LEGO Technic Excavator Review

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(More customer reviews)I'd been wanting to get into Technic LEGO for a long time and finally jumped in with both feet by purchasing the excavator/bulldozer, street bike/chopper, mini tractor/side car motorbike, dune buggy/ tractor, and telehandler/front-end loader kits. I have to say that I am wholly satisfied.
I've only built the excavator of this kit and it's such a beautiful piece that I want to admire it, play with it, and study it a little more. It was the second kit I built following the mini-tractor, which is a tiny intro to the Technic system. This excavator has a rather intricate gearing system combined with some ingenius use of fulcrum and pivots that is pretty damned cool. It has a large swivel plate and tracked wheels as well.
I bought some Bioncle a few years ago just for kicks and since have had fun mixing the pieces with the kids in my family to make "Robots!". I wanted to get into Technic to add the mechanical aspect and the excavator is an essential bit of that system. I love to just play with it and examine how the pieces are related and I'm learning a lot about how to use Technic. It will probably be a couple months before I take it apart and build the dozer, if I can bring myself to do it at all. I hope I don't end up buying two more of the sets, one for a permanent dozer and one for pieces to free play with.
If you're interested in Technic, you'll learn a lot from this. The finished model doesn't have quite the robust appearance that the street bike or telehandler have, but the gearing and fulcrum build of it more than make up for it. It's a killer set, and perhaps my favorite from the mechanical aspect.

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Construct your own authentic looking and functioning excavator, complete with cool caterpillar tracks and a cab that really rotates. Turn the knobs to control the excavator arm and bucket. Includes step-by-step instructions for making a track-type tractor alternative model. Contains 286 LEGO building pieces.

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LEGO TECHNIC Log Loader (8049) Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)Normally I wouldn't give five stars to a tractor and trailer, but this set marks the return of the much beloved Lego pneumatics. Those cylinders operating the log-grabber are attached to hoses that lead from a pump underneath the trailer. You operate the pump with your finger and use valves to control the air to the pistons. Don't expect miracles from the pneumatic system; the pistons do not have a long throw and the grabber is not going to lift heavy weights. But it is fun and I think quite educational for the kids. For children, turning the spaghetti of pneumatic plumbing into a working artifact is a revelation. In fact, this set is probably more valuable for its creative possibilities in building different machines than it is as a log lifter. If you enjoy building machines with your kids, I recommend this set highly. The tractor is rather compact and spartan, but the kids have an easy time maneuvering it. And the trailer with the pneumatic log lifter is like a big robotic claw for them. The finger pump and the valves are not the easiest devices for some children to manipulate (i.e., age six or younger). You can purchase an accessory motor set (Lego 8293) to power the pump, however, and I recommend lengthening the valve levers so that little fingers have an easier time with them.
Update (January 2011): Lego delisted this set at the end of 2010. As the set becomes scarce, prices will become unreasonable. However, Lego has a big pneumatics set planned for latter 2011. Lego 8110 is a Unimog U400 with a pneumatic grabber; the early pictures suggest it is going to be a beautiful set, but expensive. Still, this appears to confirm that Lego sees a modest market for pneumatic technic sets.
Cheers

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Pieces: 525
Grab ?em, load ?em, and haul ?em away with the power of pneumatics!No logging job is too big for this impressive log loader! Use the control knob to steer the tractor to the trailer, then hitch them up! Take control of two pneumatic-like valves to operate the fully-articulated crane arm and pick up the log with the working grabber. Realistic and functional! 2-in-1 model rebuilds into a rugged log handler vehicle.


Features tractor with steering and log loader trailer that can be unhitched from the tractor!
Log loader features two pneumatic-like valves that control the articulated crane arm!
Add compressor function by purchasing 8293 LEGO Power Functions Motor Set!
2 models in 1: rebuilds into a log handler!

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