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Alright, my first review, let's get started shall we? Today I'll be reviewing set Nr. 6615: Eagle Stunt Flyer. Box image courtesy of Bricklink Today's review (stats are taken from Brickset): Set Nr.: 6615-1 Set name: Eagle Stunt Flyer Theme: Town Subtheme: Flight Year Released: 1996 Nr. of pieces: 76 minifigs: 1 RRP: US$ 8.75 I got this set quite late in my collecting "career", but I remember loving the look of this cute little bi-plane. Let's start by taking a look at the parts. (from here on in, click on the images to see a larger resolution) As you can see, there's a lot of red pieces here, interspersed with a few black and grey pieced and 2 wonderful chromed exhausts. The eagle on the tail piece and band of stars on the Technic wheel piece which if used for the engine are stickers, and while the stickers on the tail piece have held up remarkably well over the years, the sticker on the Technic wheel piece has clearly not. When assembling I just tend to point the imperfection down and out of sight. Next up, there's the manual. It is quite small in size, and only 15 pages long. Sample page: As all old sets, there are quite a few parts added each step (at least compared to modern building instructions) and there are no part callouts. As long as you pay attention building the model should not be too hard, though I found myself occasionally missing a part after getting used to the modern manuals with part callouts. The back of the manual: On the back, as with most manuals of the time, you can see some alternative models, which I will discuss later in this review. The minifig: The head is a basic smile with sunglasses, I like this design for it's simplicity of conveying "cool" without the need for an elaborate smirk or grumpy face, like most modern heads seem to have. The front of the torso is a nice looking leather jacket style print, with the zipper half-way down, revealing a black shirt underneath. As usual around this time period (atleast, I think so) The back of the torso has no printing. The legs are just plain black... Not much to say here. The build: I have photographed the build every fourth step, which I believe will give a good idea of how this model is put together. Step 4: Not much to say, the base of the plane is put together, and a plate is used in conjunction with a 1x2 plate in the area that will be the cockpit to ensure that the minifig will stay put in the cockpit if the plane is swooshed, while making sure that it can be taken out easily without too much trouble. I wish more models used this method, as I can't count the times I tried getting a minifig out of a vehicle, and getting only the torso, while the legs remained in place behind the wheel. Step 8: The plane is build up further. The exhausts are added and 2 Technic pins in the front will later connect to the Technic wheel piece to form the front of the plane. Step 12: By this step the tail is completed, the front is almost done, and the support for the upper wing structure is added. Step 16: After adding the wings on the top and the propeller, we turn the plane on it's back to add the landing gear. Cool use of the grey 1x1 round plates here to simulate suspension. The completed model: It's beautiful! Now, I must admid, I've always had a soft spot for bi-planes. There is something about them that just seems irresistible to me. The construction is quite sturdy, and while playing with it the chance of it falling apart is quite small. The only thing that irks me about the design are the exhausts. sure, they look gorgeous, but the way they are connected is a bit... wonky. They are attached by way of pinning into a headlight brick, which means they can pivot freely, which they regularly do when playing with it, or even trying to pose it for pictures, as even the slightest tough can knock them out of alignment. Alternative models: As promised, it's time to talk about the alternative models. I tried to construct the models from the pictures which, as it turns out, is not as easy as I thought it would be. After a bit of trial and error I can now present the alternative models! (or at least the closest approximations of them I could manage) The first model is some sort of drag racer / rocket car. It is quite sleek and an interesting use of the parts, though as you might see on the scan from the back of the manual, that sticker on the Technic wheel piece has shifted places, which is an effect I could obviously not replicate with my version. The second model is some sort of swamp boat. This one was a bit more underwhelming, but still nice enough for an alternative model. And last but... Certainly least is this.. thing. I guess it's supposed to resemble some sort of glider, but the design for it is just awful. The wheel on the tail is way too high up to be of any use, and I had a very hard time trying to figure out how they had made the "cockpit" area, which, in my best attempts, seemed to stay very wonky. Conclusions: (Disclaimer: I don't believe in giving numerical scores. It is up to the reader to decide what they think of any given model, and I believe mandatory scores detract from this notion.) Minifig: The minifig is nice enough for a set from this time. The head and torso are quite common, but by no means bad. Parts: This set has a decent number of pieces, some of which are just gorgeous (I'm looking at you, chrome exhausts!) build/design: The build is quick but fun, and never gets boring or repetitive. the design is very good looking and quite sturdy, apart from the exhausts. Playability: This little plane is extremely swoosh-able. I remember having a lot of playing fun just "flying" around the house and doing amazing stunts with my little red biplane. Overall: This is a very nice set, and I would recommend it to anyone who can get there hands on it cheaply. As this is my first review here, please let me know what you think, and what could be improved, any critique is appreciated, so don't be shy.
