Bruder02818 Mack Granite Liebherr Crane Truck

I bought this toy for my three year old son as a present from his newly born baby sister. In a word, he "LOVES" this crane truck. He has played with it incessantly since he received it a few days ago. He even tried to sleep with it one night. Unfortunately (or fortunately), this truck is so huge that he had to settle for having it by his bedside at night.While my son's enjoyment of the truck is ultimately paramount, as a parent I have the following comments for other parents who may be thinking about investing in this truck for their child.THE GOOD:- Truck is HUGE (boom is 53" tall when fully extended)- Truck is a highly accurate model. Right down to the counterweights.- Although made entirely of plastic (with the exception of the tires), the materials are thick and have put up with some rough play for a while.- Bruder offers spare parts at relatively good prices.The BAD:- Price. Although big and accurate, the toy is made mostly of plastic. For this price, I would like to have seen at least some die cast parts.- The crank for the crane "cable" is plastic and relies on three small teeth that interlock with a gear to hold hook/cable at a specified length. Most three year olds (my son included) will likely have a problem understanding that the crank must be pulled outwards (to disengage the teeth) before the crank can be turned. I am certain that my son will break the teeth in short order. To be fair, this toy is designed for ages 4+, and the crank is probably the main reason why.- The first truck I ordered was damaged, either during the manufacturing process or during shipping. Amazon's RMA process was easy as usual, but it was frustrating because I could not give my son his present at the appropriate time. Another Bruder truck I ordered also had some minor damage when it arrived, but it wasn't worth it to me to return. I'm not sure who to blame, the manufacturer or the shipper.- Durability: Again, the toy is mostly plastic. Whether or not it will hold up over time remains to be seen. I suspect not.The Nice to Know:-The box recommends this toy for ages 4+. Having seen my 3 year old interact with it for a few days now, I can say with confidence that this really is a toy for a slightly older child. My son has great fun playing with the crane, but he will not "get" how all of the parts work until he gets a bit older, I think. My 5 1/2 year old nephew, however, immediately understood how to operate the crane and had great fun with it during a recent visit.- The one metal part included in this toy is the crane "hook." It is pretty easy to whip this hook around while the boom is extended. Parents may want to advise their children to be careful and monitor young children that play with this toy until they are comfortable that their child will not bonk themselves on the head. It would be analogous to being wacked on the head by a 3 ounce sinker while it was cast by a fishing rod. Talk about a big ouchie. I'm not saying the product is dangerous. It's not. Parents should just be careful to make sure that their child is aware of metal hook, particularly as it swings as the crane moves.OVERALL:-Great toy. Highly recommend for ages 4+. A careful 3+ year old would be fine too.

Got this crane for my 3 year old for Christmas because he wanted a crane more than anything in the world. He was really asking for a specific tower crane that costs half as much as this one and heavily advertised everywhere. However, after reading a ton of reviews that said all the tower cranes including the one he wanted had serious quality issues I talked my wife into spending the extra money to get this one.We could not be happier with the purchase. We were a little unsure about paying so much for it considering it's plastic and not metal but our fears were completely unfounded. The crane is very well built and if it had been made of metal, like the Tonka Dump truck I had as a kid, it would be way more cumbersome and couldn't have been nearly as detailed. He has done things to this crane that by all rights should have broken it but the plastic is very high quality and bends enough that I'm pretty sure he's not going to be able to break anything on it at all. The hook is metal and not plastic giving it a good bit of weight so the tension is right for realistic use. All the mechanisms that move the boom and raise and lower the hook slip when too much pressure is used so they won't break.There are so many details about this toy that you don't realize are there until you have it in front of you. For one it's a good bit taller than he is when the boom is elevated fully with the extension on. This allows him to pick up objects on the floor and put them on tables and other places that are quite high. I'd say the shear size of it is one of the things that makes it fascinating. At the same time it's fairly compact when the boom is pulled in and put down so he can carry it around. The fold out stabilizers really work and aren't just for show. They fold out, drop down and screw down until most of the weight of the crane is on the four legs. The frame of the truck rocks slightly giving the impression of a functioning suspension and increasing the need for the stabilizers. Of course a lot of times he doesn't have time for "safety features" and learns that it will flip over when trying to swing something around without putting the legs down first. There are tons of utility doors and latches that all function. The counter weight moves, the doors and hood all open, etc.While not cheap, this is the best value of any toy we have ever bought him by far.

This is a well-built toy. Bought this for my grandson for Christmas and he fell in love with it. He screamed when he saw it and has not stopped playing with it. Well worth the money to make him happy and a great quality toy.

Love this brand, but it is a harder toy. Material is a thicker hard plastic that holds up well to rough play. Also good for taking outside and easy to clean. Would recommend this brand and any of their toys.

I order these trucks every year for my grandson. He loves these. Doors open so realistic. Need 1 more by Christmas.Excellent product

How does this truck not have sound and working lights? For the price, size and attention to detail, that I don't understand. Kids need sound and noise. Period. With that said, my almost 4 year old son adores this crane truck. Made for an excellent Christmas gift. All it took was a few minutes of Dad explaining how everything worked and he was off scouting the house for things to lift. (Again, for this price, you would think they could include at least one item to go along with the truck that can be lifted? A pile of logs, something!) He loved all the tool box openings on the truck. Again, he was scouting for things around the house to put inside those compartments. The hook is aluminum which is kind of disappointing. If it were magnetic, kids could haul around a lot more things I think. We will be hiding this toy when younger kids come over to play as they will destroy it. It is a very nice toy but definitely for kids age 4 and older like they recommend. If that guideline is followed, I would imagine it will last for years to come.

Build quality is top notch and the functionality of the crane is great!