TechnicSets I Have

8880 - Super Car - IMAGE- MSRP $139.00
This model is absolutely fabulous!! It is a little pricey, butI think it is well worth it. It has a working gear shifter giving4 full gears (although without a major reduction like a real car.)It has four-wheel dual shocks (with fixable low-range-of-motion)and four-wheel-steering! This was one thing I didn't know whenI bought the model -- I was pleasantly surprised. The tires thatcome with the Super Car are very nice, low-profile tires. In fact,I would even recommend buying these by themselves if you can'tafford the kit. The way they attach in the Super Car is a littledifferent than the usual axle-attachment, but you can use thatnormal method as well.
Both the regular model and the alternate model take about 6-8hours of building time. You can cut that down to about 4-6 hoursonce you get a little practice, but it really is a pretty bigundertaking.
8838 - Shock Cycle - IMAGE- MSRP $29.00
This is the first model I had bought in a while. It really wasthe springboard that got me back into hard-core Technic building.A very good model -- dual shocks front and rear, 2 cylinder enginemounted similar to an actual road or dirt bike. The slight problemwith this set (which is only a problem for me) is that from aboutthe third step until the second-to-last step, the model is veryfragile. There are some axle pieces that I prefer to fasten alittle earlier than the directions dictate (I just look aheada little) so that the model will hold itself together.
You can complete this kit in 1-2 hours.
8857 - Street Chopper - IMAGE -MSRP $29.00
What drew me to this model was the same cool low-profile tiresas the Super Car model. With 6 of these low-profiler's, I canmake some pretty interesting ATV-type vehicles (although the normalmethod of putting Lego axles through these wheels is a littleunstable.)
This kit is a little bigger than the shock cycle, so it takesa little over 2 hours to build.
8836 - Sky Ranger - IMAGE -MSRP $29.00
This is an okay kit, it has the push / pull type controls of afly-by-wire system. When the pilot's joystick is pushed left orright, the connecting rods will activate the elevator flaps onthe wings. It comes with instructions on a simple modificationto power the airplane model. This is actually pretty neat, withthe propeller placed directly on the Lego Motor. This would begreat, except for the bulky 6-AA 9 Volt Power Pack. I may tryto use the Lego Lighting Power Pack (holding a single 9V Battery)to incorporate the battery in the model.
Construction time for this one is a little over an hour.
8816 - Off Road Rambler - IMAGE -MSRP $19.00
This is the most recent model I have acquired. It is pretty small,but then again, so is the price. Even this small a scale of akit had dual shocks on the back and a rack-and-pinion steeringmechanism -- I think all of the Technic cars I have seen havehad rack-and-pinion with the exception of the Formula I racer.It has the first bell-crank steering device I think I have seenin a Technic model.
This is the smallest of all my kits, and took less than an hourto construct.
8720 - 9 Volt Power Pack - MSRP $39.75
I had actually bought this a little before the shock cycle, butit mainly just sat up in the closet because I didn't have manyTechnic kits or even parts to use it with. If you have fiddledwith the Lego 9 Volt Motors, you will know that it takes a lotof gear-reduction before you can get any kind of force or torqueout of them. This gearing down takes a lot of parts which I nowhave, but I didn't for a while there.
8858 - Rebel Wrecker - IMAGE -MSRP $69.00
This model is a blast!! New front suspension elements make ita winner, plus a stabilizer system with the shock on the front(transferring the force from one wheel to the other). This actuallycauses less stability, because in an actual car a stabilizingbar does the opposite. In an actual car (with a stabilizer bar)when one wheel receives a force, pushing it up, it makes the otherwheel less stiff, so that it has a tendency to rise as well. Thiskeeps the vehicle level on the ground.
This extra shock does not affect its stability, but allows onewheel to affect the other.
This model is a little unsure of itself until some of the finalelements are put in place, and it took 3 or 4 hours to put together(dry run).
8440 - Formula Flash - IMAGE -MSRP $53.00
25% off at K-mart - gotta love it!! Well, this one I got for theunbelievable price of approximately $25 suggested retail is $53!!Excellent, this is the only Lego Technic set which utilizes bell-cranksteering (never actually found in an Indy car) which is much moreunstable than a rack - and - pinion type system. Excellent set,has several specialty parts, including the bell-crank steeringpush-rods. Nice Tires!!
This model took about 3 hours to construct the Indy car. Therewere several "floater" pieces which were not lockeddown until the very end, though.
8891 - Idea Book - IMAGE -MSRP $10.00
This is a very good investment for those who have some Lego piecesalready, but just need a little bit of inspiration from thosedesigners over there at Lego Systems. There are about six or sevenmodels in this book, the only problem is that each one containsa piece which I don't own... This is easy to design around, though.
8225 - Road Rally V - IMAGE 1 . IMAGE 2 -MSRP $12.99
This set was given to me as a gift by a friend. I had FAXed hima set of instructions he had lost, and him paying me back thisway was a nice surprise. This is a small kit, not taking but lessthan an hour to build but still worth consideration. Generally,I am not a huge fan of the small sets because they have a tendencynot to incorporate much technology, i.e. shocks, rack and pinion,complex, multiple-cylinder engines, etc.
This set was constructed in about one hour the first time.
4559 - Cargo Railway - MSRP $129.99
I have recently seen some really neat stuff you can do with theLego trains, so I am convinced that I should give one a shot ...Excellent-I am amazed at how fast these little guys can go!! Itseems to want to leap off the track, sometimes it is going sofast... now the trick is to get some more track so I can reallyhave some fun!!
8480 - Space Shuttle - IMAGE 1 IMAGE 2 MSRP $158.00

This model intrigued me, what with fiber optics and two motors(at least one of which "micromotor" is different from the usual.) Well, santa was good to me this year, a couple of siblings and parents as well went in on this one for me!! What a great surprise!! The first Christmas in a long time that I have gotten a toy, much less a super cool one like this. My brother was the first to put it together, but it took him all day (Christmas day). I will rip it apart and construct it myself within the next two weeks or so.
Approximately 8 - 10 hours of construction time here - it is HUGE!!
8824 - Hovercraft - IMAGE MSRP $25.00

This kit and the Supply Ship I purchased from Lego Shop at Home during the 50% OFF sale. This is a nice little kit which includes rubber bumpers surrounding the base, and wheels which allow it to move across a smooth surface. The interesting part is that the propellers move and steer as you push it around. The Supply Ship is actually very similar in this respect, turning and spinning the propellers with gearing to the wheels.
Approximately 45 minutes - a small set.
8839 - Supply Ship - IMAGE MSRP $59.99

A good deal during the Lego Shop at Home sale, this is actually a really neat kit. It includes a suspension hook which is made of metal to weight it down easily. I think I will enjoy building the alternate model of this kit (a hovercraft) maybe even a little more than the main kit!!
Approximately 4 1/2 hours to build the supply boat, a moderate sized kit.
2129 - Bungee Blaster - IMAGE 1 IMAGE 2 MSRP $6.99

I just could not resist the lure of the discussions on rec.toys.lego news group about modifications to this little guy, and I thought I would see what all the fuss was about. It is a neat little kit, with a one way gear, allowing it to be wound backwards, but still continue to coast as it moves forward. It also is light enough that when it falls off the table (my track) it will not break or fall apart.
About 5 minutes to build this little guy!
8205 - Bungee Blaster - IMAGE MSRP $6.99

I had to have both of these so that I could have them compete... and also make models of my own with the power of two bungee cords.
Also about 5 minutes!
8210 - Nitro Bike GTX - IMAGE MSRP $8.50

The 20% off sale at Target got the better of me for this one and one of the bungee blasters!! It is a nice little bike, with a suspension on the back that works well. This is the first model I have purchased with these type of tires, and I like them a lot - in case you haven't figured that out by now, I have a Lego tire fettish.
Maybe 10 minutes to build this one.
8222 - VTOL (Vertical Take Off & Landing) Airplane - IMAGE 1 IMAGE 2 (BOX) MSRP $14.99

I had a couple of Toys R Us dollars to use, and this is what they ended up buying!! An excellent little model, I have often been fascinated with the VTOL concept. The only problem with this model is that I thought the wings (with propellers) would not be on very solidly, but they were!! The second model can motorize all four propellers for a neat fan-boat!!
30 or 45 minutes to build this one, though it is a joy to build!!!
8207 - Dune Duster - IMAGE MSRP $9.99

Walmart had a sale on this one and the Turbo 1, so I ended up getting both of them on separate days. This is a nice little kit, with all of the trimmings which are usually only in the expensive kits...steering AND suspension!! It is a good one to have a lot of fun with after you build it, though it doesn't take but a minute to build...
5 to 10 minutes only!!!
8216 - Turbo 1 - IMAGE MSRP $9.99

Walmart had a sale on this one and the Dune Duster, so I ended up getting both of them on separate days. Doesn't have the suspension of the Dune Duster, but equally as fun, and comparable to it, so if you need a pair of sets to race each other... there they are!!
5 to 10 minutes only!!!
8818 - Baja Blaster - IMAGE MSRP $13.25

On its way!! (S@H)
8460 - Pneumatic Crane Truck - IMAGE MSRP $99.00

This is an awesome set!! Rather pricey at $99 or so, but well worth it.It has a unique steering system which steers the front wheels and the rearwheels simultaneously (though the rear wheels do not turn as far.) Itis the first pneumatic set I have bought in a while, with two powerfuloutput cylinders which raise the main crane arm. These cylinders withmetal pistons are better than the old plastic pistons which used to getstuck in their travel. Cool wheels as well!!
About 3 hours to piece this one together!
4002 - Riptide Racer - IMAGE MSRP $12.00

This is the first boat I have purchased in a long time and I am happy tosay they are as good as ever!!! This is a sleek little boat which hasridges on the bottom to act similar to rudders, keeping the boat movingforward. The hull actually floats in water and there is an indentationalong the length of the boat which is 4 dots wide, just enough for a Lego9 Volt motor! This gives me some interesting ideas, one of which is usingmultiple hulls (2 of these and one of the police boat) to build a largehyrdrofoil-type boat (RC of course...)
Ten minutes of build, hours of pleasure!!!
4012 - Wave Cops - IMAGE MSRP $20.00

This one is as much fun as the Riptide Racer, though the hull seems a bitshort and stout on first glance. Once pieces start being put on, though,it starts to round out being an awesome addition!! The hull on this boatcan hold something 6 dots wide, allowing for more flexibility!
More like about 20 minutes for this one, but equally as fun!
8230 - Police Buggy - IMAGE MSRP $20.00

This is a nice set with a Technic figure included. No shocks onthis one, but the wheels give it a bit of bounciness. The steering systemis interesting, taking the turn of the overhead wheel and making it gounder the chassis, then coming up using gears on the front to do thesteering.

Only about 1 hour to build this guy, though it keeps ya going forhours!!