Review:1291 by Dorek

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1291 Dirt Bike


By Dorek

Review: 1291 Dirt Bike

No school like the old school! 1291 Dirt Bike (also released as 8004) was a promotional set in the RoboRiders line. This particular variant came packaged with some Japanese sweets from the Kabaya corporation, though those are long since gone.

The Box

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The Japanese boxes didn't frame quite like a typical LEGO box, a bit more solid bordering and text than you'd normally expect. The box also designated each particular promotional set with a number out of four, for classification purposes (something I have an undying appreciation for). On the back is a series of combiner models each featuring this model (which means there are a few ones unaccounted for, to be seen with the others. The cleverest bit, though, is how instructions for these models (excepting the big one, which is shown in the included leaflet) are actually printed inside the box. Hop on over to our gallery to see more.

The Bits

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Dirt Bike's pieces are fairly minimal, as these things go. The biggest piece is obviously the RoboRider head (repeated from Dirt Bike's counterpart, Power). In lieu of the main RoboRider collectibles, Dirt Bike uses smaller rubber wheels for mobility.

The Build

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Dirt Bike's central building gimmick is a spiral gear that adjusts the back wheel, for speed and control modes. This is actually very similar to one of the features that his large counterpart, Power, uses, but in a shrunken down form. It's pretty clever overall, although he does tend to topple over the higher the back wheel is raised.

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The Brass Tacks

Did we like this set?



Yes


  What We Liked:

• Fun, intuitive function
  What We Didn't Like:

• A little top-heavy
  Other Comments:

Dirt Bike is definitely my favorite of the bunch. Even being a little wobbly, the resemblance to Power's function is delightful, and he's the most fun to just play around with.