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Japanese Blocks

Made from building set Gakken (Japan).

Unlike Plus Plus waffle blocks, Gakken blocks have pieces of many different shapes. They have round and curved pieces, long beams and H-like pieces. The empty spaces inside the blocks also can have different sizes and shapes, so you can stack inside different pieces in different positions. All this allows even more building possibilities than the waffle blocks sets with similar pieces. However, some pieces have less connection opgtions, because they don’t have pegs on the sides, or have only one hole.

Gakken brand appeared in Tokyo back in 1946 when it became an important component of Japan’s post-war efforts to rebuild the nation. Back then, it became incredible important to properly raise a new generation that will be able to create a better future.

The founder and educator, Hideto Furuoka, created first building set Gakken. He later told that his inspiration was traditional Japanese wooden houses. There he saw an idea of flat blocks people can took apart and rebuild again when they need to. So he decided to create a toy which repeats this principle. Children can connect these Japanese waffle building blocks, stack them, lay them, plug, or tuck blocks in different orientations, for example, horizontally, vertically, and diagonally.

Japanese Blocks
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Michley Waffle Blocks

Waffle blocks like this Michley waffle blocks set are popular building toys. They are flat and have matching pegs on their sides. You can assemble these pieces in 2D and 3D shapes, and in different positions.
Pieces of this set have an unusually big number of pegs on them – far more than pieces of Gakken and Plus Plus. The pieces have wall patterns, windows, round openings, and other similar decorations. Some panels have the same shape, but no decoration at all. The basic models the set offers are houses and castles. However, you can build anything else from these interlocking squares and triangles. These triangular pieces are in fact less common in waffle block sets. Gakken sets, for example, severely lack them. On the other hand, this set doesn’t have arches and other similar pieces, which somewhat limits the building possibilities. The houses are the things Michley waffle blocks make best, and, sadly, there are no options for, say, cars with moving wheels.
This particular set has pieces that are 2 inches wide, so they are safe for small children to play with. These pieces are easy to hold and too big to swallow, so the manufacturer recommends them for kids who are 3 years or older.

Michley Waffle Blocks
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FUBAODA Building Blocks

Waffle blocks like this FUBAODA waffle blocks set are popular building toys. They are flat and have matching pegs on their sides. You can assemble these pieces in 2D and 3D shapes, and in different positions.
Pieces of this set have an unusually big number of pegs on them – far more than pieces of Gakken and Plus Plus. The pieces have wall patterns, windows, round openings, and other similar decorations. Some panels have the same shape, but no decoration at all. The basic models the set offers are houses and castles. However, you can build anything else from these interlocking squares and triangles. These triangular pieces are in fact less common in waffle block sets. Gakken sets, for example, severely lack them. On the other hand, this set doesn’t have arches and other similar pieces, which somewhat limits the building possibilities. The houses are the things these waffle blocks make best, and, sadly, there are no options for, say, cars with moving wheels.
This particular set has pieces that are 2 inches wide, so they are safe for small children to play with. These pieces are easy to hold and too big to swallow, so the manufacturer recommends them for kids who are 3 years or older.

FUBAODA Building Blocks
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How They Play In A Family With A Lot Of Construction Kits

We got a new set – Kid K”NEX Life Cycles set – 230 parts in total. I can recommend this set to beginning Knexomaniacs. There is nothing special for experienced builders, just wings and a LOT of parts, especially eyes. It has 10 eyes and 4 pairs of double eyes.

You can check it out on K’Nex site. You also can order pieces from them one by one. We used it, however, they accidentaly shipped our order to an address in the UK. We were happy to build all the models K’nex proposed – there were 16 of them. And then we made this chcken. We made it together with the younger ones, who were completely delighted with this mechanical chicken. And girls’ brother, who was spinning around and looking for a reason to take part in the game, build the mouse .

How They Play In A Family With A Lot Of Construction Kits
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Excellerations Natural Tones Building Wheels

Excellerations Building Wheels are a version of a popular type of building set. The gears in this one are not rotating on top of some structure – they are the basic building blocks of the set. The gears connect if you interlock the pins, or if you stack them. With these simple connections, you can build different shapes and mosaics. There are few types of these building wheels by Excellerations brand, and this is a natural tones version. These pieces have calm and neutral tones uncommon for the kids building sets. Other types of building wheels are essentially the same, but have different colors.

All the gears have the same shape and size, the only difference is the color. However, there are still many possibilities to build, especially if you have many pieces. The gears can also interlock if you connect them at an angle. Sadly, the possibilities to build a moving toy are very limited, because the gears can’t really move once they connect. There are also no extra pieces or decorations, so the gears are the only things you have to work with.

The gears themselves are rather big, they are safe for the small children to play with. They also can hold together even in a very big craft without falling apart.

Excellerations Natural Tones Building Wheels
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PLUS PLUS Tube 240 Piece Neon Color Mix

This is a basic type of the Plus Plus sets – PLUS PLUS Neon Mix with 240 pieces in a plastic tube. There are many different colors and themes of Plus Plus Tube sets. This is a neon color set, with the pieces of extremely bright and vibrant colors.

Danish Plus Plus sets are among the most popular and well-known “waffle” building sets. Almost all pieces in these sets are exactly the same – except for the wheels and the baseplates. However, even with only the basic pieces, you can build almost anything.

All basic pieces have exactly the same shape and size – they look like two pluses joined together, hence the brand name. Each piece has two pegs on the long sides one peg on the short sides, and the matching empty spaces. The pieces are thick, so the pegs are as thick as they are long. Because of this, you can connect the pieces in any direction, they will hold well all the same. So you can build both 2D mosaics and all kinds of 3D shapes, connecting the pieces vertically, horizontally, or even with an angle. The Danish schools use Plus Plus kits as an educational tool. They help teach kids basic STEAM skills and help them develop fine motorics and creativity.

To add some difference and more variety to the crafts, the Plus Plus brand offers countless sets with different numbers and colors of the pieces. There are pieces of different colors and hues, glowing pieces, pieces with glitter, and so on. The sets also may include any number of the Plus Plus pieces. There are also both small traveling kits and big gift sets.

PLUS PLUS Tube 240 Piece Neon Color Mix
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Fantasia Gears Set Manual

The other side of the Fantasia gears set has a manual of sorts depicting the possible crafts.

This vintage building set is similar to the Quercetti Gears sets. It also includes baseplates, poles, and, of course, the gears. The baseplates connect like the pieces of a puzzle, they are heavy and sturdy enough to hold the whole construction in place. There are also many small colorful pins to decorate the pieces.

While there are no poles like in Quercetti sets, you can connect and interlock the baseplates in 3D, making some of them stand upright. They can also hold together at the angle, so you can build all kinds of shapes from them. Overall, these plates themselves form a good building set.

After making something from the baseplates, you can attach the gears to the finished crafts and make the gears spin. All gears are the same size, they are almost as big as the baseplates, and you can also use them just to decorate the crafts. All pieces come in many different colors. Sadly, there are few pieces overall.

This set has an educational purpose – some schools used it to teach children about the gear transmissions. The description says that the set is for children aged 4-8 years.

Fantasia Gears Set Manual