Easy childhood, iron toys. What can be done from the constructor? What cars can be built from an iron constructor

This is how I remember my childhood. Light, including due to the abundance interesting technique and iron around. Parents, especially dad, from small nails surrounded me very much. interesting things- then the engine from the Cossack to kitchen table, then a color tube TV disassembled for repair, then Mriya's portable radiogram, which could play gramophone records in the air. But most importantly, my parents sometimes bought me various interesting designers. And the set "Electrical engineering in 200 experiments" was the most memorable for me.

Photo from the Virtual Museum and Directory - Domestic Radio Engineering of the 20th century

Now, unfortunately, they do not do such things, including abroad. I constantly look at the shelves of stores with toys both in our country and when I travel around Europe. There is nothing like it. And this constructor was good because it combined a lot of different parts and components, from which it was possible to assemble both toys and conduct entertaining physical and electrical experiments. For example, it was possible to assemble a telegraph.

Photo from Made in Leningrad community

Or an electric motor-fan, or a home-made galvanic battery, in general, the designer corresponded to the name - you could collect two hundred unique crafts, not counting your own ones.

And now, when my son is growing up, I also want to surround him with interesting technical things. And one of them is such a constructor. I don’t want to buy incomplete used ones 30 years ago, because incomplete sets are a tragedy :) Yes, and it’s almost impossible to find it at flea markets. But to collect something similar from available parts quite possible, and without much effort.

First, the base, the usual inexpensive metal construction kits that you can still buy in toy stores.

And secondly, what will enliven this constructor, will add movement. These are motors, wires and batteries. Where to take them? Ha, I'm sure if you have children, you know what Chinese toys are. They are certainly bought as a gift to children by both parents and grandmothers, acquaintances, guests of parents. All these flying dogs, jumping cars, barking planes - all this breaks down in an hour (day, week) and flies into the trash. But in my case they fly into the trash only after extracting the main treasure from them :)

Engines direct current. Taking into account the fact that I have four children growing up, this wealth has accumulated a lot. How can these motors help? But what. Somehow a couple of years ago, my son and I were tinkering with my tools and I suddenly suggested to him, let's assemble a car from a stick. Who wouldn't agree to this? We took a piece of some kind of bar, a motor, nails, a AAA battery and bungled it in 30 minutes.

From nails and sticks, literally, an unsightly self-propelled toy turned out. The child did not let go of her hands all evening, and then showed to all the guests - "Look, what a limousine we made with dad!" That's when I decided it's time to do things like this on a more serious level. First we put together a windmill, a memorable object from our last trip to Europe.

It turned out so cool that there was only one thing left to do: stock up on parts for such crafts in sufficient, industrial quantities :) In the market, I bought all sorts of switches, battery holders, rubber bands. Grandmothers and acquaintances were told that now our best gift- metal constructor. And after a while, my son and I became the owners of the coolest set possible. You could start creating.

Our next craft is an airplane. Twin engine fighter.

Where there is a plane, there is a helicopter. The son built two additional floors on the rotor, so it seemed to him better.

With this helicopter toy, the child played the longest, because the main rotor was easily used as Circular Saw grinders - a lot of things in the house were cut down by a helicopter - to the delight of my mother :)

Now she walks reluctantly, it is necessary to adjust the mechanism.

But immediately after the manufacture of the stepping machine, as her son called her, everyone was very amused with a cheerful tread :)

And the latest of our crafts. To make it, I bought a radio control kit on Aliexpress, a remote control with a receiver, a motor with a gearbox and wheels, a steering servo drive and a motor control scarf. All these things are available on Ali by the shaft of the most different sizes, capacities, opportunities. We made a radio-controlled tricycle with full control - gas, brake, steering.

There are so many fools in this frenzied tricycle that it is difficult to start without slipping. But it is easy to make a police U-turn.

Below is a video of an unequal battle between a mad car and a caterpillar. My son and I collected the caterpillar for an exhibition in kindergarten, there needed a craft from natural material, well, here we have built a real slow caterpillar from coconuts, chestnuts and constructor elements. Due to the slowness of the caterpillar, the video is slightly delayed.

These are wonderful things you can do from ordinary metal constructor, fragments of old toys and some purchased parts. The only necessary skill for parents is to be able to solder a little, without it it will be difficult with all these wires, switches and batteries. And, of course, fantasy, but usually children have even more of it than adults, so involve the child, he will tell you what to do.

There is, of course, another way. For example, ready-made Lego sets. Lego has a windmill.

There are all sorts of racing cars and trucks.

In general, Lego has everything, including robots and kits for setting up and programming them.

But personally, I don’t have a soul for Lego. And my son has problems with Lego, once he dropped the toy, and it was shattered into small cubes, it’s very insulting to collect everything again. And Lego costs a lot, especially interactive robotic kits with motors or limited editions of all kinds of starships from Star Wars. Our metal will be more budgetary, even taking into account the purchase of remotes on Ali.

There is also the original metal constructor, Meccano. But again, it is very expensive and it is not easy to get it in our area. Therefore, here is the final photo of our wealth.

IN Soviet times children's metal constructors were very popular - sets of strips and plates of different sizes, with holes and fastening screws. Although the expression "iron toys" was at one time pronounced with derision, but as life has shown, plastic toys much worse. Especially if it's cheap toxic material from China. It is not surprising that many parents prefer eco-friendly wooden or iron ones. Therefore, silumin models of cars are 2-3 times more expensive than plastic ones. But back to the designer from this review. In the photo below, half of the elements are no longer there (let's go), but the essence is clear.

He was bought by friends through an online store, for only 600 rubles, as a gift to his son. The set is called "Super wagon", and believe me - it fully justifies its prefix "super-"! Moreover, such a thing is, as it were, preparatory stage mastering electronics for kids, showing how complex designs are obtained from individual simple parts.

in a comfortable plastic box a bunch of all sorts of details, but not simple cadmium, and painted in various colors durable powder paint. The developers even provided such useful little things, like a crane hook, nylon rope, rollers and several types of wheels.

Complete set of the designer

1. Plank - 36 pcs.
2. Corner - 10 pcs.
3. Plate - 25 pcs.
4. Hood - 1 pc.
5. Stove - 3 pcs.
6. Fork - 5 pcs.
7. Bracket - 11 pcs.
8. Disc - 2 pcs.
9. Roller - 7 pcs.
10. Large wheel - 4 pcs.
11. Small wheel - 2 pcs.
12. Wheel - 4 pcs.
13. Tire - 4 pcs.
14. Hairpin - 5 pcs.
15. Axle - 4 pcs.
16. Cord - 2m.
17. Pen - 2 pcs.
18. Screw - 74 pcs.
19. Nut - 96 pcs.
20. Key - 3 pcs.
21. Screwdriver - 1 pc.
21. Instruction

The instructions have a dozen samples of what can be assembled from such a set, but it is clear that by connecting a minimal fantasy, the number of possible designs is unlimited. Here is just a small part of what I managed to photograph in the process:

Photo of crafts from an iron constructor

Machine

Helicopter

Airplane

self-propelled gun

Tank

Lantern with lamps

Motorcycle

Tractor

Sofa

Crane

In general, at such a ridiculous price, we get not one kind of car or tank, but a whole bunch of all sorts of toys. Tired of one - dismantled and folded a new one, and so at least every day. And most importantly - they do not break, unlike delicate plastic ones. Unless you can bend, but this is fixable :)

Discuss the article CHILDREN'S IRON CONSTRUCTION

Hello friends. Haven't reviewed crafts for a long time. creative people. Everyone could not find time for this, conducting his master classes, traveling around IT exhibitions () and starting his mini-journey and the changes that he wrote about in the blog.

I will send descriptions to the pictures and the works themselves, and the author will announce himself in the comments, if he wants.

The first sets began to be made already in 1901 in England.

Initially, the idea was to create working layouts to demonstrate projects, such as bridges.
But the material from which the layouts were assembled must be universal. This is how the idea of using perforated strips was born. Therefore, their models are unique in terms of the complexity of mechanical solutions and design beauty.
Motor:

Elevator control unit (stacker):

It's like a Tiger tank.

AN-2. It seems like it.

Mini model. The idea is taken from foreigners, but all the details are ours.

Cubism. Angular sides of large and small cubes. The big one is assembled from the standard corners of the designer, and in a small cube I put my parts to connect the sides. The gap is minimal.

I took a retro car from Meccano (red) assembled from our parts except for wheels, headlights and a cover on the hood.

I made templates for the manufacture of cover sheets from different companies. So far, only from the Yunost 4 set converted to a millimeter standard. And sheets from the GDR Construction 100 set. There are some duplicate drawings, this is to fill in the sheet. Some parts are reminiscent of the Mercur set.
Drawn in Word. It seems that it turned out not bad, but it is better to make templates on graph paper. It will be more accurate.
I will take the material from the covers of accounting folders. There are folders with normal thickness. I would like more, but what we have, then we will use it ..
I punch holes with a set of punches for punching holes in rubber. It is not expensive, it costs about 300 rubles.

This is how the retro truck turned out from memory. There are homemade parts, these are hinges on the doors, wheels and many other reworked parts from our kits. A trial version of making impromptu headlights from ketchup caps. In principle, LEDs can be installed in these caps and power the headlights. It is possible to add this model with hinges on the body and a lifting mechanism for the body. Although lifting mechanism this is for a different type of truck. Or make a roof on the body or put an awning. I think from Lego, add colored parking lights. You can paint the wheels with black paint, it’s like highlighting the outer shoe, as if the model has rubber wheels.
What do people think, can manufacturers be recommended to create such a set?

How do I make loops.
Yes, the occupation is long, dreary and thankless. A little distracted and that's it ... a loop to release.
And so, we take a panel 5x5 or 5x10, better 5x10 where the metal is thinner and easier to bend. We unfold the turns on the panel on the anvil and outline the future blanks for the loops. Everything is visible in the photo.
Well, then it’s a matter of technology ... mode, bend, saw, nails mode, and drive the loops to each other.

Trying to make gear sets.

It turned out such an impromptu ... not a known model of the aircraft ... Objections and comments are accepted. 🙂

I decided to continue the collection of old tanks from the war. This time it is an English tank Cromvell Mk 4 (A27M). This is the first version of the model so far. I will clarify some small parts maybe I'll add some small details on the tower. I won't install tracks yet. Perhaps I will put them on after disassembling the KV-1. You need to loosen up the wheels a bit more. The tank gun was made from a telescopic antenna.
Where two tanks are together, you can clearly see how the iron coating oxidizes in air. Becomes pale, dull, then begins to darken. Iron on the second tank lay all this time in the package. Designers were bought almost simultaneously. Conclusion: our coatings have poor carcass, although not all manufacturers of designers. Still shame!

Trying to make big wheels 3 and 4 option

Part of my instrument.

Here is the continuation of the retro series. This is a Parisian taxi from the beginning of the last century. This is not a complete analogue of any model. In those days there were a lot of models of this type, and the series of cars were very insignificant.

Mekano has worthy models for re-building, our material and technical base is very small and depends on the amateur's wallet. Not everyone wants to spend several thousand rubles on 3-4 dozen parts.
In short, the model is not yet the final version. I need to do the front bumper and the rear too. Might be worth putting a spare in the back. On the roof, make railings for suitcases.
In short, take another model for assembly from domestic parts for criticism. I tried to paint the wheels from the usual aerosol can from alkyd enamel for internal and external works It turned out not bad, in my opinion.

Which we began to produce at our enterprise among the first. They were created specifically for classes in labor lessons in the lower grades and have been coping well with their function for more than a dozen years.

And, despite the fact that for labor lessons we made a more modern metal constructor "School", the popularity of this series does not decrease. They are still one of the most popular and "sold" among all our iron construction sets for children. They were especially fond of representatives of the parent committees of kindergartens and schools.

We are already accustomed to the fact that metal constructors for labor lessons are very often taken for the whole class, group or school, and therefore we reserve them in the warehouse in quantities larger than all other constructors. The designers of this series can also very often be found on sale under other trademarks, with a different name and in a different package, we have made a lot of them and continue to make them for other market participants.

And, finally, the fact that these construction sets are intended for labor lessons does not mean at all that they cannot be played with at home. They perfectly develop perseverance, logic, spatial thinking and fine motor skills. From each set, both relatively complex models and very simple ones are assembled.

To help you, we have created a “Support” section on the website of our online store, where all the instructions and assembly diagrams for all our designers are posted. There you can restore lost schemes and recharge with new ideas.

We also recommend you to see othermetal constructors , produced by the "Tenth Kingdom" (there are already more than fifty of them), in order to choose exactly the designer that your child needs from the table.

Besides, indisputable advantage of this constructor is that all parts are packed in a wooden box, which is certainly more durable than cardboard boxes and more convenient for storing metal constructor elements. Accordingly, the chances are increased that all the details, screws, nuts will lie in one place, and not scattered around your house.

You can buy a children's metal constructor No. 1 in a wooden box in our Tenth Kingdom online store without overpayments at the manufacturer's price. Photos, assembly diagrams and detailed instructions duplicated in the "Support" section.

Metal constructor 2 sells well, but is not the absolute bestseller among our metal constructors for labor lessons. True to its name, it has been a consistent second-seller in the series for almost two decades.

It consists of 290 parts, which allows you to assemble 4 interesting models of medium complexity.

Being more expensive than the metal constructor 1 for labor lessons by almost 82 rubles, nevertheless, in comparison with it, it is a more rational purchase. Metal constructors are generally easy to check "for profitability". You need to take the price and divide by the number of parts. The price of one part in the metal constructor 2 will turn out to be less than in the cheaper metal constructor 1. Apparently, life teaches us to count not only us, but also our customers, which is an indicator good sales of this constructor, despite the fact that we have long begun to produce new constructors for the school using new methods of protecting metal parts from corrosion.

By the way, having collected all four designs recommended by the instruction, you can go to the "Support" section. There are laid out assembly diagrams for all the iron designers produced by us. You can pick up some other model that can be assembled from the parts at your disposal.

It would be fair if a person who typed in the search for "children's designer metal USSR" gets to this page. Why? Yes, because we are practically sure that "the most Soviet metal designer" is produced by us. The fact is that the molds for the suitcase of this designer were made back in the days of the USSR, we bought them in the late 90s from one of the Soviet enterprises, which in the end did not survive perestroika. The suitcase was actually produced back in the Soviet Union. In those days, they did not save on material, a suitcase takes a lot of material, which makes it quite expensive. But this, by the way, is the only drawback of the equipment, it still works like a clock.

In the suitcase you will find 158 elements, from which 5 models of varying complexity are assembled. By the way, the models are also from children's metal constructors from the times of the USSR.

Feeling some remorse from the fact that we are still producing, in fact, a Soviet metal constructor, we are constantly going to remove it from production, but constant orders do not allow this. He still has his own buyer, so he is always in stock in our Tenth Kingdom online store, along with other, more modern metal constructors.

All children, from the very early age and also many adults like to build various structures from constructor. There are currently a huge number of various variations of this game - the well-known Lego sets and its analogues of Russian and foreign manufacturers, a metal constructor that came to us from Soviet times, magnetic, wooden and others. Most toys of this kind are equipped with a set of diagrams that show which models can be folded from the available figures. In this article, we will tell you about what can be done from the details of the designer, putting the diagram aside and showing quite a bit of imagination.

What can be done from the Lego constructor?

Lego is one of the most popular trademarks designers. On sale there is an incredible number of different sets for children of any age, both boys and girls. In addition, there are quite a lot of similar logic games from Russian and foreign manufacturers.

From Lego figures, children can build simply amazing figures - buildings, cars, planes, trains. Large sets are designed to build entire cities or farms. In addition, from a small number of parts you can make something useful and undoubtedly original, for example, a cup for toothbrushes or a gift box.

What to make of

No less popular, at all times, remains a metal constructor, often used in labor lessons at school. Usually, from its parts, the guys assemble models of tanks, planes and helicopters, cars and ATVs. Having shown imagination, you can build anything from the details of a metal designer - from small elements to full-size models.