The Geomag Mechanics Gravity kits take their classic magnetic forces ‘play’ a step further and introduce moveable mechanical parts to structures, that utilise gravity to create movement.
advert:gifted product
As I’ve mentioned many times before I’m a big fan of STEM Toys like Geomag that can be used at home to support kids with their studies at school; without them realising. They encourage kids to freely investigate and be creative which is sadly not always enabled at school.
This post contains some affiliate links for your convenience (which means if you make a purchase after clicking a link I will earn a small commission but it won’t cost you a penny more)! As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases
Page Contents
How Do The Geomag Mechanics Gravity sets Work?
There are a few sets available and Geomag sent us the GeoMag Mechanics Gravity Up And Down Set – Model 706 (330 Pieces) that my girls reviewed on their youtube channel Love Ro & Ra (see below)
PLUS the Geomag Mechanics Gravity Shoot & Catch– Model 774 (243 pcs) that we’ll be reviewing here.
If you like this review you may also like our reviews of Geomag Panels, Geomag Mechanics 86 Piece Set, Meccano Motorcycles 5 in 1,
What’ Geomag Mechanics Gravity Shoot and Catch Contains
11 blue magnetic bars (1 of which is a polarity checker)
36 steel balls,
144 plastic orange connectors
14 plastic orange upright supports
11 plastic red columns
20 clear plastic parts
6 plastic blue parts that make up various mechanisms
1 basics booklets explaining how to build the individual mechanisms
1 project booklet with 2 structures to build.
All the parts are clearly shown and labelled on the back of the box.
Building With GeoMag Gravity Shoot And Catch
As with all Geomag sets you don’t need the leaflet to use it, you can jump straight in and just construct freestyle. But it is worth flicking through the two instruction leaflets to see how the different mechanisms work and get built. Plus there are two great starter projects; a simpler Magnetic Track that uses the magnetic canon and magnetic catcher and then more complicated Shoot and Catch that uses the magnetic cannon, stop and go, gravity motor and the magnetic catcher.
We chose to do the simpler magnetic track project but if you want to see the gravity motor in action on a grand scale, watch the vid at the top of this post. It shows a bigger version of it in action from the GeoMag Mechanics Gravity Up & Down set! That set has two gravity motors, where as this set only has one.
The instruction booklet is quite easy to follow and each section will have extra boxes with a zoomed in image whenever more detail is required. But as with all construction products the more you use them the easier and quicker it becomes to read and understand what’s going on.
Patience, perseverance, and a gentle touch are skills that come in handy, especially for the larger projects.
But when it’s finished you get a rather zippy track that flings a ball bearing around at quite a speed, propelled by its own momentum. One thing to note is that the magnetic canon needs to be manually re-set which can add to the fun. We set competitions to see who could keep the steel ball continually moving for the longest… you can see it in action below.
What Did we think of the GeoMag Set?
I’ve always loved construction sets like Geomag as they secretly help kids develop a range of skills and knowledge whilst innocently playing. The gravity motor, in particular, is a real eye-opener when it’s used and the sense of satisfaction the kids get when their project all comes together at the end is wonderful. Some kids (especially the younger ones) may need some help from an adult with the more fiddly parts but I personally like to help teach my girls how to read the instructions and also, at times, even tweak and improve the build.
Aimed at 7+ years the Geomag Mechanics Gravity kits are a worthy investment as when built the kids are fascinated by the movement of the steel balls and their construction. Plus it helps support their senior years studying. It’s the perfect STEM toy in that it will help develop logic, problem-solving, build skills and of course develop a child’s understanding of magnetic forces and gravity. Both this kit and the larger kit reviewed in the video use the same mechanisms. The main difference being that you less building blocks and only one gravity motor so you can only incorporate either an upwards or a downwards movement (watch the video at the top of the page from about 6:30mins to see what I mean) but it’s still really impressive and perfect for visually demonstrating energy transfer.
Geomag is an incredibly well-made brand that uses high-quality materials (the kind of toy you pass on to future generations) and you can constantly extend it with other kits if your child becomes obsessed.
To find out more head over to GeoMagWorld.