Hydraulic Crane Toy for Kids 8-14 Years Old I Ideas for Boys & Girls | DIY STEM Science Toys for 8,9,10,11,12,13,14 Years I Wooden Engineering Game

My Grandson thinks it's great. Really works with a little help from Dad.

This was the perfect gift for our little engineer. He's 9 and didn't have any issues with this set but he has always been able to complete LEGOs above his age too so being that it is labeled for 8+ is accurate but they may need some assistance. The kit overall is very nice and once together is sturdy and stable enough to play with. While filling and bleeding the hydraulic lines can get a bit messy, after that the system worked great without and issues. With assembly, most of it went off without a hitch. There were a couple parts that were not cut properly but most of it was remedied with an XACTO knife. The biggest issue we encountered was the top plate of the hydraulic center. The pins didn't line up with the keys so there was no way to make the piece fit. The set was usable without it but one of the plungers would move out of place all the time. I finally cut out the slots with my hobby knife and saw to allow the piece to fit. Its off center but does the job. This would have been 5 stars easy but this little misalignment issues was a bit of an issue and for some this may stop the whole build if the alignment issue was somewhere else in the machine. For most I think any small issues could be oversome with some basic tools at home and the final product is educational and fun while also providing quite a bit of replay value.

Learning toy for grandchild

This kit is very thoughtful. A lot of concepts including lubrication (using a wax crayon), hydraulics, assembly, controls, etc. I think it's a little on the harder end for the typical 8 or 9 year old. The kit is very well designed with a nice manual. The manual is more "lego-like" than other STEM manuals that I've reviewed. There is a little confusion with some of the wooden pieces and you kind of get past it by matching shapes. It can be readily disassembled for use later by younger siblings (I guess it will need to survive a round of play first).

This is a great gift for your budding engineer. Just be aware this is a very cool but complicated build. The instruction book is as thick as a small book and the build aspect is over 100 pages long. My 11 year old loves things like this, but the range says as low as 8 years old. Just make sure you know your child and possibly prepare for lots of adult assistance for a younger child.

Smartivity kits are challenging, they provide creativity, imaginative play, independent thinking, problem solving skills and this one didn't disappoint. The hydraulic crane is one of the coolest kits yet. Using plastic tubing, syringes, and water, kids create a hydraulic system to move a crane up and down, and grab a foam brick and let it go. Trial and error, cause and effect, you can see your child's mind working, thinking to figure it all out. I highly recommend this very thoughtfully designed kit.

I ordered this for my nine year old nephew - he is mechanically inclined and very into building things. He is mostly used to Legos, but this will up the game for him. I can't wait to see him open this - he is going to be so stoked!

Nice activity to help understand hydraulics. Interesting and fun for an adult who already knows, but really great for kids. Our daughter loves the tractors and such and this gives a great understanding of how things like buckets nad such work.

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My 6 year old son loves Smartivity products … and suddenly now he wants to become a scientist after playing with these games … these games have also made him experiment with various things at home … We have ordered a carton full of Smartivity games … for him and to gift all his friends… making life much more easier by not having to select gifts every weekend for bday parties .. And best part is it’s Unisex … no hassle of answering the shopkeeper questions like “ gift for a girl or boy? What age ? Etc”… Highly recommended and it’s definitely a value for money … and it’s completely made in India :)

Very intuitive and an amazing product. Fun and easy for the kid to assemble and lear and get addicted to the working dynamic of the product. Holding on to that one star as this product is limited to one model only. Would have been really nice if this product could have been used to model say two or three different prototypes and not limited to just one.. saying as usualy kids tends to get bored once their inquisitiveness realted to the product decreases.. and maintaining different products having their individual parts and all becomes a little cumbersome for the parents 😄

It’s very fun to build and is not hard but is not easy either, I finished it in 1 - 1 and half hour max. Great quality and is fun to play with. Gives you everything except cup to keep water in to fill syringes.

Smartivity products are well thought, entertaining, engaging and focussed on bringing home a single concept through one product i.e. one concept one product. The hydraulic crane not only explains how a crane works but also lets you build one thereby helping understand the power of pressure and how it is used in real life. The crane has to be build by following instructions, which improve communication skills as well as improves focus. Instruction manual is pretty good and the age guidance on Smartivity products always up to the mark so much so that any little challenges kids encounter can be overcome by reviewing the manual. A great product for 7-10 year olds.