K'NEX - Deluxe Building Set – 375 Pieces – For Ages 7+ Construction Education Toy

I bought this for my four year old son, knowing that he was well below the recommended age range. I did not expect him to be able to build the models by himself; I was hoping for a project that we could work on together that would be engaging for both of us. He already has plenty of other building toys designed for preschoolers, but they no longer challenge him and he will now only play with those toys if I sit down to build with him, which was pretty boring for me (not he actually needs my help but because he loves loves having his dad's attention.) So, I bought this set to give us both a more challenging toy that we play with together that would last him for several years.If you have similar intentions, then I would highly recommend this for a four year old. He can't figure out the directions on his own and does not have the dexterity to manage every type of connection, but he is able to snap some of the pieces into place and that is enough to let us both complete the construction together. I quickly learned what he could and couldn't handle, and was able to lay out simple connections for him to make while I worked on the harder stuff. This also creates lots of good opportunities to sneak in other kinds of lessons, for example asking him to count the number of blue pieces we'll need, then the number of red pieces, and then add together how many total pieces we will need. His attention span for this is about an hour, which is about as long as it takes to complete a mid-size model, which works out perfectly because he then has a fun new motorcycle/ airplane/ car run around with for the next few days until he eventually gets bored of that model or breaks it.Of course, this would not be appropriate for a four year old (or a parent) without the right temperaments. These building projects take a lot of patience for both us, so if you don't think you or your young one can handle a project that takes at least an hour to build, then this is probably not for you. The kid needs to be able to deal with the frustration of not being able to do the whole thing by himself and be willing to relinquish control to his parent; meanwhile the parent has to be able to deal with the frustration of guiding a four year old through this process at their own pace. The models are surprisingly sturdy but will eventually break under a four-year-old's play, so kids need to be able to handle a broken model without freaking out. They will also need to be able to accept the fact that there are only enough pieces to create 1 or 2 models at the same time, and be willing to dismantle their work without a tantrum. And of course, there are choking hazards in the box, so if you have a four year old who is still putting toys in their mouth then keep them away from this. With all that said, I personally think that those extra challenges are what make this such a great toy for a preschooler because it forces them to be patient, work cooperatively, and handle frustrations.

The pieces are sometimes hard to snap together, but I think this will decrease as we use the set a little more. I bought these for my 11 year old daughter, and my 18 year old daughter couldn't resist jumping in and helping her with a project. I also spent some time inspecting and discussing a creation while helping to modify it to look how she wanted it. If you have kids who love science and building, this is a great way to let them create their own contraptions. This is the first K'NEX set we've bought, and it's perfect as a starter kit.My kids said these are better than Legos because you don't have to stick to the "blocky" designs to which Legos constrain. These parts have more movement as well as a result. The set came with enough gears and wheels to get started on a project and has plenty of other sticks and connectors to figure out how the system works. My youngest learned about gears in school but wanted to see them as part of a contraption, and this will give her the opportunity. A bunch of pieces are small, and they can get lost in the big tub. We solved that by sorting them into sandwich baggies. She liked being able to look at the guide book to figure out how pieces went together but then veer from it to do her own version of the shown model.This kit reminds me a lot of Tinker Toys that I played with as a kid. I'm looking forward to buying more sets to expand and let her create motorized projects. If the kid in your life loves Minecraft, get one of these for him or her to balance out the computer time with some hands-on building. This and some Lego kits will let the digital world come to life on the kitchen table.

I'd never heard of K'Nex building sets even though I raised three kids and am well into enjoying two grandchildren. I read on an Amazon.com discussion forum about some people being offered free sets to review, and, after checking the Amazon.com web page and the company's own webpage, I decided to buy a set for L, who just turned five.L loves building Lego sets, but I (and L's dad and mom) are a little disappointed in the Lego pre-determined sets that tell the builder what to build and how and that's it. This 375 piece set is simply lots of pieces, wheels, connectors, rods, tires, and some suggested projects. He and I built a very simple example of a milkshake together, but then he shoo'd me away because he had a plan. On his own, he built a swingset with swings that go back and forth. He urged me to push the swings while he pretended to be afraid because I was pushing him too high. He also built a baseball diamond and revealed that his buddy has K'Nex pieces, but WON'T SHARE THEM. L and his family live downstairs, and he has been up here many times to get in a little building time. He even said that he's not sure, but he might like them better than Legos.The first day we were playing with the set, L managed to snap a tab off one of the pieces. I called the customer-service line and told them what happened. The woman promised to send a replacement, and a few days later an envelope with four of the pieces arrived in the mail. Great service.

A good building set comes with a instruction leaflet with lot of project ideas. My 9 year old daughter did some simple projects on her own. It is very creative. I prefer this over LEGO which is very expensive and limited. I download all the project ideas from Knex website, printed and laminated for future use. A really good building set.

pros:lots of pieces to build a myriad of things. the instructions that come with give good ideas/suggestions what to construct. little one has these at school and gets a lot of creative juices flowing with these toys.cons:its a very large box for the amount of pieces you actually get, and there is a big raised portion, so its not flat and some bits can be hard to get out of the "channel". basically the box is constructed like that to give the impression that there are more pieces than really are. also, in instructions show a lot of more complex constructions which you need more pieces/different sets to build so it can be frustrating.conclusion:would i buy again? yes.

Was asked by seller the give honest feedback. 5 star. Was delivered well before expect. Very well packaged was spot on. I loved playing with knex as a child so I thought I would get this as gift for my children. I know they will love it to. Excellent product and good price aswell. I would highly recommend. Thank you : )

The Knex products philosophy of building compact assemblies without bolts or nuts is very unique and gives a lot of flexibility to try out cool new structures and vehicles beyond the designs provided in the booklets.

Bought for an after school club, the children absolutely love it. It is great for getting the children to interact with all age groups and working together as a team. The box is much bigger than the amount of K'nex you actually get, but that is a bonus if you have another K'nex set that you can put in there.