Top positive review
22 people found this helpful
Marble machine in action
By D. Coral on Reviewed in the United States on March 19, 2017
Here's a video of our 4 year old playing with the marble machine. He absolutely loves it, it is his new favorite toy of all time. It took me 4 hours to build this working nonstop. This kit has more than 550 parts! A child younger than a teen would probably need some help constructing this since there are subtle differences in some of the pieces; you have to look at the 3D step-by-step drawings closely to choose the right parts and put them in the right grid slots. I almost bought the Dynamic XL (>1,250 parts) but I'm glad I went with this smaller one because the XL would have taken too long to build. Construction was actually fun because the pieces fit together smooth and solid. The kit is typical Made in Germany high quality which I love! This kit comes with a hand crank to move the ball elevator. I'm thinking of also buying the optional Motor Set XS which will make the elevator run with a 9V battery.
Top critical review
Good quality, poor instructions
By Zisha Margulies on Reviewed in the United States on January 15, 2020
We followed the instructions exactly and the pieces didn't always fit, i.e. the intended slope of slide for example didn't work out. I had to figure out where to deviate from the instructions. Pretty hard to build with a 7 year old
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Marble machine in action
By D. Coral - Reviewed in the United States on March 19, 2017
Verified Amazon Purchase
Here's a video of our 4 year old playing with the marble machine. He absolutely loves it, it is his new favorite toy of all time. It took me 4 hours to build this working nonstop. This kit has more than 550 parts! A child younger than a teen would probably need some help constructing this since there are subtle differences in some of the pieces; you have to look at the 3D step-by-step drawings closely to choose the right parts and put them in the right grid slots. I almost bought the Dynamic XL (>1,250 parts) but I'm glad I went with this smaller one because the XL would have taken too long to build. Construction was actually fun because the pieces fit together smooth and solid. The kit is typical Made in Germany high quality which I love! This kit comes with a hand crank to move the ball elevator. I'm thinking of also buying the optional Motor Set XS which will make the elevator run with a 9V battery.
Excellent toy, but
By Arrr - Reviewed in the United States on December 29, 2020
Verified Amazon Purchase
My 5 year old fell in love with the youtube video of this marble run, and so I got it for Christmas. It is excellent quality and works well, but my goodness it takes a long time to assemble. I should have noticed the ages 14 and up on the box, but I didn't. The point of this kit is to enjoy the assembly as much as the marble run itself, but that is lost on a 5 year old. And to some degree I guess I did enjoy the build, but ugh i'm getting too old for stuff like this. 5 stars because the quality and tolerances are impressive as one would expect from the Germans. But if you want a simple marble run for your kid to play with I suggest getting something a little easier to build/disassemble.
Really cool, but can be tougher for younger ones.
By Jered Gordner - Reviewed in the United States on November 26, 2020
Verified Amazon Purchase
My son got this as part of his ongoing STEM subscription box. It’s way more intricate and sturdy compared to other “marble runs” with a good handful of different plans you can work through or ultimately make you’re own. My eight year old son really loved it, but the biggest issue was that the instructions weren’t always the most clear. I’m an early 30s guy, but there were times that I was helping him and found out I screwed up an earlier step because the diagrams weren’t the best. Suffice to say, my eight year old son isn’t super confident of doing these by himself. Overall, this is a pretty toy/learning tool, but I think the listed age range might be just a tad too low. Very cool toy though!
Awesome marble set and building fun!
By Amazon Customer - Reviewed in the United States on February 21, 2021
Verified Amazon Purchase
My 8yo son was begging for a marble run and I put it off for a while. Had one for my older son a few years back and they’re were so unstable. This caught my eye because the pieces were smaller like a Lego set and the unique way they interlock seemed better. This set was more expensive but worth the price. Very sturdy. We love the colors, they’re very cool and different from other building sets out there. We’ve built 2 layouts so far and it does take some time. My 8yo and I built this together. He really just wanted the company, he definitely could have built it on his own. He has a knack for building so for other young kids I would probably recommend adult help or at least second pair of eyes for interpreting the step by step images.
Pleasantly surprised
By Amazon Customer - Reviewed in the United States on January 11, 2016
Verified Amazon Purchase
This is a well made item. We were amazed at how precise and sturdy the tiny parts were. Some of the parts are difficult for our 8 year old to put together, as her hands are not strong enough. Her complaint is some of the parts scratched her when her hands slipped. It definitely requires parent participation to put the models together with younger kids. Once it was up and running she was mesmerized watching the marbles follow their different paths. She has spent a lot of time fine tuning the track positions to prevent the marbles from jumping the track, and re-positioning the chimes to get the results she wants. The kit arrived with 3 missing parts, but there are clear instructions on how to get these replaced.
Good quality, poor instructions
By Zisha Margulies - Reviewed in the United States on January 15, 2020
Verified Amazon Purchase
We followed the instructions exactly and the pieces didn't always fit, i.e. the intended slope of slide for example didn't work out. I had to figure out where to deviate from the instructions. Pretty hard to build with a 7 year old
My Grandson has had a blast with hanging wind chime pipes on this.
By Birds of Fire - Reviewed in the United States on September 2, 2020
Verified Amazon Purchase
One of the instructions built a ramp where the stainless steel ball struck some pipes along its route. By replacing them with tuned pipes from a wind chime, my daughter was able to make it play a little sequence of recognizable notes from a song! This is worth every penny it costs. Not only is it a STEM toy, it is something that can make a joyful noise.
Missing 37 out 140 pieces
By Saffron - Reviewed in the United States on December 22, 2020
Verified Amazon Purchase
This is an Amazon complaint, more than a comment on the product itself. The product was missing too many pieces to be able to even partially assemble. I got a "certified" Amazon used product that was supposedly checked and verified that all the pieces were included. I bought this as a Christmas present and just attempted to assemble to give to my child an assembled gift on Christmas. So, this falls outside of Amazon's return window as well. DO NOT BUY AMAZON USED PRODUCTS, even when certified. Certified Amazon used products are not checked by anyone; it should be easy to count pieces, especially when the package, itself, has written on it the quantity of pieces that are supposed to be included. DO NOT TRUST AMAZON "CERTIFIED" USED PRODUCTS!!!
Not easy to assemble but bought it for that reason.
By Koolbreeze64 - Reviewed in the United States on December 28, 2022
Verified Amazon Purchase
Took awhile for grandson to put together but that's was what we were looking for.
Gazillion Part Fun!!
By SCarnes - Reviewed in the United States on December 28, 2019
Verified Amazon Purchase
15thousand parts!!! Be prepared to spend “quality” time building this! Bought for my 8ur old. He was a great part finder but the assembly will fall on the adult. Once assembled, needed a little tweaking but kiddo is having a blast with it! Great buy! Be prepared for the AMOUNT OF ASSEMBLY!!
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