REVIEW: 4209 Fire Plane (2012)

[AFOLEGODT]

Hello City Lovers,

I found no review for 4409 Fire Plane so I decided to make my own, maybe it helps someone to decide whether to buy (and if so how many).

Unboxing:

Sticker sheet. I think sticker for flaps does not add much detail. Moreover I find round stickers quite annoying as their form makes them extra difficult to position correctly.

New parts. Clever reuse of seemingly single-use parts that were originally Formula 1 car noses (in Cars sets).

The finished build. I skipped the build steps as instructions are available anyway. I did not like the fact that the original designer put the engines too far from the hull but it was easy to correct this by a bit of reordering parts. The brick-built trees are really great:

Nice details in the cockpit:

And even fake water tanks are there:

The water drop mechanism:

The gears are only there to avoid the door open by its own weight, the second gear with the blue locking Technic pin adds enough traction. Unfortunately it very much looks like an extra addition to a final design after it turned out that the door won't hold and it looks quite ugly this way.

The Fire Jeep looks awesome:

And in addition it has tools that are easily recognisable, realistic and playable, a water pump and a chainsaw:

Now a little story: A small quiet lake in the woods with an unsuspecting diver when fires start nearby:

Diver spots the plane: "I'll better submerge quickly!"

Will he make it?

It does not seem so:

Soon he founds himself in a burning tree:

Actually there was such a story circulating for a while but it turned out to be an urban legend: The Body of a SCUBA Diver is Found on the Scene of a Forest Fire

Verdict:

Design: 8/10 The plane (and certainly the Jeep also) are beautiful and robust but I consider the misplaced engines and the ugly external gears design flaws.

Build: 10/10 Working Technic parts on the plane and less usual parts on the Jeep make build more interesting for a normal City set.

Playability: 10/10 No question that this is one of the most playable City sets. It has one thing but it makes it very well.

Minifigs: 10/10 The new firefighter and pilot uniforms (and one of the pilots even being a woman!) makes this set even more interesting.

Parts: 10/10 Some new parts, great parts to build cars and planes and even different kinds of trees, very good assortment for an average City set.

Overall: 10/10 For many reasons a set definitely worth buying except if your City layout completely excludes the possibility of forest fires.

Thanks for reading!

[just2good]

Another good review of a City set, 'AFOLEGODT'!

This set is pretty cool, but not really for me. I really like the tree, though.

[MontanaVista]

Nice review! I've been waiting for a review of this set, I really like the plane here. It's original and looks great IMO. I want this set, but I'm not sure I want to pay the inflated TRU prices for it.. I hope to find it on sale in the Fall.

Was the build enjoyable, AFOLEGODT?

Cheers!

[LEGO Guy Bri]

Cool review AFOLEGODT! I bought this set up primarily for the jeep, but I'm starting to take a liking for the plane, especially it's turboprops. Definitely glad I only payed half of it's full $59.99 though

[The Blue Brick]

Great review. I don't really like planes for my layout as they are too large and take up too much room, but that jeep is amazing.

If I find it on clearance for half off, I'll definitely buy it just for the jeep.

Edited July 10, 2012 by The Blue Brick

[Bellicose]

I did not like the fact that the original designer put the engines too far from the hull but it was easy to correct this by a bit of reordering parts.

Ditto! I did the same exact thing.