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The main direct-buy sites in the U.S. are: http://www.fischertechnik.com/

The goggles! They do nothing!

You will not be disappointed by the quality.

Mostly from the diminished expectations induced by that site.

Wow, this site sucks. Try the english section of the german site.

the very best mechanical- and engineering-oriented building sets are still Fischer Technik (sometimes spelled here with no space). Made in Germany for decades, and still being made with new kits updated all the time, Herr Fischer designed the best engineering building blocks on the market today. They are still being made, and are often used by universities for mechanical and computer engineering projects.

These kits make Lego Technics and Erector building sets -- even the new ones -- look like, well, child's play. But they are not cheap.

You can often find used Fischer Technik kits on ebay, some of them 30 years old, for sale at a good price. Even at 30, if they are not abused they are quite usable. (I know, because I bought some and use them.) Unlike some other building sets, there is no shortage of replacement or add-on parts.

There are sets that go from basic building, like bridges and little toy push cars, to electric motors and pneumatic controls (compressor, air tank, air pistons, etc.!), R/C vehicles, and all the way up to computer control with feedback. The main direct-buy sites in the U.S. are: http://www.fischertechnik.com/ and http://www.studica.com/Fischertechnik/ but don't forget to look on eBay.

You will not be disappointed by the quality.

AND... you might also enjoy this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CmYDgncMhXw

Some may argue it's limited in scale. But find me another set where you have 3 motor servos, an ultrasound sensor, light sensor, touch sensor, microphone, speaker, lcd display, flash storage for programs, easy to use software, usb connection, guaranteed compatibility between sensors and the system, about 500-600 pieces, and a huge support base in case you need help. Lego has that all hands down.

Fischertechnik. It is double the price but worth it. Many colleges use it in their robotics curriculum. The parts are able to connect in three dimensions, they aren't "bricks" but have slots on all sides and connector pins so any 2 blocks can mate in any orientation. The controller has more IO ports, the ability to natively program in "real" programming languages verses a GUI (granted with the NXT you can program in NQC [C], BASIC, and .NET if you can get the non-supported additional software working).

For example: Industrial robotic systems using Fischertechnik. They show some very large-scale assembly line robotics processes. Some very cool stuff. Click on the "Computing Kits" link for kit information. There are a few different kits with motors, pneumatics, etc.

Lego's are fine - my 12 year old brother makes robots using the NXT kit - but if you are in the slashdot age and are serious about this, Fischertechnik might be the way to go.

Indeed. What about the cool kits from fischertechnik (or from their US branch)? They have many nice toys in their "computing" series.

I remember having some Capsella! That stuff was pretty cool. I especially liked making things that floated.

I also recall FisherTechnik, which was really fun. I got one of the basic "Lots of pieces" sets when I was 9 or 10. I never did get into the upper levels of it, but it looked really exciting. Damned expensive, though. (It looks like now they don't even sell the plain set I had with lots of plain old bricks and gears and chains and stuff. They just sell the candy coated, 'applied' stuff.)

I enjoy Lego and have lots of sets, including Mindstorms, however there is no better geek building toy than FischerTechnik. They have many levels of sets and their robotic line puts Mindstorms to shame with respect to build quality. The only problem is finding them in stores, effectively, they are only available online and they are not cheap.

http://www.fischertechnik.com/

The Fischertechnik construction system may be a little too advanced for a four year old, but he'll be five in a year, which means he'll be ready when you've finished playing.

They also have a US site: http://www.fischertechnik.com/.

Very sad, to lose Mindstorms, although I never tried it myself. However, one maker of similar toys is Fischertechnik. They come from Germany, and they don't have much distribution here, but I had a set as a kid, and it's the absolute best quality I've seen for any mechanical tinkering. Imagine the best of Legos and Erector sets combined.

I've never tried their robotics kits, but it may be just what you're looking for. Eight digital inputs, two analog inputs, and four motor outputs. Also the quality of the gears, motors and structural pieces blows Legos away. Price is expensive, but not outrageously so. In the same ballpark as Mindstorms.

May I put in another plug for a German engineering toy, Fischer Technik (US distributor) and Fischer Technik (parent company)? No, I don't own their stock or get any kind of bonus, I just think it's a great system that deserves to be more widely known. The picture you see on the US distributor's site is pretty typical of what kids used to build with it: highly functional designs that don't try to imitate looks. It's the ultimate geek toy for the budding engineer.

What??? Sorry, but Erector Sets really didn't do it for me. Great for static stuff, but not really there for things that actually move. How can anyone who likes programming not enjoy the modularity of a Lego set? And the pneumatic kits kicked some serious butt.

However, my first love was FischerTechnik. They hurt your fingers, they went together in only the most illogical configurations, but they came with enough gears and actuators to keep a young soul busy for years. The frustration of trying to assemble/disassemble the stuff was just part of the fun. So, sell your car immediately and use the proceeds to buy a kit or two!

Thusly: FT > Lego > Capsela (with an E!) > Clay> Dirt> Erector Set.

If all you care about is shape, clay is a lot more creative. If you care about function, both Lego and Atollo seem pretty boring to me. Bring back ErectorSet or give FischerTechnik a try--that's a much nicer engineering construction set.

Fischertechnik is another brick-based system that has been around for decades. It started out much more oriented towards mechanical engineering than Lego. In fact, it is used quite a bit for prototyping, in particular in Germany. You can find more information at the US distributor and the German site.

Fischer Technik has been used in engineering classes for a long time. I think the reason why it hasn't caught on as much in the US consumer market is because for many years they went more for functionality and less for appearance.