| Girder & Panel is a toy construction building set, appropriate for ages 6-13, with which you can build buildings (as well as bridges with the Bridge & Turnpike building set, and powerplant with the Hydrodynamic building set). The completed structure is made to resemble real-life sky-scrapers, fire stations, bank buildings, bridges, pumps, and so on. Originally introduced by Kenner Products in the 1950’s, there is an entire generation of engineers and architects that have many fond memories of playing with this set as children.
Girder & Panel differs from other construction building sets in that it lets children experiment with real engineering principles. Because the Girder & Panel buildings are actually 1/87 scale of real buildings, children investigate how to build strong buildings and bridges, and how to make water flow for the Hydrodynamic building sets.
The sets include plastic columns and beams which are interlocked together to create the basic outside frame (just like real buildings are built using iron beams and columns). Then, thin plastic panels are added to the outside of the frame, creating solid walls, windows and doors on the frame. The building is completed with roofs, decorative flags and signs! Because the parts are scaled to the common HO scale (1/87), many accessories such as cars, trucks, trees, and trains can be added to your model city.
There are three types of Girder and Panel Building Sets.
The parts included in each set are interchangeable among the three types
Girder and
Panel
Recommended
for ages 6+ |
Design and construct magnificent buildings! Experiment with cantilever construction and unique architectual designs. This set can be used to build office buildings, a fire station, a bank building and soon an airport and department store.
Our VP of Marketing used this set for her award winning science fair project on the strength of different designs for skyscrapers.
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Bridge and Turnpike
Recommended for ages 8+ |
Design, build, and play with bridges and roadways. Build a suspension bridge, a railroad bridge, and a drawbridge. Add the roadway pieces to create a transportation system around the city buildings you constructed with the Girder and Panel sets!
All you need are some HO scale cars, trucks, and model trains to have a small city.
Our VP of Product Development used this set for his science fair project on the strength of different bridge structures.
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Hydrodynamic
Recommended
for ages 10+ |
The set that has inspired many chemical engineers! This set has tanks, valves, and piping (plastic tubing) to move water. First you design and build the structure, add water, and then enjoy playing with this water set for hours and hours. It is fascinating!
Who doesn't enjoy playing with moving water! As an added benefit, this set teaches the basic principles of fluid mechanics.
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Girder and Panel building sets provide scale parts to construct buildings the same way as real buildings. First the foundation is laid. Then the building's skeleton is built with a framework of girders. Then the wall and window panels are attached to the framework. To finish the buildings, the roof is placed on top and flag poles and signs are added.
Girder and Panel buildings look like real buildings when they are finished. The parts are scaled to the common HO scale (1/87). You may be familiar with this scale as it is commonly used for model trains! Many accessories such as cars, trucks, trees, and trains can be added to your model city. |
