Set Review ➟ 31142 LEGO® Creator 3-in-1 Space Roller Coaster: UFO Carousel
The third of the three builds of the Creator 3-in-1 Space Roller Coaster set is the UFO carousel ride. It shares several thematically decorative elements with the main build.
The minifigure parts have once again been rearranged to create different characters. The astronaut is back, and again is used as set decoration and not a character.
In what must be some sort of instructional protocol breach, the supplemental build of a photo booth happens last, not first, in the instructional sequence. The photo booth has a clever UFO element for a roof.
The carousel will seat two riders and is manually powered by spinning the center block. Access to the ride is again through a small spaceport as is access to the first build’s roller coaster. In this build the light block is positioned overhead and riders need to go through a red light scan before getting access to the ride.
Having successfully passed the red light test, riders must climb a steep ramp to get to one of the two seats. The ramp pivots on a smooth hinge and must be moved away from the seats after the figure gets in the ride. If the ramp is not moved away the cars will hit it when the carousel is spun.
While climbing the ramp is relatively easy and figures can support themselves on the ramp, they must then make an unsupported leap over a chasm into a seat which is movable and land in a standing position 90 degrees from the ramp. Needless to say, the safety protocols present in the second build’s Drop Tower are nowhere to be seen in this build. Then again, there is no minifigure-decapitating turnstile, so there’s that.
There are insufficient parts in the set to create identical seats for the carousel, so we get two slightly different craft. LEGO does a nice job getting a weight balance for the craft so the carousel spin is not lopsided. Seats are secured to the main armature by a frictionless technic pin which allows the cars to swing sideways and out as the carousel is spun.
Seemingly the ride is intended for short-leg minifigures. The figures must stand in the seats as there is only a one-brick-width space available. Figures with standard legs appear to…uh…stand tall…in the seats, but they do fit even if they look a bit funny.
Ship seat with short legged rider.
Ship seat with standard legged rider.
The center of the carousel sits over a single fixed axle. Atop that sits a plant-alien which serves as an axle end stop and remains in a fixed position when the carousel is spun. The plant in a bubble aesthetic echoes the solar garden element of the roller coaster build.
Spinning the carousel is fairly smooth. I had some instances of the lid over the plant opening while spinning. I also on occasion lost a brick from under the lid while spinning. I did not notice any issue with the base sliding around or moving when the carousel was spun.
Notice the missing brick and the opened lid.
Decoratively the set has a large UFO sign centered under the carousel. DOTS plates are used to spell out UFO as they were used to spell out SPACE in the roller coaster build. The small meteor is also present although in this build it is a static element.
Particularly delightful is the tractor beam lifting a little car into the central UFO ship. The astronaut is once again floating around the structure.
The top of the spaceport once again has a moveable radar dish.
Finally there is this robot. Or is it a trash can? Or a robot trashcan? And, unfortunately, yeah, the arms don’t want to stay attached.
Summary
The third build of all the 3-in-1 sets I have encountered has always been the simplest, and the UFO carousel is no different in that respect. What leftover pieces there are in this instance are sufficiently plentiful and diverse that one should have no problem creating a fourth MOC ride complete with robot trashcan (well, except for the arms, but since those don’t want to stay attached anyway…) and spaceship cars if so desired.
LEGO 31142 Roller Coaster is another very good set in the Creator 3-in-1 line. Each of the imaginative builds has plenty of play value, and while the construction techniques are not advanced, they are appropriate for the target age of 9 years. Highly recommended.
Disclaimer
Once again, thanks to LEGO for providing this set for review.
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