Wind Powered Beast

[Bill Eh?]

I got this kit yesterday from Amazon.com. I'm not positive, but I think it is a knock-off an original Gakken kit. The title on the box says Wind Power Beast. The manufacturer is Cute Sunlight, kit no. 2141. I'm not sure of the scale, but I'm guessing 1/100. The miniature is based on a original piece created by kinetic artist Theo Jansen. His was called the Strand Beest. He has made many iterations of his first creation. It was fun, although sometimes frustrating. The English was error free. However, they sometimes used the wrong terminology when describing the position of one piece in relation to another. Having done LEGO was definitely a help, as the illustrations were very precise. If you have an inner geek, I highly recommend it. And yes, it walks sideways when you blow on the fan blades.

[Jim B]

That's pretty neat!

[misterNNL]

The drag race fan in my mind makes me wonder if we fiddle with the size and blade pitch on these, could we race them?

[Bill Eh?]

2 hours ago, misterNNL said:

The drag race fan in my mind makes me wonder if we fiddle with the size and blade pitch on these, could we race them?

I'll measure the distance from the blade axis to the surface it sits on. Looks like there is plenty of room for increasing the area of the blades! LOL Guess I better get an additional kit!

[cobraman]

Interesting.

[slusher]

very neat.

[stavanzer]

They are called "Strandbeests" Many videos on Youtube.

 

And here is Mythbuster's Adam Savage playing with one. Might even be the kit you have.

 

 

[Hans1971]

'Strandbeest' is a Dutch name.
You can literally translate it as 'Beach beast'.

[Keavdog]

Cool.  I have a kit from a company  Gakken Mook in the stash.  I got one for my son and son-in-law as well.  None of us has yet to build it - but this thread is inspiring!