Mark Megahan
Grownups, especially men, love to get new toys for Christmas. While we all love getting high on nitrous charged horsepower, we like smaller, less expensive playthings, too. Since we’re really nothing more than 4-year-olds who shave, it isn’t hard to find something that gets our attention. Especially when it has lots of moving parts, makes noise, or generally can be used to cause domestic mayhem. Here are some suggestions.
RC toys / stunt car
Radio controlled vehicles of all sorts remain the top toy choice for grown men to enjoy. Cars, boats, planes and drones are available for all skill levels and price ranges. One particular model caught our eye only because it’s a little different from the ordinary. The Tornado LED Stunt Car can be found at USAtoys.
Bored males can “go full throttle with this remote control car that performs a unique Tornado spin.” It “performs tricks and stunts like no other.” Besides chasing the cat around the rec-room, it can “flip, twirl, race, and spin on 2 wheels.”
Nerf Machine Gun
It may not be quite as thrilling as a real machine gun but the Nerf Ultra One Motorized Blaster can be a whole lot of fun. It’s just the thing to ambush the neighbor with, when his dog leaves unwanted presents on your lawn. Boasting a 25 Ultra Dart magazine and motorized firing, this model is the “gold standard in Nerf dart blasting.”
The manufacturer promises “extreme distance, accuracy, and speed.” Also the Ultra One Darts are their “farthest flying” ever, up to 120 feet. You can get them through Amazon.
Chainsaws not toys but fun
While not really a “toy,” Sharper Image has a cordless electric mini chainsaw that can fit in your pocket. Doing heavy yardwork is a lot more fun with 550 watts of 24 volt power.
You can massacre those overgrown bushes, Texas style, for a full three hours on a single charge. They throw in 2 extra chains and a storage case.
Foosball coffee table
Once a man picks up a Sharper Image catalog, it’s hard to let it go. We found a couple more cool Christmas gift ideas on their site. One is absolutely perfect for any well equipped man cave, a Foosball coffee table.
Constructed of stylish and durable solid hardwoods, “it’s the most unique, entertaining and ridiculously fun piece of living room furniture you’ll ever own,” they promise. Not only is it a fully functional foosball game, it comes standard with telescoping rods, adjustable leg levelers and hand-painted foosball players.
Boardless skateboard
Before we got away from Sharper Image, their boardless skateboard caught our eye. A cross between a skateboard and inline skates, it’s a “radical new concept in self-propelled transportation.”
Once you learn to stand up without falling over, and master the natural “wave” motion of moving forward, you’ll be converted for life. The large radius wheels make for a smooth and stable ride on just about any urban surface.
Working trebuchet
Last but not least, not only is the Leonardo da Vinci Trebuchet an exact replica of the one Leonardo invented back in 1482, it’s great for flinging marbles across the room at annoying co-workers. In the castle siege days it was “the time’s most powerful piece of weaponry.”
Available from FatBrain Toys, the kit comes complete and is “easy to build in about an hour.” Parts are “pegged for extra strength.“
