Sillbird Hurricane Dragon B778 Stem Toy Building Block set Review


Hello brick builders!  We are back again to take a look at another Stem Toy from Sillbrand!  If you saw in our last post, we took a very close look at the Sillbird WallRobot 4-in-1 Stem Toy.  This time we will look at Sillbird's B778 Hurricane Dragon.

Thank you Sillbird!  My set arrived superfast, like within a matter of days and it came with the original box too!

Let's take a look at all the info on the box.  The set is called Hurricane Dragon Remote & App Control Building Blocks.  It's age rated 8+,  with 549 pieces.  The toy is rated as one of the Top 10 STEM projects in 2021.




The 72 page manual is clear and concise with easy to follow steps.  Please note that the instructions are not divided into different sections.  There is a parts list at the end of the manual and instructions on how to use the remote controller.


There are 9 different bags of parts, however there isn't any correlation between the numbers on the bags and the manual. As I mentioned previously, there aren't any numbered sections in the manual.   I don't know if this helps anyone, but I made a list of where in the manual each bag of parts was used.

 Bag #   Step #   Page # 
 1   1-28   1-7 
 2   29-49   8-16 
 3   50-71   17-24 
 4   72-102   25-33 
 5   103-135   34-42 
 6   136-167   43-49 
 7   168-198   50-57 
 8   199-224   58-65 
 9   225-241   65-70 


Here's all of the other stuff in the box.

The sticker sheet.  I don't like to use too many stickers, so for the dragon set I only used the eyes.

The wings are printed on an acetate sheet which you can easily remove.

This is the motor.  It serves as the main torso of the dragon to which all other brick parts are attached to it.

And this bag contains the remote controller and USB charging cable .

The Build


Since the manual isn't divided into different sections, you just keep building it until you are done.

The steps in the manual are very easy to follow.   Each step is just adding one or two pieces.


Here's a progress picture.  Most of the dragon's body is complete.

Added the legs and feet.

Time to build the dragon head.

Here's a look at the multi-jointed tail.

Putting the head and tail onto the dragon.

Now working on the wings. I could only fit 3 out of the 4 holes in the wings to the wing structure.

Clipping the wing to the body.

Things for improvement

There were a couple of deficiencies I noted after assembling the Hurricane Dragon.  None of them were show-stoppers but they bugged me enough, that I wanted to fix them.

Issue #1: Hind Legs Dragging

I'm confident I stuck to the manual's instructions precisely, but upon completing the dragon build, I noticed the hind legs were a bit loose. When maneuvering it with the remote, the hind legs lacked strength and were more of a drag. While you can tweak the legs for a solid display stance, unfortunately, they don't provide ample support when the dragon is in motion.

My fix for this problem was to install a long technic pin locking the hind legs to the body in a permanent upright position.  The technic pin I used was 8 studs in length and fastened in place with a technic nut.

Issue #2: Drooping Neck and Head 

From steps #1 and #2, here is the attachment point for the head and neck to the body.  It is loose when built as per the manual, therefore there is no support for the weight of the head.   See the blue arrows.

I went into my brick stash and found a special brick that would keep the two socket holes locked into an upright position.   The piece I used is quite specialized.  I don't know if there is another solution that can use more common bricks to achieve the same purpose.  If anyone knows, please let me know in the comments below.

To support the new piece, I also had to make minor adjustments to the spine somewhat to hold the new part in place.   With my fix, the head stays locked in an upright position now.   With those two minor issues resolved, it's time to use the remote controller to play with the dragon!

Operating the Dragon

First you need to power on the motor, locate the switch near the bottom of the gray unit.  When you move the switch to the On position, a blue light will turn on.

To charge the motor, use the provided USB cable.  The charging port is on the opposite side of the gray unit.

The Dragon is operated via the remote controller or via an App you can download.  I just used the remote controller for the purposes of this review.   Sillbird provides a small screwdriver which is very handy as it opens up the battery compartment for the remote controller.


Just a heads up, the set doesn't come with batteries, so you'll need to grab your own. It takes two AAA batteries. Oh, and a little reminder to pop that door back on the compartment and give the screw a good tighten.

The remote controller is equipped with buttons to maneuver the dragon forward, backward, left, and right.

 Stay tuned – I'll be whipping up a video of the dragon in action soon.


 The dragon head looks especially ferocious with it's scary eyes and menacing jaws.

Some of the features of the dragon include, moving tail, moving jaw and moving wings.

I used Canva to make a Youtube thumbnail.  Look for a video coming soon!

Final Thoughts


The Sillbird Dragon kit is ideal for those venturing into their first technic-style building block set. The instructions are straightforward, making it easy for beginners to follow, and the part count strikes a good balance—enough to challenge but not overwhelming.

Both younger and older kids will enjoy the interactive element of using the remote control to operate the dragon. Imagine the dragon becoming a captivating addition to a medieval-themed display.

In terms of value, the set is reasonably priced, considering it includes a robotic set with a remote controller.

However, there is room for improvement in the head attachment and hind leg attachments to prevent them from flopping around.

Recommendation


I'll give this cool set a 3.8 stars out of 5 and rate it a recommend.



Summary

  • Set Name: Sillbird Hurricane Dragon
  • Set Number:  B778
  • Piece Count: 549 pieces
  • Age Rating: 8+
  • Experience Level: Beginner to Intermediate
  • Instruction Manual: Included
  • Brick Separator: Included
  • Stickers: Yes
  • Printed Parts: No
  • Minifigure:  None
  • Lighting Kit: No
  • Remote Control: Yes (batteries not included)
  • Retail Price: approx $55 USD


Where to get the set



Use code 10GWU5MN to get an extra 10% off!



Thanks for looking, see you next time, Bye!



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New for 2023, the Sillbird 4-in-1 WallRobot Stem Building Toy

 

Hey there brick fans!  Today, we're going to check out this awesome Lego compatible 4-in-1 Stem Building Toy called Wallrobot.  It's from the brand called Sillbird Toys.

                              

A huge thanks to Sillbird for providing this cool set for today's review!




As you can see from the box, the Stem toy is called WallRobot and can be built four different ways.  

The other three versions are pictured on the back of the box. One version is a  smaller robot, one is just the robot treads, and the last is an off-road race car.

For the purpose of this review, I'll only be constructing the first version, but rest assured that the manual has the instructions for all four builds. 




In all cases, one can drive or control this toy by downloading an app to your phone, or using the provided battery operated 2.4GHZ remote controller.

Here are some more details about this set:

* Set Name: WallRobot 4-in-1

* Piece Count: 560 pieces

* Lego compatible: Yes

* Manual included: Yes

* Stickers: Yes

* Minifigures: No

* Age Rating: 6+

* Year Released: 2023

* Retail Price: $49.99 USD


Unboxing the Set Contents



The remote controller, two powerful motors, the charging box and charging cable, and two light tubes.

Decent sized sticker sheet which I did not use.

A total of 6 bags of parts, mostly technic pieces in gray and yellow.

Here's a sample page from the instruction manual.

There are no numbered bags, so you pretty much have to dump out all the pieces and sort them yourself.

Building the Robot





Here are a few pictures that I took during the construction of the Wallrobot.

For step 15, I found that it was easier to put the pegs into the battery pack first before attaching the yellow technic bricks.

Step 44 was the most difficult step because you have several connection points being attached at the same time.  Take your time on this step and you will be rewarded for your efforts.

These are all the parts leftover.  Perhaps they are used in the other versions.

The 2.4Ghz remote controller requires two AA batteries, which are not included. To remove the battery compartment door, you will need a small phillips head screwdriver.

The small power switch on the robot itself is hard to get at, I used the small screwdriver to flick the switch from off to on. It's at the back between the two light tubes.  The lighting goes all the way up to the robot's eyes and changes colour too.



The assembled robot is a good size and I've placed some minifigures with it so you can see the scale.  Other features include a swivelling head and arms that you can move up and down.  You can also adjust the hands to grip onto things.

Final Remarks


I was pleasantly surprised by how well the robot performs.  The two motors are very powerful and it zips along the floor when I used the remote controller.  I will try to post a video of it soon.

All of the bricks used are Lego compatible, meaning you can add more parts to the robot if you wish or interchange them.  Brick quality is decent however I must say that the clutch is rather tight.  This turned out to be a good thing because after building the robot, it felt very solid.  I didn't have any loose parts falling off of it during handling or playing.

Now I must point out that the set is rated 6+, but I don't think that this is accurate.  Even as an adult, I found some of the steps challenging, so I can't imagine a kid trying to build this own their own.  I definitely feel like and adult should be helping build this set or at least make the set rated at 14+.

I didn't use the app because just using the remote to control the robot was lots of fun.

I do like that you can take it apart and rebuild the different versions, but I think this particular Wallrobot version is the best looking one, so I will probably keep the set in this form.



I can definitely recommend this set as it will give kids a lot of play time, especially now that the holidays are arriving soon. The Sillbird Wallrobot set is decently priced for what you are getting and would make a great gift.

Update: Sillbird just reached out to me and offered an extra 5% off for anyone who uses the discount code RO3UKVCQ.   Follow the link below:



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