LEGO Power Miners 8956 Stone Chopper Formal Review

No one asked for it, but I was growing impatient and giddy with excitement. The formal review for LEGO Power Miners set #8956 has now been uploaded to YouTube.

Watch it here!

If you can't understand me or just think my voice is awful, no problem! Instead, you can read my review after the jump. There are pictures!

This is Power Miners set #8956 Stone Chopper. The set was originally released in January 2009. It had 31 pieces and included two minifigures.

Duke is a tough-guy name.

The first minifigure that comes with this set is Duke. Although there are only four Power Miners on the team, there are multiple versions of each miner with slight variations.

This version of Duke has many common pieces shared between the other Power Miners.

He comes with a really cool looking blue helmet. This helmet was originally used in the Rock Raiders theme that came before Power Miners back in 1999. I think of the Power Miners as the spiritual successors to the Rock Raiders. I always liked this helmet when I was little. It has a unique shape to it different from any other helmet I’ve seen that gives it a very distinct Sci-Fi look.

The front of Duke’s torso follows the same pattern as most of the other Power Miners. He’s wearing blue overalls with a grey tank top underneath. The overalls have dark grey straps with silver buckles, along with two pockets above his waist.

The most noticeable difference between these torso pieces is usually the symbol in the center of each Power Miner’s chest which shows what they specialize in. Duke’s symbol is a drill; he’s the mining veteran on the team.

Duke has yellow sleeveless arms and dark grey hands.

All of the Power Miners in the first wave use the same leg assembly. Each leg piece has a black belt, a silver buckle, a silver chain on the right leg, and a yellow flash light on the left.

On the back, there is printing for the other side of Duke’s overalls. The same drill symbol can be found inside of an orange spiral at the center.

Duke’s head has double printing. He has this big grin on the front of his face. He looks kind of suspicious, like one of the robbers you would find in a city set. On the back, he has a frightened expression that makes him look pretty ridiculous.

 

He's a rock with arms and legs.

The second minifigure that comes with this set is Meltrox. All of the rock monsters in wave one are exactly the same, with the exception of their color. Meltrox is a mixure of gray and translucent red and comes with a matching red power crystal. These crystal pieces also first came from the Rock Raiders theme, and have since then been used in many sets in different colors.

Meltrox is a short, squat looking thing. He’s basically a rock with arms and legs. His face is squished and mean looking.

The top half of his head is hinged. This allows you to open his mouth and toss crystals inside, either for storage or for eating.

 

It's like a bike with pinwheels on the side.

The Stone Chopper itself is a neat little vehicle. It runs on two wheels; a normal tire in the back and an orange disc in the front. On either side of the disc, there are two orange blades connected by technic axels. These axels also hold both wheels in place.

As for the rest of the Stone Chopper, its main body consists of two lime green bent technic lift arms holding a brick built center in place.

In the center, there is an engine, black handlebars, and a place for Duke to stand.

There are minimal stickers applied to the vehicle. The number one stickers on the front add to the overall look.

A red jewel can be held by a technic pin on either side of the lift arms, most likely acting as a power source. There are a lot of exposed holes along the side that look kind of ugly, but they can easily be covered up with a few modifications to the bike.

 

You can't always solve your problems by running people over. But Meltrox is a rock monster, so...

Every  Power Miner vehicle has some sort of action feature built into it. When you push the Stone Chopper along, the two blades on the side spin. The mechanism works well on both smooth and studded surfaces. This looks like it would be effective against cutting through rough terrain, as well as enemies.

Overall, I like this set.. The playability seems great. You get two minifigs from each side that can duke it out. Meltrox can attempt to steal the red jewel or crystal while Duke can chase him around on the bike. The exposed technic holes on the side may bother some people, but they can be easily covered with some custom modifications. For the original retail price of $5.99, I think this set is well worth getting.

-Will