Timberkits Kissing Couple Review
Kissing Couple
Reviewed by Angela Paul
We were sent the Timberkits “The Kissing Couple” Wooden Automata Kit to review – which turned out to be a perfect way to spend a rainy Bank Holiday afternoon.
This kit was an intermediate kit, suitable for age 9 – 90 year olds (though the box specifies that adult assistance may be advisable for 9 -12 year olds).
The kit contained two plastic trays full of pre-cut wooden pieces, a tube of glue, a candle (for waxing some pieces to make the model run smoothly) and a comprehensive instruction manual. The kind folks at Timberkits also sent us an already constructed kit so we could see exactly what the finished article should look like.
As our boy is a little young to complete the kit himself we decided to tackle the task as a family. The small person was in charge of selecting the correct pieces whilst the adults put them together.
Firstly we cross referenced the pieces to the instruction manual and, having satisfied ourselves that they were all there set to work. The manual has 6 pages of clear photographs that were very easy to follow, and literally give a piece by piece instruction as to how the automaton should be put together.
Each individual piece had been made to a perfect size and they were all wonderfully smooth – no splinters here! They were very precisely tooled and some of the discs that we had to place on the spindle were quite tight and even I struggled to move them into place, so I can see why adult help may be required for younger children.
Although we did refer to the completed model occasionally that was more from laziness than anything else as the instructions were very clear to follow. However I would caution that it’s definitely wise to follow them closely and not try and race ahead yourself. Each piece does have to be put together in a very specific order and if you were tempted to cut corners you may come to regret it!
We managed to complete the kit without any disagreement so it proved to be a fantastic family activity and our model worked perfectly – yay!
The finished article is a really lovely thing to have on our dresser and is still proving quite fascinating to watch and see how all the parts work as you turn the handle, in this case the couple kiss.
Having looked at their website, www.timberkits.com, there would seem to be almost 30 kits to choose from. These range from dinosaurs and pirates to Stephenson’s Rocket and Vintage cars. There really is something for everyone from young to old. If you’re a talented type the instruction manual also has details of a design competition where you can design and make your own model for the chance to win £600 and have your design put into production. We’re perhaps not quite capable of this but if you have a keen woodworker in the family it might be worth buying them a kit and encouraging their creative juices!
In summary, we really enjoyed building our Timberkit and it’s something that will continue to give pleasure for many years to come. I’ve attached a photo (above) – can you tell which one was ours? I think we did pretty well and this illustrates just how accessible these models are to all.
Rating: 5/5 
RRP: £19.95 (Kit form) / £28 (Ready built)
Available to buy from Timberkits here.
