For sheer destructive firepower from a single piece of non-nuclear ordnance, we heartily recommend the fuel-air device. If, however, you don't have a fuel-air bomb in your desk of a boring Thursday morning, we can heartily recommend the genius that is the Trebuchet. This classic piece of ordnance from pre-history was designed to fling tonnes of rock at Huns, Goths, Vandals and a few pesky Gauls. In fact, anyone who dare challenged the supremacy of Rome took one of these fellas square in the chops. Now, then. At Gadgetshop HQ, we don't actually have a full-size Trebuchet to hand, but we do have a 30cm wooden replica, which, with a bit of nifty self-assembly you can turn on your workplace nemesis with deadly accuracy. Yes, it does indeed work (for we have lab tested it ourselves). And it is indeed accurate, even with a ball of plasticine taking the place of a two tonne boulder. As the Trebuchet's component bits and bobs are pre-drilled for convenience, assembling this classic weapon is a piece of the proverbial cake. Just read, glue and wait. Then unleash merciless vengeance on anyone who dares to challenge the might of your Empire. In short, it's totally ballistic.

A good design let down, 07 Sep 2008
I bought this model with the idea of helping my nephew build it and I have to say I have ended up with mixed feelings.

The Good
The wooden pieces are nicely finished, no splinters; the instruction booklet details all the pieces, so you can quickly tell if anything is missing; the glue included is of good quality and there's plenty of it and it also includes plans to lay out the initial pieces to ensure they are arranged correctly.

The Bad.
Although the design itself is good the actual construction concept is poor. Everything has to be glued together. Not only do you have to wait ages for the glue to dry thoroughly but gluing wood flat to flat is never going to be strong. Why not drill a few more holes and use dowel pegs? Much better, much stronger & quicker.
Also some of the instructions aren't clear. This is not something you could hand to an 8 year old and expect them to construct unaided.

I did like the model we produced in the end but we did have to think up ways to strengthen the glued joints. Which is a shame as this problem could so easily be fixed by the manufacturer.

This Sweet Hearts Jewellery Kit from Melissa & Doug is full of supplies for younger children to create their own beautiful necklaces and bracelets. The sturdy wooden storage box contains 5 laces and the over 150 wooden beads of different shapes, colours and patterns including some delightful heart beads to add that special touch! Dimensions: 10.5" x 6.5" x 1.5".

Build a working replica of the infamous Roman Ballista; the forerunner of the crossbow. See how force is created by tensioning tendons (string) to fire heavy arrows over long distances. This weapon was used extremely effectively in the Roman invasion of Britain to repel the Celtic hordes and over-run their hill forts. 8 Years +

Wind it up and watch them go! See the magnetic characters wobble and dance, and watch their reflection in the mirror. This attractive toy is made from wood with an acrylic mirror base, and two chunky animals. Animal height: 5cm. Box Size: 11cm x 11cm x 6.5cm. 3 Years +

A good design let down, 07 Sep 2008
I bought this model with the idea of helping my nephew build it and I have to say I have ended up with mixed feelings.

The Good
The wooden pieces are nicely finished, no splinters; the instruction booklet details all the pieces, so you can quickly tell if anything is missing; the glue included is of good quality and there's plenty of it and it also includes plans to lay out the initial pieces to ensure they are arranged correctly.

The Bad.
Although the design itself is good the actual construction concept is poor. Everything has to be glued together. Not only do you have to wait ages for the glue to dry thoroughly but gluing wood flat to flat is never going to be strong. Why not drill a few more holes and use dowel pegs? Much better, much stronger & quicker.
Also some of the instructions aren't clear. This is not something you could hand to an 8 year old and expect them to construct unaided.

I did like the model we produced in the end but we did have to think up ways to strengthen the glued joints. Which is a shame as this problem could so easily be fixed by the manufacturer.





Lovely to watch, 19 Nov 2008
Plays a waltz and the animals spin round - it's lovely. I am now wondering who else I can buy one for!

Daughter enthralled - kept picking the cow & pig up and placing them back on - we know it's magnets but she doesn't.
Don't know how durable it will be yet as we have only just received it but it looks solid enough. As she is under three she can only have it under supervision.

Paint your own treasure chest and store your personal keepsakes in it. Draw a pirate treasure map and hide your treasure chest. Play a treasure hunting game with your friends. Comes with two bonus pirate figures. It's a cool pirate activity kit. Contains 1 wooden treasure chest, 1 paint strip, 1 paintbrush, gemstones, bonus pirate figurines, blank treasure maps and detailed instructions. 7 Years +

By giving a 3D prospective to the traditional domino games, Wonderworld brings to life the wooden cars that children would love playing with, by matching the colours between front and rear part, on the beautiful network of road map. The classic Domino game has never been more fun! Size: 5 x 140 x 3cm. 3 Years +

Wind it up and watch them go! See the magnetic characters wobble and dance, and watch their reflection in the mirror. This attractive toy is made from wood with an acrylic mirror base, and two chunky animals. Animal height: 5cm. Box Size: 11cm x 11cm x 6.5cm. 3 Years +

This product is of excellent quality. It is made from good materials, will last while playing and does not break easily. Besides this it will give hours of playing fun and happy moments of time together.

With realistic sawing noise, with flashing light during sawing function.

With realistic functions, drilling/screwing sounds and light effects.

This product is of excellent quality. It is made from good materials, will last while playing and does not break easily. Besides this it will give hours of playing fun and happy moments of time together.

With realistic functions, sawing noise and harmless spark effects.