Review: 42102 Mini CLAAS XERION
Posted by Huw,
Weighing in at just 130 pieces, 42102 Mini CLAAS XERION is one of the smallest and cheapest set in the Technic assortment that's just been released.
It's strange, then, that LEGO opted to base it on a real-life vehicle and pay licensing fees to do so. Normally that is reserved for top-of-the-range sets.
Let's find out if it was money well spent...
It's based on the same tractor as 2016's 42054 CLAAS XERION 5000 TRAC VC which remains to this day one of the best Technic sets ever, in terms of functionality.
Clearly this diminutive model won't pack in quite so much but it does have a couple of cool features.
The front wheels have working steering using what must be the most compact mechanism possible.
It relies entirely on the 'play' between adjacent Technic parts: the 0.5mm or so between the black steering knuckle and the light grey parts either side of it provides just enough movement for 20 degrees or so of rotation of the wheels
The tractor is equipped with some sort of attachment the back, a rotary plough or something. The gears rotate as the vehicle is pushed thanks to a connection to the rear axle. Perhaps surprisingly, the 36-tooth gear has only appeared in 10 Technic sets since its launch in 2002 so it's handy to have a couple turn up in a small set.
When they are not in use the attachment can be raised off the ground, using the black lever behind the cab, although that does not disconnect it from the drive, so the gears still rotate. The attachment can't be (easily) removed to replace it with something else although you can of course disassemble it.
It's recognisable as a Claas Xerion, primarily due to the colour scheme and the uniformly sized wheels. The cost of the licence to make it so doesn't seem to have had much, or any, impact on the price (it costs the same as 42101 Buggy which has fewer pieces) which makes a nice change.
Its price and the ease at which it can be built makes it a great pocket-money introduction to Technic for kids who prefer machinery to the fast cars, go-karts and dragsters that usually occupy the lower price points of the Technic range.
Thanks to LEGO for providing the set for this review. All opinions expressed are my own.
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18 comments on this article
Looks pretty involved for its price, will probably grab this one even though I'm usually not interested in technic.
I didn't expect to see three different Technic functions in a small model like this. I wasn't too interested at first, but now I might pick this up.
I think LEGO paid a general licencing fee to Claas for using the XERION likeness and logos when they did the large one so this might not have cost a lot if anything extra.
Great set, and an absolute bargain, even better for the 6.99 to 7.99 Euro for which these 9.99 Euro RRP sets are usually sold in many outlets. (Already found one for 7.39 Euro on SMDV just now).
Given Lego's recent FGP with large sets being smaller version, I guess its too bad 42054 didn't come out a little later. This actually serves well as intro to Technic set.
One of my must buy's in the Technic lineup this year. Cute set, looks good for being that small, B model looks good as well
You have built it wrongly. Like other reviewers :)
Front part should be pushed down.
Er, @Huw I don't see the price mentioned... did I miss something? (It's £8.99 / $12.99 / 9.99€)
Nice set and review though.
Is it a tractor or a combine harvester? :-)
And it is probably not a plough but a hay rake at the rear
@M_longer said:
"You have built it wrongly. Like other reviewers :)
Front part should be pushed down."
Clearly the instructions are ambiguous, then...
@Huw said:
" @M_longer said:
"You have built it wrongly. Like other reviewers :)
Front part should be pushed down."
Clearly the instructions are ambiguous, then..."
Look at the box, those lime liftarms are not at straight angle :)
The front should be angled slightly down looking at the Brickset 42102 page photo
I didn't realize that this had three different functions in such a small space. May pick this up now. Great review as usual @Huw!
@andyh1984 said:
"The front should be angled slightly down looking at the Brickset 42102 page photo"
Exactly. But the instruction doesn't show this sadly. Just pull those black "pillars" beside the "window" to the front and the hood/bonnet slides down automatically. :)
Beside this, it is a brilliant little set and my first grab of this year. Love it!
Someone has even MOC'ed a cute little Bucketwheel Excavator on rebrickable o.O
Yeah, I like this but it's a shame how the front end is unusually mushy. But then, under the hood is that incredibly compack steering mechanism, so I don't think it was feasible to add another connection point there to automatically align the front shell.
And I know it's silly, but I like seeing that grey piece used independently of the linear actuator part. It helps justify them being two separate parts to begin with.
Nice set! That steering mechanism made me look at the one in 42084 and improve it for tighter turning radius.
Great writeup! I find LEGO really used some quite novel engineering in the production of this little set. Has many of the same features larger tractor sets have had--and I'm talking $40 sets--steering, PTO, lift. In my opinion, this is a brilliant set, for less than lunch for one at most places. I really hope LEGO does something similarly scaled with existing licenses that have seen Technic sets--i.e Mack, Volvo, Mercedes Benz.
I do believe the "rotary plough" is more, or less, a disk mower or possibly even some form of hayrake. And this is coming from someone who is familiar with haying equipment. That has been my interpretation of basically every nearly unidentifable "thingy" every LEGO tractor over the past several years has had. As soon as I build this set, I'm taking it off, and putting something in its place. I just ordered it on Amazon tonight.
Kuhn was chosen, because so many of these LEGO "implement thingys" have been red.
https://www.kuhn-usa.com/hay-forage/tedders/gf-1002-t-series
https://www.kuhn-usa.com/hay-forage/mowers
Nice review and nice set, but no love for the B-model?
I think the thing on the back is supposed to represent a mower attachment.