ROKR 3D Wooden Puzzles Gramophone for Adults - DIY Mechanical Model Kit 1:1 Replica Record Player Support 7"/10" Vinyl Building Gift Hobbies for Adults Home Decor

Love these models. A lot of fun to build them

This is my 4th "wooden puzzle" (I don't know why they're called puzzles as you simply assemble a finished product from gazillion small pieces, wood, plastic, metal, some electronics components, and whatever else). It's a record player (for those of you who don't know what gramophone is). It includes a vinyl record which sounds like it was recorded in the 19th century (another point for authenticity!).There are many different variations of this product as they tweaked the design quite a few times. I think there're different companies making this one too (unless they created multiple brands for marketing purposes). The one that I have you can make work by either cranking it or plugging into USB power source and then it plays by itself. There's a small switch which allows you to switch between the 2 modes. Cranking arm is very short and the thing itself is very small so it's difficult to crank without having the gramophone vibrating and jumping which leads to the needle flying all over the record, sometimes damaging it. When you plug it into power source it sounds better but I guess it's technically not gramophone anymore :)It can only play small records (there were 3 or 4 different diameters for vinyl records, it can only play the smallest one due to its small size). The one included with the set includes 3 musical pieces.There is a way to make it play the records at different speeds by changing one or two parts, the gramophone has a small compartment where you keep the replacement parts. I haven't tried it though as I only tried the one record it came with.I typically gift myself one at New Year and then spend most of the year putting this together. This one is the most challenging of all the ones I've done, and it took me until December (it was a busy year too though so it's not like I put in 2000 hours). I got stuck a few times but there are plenty of videos on YT on assembling it which helped. In the end it somewhat works and you can hear the music even when cranking, and when you plug it into power source it works fine. I never had a gramophone or even heard it but I would imagine it sounds very authentic, ie very staticky and noisy :)I highly recommend this set for adults or very advanced teenagers with plenty of free time and close to unlimited amount of patience :) Assembly requires a lot of attention and can be frustrating at times but putting the thing together and watching it work is very rewarding. I always try to work on these while my kids are around so that they can see how things work on the inside.Looking forward to getting a few more of these, they are very well made and work and look very good.

It’s so intricate and beautiful when completed. It is a great project to share with dad or grandpa

I found this to be pretty tricky to put together in some spots. However, after assembly, the needle sits too high and doesn't meet the record well in order to play. I'm sure it's something in the way I put it together and I will take it apart soon and fine tune it. It turns well and the speaker seems to function ok. It's not the clearest sound for sure.

Great !

It was very difficult and Frustrating to assemble but it works. I had to plug in power to actually hear the music.

As is unfortunately so often the case, the quality of product coming out of China is absolutely atrocious. I’ve built several ROKR models but this is the first with any kind of electronics involved. A recent electric wooden model kit I purchased from another manufacturer had me testing the system throughout the build process so you didn’t get to the end of assembly only to find out that the unit does not function.Not so with this kit, and it appears that I’ve got either a faulty needle head, a faulty speaker, or a faulty control box because the until produces no sound. The light on the control box illuminates when I crank the handle meaning the generator is sending power to the control box. And my electrical connections are all correct, so there’s defintely a faulty part involved in the failure.Also a word of warning, even if the box says that the turntable can be powered electronically, THAT’S NOT THE CASE. This kit DOES NOT INCLUDE AN ELECTRIC MOTOR. It includes a hand cranked generator that provides enough power to a small control box that takes the input from the needle, amplifies it, and sends the amplified signal to the included speaker. THE TURNTABLE CANNOT BE POWERED BY ELECTRICITY, ONLY BY YOUR OWN HAND!Unfortunately this will be my last ROKR product. These take A LOT of time to assemble, and if in the end they don’t work then it’s not worth my time.

The media could not be loaded. Assembly requires patience, wax, careful directions, wax. Did I mention wax to ease the pieces together? You need more wax? If you run out, use white candles from a birthday cake. They do work.Careful when freeing anything that might break. I used a razor knife. Don’t break the wires from the cartridge or it won’t play. I put the screws and other small stuff in their own lidded plastic cups and stuck the # labels from the bags onto the lid.There are extra pieces of some wooden parts on the sheets, so when you break one, check that out. You’ll have leftovers in the end.It is a problem solving exercise for sure. Sometimes you wonder what a picture is supposed to mean, and you must figure it out before going on. Sometimes you make a mistake and have to carefully back up.Also, I have 3 kinds of glue, and when pieces won’t stay together, and I’m REALLY sure they should stick now, I use the appropriate glue with a drop from a toothpick. I use the “extreme” glue fromL—-tite, which is somewhat flexible, El—r’s Carpenter Glue, which doesn’t flex when set, and rarely Gor—la, which requires clamping overnight. The extreme Loc—- glue is best. A full 5 min. adjust time, maybe two hours to set and then keep going.I know I’ve gotten very slow, but it took me many days, not hours. I did really enjoy doing it. However the results are fantastic and speak for themselves. You’ll amaze your friends and relations. Heck, you’ll amaze yourself.