Review: 7596 Toy Story 3 Trash Compactor Escape

[mostlytechnic]

My 4 year old son loves Lego, so for his birthday some relatives gave him the Toy Story 3 Trash Compactor Escape set. He actually got several other sets as well, and since he was entranced with them, I was able to build this first. He did insist on being the one to put the stickers on, so apologies in advance for crooked sticker placement :)

Name: Trash Compactor Escape

Set Number: 7596

Pieces: 370

Price: $49.99 / £49.99

Ages: 7-12

Minifigs: 3 (or 5, depending on what you count as a fig vs a part)

Theme: Toy Story 3

Year of Release: 2010

The Box

The box (image from Brickset since my son's box was thrown away) is a great ad for the set in my opinion.

The Manuals

There are two manuals (image from Bricklink since my son managed to lose them already!). One book builds the crane and control tower, while the other builds the dumper, conveyor, and incinerator. They're bright and colorful with only a few parts being added per step like other modern Lego manuals. Very easy to follow.

The Parts

There may only be 370 parts in this set, but they're big. It fills an entire drawer in my son's storage box by itself.

The Interesting Parts

Some of the more interesting parts - a turntable that clicks through its rotation, a pair of tall flames, some bricks with grooves (one side of the bricks have vertical grooves and the other has horizontal, so you can use either direction in your own builds), and a small rubber band. Well, apparently that brick with grooves has been around for ages, but it's the first time I've seen one. They sure didn't make that back when I was a kid!

The Panels

This set has a good assortment of girder and panel parts. We don't have many of these in our collection yet, so this is a very welcome array for building our own structures.

The Belt

As you can see, our conveyor belt isn't nicely round. It's actually pretty stiffly stuck in this position, so it doesn't work smoothly. I suspect the belt was just squished in the box during shipping and in the store. Not a big deal, but it'd be nice if it wasn't like this.

The Claw

The most interesting part of the set - the crane claw. There is a center pivot and 4 claw blades. When clipped together, the blades interlock so that they all move in unison. Adding the rubber band makes a very nice and easy to play with claw - this is Lego engineering at its best. Anyone wanting a claw crane for their own MOC will want this set just for this part (or get them on Bricklink of course, where you can get the whole unit for a few dollars currently)

The Minifigs!

Many online sites like Bricklink say this set has 3 figs, counting just Woody and the aliens since they're the only standard minifigs with legs. However, I'd count all of these. Lotso has movable arms. Hamm has no poseable parts, but he does has a plug in his belly so you can get the gold coins out. The dirty Woody and Hamm and stained Aliens are unique to this set.

The Woody Fig

The dirty Woods from this set is on the left, compared to the standard Woody from other sets. He's got dirt all over and a great frown - but is just a frown enough for the peril in this scene?

The Hamm Fig

Hamm has a rubber plug in his belly so you can remove the gold coins.

The Control Tower

Now we start building. First up is the control platform. It's a simple, easy build to get started on this set.

The Crane Beginning

The crane build starts like the control tower, but then you put the bottom half of the turn table on the base and start building the crane booth.

The Crane Booth

Here's the inside of the crane, before you add the actual crane arm and mount it on the base. It's too small for adult fingers to work the lever inside, but perfect for sticking a minifig into.

The Crane Completed

This is one stage where a child would need adult help. I'm pretty sure most kids couldn't get the string attached at both ends. Also, the winch on top of the booth is very flimsy and easy to knock off. I really don't get the trans blue bricks they put the winch on either. Why not either white or green? One last quibble with the crane... there's a yellow half-bush on this side of the tip of the boom. The other side doesn't have one, even though they include a spare yellow half-bush in the set. No, the other side doesn't NEED one (the axle is a 5.5 with stop), but it would look nicer.

The Dumper Tower

Here is the mechanism for the dumper, without the bed of course. I appreciate that they used a couple extra pins and gears to make it more interesting.

The Beams

Beams like this one are used to connect the dumper, conveyor, and incinerator to keep all the spacing correct.

The Conveyor Base

First the instructions walk you through building the base for the conveyor belt. You can also see the connections on each end for the beams to link the set together.

The Conveyor Belt

Next is the belt itself. Again, I like the knob on the side to make it functional. Even though there's quite a gap between the belt and the edges, there's not much problem with figs or larger blocks getting stuck there. It works well.

The Conveyor, Finished

Here's another spot kids might need help. Attaching the conveyor module to the base is a little tricky, getting all four of those girder panels to line up just right to fit together. Once done though it works well.

The Incinerator

The last part of the set... is also one of the easiest. This goes together quickly (especially since there aren't many parts left to root through!) and completes the scene. I was a little disappointed with having just 2 flames though - the movie has this much more intimidating and fiery. The flames also get knocked off so easily when you are retrieving something from inside. The stickers for this need improved too - they are light grey on dark grey parts, so they really stand out.

The Complete Set

Time to play! Dump the toys and the tan "trash" bricks onto the conveyor and then to the incinerator. Oh no, will they survive?!?

The Fall

Now they've fallen in the incinerator! How will they ever escape?

The Rescue

They're safe... but who saved them?

The Rescuer

How'd they get out? Oh, of course... the alien ran the claw!

The Conclusion

Before seeing the movie or owning this set, I saw a short article on it on Gizmodo of all places, where they declared it to be perhaps the saddest toy ever. At a glance, it could be. After all, it's a toy about toys being sent through the trash and into an incinerator. And more than that, they're living, talking, intelligent toys! Of course, this IS a Disney movie, so we all know the toys will be alright. The Gizmodo commenters complained the the box was a huge spoiler to the movie. Sorry, but again, you know they're gonna get in trouble and yet survive. The exact form of peril isn't a big spoiler.

The Ratings

Value: 6/10 - This set is almost 14 cents a part, unless you can find it on sale (I've seen it on Amazon for $35, which makes it then a great deal). There ARE some unique parts though that you can only find here - the claw of the crane, the dark bluish grey 6x5 girder panels, dark green triangular girders, the dark green panels, and the dirty Woody, aliens, and Hamm figures. It's also a good source for larger panels and girders in general, so quite useful if you need those parts.

Design: 9/10 - I really like the visual design of this set. It doesn't really match the movie very well, but it's a reasonable layout for a Lego set. They had to invent the crane since you can't really see it in the movie (at least that I remember) other than the claw. I am curious about the title though - there's no compactor here, just an incinerator...

Playability: 9/10 - Great playable set! Working crane and conveyor belt, extra gears on the dump mechanism just to make it interesting, and nice figures to recreate the scene give this set a lot of playability. Just too bad they don't include a B model of another scene, but that's common for these licensed sets.

Parts: 9/10 - This set has a nice mix of studded and studless parts. As noted above, there are unique parts here - the claw in particular is fantastic and only found here. My son loves all the girder and larger parts to build his own structures. There's also a great variety of colors.

Overall: 7/10 - This is a nice set that has a lengthy build time without being too hard. The design and playability are great, but I think it's overpriced. If it were around $35 I'd give it a 9/10.

Links:

My Flickr set for this set (to see the images larger)

Bricklink

Peeron

Brickset

[prateek]

Awesome pictures! Great review too. This set is okay, but there are much better Toy Story sets out there.

[lightningtiger]

Thanks 'mostlytechnic' for this review of a cool set (the one my son is getting for Christmas from his mum).

Lots of gears, but still simple for a kid to do on their own.

Gee, everyone there needs a bath......except Lotso.....he finally gets a ride on the front of garbage truck.....keep your month closed Lotso !

Can't wait to see my son build this and play with it......myself.....yeah, big kid eh, but aren't we all ?

I'm a conformist! !

[Lordofdragonss]

Thanks for nice review and great pictures!

But what is wrong with your stickers? They looks like put in a hurry...

Btw any have a comparsion of both Lotsos on one pic?

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About the set: Really nice set but with this price it should include at least more minifig!

[mostlytechnic]

Thanks for nice review and great pictures!

But what is wrong with your stickers? They looks like put in a hurry...

Btw any have a comparsion of both Lotsos on one pic?

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About the set: Really nice set but with this price it should include at least more minifig!

Sorry, I don't have the other Lotso to compare. And the stickers, well, I mentioned in the beginning that my son (4 years old) insisted on putting them on himself. So that's what you get :)

[captain crossbricks]

A pretty nice set. I am a fan of the toy story movies but not the lego version,though there is still some interesting parts in here. Great review!

[Masked Builder]

This is a very cool set in my book. Nice work on the review of the set too. The dirty Hamm is definitely the coolest fig in this set.

[def]

I saw this before back in the Reviewers Academy, and I don't remember if I commented there or not, but this is a fantastic review. Good comments, and even better pictures. You're welcome addition to Eurobricks and the Academy!

I won't be buying this set, I've been pretty frustrated by the Toy Story line so far. Although big pieces can be useful, I much prefer intricate sets. This set really gives off an intermediate Duplo-Lego vibe.

[XimenaPaulina]

Great review mostlytechnic! Excellent photos and overall presentation. This is set is good but certainly not the best of the bunch, considering the large <insert that tiresome argument> pieces and the relatively common figs (who would want dirty figs anyway?)

[Mrlegoninja]

Great review, but meh set. I hated Toy Story 3. The first two where 1000000000000x better than the last one.

[Canada_7]

Great review though personally it has turned me off from buying this set. I've been waiting for this set to go on sale at stores around me (which it finally is this week) but seeing each part up close with your pics I'm disappointed and I'm gonna pass on it. Still, I stress that you did a great job with this review .

Edited October 24, 2010 by Canada_7

[Blondie-Wan]

Great review, but meh set. I hated Toy Story 3. The first two where 1000000000000x better than the last one.

I am utterly astonished, flabbergasted and agog that you'd think so. I think Toy Story 3 elevates the series to a height I'd have thought barely possible, even as good as the first two were. Just as Toy Story 2 is IMHO one of the rare sequels to surpass an already-great original, so to me is Toy Story 3 one of those even rarer second sequels to surpass both its predecessors, making the Toy Story trilogy one of the very very few cinematic trilogies to not only start off with a great beginning but get better with each new installment, making it one of the greatest movie trilogies ever. And it really does work amazingly well as a trilogy, despite not having been planned or conceived as one from the beginning - one of the amazing things about this movie is how it feels like a completely essential part of the story, despite the first two feeling complete before we got this one. It's a beautiful, lovely movie, and honestly I'm not only hoping it becomes the first animated movie in Oscar history to garner the Academy Award for Best Picture, I think it has a good shot at doing so.

But different strokes for different folks, I guess...

________________

As for the set: I think it's quite cool, albeit in the loosely-scaled, simplified way that characterizes a number of the TS sets that show the toy characters in the "outside" world. I do like the "extra" gearing in the tipper mechanism; the set could easily (and more cheaply) been designed without it, but having the gears adds to the set's interest, as well as to its potential for alternate models. I do think the set would have benefited from a more expansive (and expensive) treatment as a larger model, with a longer belt, more "trash," a heavier crane and more of the characters, but I think most Toy Story fans would rather have the joyous exhilaration of the western train chase fantasy represented in the theme's flagship set than this scene.

I just finally acquired this set myself and put it together last night, and I'm pleased with it, though I do have a few minor quibbles. The crane probably ought to be connected to the tipper bucket / conveyor / incinerator assembly; it's top heavy with an off-center center of gravity, over a smallish footprint - not particularly stable. The claw used here is a really nifty piece in general, though it's a bit small for its use here (then again, so is most of the set...). The gaps on the sides of the conveyor, as the review notes, aren't really an issue with the figures or the basic bricks representing garbage, but some of the tiny 1x1-sized spare elements would be great to use to "fill out" the trash, except they do get caught in the cracks. And of course, I think a lot of fans of this theme probably do feel a little spoiled now by several of the other Toy Story sets that eschew stickers entirely and actually use prints for element decoration, but there you go - this set has "only" six stickers, which isn't actually that many compared to a lot of other sets this size in other themes, and the use of so many printed elements elsewhere in the theme is what's really unusual (if appreciated!).

I do really like the figures (even though I wouldn't want them as my sole representations of the characters - fortunately I do have them all in their "clean" versions), and the mechanisms do work well, as noted. I also really like the parts and colors in this set - lots of lovely dark green, including both basic elements and unusual pieces. I could see myself getting a second copy of this purely as a parts pack (though my tight budget means I'll have to find it clearanced or something before I do).

[horizon]

Hi,

nice review.

My daughter got the set for Christmas. She build the two towers by herself (except the string, which my wife knotted somewhat more neat then you did ;) ).

Overall a real cool and playable set. Both daughter (6) and son (3) already played a lot with it.

I do agree the flames drop a lot of times. Ah well.

I'd rate it at 9/10.

Movie wise the third one is the best. Easily.

[smittyfan]

great review!! personally i'd like to get this set for the grimy characters... that and well, i like the little aliens... well for the obvious reason of them just being cute, and they'd look cool in a Star Trek MOC.

[drevim]

Great review, hadn't seen it earlier, mostly due to myself not being interested in the set. Turn the pages ahead 2 months to mid- December, when my son (6 yrs.) took an interest. He received the set for Christmas, and we finished it this afternoon. He's fairly new to Lego and had the expected issues with the string on the crane and the gearing , but the one that stumped me was the base to each girder. The 2X2 round with the technic pin in it to help attach the girder. Seems like they would have just had the girder attach to the base plate for easier assembly for the little ones. Overall he enjoys the set, and has played with it for a good while. So I think it's a winner.

For the AFOL side of things, not alot here, but I don't think that was Lego's plan. I can see potential for the crane, maybe for a train, a high rise building, or construction site. Although it would require looking past the simplified rigging. Can always use more girders, but I don't think this would be a cost effective way of getting them

[prozac]

picked up this set today at target on clearance! Can't wait to put it together!