this thing so much. Maybe almost as much as my OG Space Train.

[@artoodiitoo]

I remember seeing this in catalogs in the 90s, it always looked cool. I´ve never seen one in person. I kinda want to build something like this in Technic style

[@talesfromthejundlandwastes5498]

So happy that you've done a retro review again. Love them! p.s. I love multiple 'radio bits' ! :)

[@ChloeAriT]

I would love to see lego do a remake of this. it's such a cool design

[@CatzLikesJazz]

The old molds are insane!

[@falcon55551]

I recently built the Mtron stellar voyager which my dad bought me when I was 5 for christmas. I had a blast. Not a brick was missing. Its a pure gem in my collection despite Im mainly in Star Wars now.

[@Bucketroo]

Oh yeah, total classic set! I still have one of these in pieces. I isolated the wheels, canopy, and other distinctive parts in case I want to rebuild it.

[@zhulgon4610]

Jang is back to reviewing space sets? LETS GO!

[@Webhead123]

Oh my god! The M-Tron line was the last great hurrah for me when it came to Lego and *THIS* set in particular was the one I wanted the most! Unfortunately, I was young and broke and never could afford it, so it never came to pass. So nice to see it again after all these years, though!

[@Pattamatt1998]

My dream 90s Space set. God it's just magnificent

[@JamesBrophy]

A real nostalgia trip. You should do some of the blacktron or space police sets.

[@todddavis2041]

Wow really nice set. M-Tron was before my time but this theme is worth looking into!

[@gar2yc]

This is the sort of stuff i miss seeing, both as content in the channel as well as a toy product. M-Tron has the best color-scheme, with Ice Planet being a close second, and it is cool to see LEGO was doing Lost Planet 2 before Lost Planet itself.

[@ADean415]

Wow, seeing this was such a huge blast from the past. I built this exact set for a childhood friend when I was maybe 9 or 10. I'm 25 now but I remember the exact details of that time, he had this set, the blacktron aerial intruder and alpha centauri outpost, the mars mission ETX Alien Strike, and either the Lego system warp wing fighter, or the interstellar starfighter, and I built them all in the space of one night. I actually remember thinking the System alien ship looking really weird compared to the blacktron and mars mission ships, and how huge and slick the spherical disc pieces were. Wow, this takes me back!

[@AtmoSprite]

Love the review, thank you so much. This is one of my favorite sets from when I was a kid, and the first Big Set I bought with my own savings so it has some pretty special nostalgia for me. Two things I'd like to add to the review that may not have been obvious. First one is the turny dish in the center can be used as the 'steering wheel'. Grab it by the grey engines and you can drag the vehicle around and steer the rear wheels with it. Second is the large empty cargo container. It fits a minifig with or without air tanks and can be used to transport a prisoner or injured explorer.

[@masahige2344]

I keep wanting to pick up this bad boy, and you just had to push me over the edge!

[@27pieces]

whoa! I forgot about this... At the start of every summer vacation my mom took me and my little sister to the toy store and we could pick something. We weren't too wealthy though, so this set was way too expensive. But I picked the particle ionizer space ship (set 6923) and it was the coolest thing I had for a long time. Thanks for triggering that memory!