UGEARS Hurdy Gurdy 3D Wooden Puzzle – Musical Instrument Wooden Mechanical Model Kit to Build - DIY Puzzle Medieval Music - Brain Teaser Building Set for Adults and Kids

This is not a toy for children under the age of 60. It is a well designed complex model. The laser cut wood is of exceptional quality and the instructions are excellent. All parts are provided and some of the smaller critical parts are duplicated in case you drop, lose or accidentally break one. I am reasonably proficient at construction and I think it took me about 10 hours over the Xmas period when I was avoiding an outbreak of relatives. It is best to attempt the construction in several short sessions so you learn the techniques as you go along. It helps if you have good close vision and a high level of visual-spatial recognition so you can work out what is going on. I did make limited use of a small warding file but as I learned the system I found that a very light sanding of critical components was sufficient. The sandpaper was provided.I would do a similar one next Xmas without hesitation.(Just to note; These models are produced in Kyiv by the Ukrainian Gears LLC. I hope they can continue production in difficult and dangerous circumstances.)Peter Knight

Straightforward to build as long as you follow the instructions carefully. This has been a great lockdown project and I’ve ended with an instrument that does play a little. The quality of the wood and the accuracy of cutting is very high precision that makes assembly reliable. The glueless design builds a very tough model which is fine for display but would need attention at regular intervals if subjected to the rigour of playing more that a few times. You might have some small assembly issues if you are not very strong and similarly if you want it to sound musical it helps if you’ve played a stringed instrument.My 4 stars for ease of assembly is because you do need to be very careful at times but the instructions are good. It is an intricate project.I’ve enjoyed building it and I’m enjoying messing with it!Would definitely recommend their models.

This is the second UGears kit I have done. It is an interesting model. Not the typical simple car or other things I have seen in other kits. The kit comes with everything you need even including a tiny piece of sandpaper and wax. The instructions are typical diagrams but very clear with alert symbols drawing your attention to important points. While some kits come with tiny instructions these diagrams are a decent size so you can read them easily. The wooden pieces are laser cut in the plywood and are very precise. The tiny pins and pegs can be tricky to get out of the spru without damaging them but there are a couple of spares in the board, so it is not really a problem if you are reasonably careful. The wooden pieces even provide little wooden tools for you to use. One sheet combines to make a wooden mallet to help tap other pieces in place.With a little care and patience, the model goes together very nicely. There are lots of moving gears I the model and it is nice to see them all mesh together and turn correctly when built. It took me probably 12 hours to build. I like to be slow and deliberate, no sense in rushing. I am not musical in any way, so I have no idea how to tune an instrument. Fishing line is provided as the two strings, and each has a tuning mechanism but no matter how I twiddle this it never sounds much like a musical note to me. More like a strangled cat. The keys on the side change the effective length of one string to try and produce different notes while the first string is supposed to work much like the drone on bag pipes. I found that not to be consistent, sometimes vibrating more than others. It certainly is not a nice sound for me but somebody with a better ear and more musical skills might be able to get something decent. I wasn’t interested in the sound as much as the design, so I don’t really care.The one down-side I would mention is the stand within the kit does not seem very well fitted to the instrument. The crank handle is quite large and the stand very small so the instrument barely sites in the stand with the handle pushing it out all the time. It is not very stable. In fact, my wife knocked the cupboard the model was displayed on and the whole thing fell off and was slightly damaged. So I think the stand could do with redesigning to be larger and more stable.Lots of tiny parts and lots of calm and patience is required so I would say this is not suitable for younger children. Maybe mid-teens up. The finished item is decorative and can be a talking point. It looks good in the natural wood, but you could paint it if you like.Overall, I found this an interesting and satisfying model to build. I will very likely do more UGears kits in future.

Bought this as a Christmas lockdown project. Absolutely perfect; and it's improved my craft skills no end. Took ages, but it's easy to see the hurdy coming together and there are spare parts of smaller pieces in case you break one. The kit is precision-made and everything fits together within the millimetre. You can do this kit without extra equipment, once you have made the little hammer that comes with it. But I would advise a multi tool penknife or similar, to prise the trickier bits off the backing boards and to ease tighter parts into their slots. if you get ukulele strings, the resulting model will make a better sound; and it's possible to make these models acoustically better in case you want more of an instrument than a model. Bear in mind it is intended as a model not a proper instrument; and follow the instruction booklet as closely as you can.