Josh Hendrickson
Temporarily out of stock—that’s the dreaded alert you see when a LEGO set is popular and in short supply. You can keep checking back every day, but sets like the LEGO Razor Crest or the Grand Piano sell out quickly when they restock. Why leave things to chance? Instead, use Brick Hound to get notified the instant a set you need comes back in stock.
Brick Hound is an “essentially free” texting service for U.S. residents. It’s essentially free because Brick Hound doesn’t charge for its services, but if you have a limited text message and data service, you might get hit with the usual data and texting fees from your carrier.
But it’s an easy to use service, and it works perfectly. I know, because I’ve used it. My family wanted the Razor Crest, which is practically always out of stock. When LEGO adds more inventory, it sells out quickly. So I signed up for Brick Hound, and the next time the Razor Crest came in stock, I got the notification. And then I was too slow because I was busy.
But that’s ok! Because the next time after that, I got the notification, dropped what I was doing, and managed to score a shiny new Razor Crest. It looks incredibly screen accurate, exactly as seen in the latest episode:
It’s easy to use Brick Hound; you start by texting “Info” to (301)-591-6061, which signs you up for notifications. Then text “subscribe” followed by the name of the set you want or its ID number. In the case of the Razor Crest, that’d be: “Subscribe The Razor Crest” or “Subscribe 75292” (no quotes). Brick Hound will send you a confirmation and start watching the set. As soon in stock, you’ll get a notification.
When you manage to snag a set, repeat the process and use the keyword “unsubscribe” to stop notifications. You can set up notifications for more than one set, and if you text “list,” you’ll get a rundown of all the sets you’re tracking. You’ll still have to do some legwork, but at least you have a chance at finding that hard-to-purchase LEGO set you’ve wanted forever.
