Very big, very complex
Posted by
mensink
in Netherlands
on
20 December 2009
After building the 8275 (motorized bulldozer) a year ago, I only built the smaller 8261 (rally truck) in the meantime, so I was really looking forward to building a complex model.
And yes, this model really is complex enough. Of course, building with the instructions is not really that hard. I find that I spend more time gathering the needed pieces than putting them together. The number of parts is enormous, so it pays off doing some sorting before you begin.
First, what I really like about this box:
- The vast number of pieces, and the variety of them. If you like to design your own models like I do, you'll have no regrets here. There are loads and loads of gears and other fancy but useful parts.
- There are some really nice engineering examples in this model, like smart ways to gear up/down, or the extending outriggers.
- Some great features are offered. The model steers, has extending outriggers, and a reasonably capable crane.
- The resulting model looks really impressive.
Some things I didn't like so much:
- You start off building the gearbox, but you have to wait until the end to see it do its magic. Because of the way you have to build it, and that it's entirely contained within the body later on, I didn't know what was going on there until I opened it up again (right after finishing it, yes), and even now it's not 100% clear to me what happens everywhere.
- Like the 8275, they had to give this model an 'engine'. I mean the grey thing with the yellow things popping in/out when driving the truck. Where it didn't add much to the 8275, with this model I consider it absolutely pointless. The thing is located right below the cabin and it's almost not visible when driving the truck. Unless of course you open up the cabin, but who drives a truck with an open cabin?
- The crane is OK but far from awesome. I'm not keen on the way the crane is operated, because it basically gets in the way of the controls, or my hands get in the way of the crane. Also, within a couple of minutes I managed to mess up one of the switches. Probably this was due to a fault of my own while constructing or something.
Altogether this is a great buy, and though the default model has its quirks, there are still a lot of great features in it. And the huge amount of parts are great for the creative builder.
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