Welcome back to our Throwback Thursday column, where we look at LEGO Sets that were influential in setting people on the path to becoming the LEGO Fan that they are today. Today, we hear from Russell C, who lives in California. He submitted his entry as part of our recent Jumper Plate Minifigure giveaway and would like to talk to us about a town set. This time, it is one from 1980: 6363 Auto Repair Shop.

This is one of the first sets I remember having as a child. I still have the built tow-truck in my collection, but unfortunately the building didn’t remain intact. Classic Town has been my favorite theme since I was a child and continues today up to and including the current City theme. This is the first set I looked for in the vault in the LEGO Idea House when I was on the Inside Tour in 2019. After the tour I sought out and bought a partial set with the original box and instructions to re-add it to my collection.

Thanks for sharing this set with us, Russell. It’s a great example of a medium-sized set of the era, featuring both a vehicle and a building. Of note is the lower layer of the walls in black, with the rest in blue – as much as the classic colours might allow you to depict a stone foundation layer.

This was one of the first sets to feature the larger sized tires, first seen in 1980. I appreciate the way that there is a small garage, as well as workshop/office space. It also featured a couple of spanners, a pneumatic tire driver, as well as a walkie talkie, amongst other things. I really like the design of the front end, being one of the early examples of the headlamp brick in action. Personally, I really appreciate these old tow trucks, where the crane is essentially a fixed length. So much easier to play with, although not as realistic, as a long string attached to the hook.

Do you have a set that you would like to share with the wider community, as an example of something that shaped the LEGO Fan you have become? It could be your first set, your favorite set, the set that brought you out of your dark ages… anything really. Why not drop me a line at ramblingbrick@gmail.com. I’d love to hear your story, and share it in this column.

And until next time,

Play Well!