TobyMac (@toby_mac83) takes some of the Stuntz subtheme for a spin: LEGO® City 60298 Rocket Stunt Bike, 60297 Demolition Stunt Bike and 60293 Stunt Park. Buying these? Consider using our affiliate links, New Elementary may get a commission: UK LEGO Shop | USA LEGO Shop | Australia LEGO Shop, for other countries 'Change Region'. Products in this article were provided by LEGO; the author's opinions are their own.
The October 2021 addition to the LEGO City Universe was a team of stunt-racers. These daredevils all have newly moulded bikes and ramps to perform the craziest stunts. I’ll be taking a closer look at these new moulds and figure out if this new series of sets are as entertaining as they sound.
There are 10 sets in the subtheme and with 4 of them you can build sections of a stunt park. The other 6 are small sets containing 1 bike and 1 minifig, sometimes along with a few accessories. I’ve picked 3 sets that will provide me with all new chassis and fairings, along with the new ramp parts and some nice recolours. Together, I think they will give us a good representation of the Stuntz subtheme. The selected sets are 60293 Stunt Park, 60297 Demolition Stunt Bike and 60298 Rocket Stunt Bike.
The parts
New elements
Right off the bat, I already made a mistake. I wrongfully thought the bikes featured pull-back motors, and I ordered all types of pull-back motors I could find for a comparison! But as it turned out, the bikes feature a flywheel. This is a heavy wheel connected to the rear tire, that due to its weight tends to stay in motion once spinning. So, if you move the bike forward and release, the bike will keep going. The fun begins if you can make the rear tire spin as fast as possible to really propel the bike fast. There's a video at the end of this post.
It turns out, it is possible to open the chassis without causing too much damage. The wheel can be taken out simply by unscrewing the axle. The chassis itself is a bit more difficult, but with some patience and a drill I managed to get it open while still being able to close it afterwards. Inside we find a gear and the flywheel itself. The flywheel is a relatively heavy metal drum that gets spun very fast by the gears when the rear wheel turns. Due to the weight and momentum the flywheel will keep spinning for a long time with enough force to propel the entire bike forward.
The new bikes are made out of a chassis, a fairing and tires, similar to other bikes from the past decade. The main difference is the rear tire which is permanently connected to the chassis. In the image above, I’ve placed the new chassis (Dark Stone Grey / Dark Bluish Grey) next to 2 other chassis currently in production (Black). The fairings for the older chassis do not fit on the new chassis. The chassis comes in 2 versions, both in Dark Bluish Grey: with a Light Bluish Grey rear tyre (6391389 | 69869) or an Orange rear tyre (6391388 | 69869). The chassis is extra buff to fit the flywheel and nearly touches the ground to add extra stability.
There are 3 new moulds for the fairing. From left to right:
- Motorcycle Fairing Racing (Sport) Bike, here in Bright Blue/ Blue with (6339209 | 77792). In the subtheme there are 3 more colours to be found, each with a print: Black, Lime and Pearl Gold.
- Motorcycle Fairing Vintage with Exhausts and Headlight, here in Bright Yellow/ Yellow with print (6339081 | 77780). In the series, there is 1 plain version in Bright Red/ Red (6356480|75537) and with print in Teal / Dark Turquoise and Bright Yellow / Yellow to be found.
- Motorcycle Fairing Dirt Bike with 1 x 2 Studs in Bright Yellow/ Yellow (6356567 | 75522). The part also appears plain in Dark Azure, and in Black and Dark Purple with print.
The bikes are easy to put together: click in the front tyre, slide the fairing on the chassis, and attach the steer. They look really good, with the flywheel nicely hidden inside. I did notice that the minifigs have a hard time staying on. There is little clutch between the center divide and the fig’s legs, so the figure is mostly kept in place by the hands.
The ramp consists of 2 new moulds. At the bottom we find Slope 8 x 5 x 2/3 with 2 x 6 Studs in Bright Orange/ Orange (6338339 | 75539). This element is straight, and forms the on-ramp for the larger part of the ramp: Slope Curved 8 x 8 x 4, Ramp in Bright Orange/ Orange (6353459 | 75538). The curve of the latter doesn’t seem to follow a circle; it shoots upwards faster in the last section, so I was unable to find a brick that can fit inside the curve. In the back I’ve placed a Sports Arena Section / Skateboard Ramp (43085) from 2002-2003 for size.
Recolours
There are 3 recolours in the sets I picked:
- 64448 Support 1 x 6 x 5 Girder Rectangular appears for the first time in Bright Yellowish Green/ Lime (6353462 | 64448).
- 93220 Sports Baseball Bat 4L [Plain] in not only for the first time available in Reddish Brown (6271389 | 93220), but it’s also the first plain appearance of the part.
- 50862 Wheel 15 x 6 City Motorcycle is new in Bright Orange/ Orange (6356479 | 50862).
New prints
Besides the minifigure parts, there are 2 new prints in my selection. First up is Panel 1 x 4 x 2 - Hollow Studs with Side Supports with 'CAUTION' Print in Bright Yellow/ Yellow (6329623 | 74082). The other new print is Panel 1 x 4 x 3 [Side Supports / Hollow Studs] with Spider Shooting Lime Web Print in Black (6329622 | 74066). This one gives me the creeps!
Minifigs
On the left is Rocket Racer from 60298 Rocket Stunt Bike.
- Head: new print in Bright Yellow/ Yellow (6339207 | 77790)
- Torso: new print in White (6357274 | 76382)
- Helmet: new print in White (6339206 | 77789)
Next up is Stunt Rider from 60293 Stunt Park.
- Torso: new print in Vibrant Coral/ Coral (6356563 | 76382)
- Hair: rare in Dark Brown (6333518 | 65579)
The third is Wallop from 60297 Demolition Stunt Bike.
- Hair: new in Black (6358204 | 24791)
- Head: new print in Bright Yellow/ Yellow (6339079 | 77778)
- Torso: new print in Dark Orange (6357677 | 76382)
- Neckwear Armour Shoulder Pads Spiky is rare in Reddish Brown (6382643 | 88295)
- The visor is a new print in Bright Yellowish Green/ Lime (6339078 | 77776)
And the last one on the right is Tread Octan from 60293 Stunt Park.
- Head: rare in Bright Yellow/ Yellow (6288061 | 66254)
- Torso: rare in Earth Green/ Dark Green (6293400 | 76382)
Rare elements
Lastly, there are some rare elements.
I was surprised to find the 71772 Brick Special 8 x 16 with Six Recessed Edges with 1 x 4 Studs and Recessed Center with 2 x 4 Studs in Dark Stone Grey / Dark Bluish Gray (6325431 | 71772) to be rare, but that’s because the mould usually comes with a print. In plain, the part has appeared in 2 other City sets prior. The Brick 1 x 2 x 5 in Bright Orange/ Orange (6264021 | 2454) is new for 2021, and has previously only appeared in 21169 The First Adventure. The Tile 1 x 4 with Wooden Board, Nails print in Medium Nougat (6329605 | 73797) is also new for 2021 and provides some variation in wooden builds. And the last one is Technic Driving Ring Connector Smooth in Bright Yellowish Green/ Lime (6335185 | 42195) has previously only been seen in 40461 Tulips.
The Build
The focus of the Stuntz series is clearly on the playability as the build is simple and fast. The 2 small packs are just a bike and a fig and are done within 2 minutes. The 60293 Stunt Park offers some more build-fun, but still feels a bit fast. The build consists of 3 sections. The first section builds the ramps along with some barrels and flames. Section 2 gives us traffic cones and a couple of loose wall-sections to drive through. The 3rd section takes the longest to build. First up is a very cute spider. Next is a cage-type of building with an arm sticking out. On the arm hangs a spiky ball that the stunt driver can hit off with a bat.
Are LEGO Stuntz fun?
So, with little focus on the build experience, how is the playability? Well, I can sum it up in one word: AWESOME. Building mostly 18+ sets, it’s been a long time since I had so much fun playing with a set. The premise works flawlessly: rev up the flywheel by driving it a few times fast on a surface, place the bike in front of one of the obstacles, and just let go. I had no trouble aiming the bike or keeping it balanced enough to stay upright. I gave my children (11, 9 and 6), and they had a blast too.
I’ve shot a few videos to show you the bikes in action:
Conclusion
The new moulds offer a great expansion for the vehicles in your LEGO city. I hoped the fairing and chassis would be interchangeable with the older bikes, but with the flywheel in the way that was not possible unfortunately. From a New Elementary standpoint: with the main focus on playability there are not many parts in the set, so if you’re not interested in the bikes these sets might not offer you much in terms of MOC feeding.
Editor: Chris Baginski
READ MORE: What new LEGO® pieces were released in January 2022?
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Nice review! I just finally got my first one of these sets recently—had to go for the Rocket stunt bike just for that Lego Racers nostalgia!
ReplyDeleteThe ramps look really interesting and functionally they're quite useful, since typical slopes and curved slopes end in a small lip that would act more like a speed bump in sets like this. I think in the future these ramp parts could potentially work great as roofs or awnings—a recent front page MOC on Eurobricks made great use of them for the curved roof of a temple.
Given how fun and effective the functionality of these flywheel bikes are, I can't help but hope they might outlast this dedicated "Stuntz" subtheme. They'd be a great way to add a little extra play value to small sets in themes like Ninjago, Monkie Kid, or even Friends. The only real drawback would be the cost (since the complexity of these bikes makes them a good deal more expensive than non-functional motorbikes).
I do with the outer diameter of the rear tire matched the front tire better, they look a bit odd this way. That said, playability is high, I've been zooming mine all over the house.
ReplyDeleteI would love to see an interview regarding the development of these new bikes. The article with Karsten Juel Bunch about the new shooter design was fascinating. (https://www.newelementary.com/2020/06/lego-element-design-karsten-bunch-interview.html#more).
With the new flywheel bike there must have been some interesting challenges to overcome -I'd guess that for one the smaller rear tire has a very specific reason, probably related to gearing and flywheel size vs. acceleration and playability.
I visited with a friend the other day who had some of these and they were so much fun to play with I convinced him to take me to the store so we could buy a set with a ramp and a few more for me. They are SO much fun to just zoom around. I can't wait to have races at cons and the like :D
ReplyDeleteYou can get a lot done with some patience and a drill. :)
ReplyDeleteAs for the size of the back wheel, given that it's in line with the flywheel they wouldn't be able to make it larger without either shrinking the flywheel or lengthening the entire mechanism. There's also the apparent design decision to make the bottom almost touch the ground, which would mean a higher-mounted wheel or a lower-riding chassis. Overall it seems like the function of the back wheel was prioritized over the aesthetics.