LEGO City Freight Train Set 60336

Usually, I go down a careful list of things about a set. The thing with LEGO brand is that they're kinda the gold standard in several regards, so if I don't bother to talk about it : assume it's up to the usual quality standard of LEGO brand.Instructions : The set is broken down into 5 smaller builds, each with it's own numbered bags and instruction manual. This is in keeping with the recent trend for Lego to encourage groups of people to enjoy building together, and something I feel is a positive. The instructions are in the easier-to-follow 7+ style : I am aware not everyone is a fan of the simplification, but it is clear that the target audience isn't adults.Set Design : We'll leave the aesthetics aside as some people love the new engine, some strongly dislike ... MoreUsually, I go down a careful list of things about a set. The thing with LEGO brand is that they're kinda the gold standard in several regards, so if I don't bother to talk about it : assume it's up to the usual quality standard of LEGO brand.Instructions : The set is broken down into 5 smaller builds, each with it's own numbered bags and instruction manual. This is in keeping with the recent trend for Lego to encourage groups of people to enjoy building together, and something I feel is a positive. The instructions are in the easier-to-follow 7+ style : I am aware not everyone is a fan of the simplification, but it is clear that the target audience isn't adults.Set Design : We'll leave the aesthetics aside as some people love the new engine, some strongly dislike it, and that is absolutely a personal call. We're also not going to debate the use of Powered Up, as that system is not changing for a while, and is easily enough rebuilt with older technologies if desired (and realistically, if you're grumbling about that, you're probably quite capable of finding information on and doing said rebuilds). The train itself consists of the engine, a container car, a low-wall car, and a dual-deck car-carrier car. The 'support' for this train is 2 open-sided containers with food as cargo (related to another sub-line in City this year), 2 electric cars, 1 electric car charging station, 1 container stacking telehandler, 6 minifigures, an appropriate selection of tracks to build a nice layout with a branch line (that is needed), and a small build for a track end point that also serves as an loading / unloading point for the car carrier.Most of what's going on here is fairly obvious to the eye, and the play features are honestly pretty fun. Highlights are the functional and well-designed telehandler, the simple-yet-brilliant locking system for the container flatbed, and the really smart design for the car carrier in several regards.The only 'downside' that some of the older City Builders who love to run trains might have is that the car carrier is as tall as it is (being a double-decker). It puts the top deck - where 2/3 of the capacity is - up in what *would* be the pantograph wires that should be over the train, and might cause some issues with lines that have tunnels or things passing overhead at what would usually be the maximum height of a train car. This really wasn't something that could be avoided in terms of design, as the scaling of LEGO sets is not inherently consistent with real life. If this is problematic, just view that specific car as a parts pack to build a different kind of train car, and you might have less problems.All told? This is my 4th Lego train, and my 3rd Lego Freight Train ... and I find it to be quite an enjoyable addition to my lineup. Is it perfect? No, but it is Lego ... so I can change it to better suit what I want it to do ... which means it will be.

One of our adult sons practically drooled over this train set, so I let him try out. This is what he had to say:As someone who likes both trains and Lego, this is a pretty cool set. There is a decent selection of pieces including some I have not seen before, and plenty of track is included. The instructions are clear, and parts are separated in numbered bags that correspond to different sections of the instructions.I was a little unsure about this being battery powered, but with good quality rechargable AAA's it seems to have decent battery life. You will need a small Phillips head screwdriver to remove the covers on the battery box and controller.The track provided includes 16 curved sections, 16 straight sections and a right-handed point (switch). The layout is a ... MoreOne of our adult sons practically drooled over this train set, so I let him try out. This is what he had to say:As someone who likes both trains and Lego, this is a pretty cool set. There is a decent selection of pieces including some I have not seen before, and plenty of track is included. The instructions are clear, and parts are separated in numbered bags that correspond to different sections of the instructions.I was a little unsure about this being battery powered, but with good quality rechargable AAA's it seems to have decent battery life. You will need a small Phillips head screwdriver to remove the covers on the battery box and controller.The track provided includes 16 curved sections, 16 straight sections and a right-handed point (switch). The layout is a generous oval with a spur. Purchase of additional track would provide some variety for the train’s circuit beyond that provided. The track is of the non-conductive type for use with battery powered engines. If you happen to have other Lego track, including some of the older 9V plug-in style track, it will snap together with this track to expand your layout.There is an optional Lego Powered Up app for your phone, but it does not really add any functionality and the interface is somewhat clunky.He gave it 4.5 stars.

This is the first Lego train set I've gotten since my childhood in the 90s with the Airport Monorail. I've been buying Lego as an adult for about seven years now, and I just haven't seen a train set that seemed worth the cost since I started my adult collection. It always seemed like you were getting too little train and barely any track for a set that would cost over a hundred dollars.So for this even more expensive set (though maybe not given inflation over the past half-decade) I was going to require a lot to be impressed by it. Well, it delivered.I was really taken by just how much track you get with this set. It isn't just a circle or an oval with one or two straight pieces of track. There is a sizable amount, and you can make some interesting layouts, ... MoreThis is the first Lego train set I've gotten since my childhood in the 90s with the Airport Monorail. I've been buying Lego as an adult for about seven years now, and I just haven't seen a train set that seemed worth the cost since I started my adult collection. It always seemed like you were getting too little train and barely any track for a set that would cost over a hundred dollars.So for this even more expensive set (though maybe not given inflation over the past half-decade) I was going to require a lot to be impressed by it. Well, it delivered.I was really taken by just how much track you get with this set. It isn't just a circle or an oval with one or two straight pieces of track. There is a sizable amount, and you can make some interesting layouts, especially if you don't worry about the connections lining up 100% the way they are mean to. There is enough give in the connections that I was able to create a layout which wasn't the one you were meant to. I didn't picture that layout here, instead opting to show how I had to put both of my 2x4 ft tables next to each other to have enough room to fit a layout that used all the track pieces.The train cars themselves are varied and also impressive. I remember the monorail from my childhood feeling small, even to my own child size. This set's train feels big. The cars have a volume to them that feels like how I imagine a real Lego train should be.There is a lot of play here for children as well. The electronic features with the remote can give you a lot of fun sending the train back and forth on the track. You can take it to the switch track and have it unload the cars from the car carrier track. The set only includes one automobile meant for the carrier, but the second car, included for a driver minifigure, can also load on. I'm sure there are plenty of other cars from recent sets that can fill out the rest of it.The crane can load and unload the produce/perishable good containers, which have a clever locking mechanism. They are not held on by studs, so if you release the lock, the crane vehicle can come lift them right off. The teal train car could have used some round black studs to fill it or really anything. As it is, you'll just have to find something else in your collection that feels appropriate to load into it.The minifigure selection is nice, though the opacity of at least one torso print could use some improvement; too much orange is bleeding through what is supposed to be a green that matches the plastic color of the figure's legs.The only part of the set that seems out of place is the electric car charging solar station. Maybe it is meant to be a forward thinking item included to inspire kids. But, to me, it looks like nothing I've seen in real life and seems out of place with the rest of the set. I feel like that should have been included in a separate Lego City set, perhaps as part of a larger car charging station. However, the number of pieces involved in it is very slight, so it couldn't have added more than five dollars to the total price of this set.So yeah, the set is really expensive as a Lego set for kids, but not too out of question as a set for adults, and I feel it is worth the price for both age groups. The only question you really have to ask is would you rather get this one set, or find four fifty dollar sets and get all of those instead. That might not make it seem worth it, but if you want a truly sizeable train with a lot of play features and an impressive amount of track, I'd say get this set.One last caution: the power feature in the train takes 6 AAA batteries and the remote takes another 4. Apparently there is an app you can download for free to control the train as well. But if you're getting this for your kids, they'll need access to the smart device with the app. I plan on getting rechargeable batteries to use with it; so, I imagine I'll have to drop around 20-30 more dollars just on batteries.