How to Build Things with K'NEX
Joel Glickman sat bored at a wedding one day in the early Nineties and decided to entertain himself with straws. From this seemingly inconsequential origin, K'NEX was born and released its first product in 1993. Based on rod and connector assembly, K'NEX pieces are surprisingly versatile and can create nearly any structure or machine imaginable. While fancy pulleys, gears and motors are available, these pieces are certainly not necessary. You can spend hours and hours with only the basic K'NEX pieces and your imagination.
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Instructions
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Press rods into the specially designed notches along the edges of connectors. These notches are positioned at an angle from a central point, allowing your rods to create 45-degree angles, right angles, 135-degree angles, and 180-degree angles.
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Slide one connector into the long, square slot of another connector with a click. Doing so creates rod attachments that are oriented both horizontally and vertically, allowing for three-dimensional structures.
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3
Bend soft rods between connectors to create curved lines within your structure. Note that some rods are not bendable and are designed for strong linear support.
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Attach flexible rail tubing between several aligned platforms to create rails for a roller coaster or K'NEX highway. Most K'NEX sets feature pieces with the specific purpose of attaching rails to other structures.
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Connect several K'NEX chain links together to create a complete circle of links. Loop one end of the circle around a notched wheel at the bottom of a slope, and the other end around another circle positioned at the top. Rotate one wheel to turn the other, via the chain link circle.
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Build objects to a larger scale if you're having trouble building them smaller. The larger the structure, the greater the detail you can build into it. Small vehicles and buildings are impressive, but demand a higher level of skill with the pieces to adequately construct.
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Visit any of the links in the "Resources" section for free, on-line instructions for a bevy of K'NEX structures and vehicles.
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Tips & Warnings
If your rail tubing is too long for your structure, trim it down with a hobby knife. Ask for adult supervision if necessary.
Many of the smaller K'NEX pieces pose a serious choking hazard to small children. Do not let infants or toddlers play with a K'NEX set without adult supervision.
