Playz Train Steam Engine Model Kit to Build for Kids with Real Steam, STEM Science Kits for Kids, Model Engine Kits for Adults and Educational Hobby Gift, Mini Engine Set, Engineering Toy Boys & Girls

Assembly directions were fairly straight forward, DEFINITELY advanced for even a ten year old. All screws were self tapping so a fair amount of hand strength was necessary to get everything properly tight so it could work and there were multiple parts where wires could easily be crimped/pinched while putting pieces together. Because of the gearing, if things were loose it would not work correctly.Only defect was the wire harness coming out of the motor had been improperly assembled, came crimped and nearly broke the wire because it had been tightened down by the factory. Had to carefully open assembly, reroute wire, and reassemble. Worked fine afterwards.Obviously this is a plastic model of a steam engine that does not actually work like a real steam engine, so if the child is interested in a more technical model (metal, castings, actual steam running the pistons) then it probably won't satisfy. If instead you have a grade schooler who finds trains cool and likes the idea of assembling things (with dad's help), then it will probably be a win.Castings were satisfactory for the price, sprues were easy to deal with (once again, because of some tight tolerances, any rough edges needed to be removed so sharp knives necessary). Colors were colorful, decals simplistic but well within the skills of a grade schooler to affix.For the toy it is, it is fun if your child is mechanically minded, likes trains, and likes seeing how things work.

This is a great project. We have had a little issue with the “steam whistle” button fitting the slot where it is supposed to slide into. I think the button card wasn’t trimmed enough from the manufacturer so we will have to modify that a little. That said, this is more challenging for my 12 year old nephew than his typical snap together model. This is great because it teaches him patience and problem solving experience when things don’t work like they are meant to at first. Great kit.

Update: After purchasing this for my son 1 1/2 years ago I mistakenly broke the lever that turns the wheels on. This was very upsetting as my son who still turns it on from time to time to watch it work. I reached out via email to the company Playz to request the replacement part. My email was responded to quickly by Nick in their customer support. He was very nice and helpful. After providing my order number and mailing address they sent me a whole new train via 2 day shipping! Their customer support was excellent and they worked very quickly to resolve the issue. I highly recommend this company for quality of their toys and customer service.I assembled the toy with my 9 year old son. The box is marked 10+ for age but we have worked together before to assemble these type of products and have never had any issues.. The product has good step by step directions but can take some time to complete. Most of the product parts fit together well and you can tell they are of good quality. That said there are sections that connect the wheels that are made of flimsy plastic and can be difficult to push through its corresponding slot. Overall it is a good toy and I do recommend it but make sure you have time to put it together.

Bought this to build with my boys and they loved it! Nice STEM toy for kids and I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend this to other buyers!

While assembling this on Christmas day with my son, it was very hard to assemble the plastic chrome pins and one broke during the assembly. There are no extra pins included so now he can't use it.

I sent it across the country as a X-mass gift, and they waited for me to arrive before putting it together.He waited until the end of January.My Grandson was so excited , “STEAM ENGINE”best gift ever!!! Grandma! (so we thought )I’m so excited that you’re helping us put this together❤️❤️But the end result ?was a very surprised look of disappointment, it did not work as advertised.We did everything right (his father is an engineer)He said faulty parts.I live pretty far away, I wanted this to be a very special gift.The model looks good, just does not operate..Grandma fail😞$60.00 dollars lost.It was all he wanted from me.

My 8yo LOVES trains and had a lot of fun putting this together. He did 99% of it on his own too! Really neat.

Nice kit but requires adult supervision unless 14 yrs or older with a great deal of mechanical ability. The worst thing is that the main lever used to activate the engine is made of very thin plastic. I bought two of these kits for my grandsons. The fist broke on first use, and the second after about the third time, even being very careful. The company had to know it would break first thing, but they didn’t fix it and sold as is! I was able to repair it by disassembling and wrapping the lever with a paper napkin and filling with super glue. See picts.