Plastic injection moulding might be a modern manufacturing marvel, but there’s still an undeniable appeal to good old lumber. So if you’re looking to introduce a little one to the joy of transforming robots, these wooden WooBots are a gorgeous alternative to mass-produced plastic.
Available in five different models including a car, truck, bus, fighter plane, and aircraft carrier, the various wooden parts that make up each WooBot are held together with elastic rope hidden in all the joints. That allows each section to rotate a full 360-degrees without breaking while kids figure out exactly how to transform them from robot to vehicle, and back again.
The creators of the WooBots have started a modest $US10,000 ($13,812) Kickstarter campaign to help produce and sell the toys, and they’re optimistic that if they reach their funding goal, they can actually deliver the toys in time for Christmas next month — that’s a big plus.
Each bot can be pre-ordered with a donation of just $US19 ($26), but you can also order the whole five bot set for $US99 ($137). Oddly enough you don’t seem to actually save any money by buying all five at once, you’re better off getting each one individually which would add up to $US95 ($131) instead.
And since it’s hard to predict if and when a Kickstarter will have trouble delivering a product on time, if you do pre-order a WooBot, don’t place all of your Christmas gift eggs in this one basket. The challenges of electronics and software delays obviously aren’t an issue with an old-fashioned toy like this, but you also don’t want your kids (or you) to be disappointed. [Kickstarter – WooBots]
