Customer Reviews

Erector Radio Control Tuning Street Racer Set, 368 Pieces

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

My son (11 1/2) just bought this with his own money and loves it. It's not one of those toys that goes together in a few minutes and they're done. He's great at tinkering and this has taken him days. And, yes, like the other reviews, it took a little dad help at some junctions. I am impressed that it is keeping my son's attention and he feels like he's accomplishing something. It would be quite the 8 year-old who could do this successfully without help. Solid toy, cool look, right in line with Erector's reputation. I will look for more toys like this.

Got this for my 8 yo, but he really had problems following the directions and putting it together (as did his 15 yos). It's a fantastic toy when you persevere to finish -- and then it's your very own radio-controlled vehicle! I like that it will build 3 different models -- and the pieces work with any of the other Erector sets. Very cool looking when complete, too!

It's a good toy but its definitely tough to build for kids. There are some difficult steps requiring bending of the metal pieces while trying to put in screws through hard-to-put places. I'm embarrassed to admit that I'm in my mid-twenties and that the instructions still required my full strength and dexterity to get some of the nuts and bolts into place.

Here are my observations for this product:

1) This product is no way a good toy for a kid under 12, particularly if they have not taken any mechanical drawing classes. The instructions for it are nothing more than a series of exploding diagrams for different sections, and then piecing them together.

A child under 12, that would be interested, and capable of, assembling this sort of toy would not have the strength and dexterity in their hands (as well as long enough fingers) to do everything required to assemble this. I had to use tools outside of what came with it (surgical tweezers, 45 degree bend hemostats, and a square nut driver) to make everything happen with this "toy". I suppose I could have made it just with the tools that came with it, but it would have taken a lot longer, and been very frustrating to do.

It requires a rather meticulous person to build it as well, as it requires going back and further tightening ALL of the screws/nuts at several stages of assembly, to prevent any screws/nuts being lost, and still allow adjusting sections together, as you attach them. There are a lot of parts that are bent on this, and as a result there is a lot of tension, in some areas of the body.

It did not have all of the proper screws (and came with just enough nuts to fasten it) to assemble as per the drawing, and I had to get a little creative. For this type of toy, particularly coupled with the fact that there is a high potential for screws/nuts to get lost, should come with extra screws of each type, and extra nuts.

2) Know what you are buying here. When they say "full function chassis", they mean that all of the remote control car features, and mechanical parts are part of a sealed unit, and you are going to have very limited flexibility in what you can build with this. You are getting a sealed unit remote control car chassis, and what you will be assembling is the body for the vehicle to mount to it, nothing else.

If you just want to build a body for remote control car, then you will enjoy this. If you intend to use this as a platform to build other types of vehicles, beyond what is listed in the instructions (with perhaps parts from other Erector set kits) then you will most likely be disappointed.

The wheel alignment is a bit off on mine, and it will not turn right in reverse. I experimented with the wheel alignment adjustment on it, and was unable to correct this flaw.

As for the body of the unit, I would say it is pretty solid, and durable... Providing you make sure that everything is tightened, and re-check it periodically.

3) Buying extra parts for Erector set kits looks to be a pain... I went to the home page for the manufacturer, which is based in France, and the only place that sells parts for this in North America does not have a web page. I suppose you might be able to find the nuts on an auction site, but good luck finding any of the screws available.

4) I overall had fun assembling this, but think they have misidentified the target group that this could/should be aimed at. I think a child would become frustrated trying to put it together, and not enjoy the experience.

I think the remote control chassis could have been made better, and actually would have preferred it to be something with motors/servos and gears to assemble myself, which not only would have been more fun to build, but would also have given greater flexibility as to what can be built with this kit.

I had a great time assembling the car with my 11 years old nephew. It takes a while and probably more than one session but the satisfaction after built your own RC car is great for a kid. It should be a little difficult for a small kid working alone, but is great to promote 3D perception and the use of basic tools. It can be an excellent excuse to spent some quality time with your kid. One last thing, be aware that you will need a lot of batteries: 6AA (for the car) + 3AAA (for the assembly tool) + 1 9V (for the remote).

I wish I should have bought something else for my 9 year old Son. I built all items in 3 days and then fun is lost. It is not able to inspire you with various options like lego!

My wife and I wanted to get our nine year old son a remote control car and an Erector set this past Christmas. The first time that I laid my eyes on this toy I knew that this was going to be the right thing to buy for him. My son isn't one to stay put and focused on one thing for very long, but the minute that we opened this and got started he was all in. He was short on patience at first, but after about thirty minutes or so he really started to take his time and do it right. He is really excited about taking a whole bunch of little pieces and making something actually work. The upside to this is that the electric motor/chassis part of this does not need to be assembled, you are basically doing all of the body work. It's great that he can build it and actually go outside and play with it, and that I doesn't just sit there and do nothing or only move slightly. He's really getting into cars, and this project is motivating him to get his chores and homework done faster so that we can get to work on his new car. This is a great buy and would recommend this to anyone over the age of eight.

Pros: Really fun to build, the boys and I enjoyed it, note that they needed help- it was a father and sons activity, and it took several hours-long sessions to build. It was pretty easy for me, an adult. Bending of parts was simple, the metal is super thin and plenty springy. Kids loved the build, the battery-operated tool, hooking up the lights, and enjoy the ground effects lights and the music. Have fun with the rc.

Cons: We assemble lots of lego stuff and various kits. We don't ever lose parts. We use plastic zip bags and Tupperware-type containers as we build to organize and keep parts. So I really don't think we lost the parts we were missing: one screw, one black single wide flat body piece 9 holes long, a silver 90 degree angle joining piece, and a triangular silver joining piece with three holes. The screw was replaced with another from the kit, and I fabricated the others out of disposable tupperware containers. A big pain, but it worked out fine. Also, the RC component is a bit on the cheap side, the front wheels are off and can't seem to be corrected with the alignment screw.

Overall, though, we had a lot of fun with it, and we'll see how long the RC lasts, though the main reason to buy this is the build.

Enjoyed building the set with my son. The RC components lasted about a day before the rear gear became stripped and the car no longer moved. Looking at the car, these are really low end components - not in line with the erector set components. Would not recommend. Buy either an erector set or a RC car - this set is a bad combination. Erector Radio Control Tuning Street Racer Set, 368 Pieces