There are many threads on the board about what figures/characters kids actually like, and how difficult certain size classes are for certain ages. I don't have any kids of my own (aside from the 23 Second Graders I'm in charge of daily), so this is my best insight into kids and Transformers.

Backstory: I live in an apartment built below/onto the side of a house. Over the last three years, I've become close with the neighbors, and they're well aware of my collection (they haven't seen it themselves, but my boxes of figures get delivered to their door). They have a five-year-old grandson who loves Transformers, and since he's been doing really well in school, they've asked if he can come see my figures as a treat. Grandpa brings him in.

My collection ranges from a couple of One-Steps to some pretty pricey 3P stuff. I have two full Detolfs (but I really need four) and the rest of the figures are on shelves, within arms-reach of, say, a five-year-old.

Kid comes in, STOKED. First thing he runs to is Jetwing Prime. The large guns with the orange tips makes this kid think that they're Nerf weapons, and he tries to find a way to fire them. No luck. He then tries to Transform the UFO Annular trailer, but I'm able to catch him, because that piece DEFINITELY doesn't fold that way.
He then tries to transform Generations voyager Sandstorm. Gets' halfway, decides it's too hard. Wants to transform Evasion Prime. Sorry kid.
Picks up the Matrix of Leader, and I show him how to pull it to make it light up.
Finds legends class Universe Skydive, gets it mostly figured out. I help him with the head.
I show him Classics Astrotrain (in shuttle mode) and tell him that it transforms into BOTH a robot AND a train. He doesn't believe me. Gets the legs/feet apart, and gets stuck. I show him the other modes. He REALLY likes that one.
Goes over to Leader Jetwing Prime, and I explain to him that the transformations is really difficult. REALLY DIFFICULT.
He figures out nuRID Overload, for the most part, and part of Generations Chromia. "Is this a girl? I think I see boobs." OHHHH my. Not having that conversation with your grandson, sir.
I think if the Detolfs didn't have doors on them, my collection would be destroyed.
I show him the AOE One-Step Rollbar, and he says it's "way too easy." What age are One-Steps for, if they're too easy for 5-year-olds?
Picks up dx Animated Blurr, looks it over, says "I don't think this one transforms" and puts it down.
He really wants to play with an Optimus and Bumblebee, and picks out NuRID legion Bee. Figures it out without instructions. Same thing with ROTF legends Stealth Bee.
I bring in NuRID warrior Optimus Prime. I have to show him how to get the arms together and the leg panels apart, but otherwise, he gets it.

In sum:
One-Steps: too easy
Triple-changers: fascinating, but too hard
Favorite characters: OP and Bee
Favorite size class: deluxe
Able to transform without instructions: legends/legion
Female characters: still wants to play with them
Favorite figures: Leader Optimus and NuRID warrior Optimus
Me: Needing more Detolfs and afraid to have kids.

 

That pretty much sums up how my cousin reacts to much collection too!

Except he's about 7 or 8 years older.

 

lol @ animated blurr. without owning the mold, i can say i don't believe it transforms either.

 

Most of the Animated molds (that I have seen) are fairly seamless.

 

I would never let to touch any of my figures to a kid... i'm evil  

 

That's adorable. It may be scary to watch, but there is something so heartwarming about watching little kids play with Transformers, and enjoying it a lot. You just feel kind of like a better person for a short period, until you realize that this kid may be breaking something.

I have a 3 Year-old cousin who seems to really love Transformers, since he always asks to play with the ones I bring over with me to his house. He always thinks that they're really cool, and he loves the Cybertron Landmine one of my Aunt's friends gave to his older brother, and the Go-Bots Strong Bot that I gave to him a year ago. Plus, considering how often I get new Transformers that he gets to look at and play with sometimes, I think he'll grow up to collect like me.

 

I have three kids, and my middle and youngest love my Transformers. The youngest is two, so she gets to play with the one steps I bought specifically for her to have some formers (as she calls them) to play with. My middle one has a handful of her own Legion Class from Prime and nuRID that she plays with, but loves to show off my stuff to her friends. So yeah, I spend most of that time keeping them from messing with figures I don't want to have to fix...

 

i have 3-10 year olds in the toy room with their parents fairly often (think once every two to three months) but everything is behind glass that's in the collection, and there's a "play box" outside the room if they want to mess with some

 

I came home a few years ago after being gone for six weeks, my brother-in-law who is ten years older than i am attempted to transform a few figures. Not a pretty sight and boy was I pissed. My ex thought it wasn't a big deal, whatever!

Lately, it's been girlfriends kids seeing the collection and wanting to play with the TFs. Oh hell no, I've seen these kids destroy their toys. Can't replace some figs without paying an arm and leg now. Don't want the latest acquisitions trashed.

You can look but no touching, unless you sign a waiver first.

I do have some figs that were my daughters that they don't play with anymore, that's the kids shelf.

 

you have my sympathies.
i dont let kids touch my collection until i know how they treat toys in general and even then only the ones i have put in drawers under my display.

 

I would not even let friends my age let my transformers transform without instructions. Too hard to replace most of the figures.

 

my son is about to turn 8. For along time I kept my TF room locked up because his friends were a bit too young for my comfort zone.

Now I let his friends in my room, Im already pretty well known for coaching his buddies in T ball, No im pretty famous as "Davids dad with the most transformers in the world.."

They all marvel at my collection when I show them. I strategically placed my collection with High end stuff higher out of small hands reach. So I welcomed them to grab and touch, but not TF them unless they know how.. MPs and Metroplex, and combiners always get attention...but with my new BW affliction, the kids are just stunned at the BW figures. They LOVE the shiny Transmetasls and crazy bug designs.

All in all my collection has been a pretty solid positive with my kids and the buddies.

 

I've had similar experiences. After that I put he expensive stuff on the top shelf.

 

My son is about to be 4. when he turned two, i GAVE him my entire collection, Except for my masterpiece and third party figures.

At 4, he struggles a little bit with deluxe class, and anything more complex. Anything below he can do on his own.

Though he does still BEG me to let him play with the masterpiece figures  

Untill i stop finding dismembered Dexlue and Legends class figures all ver his room, that's not happening  

 

ah kids. my great nephew is like that though he is a few years older than 5. When ever he comes to visit he always looks to see if got any new figures.

 

My niece is 7. Can manage any toy save for the ones I myself find mildly annoying to transform (mostly movieverse and more fiddly CHUGs), but can't get used to having printed instructions for transforming. If she's in mood to just sit there and fiddle until it's transformed, that's ok. If not, toy stays half-transformed.

I think she likes NuRID and CW Deluxe-size stuff the most, followed by Legends and Legions.

No horror stories about toys being broken, though.

Does not get all this lore stuff and quite possibly does not care. NuRID Steeljaw is Strongarm's puppy. Megatron looks silly because "this gun is too big". Cute.

BTW, kids really dig Optimus and Bumblebee color scheme.

Changed my opinion about what HasTak does with newer kid-oriented lines, though. Kids like transforming, but they don't like sitting with nose in papers. Also, being able to re-attach limb or wheel to a peg beats it being broken. Let's say now I see the reason behind why NuRID are designed they way they are.

 

Very similar with my son with a few exceptions.

One steps are preferred over the deluxe RID figures, not because he isn't capable, but because he doesn't like the gap in the stories he tells.

I don't think my son has a favorite size class.

He loves the female characters from RiD, especially Windblade.

It is fun to watch kids reaction when they see my room for the first time. There are only a few things that my son is not allowed to play with mainly MP and a few of the more fragile G1 stuff. Even though I have never said no about playing with certain figures, he still always asks permission.

As for letting other kids play with the stuff, I have a few things that I don't care for that are in a box I can bring out, once I see how well they treat those figures, I might bring out more of the ones I care about.

I think if my toys were like the ones in Toy Story, they'd be pretty pissed that they don't get played with.

 

Sometimes wives are worse than kids   ...

One day my wife, feigning interest in my collection (which should've raised my suspicion level since her TF viewpoint could be summed up by her oft-repeated declaration, "how are we supposed to have guests over now!"), leaned over my display shelf and remarked coyly how she had never looked at them closely, how intricate they were, blah blah ... I made the fatal error of taking the bait and allowed her to handle one, which she promptly broke with the efficacy of a 3 yr old ... A test of love as it were ... Lesson learned (don't get married lol)

 

Haha! My girlfriend doesn't usually touch my figures. Not that I've kept them off-limits, but she thinks they're too complicated. I do offer sometimes, when I get a new figure, and she'll get it halfway and go "there. Perfect."
Her favorite is HFTD Leader Starscream. Not that she's ever transformed it - she likes pressing the button to hear it say "No one can defeat Stah-skweem!" (a phrase she loves to repeat) because it "totally sounds like Mr. Burns."

I like the idea that many of you have about a separate section/shelf/bin of OK-to-play figures. I have mine sorted by character, so my Optimus Prime Detolf has everything from Bot Shots to MPs to 3P stuff. In the future, I think I'll have the more expensive/difficult figures behind glass.

One thing I forgot to mention is that with each figure he picked up, he would tell me whether it's an Autobot or a Decepticon based on the symbol, but he wouldn't be able to tell he who it was until he saw the head. The color scheme apparently wasn't enough to recognize Optimus until he revealed the head.