I purchased this 17 months ago. However, due to bad weather conditions, I was not able to get it assembled and in place until last fall, thus it has now been installed for a period of 8 months - through the winter, a very warm but wet winter/spring. Overall, I was very pleased with the quality, especially since it is somewhat more costly than competitor's models. I loved the fasteners provided. Overall the markings on the boards was good although I did have a couple of problems with the wrong board being shipped. In one case, I trimmed the edge off a couple of boards that were too wide; in another case, the board was too short and I had to have the company ship me another board, which they did promptly. I did pre-coat each board (as recommended by the manufacturer) with a semi-transparent exterior coating, dipping the end of each board into the paint bucket to ensure a good coating on the ends. Of course this was quite time consuming but worth it in the long run as the coating supplied by the manufacturer is merely a stain and not a weather-resistant coating. I have seen the same product nearby that the customer did not coat and within a year it is beginning to look quite weathered while mine looks as pristine as the day I put it together. I did bury an 8 x 12 x 4 concrete block under each significant ground contact point, making sure they were solid and level. I then added my own turnbuckles and eyebolts to ensure the set did not move or "jump." Also, we purposely left off one roof panel (next to the crow's nest) to provide more light to the playhouse. In addition, I placed a kids picnic table in the lower floor area in that the manufacturer's design of the picnic table blocks off the access to the floor area except to climb over the wall or go through the sandbox. The only aggravating issue I had with the entire experience were the drawings in the instruction book used to assemble the swing set. I called the company about this and provided written documentation to them regarding the issue. They said they were glad I called as well as provided pictures and written descriptions - by part number, but I can't say for sure they ever made any corrections to the instruction book. Overall, the instructions were detailed and properly progressive. The biggest problem, in addition to a couple of times where the instructions were in actual error, was that the graphic renderings were confusing. I am sure they looked really good on a CAD screen but when they were printed, hidden lines disappeared making it look like a part that was behind another part look like it is in front of the part, causing me numerous times to assemble a subassembly only to have to take it apart and reassemble it in the opposite location - no easy task given the hardware provided. I found that if I consulted the next step or two in the process, the rendering there actually often provided a truer picture of the prior subassembly than the one supposedly depicting the subassembly. I doubt the company fixed this even though I brought it up to them more than once. So, watch your step and don't get in a hurry or think you understand how a subassembly goes together until you check ahead in the book.

I bought this swing set a month ago and my grandkids absolutely love it. I am so glad that we purchased it for them. We also have a 7 yr old special needs son that we can add a swing for and there is plenty of space to put his swing so that he can play with his nieces and nephew.

Wanted something to help get the kids out of the house more when the weather was nice. We live so far away from the closest park, so I wanted something close to home, so we got this play set. A neighbor and I put it together in a few afternoons and we had no problems. Once up, it looks really good and the kids really love it!

We knew absolutely nothing about wooden playsets before this purchase. We shopped around a little online but not a lot. We found this one online and ordered it. Shipping was fast and we had planned on having the local store installers come out and put it up but we changed our mind and did it ourselves. My husband does not have a lot of carpentry skills or patience when it comes to things like this and we got it up with very few issues. My boys love it and will play on it for years!

Overall very satisfied. Took about 20 total hours to put together including leveling and putting the hold-down stakes in the ground. Happy to report all the pieces were there which somewhat amazed me given the number of pieces of wood and hardware required to assemble. A couple of minor errors in the instructions. There were some slight differences between the color photo and the actual set. Color photo on instructions showed a small window on the gable in the front but instructions had it installed in back.

We purchased this for our daughter for Christmas (2010) and she Is already in heaven!! I started assembly Christmas night and finished this morning. I have to say I don't know what all the fuss is about, I assembled this by myself ( and I'm no skilled artisan, I am 5 months pregnant, and dont like to get my hands dirty) it took about 16 solid hours. The instructions are very thorough if you actully read them, more than just the pictures :). And if you go into this with a clear idea of two full days of work, you won't get frustrated or hopeless. As others have mentioned I would STRONGLY suggest inventorying all you pieces ahead of time, and alphabetize them(and numerical order), preferably somewhere flat and free of clutter/debris ( like a garage floor) start with A's on the left, finish with S's on the right, it's only 4 boxes of wood, it'll take about 2 hours with 1 person, and will save you days!! I promise, do the same with your hardware and screws, keep lag screws together, wood screws together, hex bolts together, and washers, those are used most . I would personally suggest an electric drill for the sake of power, speed, and less bulk( you will be doing a lot of pilot holes in thick wood) but if you have multiple batteries for a cordless, go for it. This product is Amazing, Ive never seen my daughters eyes light up like this! It's simple but timely assembly, and one thing after another of magic and surprises for the kids, not to mention plenty roomy and spacious for adults to play along too! A must buy!!

[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] My husband is a retired builder and he enjoyed the challenge to put this puzzle together. We appreciated the great directions and the fact that Every Part was included in the packaging! The six year old grands Love it.

[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] This item was purchase 6 months ago. Other than taking a little bit of time to assemble, instruction were really clear and easy to follow steps. Perfect for the kids to spends hours outdoors in fresh air.

We purchased this for our grandkids at there new house and we couldn't be happier with the purchase. Being a builder I found the assembly instruction to be more than sufficient and easy to follow. We sorted out all the pieces and hardware before we started and that was very helpful. The quality was very good and the kids are now having hours of fun.

I just purchased this set for my grandsons and paid the extra money to have it assembled so this 'quality' play set was installed properly. The installers did a horrible job, striped nails, unstable perch, splintered wood etc. But I was also extremely disappointed by the quality of the set itself. Supposedly it is a cedar set but yet the roof shingles are made out of extremely poor 'wood' more like balsa wood, you scrape it with your fingernail and the 'wood' stain comes off. Because the wood is so soft, the install quality was extremely poor. I did A LOT of research before purchasing but had I seen the set in person, I would not have paid the extra money. DO NOT BUY IT OR HAVE IT INSTALLED.