Precision Gyroscope (colors may vary)

Bought this for my just turned 5 year old Grandson to demonstrate how the "gyro-helicopters" and "drones" work. He is a kid with everything and is deep into Legos. We watched the videos and he was super excited about getting one. Not being in the stores, we had to wait for delivery. Every day he was filled with anticipation of this "magical gift" He actually got a new bike for his birthday and shocked his parents by only asking if the "gyroscope" had arrived. The gyroscope came in his favorite color "neon green" and it was an immediate hit. The gyroscope itself works flawlessly and can actually spin for a couple of minutes. We purchased the old string model as well and this one is certainly better built and the pull piece made it easy for him to use it with ease. There probably are not enough words to express how much he loves this "toy" He gives shows to whoever is around showing the tricks and spends countless hours just spinning it in every variation. Three months later, I see him during my calls on Facetime, still being obsessed with and showing me his latest trick. When I say "trick" he actually is dropping the spinning gyroscope on the floor and it just spins away. I strongly recommend this gyroscope as a great teaching and fun filled toy.

I agree with the one reviewer on the need for oiling the bearings as received and suspect that this is true of most toy gyroscopes. Point contact type bearings definitely require lubrication occasionally to give decent life. This unit claims ball bearings but they are molded into the rotor shaft so have been heated up during the plastics molding process. Not good for the original lubrication IMO.I cannot agree with the reviewer who speaks of gimbals though as this is not a gimballed gyroscope. Amazon does offer gimballed gyroscopes intended for use in engineering and physics teaching but they are considerably more expensive, starting at about $35, with almost all metal construction and going up to about $140 for Amazon's offerings. They are also not suitable for some of the things that this toy gyroscope is good for as typically true gimbal mounted gyroscopes do not include a guard ring around the rotor assembly which all the toy versions have. I believe that the reviewer was referring to the frame and bearings. As noted above a bit of oil helps a lot and will probably extend the life expectancy but there is apparently no adjustment available for rotor end play in the frame.After oiling it runs well so far for up to a couple of minutes by my timing. That may extend slightly as the bearings break-in or I gain in experience with starting it.I wish that the documentation of experiments to try shipped with the gyroscope had more than the four examples included. Even a toy like this can be a learning device.Keep in mind that as a ball bearing supported rotor gyroscope, bearing damage is very likely if it is dropped. The only other ball bearing gyroscopes currently on the market, both a lot more expensive, specifically warn of this hazard in their documentation.

This is one of the best gyroscopes you can spin with a ripcord which is a huge plus. I own many of the older heavy duty metal ones you have to use a string to spin. This is not quite as solid but the build quality is still very good. The only downside is the plastic stand is not heavy enough to stabilize the gyroscope. I've had to use metal stands from other gyroscopes I own with this.

Used it a few times and then the ripcord started to bend and then it broke

Great little gyroscope. It spins for a good minute.This is my second one, My first was purchased for me by my mother over 10 years ago, it was this same model. The only difference that I can tell is the weight rings in these newer ones don't look as smooth and well finished as mine from years ago which still operates fantastically. My old one has a little more slop and play in it as it has seen hours of use. this new one spins great!I haven't had problems that some users have with the rip cord getting ruined. I am careful to insert it straight and pull it out straight. I don't take it easy though, I pull it as hard as possible to really get a good spin and boy does it spin!Brought it into the office and employees got a kick out of seeing how it works. (I work with a bunch of engineers so the physics conversations really started flowing)

"Tiny ball bearings" - not really. Metal axles run in holes in the plastic spindle. Small bits of metal, presumably balls, are pressed into the bottom of the holes to serve as thrust bearings. While they are balls, and they are bearings, they do not function as rolling-element ball bearings.Balance is nothing special; about on par with traditional metal gyroscopes.Plastic spindle bearings will probably not handle the high radial loads from the pull start for long.When starting, the large-diameter plastic spindle results in lower rotational speed than traditional metal versions, but resist the temptation to pull harder.But it does gyroscopic things, and the zip starter is handy as long as it lasts.