My oldest son Lucas last year started getting into construction and building type toys. He loved then and both he and I would spend hours building them. The first one that he got him bitten by the construction bug was the K’nex Ferris wheel. It was incredible and we had so much fun building together. Ever since he’s loved K’nex, so what came next was the K’Nex K-Force Battle Bow Building Set.
K’NEX introduced it’s exciting new range called K-Force earlier this year. K-Force is the first line of blasters that you build and then blast! Cool huh! The line was created due to overwhelming demand from fans. Aimed at kids aged 8+ Lucas just falls into this category. The Build and Blast line allows kids to customise their blasters and the possibilities is endless. Just now there are 3 different kinds of blasters, plus build-able targets and foam dart packets.
Lucas built the K’next K-Force Battle Bow Building Set which contains over 150 pieces, 1 blaster chamber, 2 skull dart holders, 1 quick fit grip, 1 preload ring, everything you need to build your blaster, including 5 foam darts and the ability to download instruction from the K’nex website to build 4 alternative blasters or you can design your own. And with a fire of up to 75 feet this blaster has some great fire power. And is compatible with the entire K-Force Build and Blast range.
As we got started on the building, it was clear he would need a little help. To be fair he is just 8 1/2 and he followed the instructions great. The pictures were excellent, clear and took it a little step at a time. There were a few bits that were a little fiddly and Lucas needed some help getting them together. I tried to stay out of it as much as I could to see how he got on and I was pleasantly surprised. Watching him follow along with the diagram with a few pointers and he got there. He persevered and he was pleased as punch when he completed it and that was worth seeing in itself.
I would say it took about an hour or so to put the whole thing together. There are a lot of parts and as I said some of them can be a little tricky. The firing mechanism is well made and the section to hold the bullets is well thought out. With it being a construction toy, it is not as sturdy as one which is not. But, the construction part is the best bit I felt and Lucas got a lot out of it. Not only that, you can build it again and again, changing bits or using one of the other designs if you wish.
As you can see he was chuffed with the K’Nex K-Force Battle Bow set. I think this is an excellent toy and at an RRP of £24.99 it is excellent value for money. It is effectively two toys in one, a construction toy and a firing toy. The range this can fire at is surprising and the speed I was not expecting from something we had built. It was relatively easy to construct, a few pointers and help may be required, but I find this the most enjoyable part. These are great bonding toys. I would however recommend buying an extra pack of foam darts. They easily get lost and you only get 5 in this pack, it won’t be long before they are missing. This gets a huge thumbs up from us and I know Lucas is on the look out for more K’Nex construction and K-Force toys in the future.
Disclaimer:- We were sent this toy for these review purposes, but as always my opinions are my own and we loved this.