REVIEW: 10247 Ferris Wheel

[WhiteFang]

Hello everyone,

It is my great pleasure to be able to work on this review and to share this with the Eurobricks Community. I was intending to complete this Ferris Wheel design and post this end of last year but didn't manage to get around to wrap it up until recently. I am really glad this review is out before this set is officially discontinued because I am strongly confident that the price will rose in value once TLG cease production. This mega epic set is a mammoth class and bear the iconic design of a Ferris Wheel. Personally, I do not think we will see another Ferris Wheel design in the near future and I really hope this review could persuade those who have yet to acquire. Without further ado, let me show you this pictorial review of this amazing LEGO Direct set. Then after that, you can decide the final verdict.

Name: 10247 Ferris Wheel

Theme: LEGO System / Advanced Models / Fairground

Year: 2015

Pieces: 2464

Minifigs: 10 minifigures

Price: USD $199.99, GBP 149.99, EURO 179.99, SGD $349.90

Resources: Brickset, BrickLink

Experience the wonderful LEGO® Creator Ferris Wheel!

LEGO® Creator Expert model has an iconic elegance that evokes feelings of nostalgia, romance and adventure. The carnival has come to town and the ice cream vendor is busy serving a long queue of excited customers as they await their first ride on the magical Ferris Wheel that towers above the fairground. Slowly turn the crank and watch as the Ferris Wheel gracefully lowers the colorful gondolas into position for boarding. Raise the boarding platform with a simple pull of the lever, open the gondola door and help the passengers aboard! Have fun building this elegant model with an authentic charm and magic that will capture your imagination. You can also motorize the Ferris Wheel with the LEGO Power Functions 8883 medium motor and 88000 AAA battery box (not included). Includes 10 minifigures: a ride operator, ice cream vendor, 4 children and 4 adults.

• Includes 10 minifigures with assorted accessories: a ride operator, ice cream vendor, 4 children and 4 adults

• Features a Ferris Wheel ticket kiosk, ice cream stall, a bench and assorted flower and tree elements

• Ferris Wheel features decorative elements, ramps, boarding platform and 12 colorful gondolas with opening doors

• Accessory elements include a pretzel, balloon, 2 ice cream cones and an ice cream scoop

• Includes an amazing 2464 LEGO® elements

• Climb aboard the Ferris Wheel!

• Turn the crank and watch the Ferris Wheel turn

• Motorize the Ferris Wheel with the LEGO® Power Functions 8883 medium motor and 88000 AAA battery box (not included)

• Ferris Wheel measures over 23” (60cm) high, 21” (55cm) wide and 14” (38cm) deep

An original box image of the 10247 Ferris Wheel

Back view of the original box image of the 10247 Ferris Wheel

A close-up view of the official box image

Welcome to the magnificent LEGO Ferris Wheel attraction

I am very excited to be able to build this set. This Ferris Wheel is one of the set which I have keen interest to build and review. I am really glad that I managed to do this. The entire building experience is pleasant and enjoyable for builders above 16 years old. It may pose some challenge for younger builders due to complex LEGO Technic parts and small LEGO pieces. The finished design is extremely appealing to young and old. After I have done with the built, I brought this set to my living room and showed to my mother, my grandmother and my wife. All of them stood in awe with excitement. My mother actually took her mobile phone and saved some images. They reacted with positive vibes after I switched on the additional LEGO Power Functions which I have acquired. In this case, I bought the 8293 Motor Set to power the spin automatically. My folks just sat there and admire the turn of Ferris Wheel for quite an extensive period. This greatly proved that the design is indeed appealing for non-AFOLs.

All thanks to the founder and key designer of LEGO Modular Theme, Jamie Berard, Design Manager Specialist. Without his foresight, this design may never actualise. If you have a minute, I urge you can view the

which is very informative. I am really glad that Jamie pulled this off. His Ferris Wheel design had put many smiles to people whom I have known. Even my colleagues were equally impressed with this Ferris Wheel and brought a set each for their children.

In case you are wondering what is a Ferris Wheel? A Ferris wheel is a big observation wheel consisted of a rotating upright wheel with multiple passenger-carrying cabins or gondolas and these are attached to the rim in such a way that as the wheel turns, they are kept upright through gravity. There are many global iconic Ferris Wheel, for example like the 'London Eye' and 'Singapore Flyer'. I am glad there is an official Ferris Wheel which is suitable for LEGO minifigures scale unlike the first Ferris Wheel which was released in 2007. The 4957 Ferris Wheel is more of a micro-built which is not quite well- represented for LEGO minifigures. Either way, I am glad this is being made as a LEGO Direct set.

Overview of the illustrated built over the 4 milestones

The sealed box came with 25 mint packs and among them, 24 mint packs is numbered and grouped from one to four. The last pack contained the green plates to form the base of the Ferris Wheel. With reference to the overview image above in the instruction manual, the entire built is divided into four significant milestones. The building content is grouped into Packet 1, Packet 2, Packet 3 and Packet 4. After the set has been built, these are the remaining spare parts from Packet 1, Packet 2, Packet 3 and Packet 4.

The featured LEGO City Citizens in this beautiful set

In this 10247 Ferris Wheel, you get a solid total of 10 unique LEGO City minifigures which are exclusive to this set. Based on the LEGO minifigures' composition, there are 50% male and 50% female which is very uncommon to see such an equal gender distribution. This is quite an interesting gender composition for this new LEGO Direct Set based on urban city setting. Among the LEGO City minifigures, there are six amazing LEGO adults with good decent printings that illustrate the visitors and workers. While, the other four minifigures are actually LEGO children. On the left of the image, you will see a new facial appearance of the small boy showing a discomfort and uneasy look. This is definitely a brand new facial design which is quite welcoming for unsettling visitor. All of the 10 minifigure are featured with detailed back printing. To note, these minifigures are spread across different allocated packs.

The entire building content for Packet 1

The completed built for Packet 1

The completed built for the first consolidated packets showed the completed built of the Ferris Wheel base accompanied with three minifigures including a female child. The entire content labelled packet 1 formed the foundation of the Ferris Wheel. The unlabeled packet used the numerous green plates to form the four corners of the Ferris Wheel. It is very sturdy through reinforced integrated locking among those bricks and plates. It also begun the completed area of the boarding platform where the safety net is placed at the bottom of the Ferris Wheel. The safety net is a feature which could help to minimise fatal falls. The platform can be raised or lowered accordingly to jam brake the rotation of the Ferris Wheel through a knob lever. This built also feature the partial mechanical control that will enable the builder to manually crank the rotation of the Ferris Wheel. You can see from the side view of the incomplete overview for the mechanical control which will lead to the continued building of packet 2 content.

Aerial view of the Ferris Wheel base

The entire building content for Packet 2

The completed built for Packet 2

The completed built for the consolidated second packets showed the completed built of the high-beams on both ends and opposite sides that form the core structure of the Ferris Wheel. In this built, it came with four minifigures including two children. The main focus of this built is to assemble the two pairs of sky blue high-beams which is the key support to keep the wheel together. It also connected the moving parts of the rotating mechanism together. You can see the whole integration from this side view and the other side view. The remaining bricks were used to beautify the surroundings including the control station, benches and ice cream stall. We have achieved half of the building process and two more milestones to go.

Back view of the Ferris Wheel base and infrastructure

The entire building content for Packet 3

The completed built for Packet 3

The completed built for the consolidated third packets showed the completed built of the big circular rotating wheel connecting to the high-beams on both ends on opposite sides that form the turning structure of the Ferris Wheel. In this built, there are no minifigures to build. These packets filled with parts that will make you construct and repeat itself to form identical components to form the front and back of the wheel. Eventually, those added component will need to connect through those clips. Once is done, the Ferris Wheel remain the finishing touch. At this point, the builder is able to spin the Ferris Wheel freely or manually crank the mechanism behind.

Turning the Ferris Wheel in freestyle

The entire building content for Packet 4

The completed built for Packet 4

The completed built for the final packets showed the completed built of the entire Ferris Wheel. The objective was to build all 12 gondolas for carrying of passengers. The 12 gondolas are the exact same steps to follow and the builder need to construct 12 identical sets with three different colour coding namely green, purple and yellow. In this built, there are three remaining minifigures to build, including a child. I am pretty fond of the shiny bright luminous pieces that enhance the overall appearance from the centre rotating core.

This is really a timeless piece of LEGO classic

I am very pleased with the finished outcome. The Ferris Wheel is measured at 60cm height and 38cm width. This mammoth set makes the whole phototaking process extremely challenging and some of the images are very hard to take due to lack of my background area to cover such an extensive area.

This Ferris Wheel encompass many fine details that any LEGO fans would greatly appreciate. In my case, I am fond of the grand appearance on the front view of the boarding platform with orderly crowd control. Visitors will need to pass through this ticketing gantry and the barrier is able to spin to permit access. Visitors can enter the gondola by opening the front of the cabin door. This gondola can allow a minimum of one minifigure in a comfortable state and up to a maximum of four minifigures in there. The space can be quite tight and it require some patience to adjust the minifigures appropriately. Once the ride is over, the visitors are able to patronise the ice cream stall for some cool delicious ice cream to douse the heat. Do note that the umbrella and logo are printed stuff which is very welcoming.

The Ferris Wheel controls are located in this station. Well, that station is meant for the minifigure staff. As you turned to the back of the Ferris Wheel, you are able to see the real mechanical control that make the turning possible. The mechanical control comprise of many LEGO Technic elements. Without all of these engineering marvel, this could just be a static display. Now I have added the power functions which require the battery box and the motor function. The Power Functions which I have utilised are from the older batch and the battery box is much bigger which is clearly visible from this side view. I am unable to conceal the battery box and only able to let it lean by the side. If you are using the 88000 AAA battery box, then you are able to hide it at the green vegetation area. The power function battery box enable the builder to choose forward or backward direction and this added lots of fun to the playability. please note that once the 8883 Motor is inserted, the manual cranking will be extremely hard and I do not recommend others to crank the Ferris Wheel manually once the Power Functions are in place. You can view the deeplink videos which I have done for the Power Function effects.

Video demostration of the integrated Power Functions for the 10247 Ferris Wheel

Shall we go together?

Don't be scared, we are there for you

Let's buy some ice cream

Grandfather bringing his grandchildren for a day of amusement fun

The Marvel Avengers are having their company outing at the Ferris Wheel

This is our wedding anniversary date

Turning the Ferris Wheel at full speed

To conclude, this Ferris Wheel is definitely one of the best LEGO designed set ever released for a LEGO Direct set other than the 70751 Temple of Airjitzu which is also in my top list. The minifigure factor was not the biggest push. In fact, it was the excellent design and outstanding playability especially with the integration of Power Functions that make this overall set so outstanding. I bought the Power Functions for the very first time, because I want to motorise the Ferris Wheel. Looking at it turn round and round, simply made my mind rather soothing and I enjoyed it very much. This has been released for quite awhile and I am not sure if this set will remain on shelves till end of 2016 but I will certainly encourage many others to acquire it before is too late.

Summary review

Playability: 10/10 (Outstanding playability with the combined utilisation of Power Functions integration.)

Design: 10/10 (Outstanding design and timeless iconic classic which will appeal to many.)

Price: 9/10 (Price is quite reasonably priced and I will urge you to acquire it before it is end-of-life.)

Overall: 9.7/10 (One of my highest ratings ever. Get this set no matter what, because this is a must have iconic set in every LEGO AFOLs city layout or display.)

I gave it a "5" based on my Review Score Card. What about yours?

I hope every one of you enjoyed reading this simple review of mine. Comments and Criticisms are strongly welcomed.

Pictures can be found in My Flickr.

[WhiteFang]

Dear Eurobricks Community,

I would like to share with all of you on my latest new review on the 10247 LEGO Ferris Wheel. Feel free to leave your thought and I hope you will enjoy reading it. Thanks.

WhiteFang

[ezaida18]

Thank you for the review WhiteFang. I regretted not buying this on Day one. Now it's a bit difficult to find it in stores where I live but they said hopefully it'll be re-stocked soon. Will definitely grab it then!!

[Withacee]

Cheers for taking the trouble of putting this up.

I love this set; we bought it the moment it was released.

It's a brilliant set, and also a lovely build. We didn't mind the repetitiveness here and there at all.

I always build together with my wife, so we both took one half of the wheel and half the carriages

Edited March 9, 2016 by Withacee

[Exetrius]

Another great review! I had almost forgotten about this set, since I'm not that into Lego Creator expert that much. The double angle of the supporting beams is fantastic, I should try that in one of my builds sometime. Thanks for the review!

[AFOLguy1970]

Great review for a great set! I bought this back in June and had an enjoyable time building it. This is definitely a very large set. Eventually, I had to take it apart and move it into storage to make room for other sets, but I look forward to the day we get a dedicated "Lego Room" and it can be reassembled.

[mostlytechnic]

LOVE this set - enough that I bought it day 1 and built it over the next few nights. It's pretty sturdy once built and definitely big.

The one thing I don't care for is the colors. I'd love to redo mine in bolder colors - regular blue instead of light on the legs, red/yellow/orange or something for the cars, etc - but there's not many color options available for the cars.

One nit on the review - that's not a net under the cars. There's no need for a safety net. That's the platform to walk on to board the ride, and it can be raised and lowered to make it easier to get in but lower to make sure cars don't hit it when the ride is moving at speed.

[LegoDakin]

I hope their is another fairground set this year?

[mostlytechnic]

I hope their is another fairground set this year?

Me too, but I sorta doubt it since there's the fairground Friends sets coming. Too bad those really don't fit with the mixer and ferris wheel that we already have. The roller coaster looks pretty lame (that's a TOUGH ride to do well in Lego, so I'm surprised they tried) and the games might work if some colors were replaced.

[Supa Necta]

I received this as a Christmas gift and had to build it right away. My only complaint is that it's tough to get minifigures on the gondolas and certain figures with big hair or headpieces don't fit. One solution would be to use short legs.

[jjava]

I bought this set last year for two main reasons. One, I wanted something to keep me occupy till the next modular building comes out and in between my own MOC. Second, because the set was designed by Jamie.

It absolutely exceeded all my expectation. I actually made an error and wasn't paying close attention when I initially build the gondolas. Some I did correctly, some I didn't. Therefore once I attached it to the ferris wheel, the turning motion wasn't smooth. I went back to look at Jamie's video and noted everything was smooth so I went back and look at the ones that wasn't and realize my error. I love the set so much I went ahead and bought two set of power function as well as the fairground mixer which I haven't had time to build yet.

I even manage to squeeze some mini dolls in there. I have also put Scooby Doo on the ride

[WhiteFang]

Thank you so much for your insightful thoughts. This set is really amazing and I really urge those that have yet to acquire, to get it once the stock has replenished.

One nit on the review - that's not a net under the cars. There's no need for a safety net. That's the platform to walk on to board the ride, and it can be raised and lowered to make it easier to get in but lower to make sure cars don't hit it when the ride is moving at speed.

I always thought it was a form of safety net and your observation is indeed correct. I don't recall seeing this in action, perhaps most modern Ferris Wheels don't require this feature?

I hope their is another fairground set this year?

I really hope so and that will greatly advocate the Amusement Theme.

I received this as a Christmas gift and had to build it right away. My only complaint is that it's tough to get minifigures on the gondolas and certain figures with big hair or headpieces don't fit. One solution would be to use short legs.

Yes, I had some challenges and I had to do it with great patience. The top of the cabin will always interfere and you need to tilt the legs slightly forward in order to accommodate.

[Withacee]

I hope their is another fairground set this year?

Well, we may have a chance, because Jamie is a great fan of anything "Fairground".

A really good roller coaster (a lot better than the new Friends one ) would be great.

[Jern92]

I bought this set last year for two main reasons. One, I wanted something to keep me occupy till the next modular building comes out and in between my own MOC. Second, because the set was designed by Jamie.

It absolutely exceeded all my expectation. I actually made an error and wasn't paying close attention when I initially build the gondolas. Some I did correctly, some I didn't. Therefore once I attached it to the ferris wheel, the turning motion wasn't smooth. I went back to look at Jamie's video and noted everything was smooth so I went back and look at the ones that wasn't and realize my error. I love the set so much I went ahead and bought two set of power function as well as the fairground mixer which I haven't had time to build yet.

I even manage to squeeze some mini dolls in there. I have also put Scooby Doo on the ride

What was your error? My Ferris Wheel leans very slightly to one side, so occasionally the gondolas will catch against the side of the platform, Still not sure how to solve my problem. I tried gently pushing the structure in the opposite direction, but it just went back to its normal lean after a while.

[bjornkeizers]

Excellent review; I'm very tempted. What does annoy me is that they used a ton of the smaller green plates to make an oddly shaped 'baseplate'. From the width at least, it would seem to fit a 10701 48x48 plate. They could've tiled it up green if they wanted to...

This seems like a fragile set that you'd almost need to build in its intended display location, rather than risk moving it...

[colmoore]

Excellent review; I'm very tempted. What does annoy me is that they used a ton of the smaller green plates to make an oddly shaped 'baseplate'. From the width at least, it would seem to fit a 10701 48x48 plate. They could've tiled it up green if they wanted to...

This seems like a fragile set that you'd almost need to build in its intended display location, rather than risk moving it...

Hi bjornkeizers,

The reason for using many green bricks and plates to build a base is to hide the anchor points that hold in position the blue supports. The model is surprisingly not fragile. It's very easy to pick up either side of the spindle (top of the supports) and move it.

Edited March 13, 2016 by colmoore

[Withacee]

As colmoore said, it's surprisingly sturdy.

And indeed easy to move by picking it up by the central axis.

I actually like the fact that it has no base plate; makes it look more lively, in stead of the rectangular base plates.

[paul_delahaye]

I'm so on the fence about this one, I loved the Mixer set, I liked the way it packed up ont on to the vehicles, but I keep looking at this ferris wheel, deliberating on whether to commit or not, and I know I'm going to regret it if I don't buy it, I'm just worried about size and storage! but it's a great set and I really hope Jamie has another fairground set planned for this year! although it's a little quiet on that front currently….

Double points this weekend might be enough to push me to spend on this set!

Edited March 13, 2016 by paul_delahaye

[julien4599]

Great set, great designer, a must have ! When a "new" person is visiting my LEGO room it's a "whouaouh" looking at this ferris wheel !

[sebitsena]

Thank you for this review. I like this set but i wonder about the repetitive build. This is what i did not like in the Robot Exo set for the arms and the legs which were the same assemblies. But i love the Exobot overall ;)

Maybe the Ferris Wheel can be a good set in a modular city, a fortiori if the wheel is powered... What do you think about it guys ?

[jjava]

What was your error? My Ferris Wheel leans very slightly to one side, so occasionally the gondolas will catch against the side of the platform, Still not sure how to solve my problem. I tried gently pushing the structure in the opposite direction, but it just went back to its normal lean after a while.

I was being careless when building the gondolas. Specifically on page 127 of the instruction, step 9, sometimes I have the tube piece backwards.

[WhiteFang]

Thanks guys for your thoughtful comments! I am really glad you have enjoyed reading it.

This seems like a fragile set that you'd almost need to build in its intended display location, rather than risk moving it...

Trust me, it is surprisingly sturdy and well integrated. I shifted mine to numerous location before I dismantle it for storage for eventual display in the future. If you are using the baseplate, it will not be as sturdy as it is as the overall weight will force the baseplate to wrap downwards.

[PeteM]

Many thanks for the comprehensive review! I had already decided to buy it and got it today (double points!) - sadly I have resolved to put it in a cupboard and only bring it out when I can build it with my daughter. She's just turned two now and it may be some time before I see it again, so thank you for allowing me to experience it vicariously!

[lomis]

Excellent review!

I didn't expect to get this set originally.

But once I saw it in the store I just had to have it.

It's been on display since putting it together last summer and I can't help myself from making it turn each time I walk by it.

[LEGO Train 12 Volts]

Fantastic ferris wheel!