4 ms·

When I recently visited my dad with 4yo and 6yo, he pulled out three “Meccano” sets, mainly in German, from the 1960s or maybe 70s. Everything is absolutely de

When I recently visited my dad with 4yo and 6yo, he pulled out three “Meccano” sets, mainly in German, from the 1960s or maybe 70s. Everything is absolutely delightful. The parts are great quality. The boxes are amazing. And the manuals… wow. They’re basically engineering text book excerpts. Apologies, I don’t know how to get it as one album: https://ibb.co/qphSfC3 https://ibb.co/qphSfC3 https://ibb.co/B6PGFDs https://ibb.co/B6PGFDs https://ibb.co/wWrn9Rw https://ibb.co/wWrn9Rw https://ibb.co/5Tk8RPr https://ibb.co/5Tk8RPr https://ibb.co/dJJtYSZ https://ibb.co/dJJtYSZ https://ibb.co/Tq6wXyx https://ibb.co/Tq6wXyx https://ibb.co/4WVSgPR https://ibb.co/4WVSgPR https://ibb.co/FK9spg7 https://ibb.co/FK9spg7 https://ibb.co/0GKc5Qb https://ibb.co/0GKc5Qb https://ibb.co/jHRMSXW https://ibb.co/jHRMSXW https://ibb.co/VMmT8DB https://ibb.co/VMmT8DB

qazwsxedchac 4y ago
These aren't Meccano, they are East German "Construction" sets. A riff on the Meccano idea, but metric, and probably not paying license fees to Meccano at the time ;-) The parts will look great quality while played with only a little, but the plating has a habit of coming off in small sharp flakes if you ever bend them.
- Waterluvian 4y ago
  Thanks for the information! These were given to my dad in the 90s by a colleague at Environment Canada. Now I’m curious how they got here from East Germany.
- zvolsky 4y ago
  Is it not Merkur? The Czech version of the page says Frank Hornby patented the metal construction set in 1901. Merkur started just before the patent expired, long before the Cold War. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merkur_(toy) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merkur_(toy) https://www.merkurtoys.cz/ https://www.merkurtoys.cz/
WirelessGigabit 4y ago
Brings me back to my first days with Lego Technic. Serious question though, since these are from the 60s and 70s... any concerns about lead paint?
- Waterluvian 4y ago
  I don’t see any paint in the sets. And the rust came off the parts pretty easily. (the green and red painted parts don’t exist in any of the sets we have. I bet you those do have lead.)
- prmoustache 4y ago
  Most parts were raw on my sets and those of my dad and uncle.

qazwsxedchac 4y ago

These aren't Meccano, they are East German "Construction" sets. A riff on the Meccano idea, but metric, and probably not paying license fees to Meccano at the time ;-) The parts will look great quality while played with only a little, but the plating has a habit of coming off in small sharp flakes if you ever bend them.

Waterluvian 4y ago
Thanks for the information! These were given to my dad in the 90s by a colleague at Environment Canada. Now I’m curious how they got here from East Germany.
zvolsky 4y ago
Is it not Merkur? The Czech version of the page says Frank Hornby patented the metal construction set in 1901. Merkur started just before the patent expired, long before the Cold War. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merkur_(toy) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merkur_(toy) https://www.merkurtoys.cz/ https://www.merkurtoys.cz/

WirelessGigabit 4y ago

Brings me back to my first days with Lego Technic. Serious question though, since these are from the 60s and 70s... any concerns about lead paint?

Waterluvian 4y ago
I don’t see any paint in the sets. And the rust came off the parts pretty easily. (the green and red painted parts don’t exist in any of the sets we have. I bet you those do have lead.)
prmoustache 4y ago
Most parts were raw on my sets and those of my dad and uncle.