This is a set I had back in the mid-80's, and one I remember fondly. Although that set is long gone, I did find and buy a very nice example recently.

The set contains 153 parts, and 1 minifig. There are a couple cool parts; the host, metal hook, square windshield, and crane boom. The minifig is a worker in black overalls with a hard hat, just who you would expect to run a crane!

The build is typical of the times. I think the mid-80's sets were some of the best builds in Lego's history. They are not the box like squares of years prior, and not the over styled sets of the post 1990 to current years.

But, back to the build. It starts with the minifig, as usual, then goes into the container, 6 steps and 21 parts later and it's done.

It then goes into the crane, starting at the chassis, working up into the body. This covers 10 steps, at which time it transitions into the crane body, another transition to the boom, completing the crane, at which time the assemblies come together, and the set is complete in 22 steps.

Playability of this set is 100%. Drive the truck to position. Swing out the out riggers and lower them down. Lift the boom and lock it in position. Use the crank to lower the hook, and extend the boom. Swing it over and lower the hook to the load. Crank up and get that container airborne! Load the container. Store the crane, raise the outriggers, and move to the next job!

As a fan of cranes, I honestly love this set. The look and functionality are perfect. The colors are perfect.

To give 1 up and 1 down:

Up: Almost a perfect set.

Down: Limited adjustability of the crane boom. It's either stowed, or in a single fixed position when up.

I remember seeing this set in the catalogs I got with other sets I bought in the mid-80's. My first one was in a large lot of vintage pieces I bought and was about 94% complete. I recently bought one 100% complete with box.

The highlight of the set has to be the Black Astronaut, as it was only in 7 other sets. That alone makes the set worth buying.

The set consists of 196 elements. There is a good variety of pieces, like 2 metal detectors, hammer, wrench, CB, trans red castle shields/radar dishes, and several trans yellow parts. As well as "gold leafed" planet 1x2's and printed grill and computer terminal.

The build is fairly simple, altho I have built it a couple times and always leave the 2x4 modified offset piece off the rear unit by the hinge piece.

Playability is good, with drivers canopy and rear areas that open. The 16 wheels add realism and stability to the model.

As I said at my opening, the Black Astronaut is the star of the set. There is also a White Astronaut.

Pricing can be a little steep. I paid $110 for my boxed set. The "gold leaf" parts are perfect, and most bricks are in very good shape. The trans yellow parts are clear and minimally scratched. I looked at other sets in the $40-$80 range. Sealed sets can approach $1,000.

Overall this is probably one of my favorite sets. I would definatly say it's worth adding to a collection.

The 42069 Extreme Adventure is probably my favorite set. I have a hard time choosing between the Volvo Loader and it. But, I'll leave my opinion out and just give the facts.

This was one of the handful of 40th Anniversary sets released in 2017. The model consists of 2382 elements. The manual is 394 pages, and consists of 555 steps.

There is no breakdown by stages, so some sorting will need to be done. Assembly begins in the middle of the chassis, then continues with the V-8 engine, continues with the front frame and then moves to the rear. Cab, rear body, interior, rear drive system, front drive system, and finished with body panels and accessories.

This model is absolutely chocked full of detail features. Working from the front, there are absolutely amazing headlight assemblies and a quad-light push bar. A winch, controlled by a knob on the right behind the door, sits between.

Lift the detailed hood and there sits a sweet V-8 with butterfly injection. Then you see a nice set of sporty mirrors. Taking hold of the door and operating it, it swings out and up, while at the same time the lower portion swings down. The doors are actually connected to a set of shock absorbers to give it preloaded spring pressure to hold them open.

Taking a gander inside there is a nice set of bucket seats, a steering wheel with a guage behind, a floor shift. Close the door and behind it, there is a knob.

Turning this knob, and suddenly, the top of the camper starts to angle up. It's a pop-up tent for added room in the back! On the roof sits two pairs of repair tracks, and four highly detailed Jerry cans. As well as a pair of antenna and flood lamps.

Then, lifting the left body panel sits a small storage area, with the same on the right. In the left, a first aid kit and a fire extinguisher, the right, just an extingusher.

Coming to the back, operate the spare track wheel to unlock the rear door. In the back is a small area for.. whatever! Below that is a grab point. Slide open a small drawer, and there sits the most highly detailed lego shovel you can imagine!

Like the front, the rear has beautifully constructed lamp assemblies. Below that are dual outlet exhaust tips in chrome, two per side.

Going under, you see twin spring assemblies in chrome, holding up the detailed track assemblies. Each axle features open diffs, drive lines, and drive components for piston movement. As well as full suspension.

Steering is controlled via a HOG knob center of the roof. Decals on every panel, which may be just a bit much.

So, there you have it. With this set being released with the 42070 6X6 Tow Truck, I'd pick the 42069 over it with no question. I do own both. The details and look of this set are absolutely phenomenal.

To give one up and one down:

Pro: Details abound

Con: I had a hard time finding one, but I would say the decals are maybe a bit much. I'm just fine with them, but I honestly had nothing else. This set is almost perfect to me.

Build:

The build is pretty straight forward. It is broken into three seperate books with no bag numbering, so some sorting will need to be done.

Book one covers the front of the chassis and working to the gear box, then to the rear of the chassis. Then finished with some boom parts.

Book two continues the boom and finishes most of the chassis.

Book three completes the body and finishing steps.

There are exactly 100 steps in the build.

The set features Power Functions; with battery box, one motor, and three cylinders. It also uses pneumatic elements, with a pump, and two cylinders.

The finished model presents well. There are a lot of detail parts. It has 4-wheel HOG front steering, with a larger gap between the front wheels, akin to the later released AROCS. Doors open/close. The cab is adequately detailed. There are just enough decals to add a nice touch, without going overboard.

Switching on the battery box, there are red and green arrows to determine whether your going forward or reverse with the specified function. The PF controls are hidden under panels. They select outrigger up (green arrow) / down (red arrow), winch up (red arrow only), boom up (red arrow) / down (green arrow), and then switching the air pump on (red or green arrow).

The pneumatic switches are located kind of behind the light bar. The left controls raising and lowering of the wheel bar, and the right controls the extension retraction of the boom extender.

The model is fun to operate. It looks well thought out and finished (180° apart from the sparse looking 42070 6X6 Tow Truck).

To give one up and one down:

Pro: Motor and Pnumatics together

Con: Rear axle detail is poor