Gakken<\/strong> in Japan<\/a>. I searched and eventually found a Japanese hobby store that noted this one as no longer in stock (produced in 2005). I wrote to them and asked to be put on the waiting list for the next one – it appeared to be a discontinued model. I got an email back telling me to order it and if they couldn’t source it in 3 months they would consider it cancelled.<\/p>\nI fully expected that to be the last I would hear from them. Until this morning. A package arrived from Japan \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n
![\"Gakken](\"http:\/\/lostbiro.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/08\/gakken2.jpg\")
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And inside was what was described as a magazine, but it incorporated a box with a beautifully packaged model in its component parts. The accompanying magazine\/catalogue had instructions – in Japanese – but clearly illustrated, so it was no problem to follow the directions just from the diagrams. The Japanese do graphic drawings well – although there was a certain Manga style to it, making me wonder if the vehicle belonged to the “Steam Boy” manga series.<\/p>\n
![\"Gakken](\"http:\/\/lostbiro.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/08\/gakken1.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
And within about half an hour I had a tiny steam vehicle. The only thing missing was the wick, but looking at the instructions it was clear that all you needed was a small square of cotton fabric – like from old jeans and then it was just a matter of ensuring the engine ran freely by blowing through a tube, and then filling the tiny boiler with the (supplied) dropper and then fill the burner with meths from the (supplied) smaller dropper, light the wick and in a few seconds it was ready to run.<\/p>\n
The engine ran slowly and then picked up speed, but I found a small steam leak from the boiler where I had neglected to tighten one of the screws. And then success \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n
This is a toy that should be in every science shop – it’s safe, low pressure and clean enough to run indoors on your kitchen table and could be used very effectively to show the principles of steam power. And it was only the price of about one-and-a-half newsagent magazines – about AUS$27.<\/p>\n
![\"Gakken](\"http:\/\/lostbiro.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/08\/gakken-steamer.jpg\")
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