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Maisto Street Troopers PT-808 by Maisto
Product SummaryManufacturer: Maisto Brand: Maisto Release Date: 2008-03-07 Model: 81108 Product features: - Meets or exceeds safety regulations for projectile toys
- Morphs from vehicle to attack mode and back again by Radio Control
- Working lights and attack launcher
- Tri-Channel transmitter so three people can play simultaneously and battle it out
- Requires 6 "AA" batteries for the vehicle and 1 9V Battery for the controller
Accessories:
Toys and Games Reviews of Maisto Street Troopers PT-808Customer Review: Lots of fun! Summary: 5 Stars
I bought two of these, one for each of my boys (ages 9 & 6), for Christmas. They are an absolute blast! We have spent several hours over the last few days playing with them and I don't think they'll be relegated to the back of the closet any time soon.
The remote works well.
The cars transform on demand; you just hold down the glowing red button in the middle of the remote until the car is either all the way up (for the robot) or all the way down (for the car).
The darts shoot fairly far (5-7') for what's essentially a spring-loaded suction dart gun with a static firing angle that's less than a foot off the ground. And rapidly pressing one of the two fire buttons will launch all 5 missiles with surprising speed.
The cars move pretty quickly and are quite responsive to remote inputs. And it's great that they come with a three-channel transmitter so each car is separately controlled without interference from the other person's remote.
Battery life seems like it might be ok; only one set of 6 AA's in each car, and they've easily run for 12 or 14 hours of hard use over the last few days with no sign that they're going to quit anytime soon.
Considerations:
There are a few things to be aware of, though. These did not inhibit my kids' (or my own) enjoyment of them, but they are things to keep in mind.
1) Occasionally, one dart does not want to stay in its barrel. You normally push the darts in until you feel them click into place, but sometimes one of the barrels does not want to click. What I've found is that if the revolving "gatlin gun"-style barrels stop with one barrel straight up at twelve o'clock, that one barrel for whatever reason does not want to keep the dart in place. But if you just push the fire button a little bit, enough to get the barrel to move slightly so that it's not at high noon, the dart clicks into place just fine. Apparently, this is a known issue because the manual actually "kinda sorta" alludes to it in the tips it provides. They mention a "novice tip" to just use four darts for beginners, and a "pro tip" to slightly depress the fire button to use all 5 darts for more advanced users. I guess that's their way of fessin' up without actually coming out and saying here's a problem. But to me and to my kids, no biggie. Once we knew how to deal with it, it only takes an extra second to cope (since you're having to reload anyway).
2) The rear (i.e., driven) wheels don't get great traction and while moving from hard floors to carpet, if you're not moving fast enough, the car sometimes get stuck. This only happens when in car form, though, and only at slower speeds (because the front wheels get up on the carpet while the rears are still on the tile, and it elevates the rears off the floor just enough to have too little grip to move, either forward or back). My kids and I tend to just drive the things around in robot form anyway. They steer just as well in robot form, don't get stuck going from tile to carpet, and you're always ready to fire your missiles. Woo-hoo!
3) You have to make sure that the car is all the way up in robot mode, or the missiles won't fire. If you push the fire button and nothing happens, push the transform button to make sure the robot is in the "full up" position. Just lowering it a little bit will prevent the darts from firing. Again, like with issue #1 above, once you know, no biggie.
4) We haven't had them long enough to comment on durability. There are some parts that feel a little flimsy. They've already taken more abuse than I initially thought they would withstand and are still going strong, but only time will tell...
None of these things are deal-breakers, IMHO, and these cars are well worth the money. Fantastic, if mindless, quality time with the kids!!!
Description of Maisto Street Troopers PT-808Project: 66 was to be the latest in the Street Troopers™ line of urban defense - a radio control vehicle that can fire at will, either from a stationary or moving position and morph back into vehicle mode undetected. It was a highly classified project until a rogue scientist stole a Project: 66 prototype, and its blueprints from a secure paramilitary facility in an undisclosed location. The government had already begun top secret production on Project: 66 — and then quickly pushed ahead on its sister mobilized attack vehicle...the PT-808. Can you handle the Street Troopers™ revolution? We shall soon see! We at Maisto will keep you informed on any updates involving this rogue paramilitary action.
Features include:
?Morphs from vehicle to attack mode and back again by radio control ?Working lights and attack launcher ?Tri-channel transmitter so three people can play simultaneously and battle it out! ?Meets or exceeds safety regulations for projectile toys ?Become part of the Street Sweeper revolution today! The Maisto Street Troopers PT-808 Radio Controlled Vehicle provides a twist on the remote controlled car that will thrill kids 8 years old and up. In addition to the usual driving around, the Street Troopers PT-808 can transform into a robot at the push of a button and shoot missiles at the enemy.  | What We Think Fun Factor: 
Durability:  (what this means)
The Good: Car transforms into a robot; missiles can be launched remotely
The Bad: Pieces that transform can feel a little less sturdy; tires don't provide good grip on all surfaces
In a Nutshell: Kids, especially boys, will love racing the PT-808, and transforming them into robots to do battle with a missile launcher | At a Glance Ages: 8 and up Requires: 6 AA batteries, 1 9 V battery, Philips screwdriver |  | | 
Maisto Street Troopers provide a twist on the remote controlled car that will thrill kids 8 years old and up. View larger. | Sporty, Aggressive Looks The Street Troopers PT-808 is an aggressive looking car with a black and red color scheme and guns on its side that is slightly reminiscent of the Batmobile. The design will appeal to young boys who will enjoy simply racing the car around. The vehicle has a nice heft to it, but because it also transforms into a robot, it has more moving parts than the average radio-controlled car. While it did not break during our testing, we found it a bit more delicate than the average remote controlled vehicle. For the added fun of being able to transform, however, we found this to be a worthwhile tradeoff. In order to get the car moving, the PT-808 requires six AA batteries for the car and a 9V for the remote control. Please note that a Phillips screwdriver is needed to remove the battery cover. Transform Into a Robot With a Button Push After we installed the batteries, we instantly tried the transform function. Holding down the large, backlit button on the remote did exactly as it was supposed to, and the car transformed into a robot. Holding the button down again, the robot transformed back into a car. Shoot Missiles In Robot Mode While in robot mode, the PT-808 reveals a rapid-fire 5-shot cannon in his chest that can be fired using one of two buttons on the remote. Installing the missiles required us to push the missiles into each cavity until it clicked in. Unfortunately, we were only able to load four of the five missiles. When we pushed the button, we shot the four missiles in about five seconds. The missiles are 73.5mm in length and 4.5mm in diameter, and have a range of about two meters. Younger children should be cautioned not to aim the missiles at people's eyes. Car Offers Great Maneuverability The car is maneuvered using two control sticks, which move the car forward and backward, and make it spin left and right. Extending the antenna as far as it goes, we were able to control the car all around the room with only a few problems of reception when it zipped into the furthest corner, and we were pleased with the general speed of the vehicle. We wished the tires had more grip, however, as the vehicle did seem to slip on some surfaces. Battle with Friends The PT-808 can operate on three different radio frequencies, set via a switch on the car and remote. This allows kids to play with up to three vehicles simultaneously without interference between the remote frequencies, so you and two other friends can race and battle it out with the PT-808 and other Street Troopers vehicles. What's in the Box PT-808 Vehicle, Remote Control, Instruction manual. 
This car transforms into a robot at the push of a button. View larger. | 
Press it again, and the robot turns back into a car. View larger. |
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