Creepy Crawler Bug Maker

If I had known how poorly this product was I never would have bought it...even if it was $1. The picture looked very nice and pretty easy to use. The materials included were old and impossible to use. I would have returned it, but I would have to spend $ to send it back.

This is a great hit as a gift. Great price and quick delivery. This is a thumbs up gift especially for a boy

This was a gift!

This was the perfect gift for my son, and both him and his brothers enjoy playing with it. The only thing I would recommend is that you order more of the refill cartridges because my boys went through them fairly quickly.

We bought this for our 5 yr old daughter for Christmas. I was worried after reading the reviews that it would be to difficult for her to enjoy, but she really wanted to try it out. She loves this toy. It is definitely something that an adult needs to help her with, but her and all of her friends love to make bugs and smash them. Our friend has a 7 yr old boy that we recommended this to, and after showing him how this works a few times he was able to it himself. It make take a few trial and error bugs to perfect the timing, but it is a fun toy and we are very happy with our purchase.

Should have listened to the other reviews...very disappointed! Bugs never got hard enough for my grandson to enjoy the final product. Would not recommend...

In a moment of ditziness in the toy section at Target, I bought an accessory part to the bug maker without realizing I needed the actual bug maker. When we got home and realized our mistake, my four year old son was already so excited about the toy that I had to get him the actual bug maker. I was very skeptical since I read through all the awful reviews. But again, my son was so excited I figured I'd risk the $20 to see the smile on his face knowing he would smile just at the possibility of playing with the goo.The toy arrived at our home and my son begged my husband all day to play with it. Finally this evening we got it out and set up all the pieces. I warned my husband repeatedly, "this isn't going to work. All the reviews say it won't work." So they heated up the goo, pumped it into the mold, cooled down the mold, and low and behold, we had a gooey bug! First try, no leaking at all. I am not sure if we just got lucky or if my husband has magical bug making abilities. But my kids are sitting here as I write this grinding and cutting up bugs they have made in the mold. They seem to love this toy. The only bad part (and this is in their words) is waiting for the goo to melt. It is slow and takes quite a bit of patience.Because this toy takes so much parental assistance, even for our seven year old, I don't see this being something the kids get to play with frequently. But they are enjoying it tonight!

IMPORTANT TIPS BELOW!I bought this for a 14yr old's bday thinking it might be something different that we could work on together. Based on the mixed reviews, I figured problem-solving would be a part of the experience. I like challenges. I actually think he learned more about the mechanics of the bug-making process because of the initial failure and subsequent success. The first bug attempt failed as we didn't get the gel to fill the top legs. The 2nd and 3rd attempts were successful. He had fun ripping the bugs apart and messing around with the gooey bug parts. It is also cool that you can put the used bug pieces back in the unit to melt them again. We did this a couple of times successfully.I only paid $10 on clearance which is probably the right price for this item.ProsYou make rubbery jellied bugs.Relatively easy to use (following my tips below)Kids learn how to improvise and problem-solve by making small corrections in the mold process.Parents can spend some quality time with their child making something similar to injection molding, explaining how the process works and teaching them about other common items that are made using injection molding. (Almost anything formed in plastic including the machine they are using.)ConsIt will be messy if you don't put scotch tape around the molds.Bugs are not very strong. They will tear easily. (if they do just put the broken pieces back in the machine and reuse them)Could be messy with younger kids or animals around.TipsI don't recommend this for kids under 10 without direct adult involvementUse at least 3 eggs for the larger molds (2 wasn't enough) You can always start with 2 eggs and, if needed, add a 3rd while leaving the mold in place.Do NOT squeeze the bladder hard. This will create too much air pressure and cause the gel to ooze out of the molds. It actually starts to fill up easily without even squeezing the bladder. When the ready light illuminates, lightly pull the handle of the filling unit down, align the nozzle to the mold, and let the melted goo ooze in. Just squeeze the bladder only towards the end after it stops filling from gravity.MOST IMPORTANT!!! DEFINITELY put scotch tape around the bottom and sides of each assembled mold before pouring in the ooze. I taped the molds before putting them into the gray frames. We only experienced slight leaking this way. It would have been a big mess otherwise.Leave the mold upright in ice water (not just a couple of cubes, use more ice than water) for at least 10-15 minutes to cool. Make another bug while you wait.