I bought this set in August of 2015 at the end of the season to get a better price. Finding after the set was built that the original price would have been well worth the money. I actually did not build the set until April 2016 after some rainy and cold weather kept me from starting on it as soon as I received it. After sitting for 7 months the wood was still in perfect condition and very easy to work with. While deciding which set to purchase I read and researched a lot of reviews of the set. I actually found quite a few that were really detailed and helpful, although I had to be careful because some of them were for the earlier model and the instructions are different for each one. I think the most helpful was a review that suggested using sandwich bags to separate the hardware for each step. Take time to go thru the instruction book page by page to familiarize yourself with the steps. As you do put the hardware for each step in its own baggy and label it for that step. It will take you about 4 to 5 hours to do this but it is worth it as it makes the steps go faster while actually building, not having to take time to pull the hardware for each step as you go, plus it inventories the hardware so you know if you are short on anything before starting. Separating the boards is a must. You will need a lot of space to do so. I had a space in the very back of my yard that we spread a trucker tarp to lay them on and put another over them so if it rained during construction the boards would not be sitting in water until used. As you inventory the boards, putting them in alphabetically order, then putting each letter in numerical order is very helpful with time spent building. Each step is detailed as to which boards and hardware is needed, but please be careful to pay close attention as to the orientation of the boards. Most have predrilled holes that will need to be in the right places for following steps. In some steps it is difficult to see which way the predrilled holes are supposed to go, but if you look ahead a couple steps to check where other boards might intersect with that board it will help to make it clear which way to position it. If you are careful and make sure each board is positioned correctly there is no need to drill guide holes except in the few places where the instructions actually tell you to drill a hole. The building process was easy. Being a truck driver my husband is on the road a lot so I built the set by myself. The first weekend consisted of 5 hours on Sunday, after spending Saturday separating the boards and hardware. The week was only 1 hour after work on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, got rained out on Thursday and Friday. The second weekend was 8 hours on Saturday and 6 hours on Sunday, 1hour after work on Monday, with the finishing touches (attaching the slide, rock wall, ladder and swings) being done in 1 1/2 hours after work on that Tuesday. A total of 23.5 hours. I feel like having a helper would have only been someone in the way. Having two "A" ladders was very helpful though, as I used them to hold the swing bar up while I attached it to the play-set. And it also eliminated the need to continuously move one ladder from side to side while working. I bought the optional floor that covers the sand box area. I had some issues with this part of the building process. While installing I had to cut the two end pieces, they were about 1/2 of an inch too long. I also discovered that the predrilled holes were measured incorrectly on the floor boards. When the factory drilled the holes they fell right at the edge of the board they were to be attached to instead of in the middle of it. Problem solved by screwing them in at an angle and the extra floor space allows for a bigger play area without the worry of sand and dirt. I also did not use the monkey bars, grandkids still a little young for those. Instead I called Backyard Discovery and ordered another M1 and 4 more M24s to make where the monkey bars would go enclosed like the opposite side (Step 37). Helpful suggestions: If you do get the optional floor….Do NOT install the L2 boards in step 6 (of the play set instructions). DO install the optional floor before you do step 18, in which you will have to cut O2 to fit above the floor board. I then bought a little L brace to attach O2 to the floor board. In step 55 before attaching the J2 boards it would benefit you to go to step 58 and attach the two M25 boards to the J2 boards before attaching the J2 boards to the crow’s nest bottom. If you attach the J2s first, when you go to attach the M25s the roof will be in the way of being able to screw the screws in. The only Con that I can honestly say I see with this play set is the sliding board. It was very difficult to put together and does not seem sturdy. I wish it had come with the one piece thick plastic slide I saw with some of the other sets. I do not think it will last very long. The rest of the play set is very sturdy. I weigh 190 lbs. and while constructing this set I climbed all over it. Once the second floor floorboards were installed I stood on them to continue to build the upper level of the set. I even had to climb into the crow’s nest to build part of it. None of the boards felt like they would break under my weight. After replacing one of the swings with a baby swing, all of the grandkids can and will enjoy this play set for years to come. I added some pictures of the building process.

[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] I bought this playset in February to replace a 20 year old set that my grandchildren used. I currently have two great grandchildren living here temporarily and this one fit the bill. It took me a month to assemble, as I waterproofed all parts before assembling. Well worth the extra work being in Maine, and not bad for a 63 year old great grandpa. I would definitely recommend, as the kids love it.

The Sky Fort came in just a few days which was a surprise. I found a man that had a business putting together items like this and it took him and a partner all day---but they did a nice job and the structure is amazing!!(I think it would be overwhelming for someone without construction experience??) My 3 and 5 year grandsons love it. It was a little scary at first because its so much bigger than their current little plastic swing set. But they are having a blast now. I really like the glider for the little guy---he can get it going all by himself! It is well made, sturdy and looks great in the yard.

Good product that looks like its pictures. Two "moderately" skilled guys spent three full days assembling. Only missing one board (a P1) and three screws (for the slide). Everything comes in effectively four boxes (there's actually five, but the slide occupies one box by itself). Hardware is well labeled and sorted in plastic bags, lots of different sizes and shapes, so keep everything you aren't using at the moment in its respective bag. Only real criticism is the fact that all of the boards, and there are a lot of them, come with ink stamps that vary from clear to indistinguishable to no where to be found. The boards are however well documented in the directions as to what you're looking for so though frustrating you can work around the poor stamping when it occurs. Be sure you level the base right from the beginning and use a level then and thereafter! Grandkids love it, so all the trials and tribulations of building were ultimately worth it, enjoy!

I work as a commercial construction superintendent and read blueprints as a daily part of my job. The design of the plans leaves a lot to be desired. First off as many others have complained the marking on the pieces is of poor quality and barely legible. there are many pieces that have multiple punched holes, some only pilot holes but the plans do not clearly indicate which way these pieces go in. even after using my skills at reasoning to put the pieces in place I still had a couple of pieces in wrong and had to re-drill new holes to complete the assembly. .If the pieces were marked on one end with the top of the marking to be the top of the board and then the piece mark to be at one end shown on the plans this would make this much easier to assemble. The prep for the crows nest ended up in between boards instead of the middle of a board. I double checked what I did and it matched the plans. I had to modify the assembly as I did not feel that it would be safe. I want to let everyone know this set is a lot less expensive than others on the market and you can see why when you get your kit. the wood is thin and it will need to be treated often to prevent it from splitting and cracking. I completed the assembly in about 20 hours with a little help from a friend finding the pieces and gathering the bolts needed and would say that is about the time anyone with a little building knowledge should expect to spend putting this up. I would say it is not bad deal for what I paid for it and the time it took to put up but I would guess it will only last about 4 to 5 years with good maintenance.

We have had this playset for about a year. I researched playsets for what felt like an eternity and finally settled on this one because of reviews and features as well as cost. My husband put it together himself with a little help from me and a couple brother-in-laws but did most of the work himself. It took him about two solid days, however, he had little difficulty. Instructions and parts were clear which made it easier. My kids love it!! It is very solid and does not rock at all even with 5 plus kids on it and all swings being used at once. It looks just as good now as it did a year ago. We made a great choice and would recommend it to anyone!!!

I took about 2 years looking up all different swing sets and always came back to this one. This swing set had everything we were looking for good rating, swings, glider, sandbox picnic table lg. slide, monkey bars, rock wall really cute club house with the skyfort, and a ladder in back. The time to put this swing set is very accurate about 20 + hours with 2 knowledgeable people. My husband and I sent our daughter to her friends house, Thurs night. Fri. morning we got started with her gone we got most of it done but the following day we had her back and our grandson and nephew, and we barely got anything done but we spent sunday finishing it up. There are 103 steps to putting it together, and the directions are very understandable. The set once put together seems huge, but its a very attractive, fun great set. Some of our friends thought we spent like $3000 on it, but we told them how much and they were shocked. This set is very sturdy, very atttractive, has everything plus more, for the price you cannot go wrong, you will not be able to find another set that has everything like this one does for the same price. Our 3 year old loves it and it truley is like having a park in your own back yard.

My husband and I had already bought a smaller one room playhouse by this same manufacturer and we were reluctant to add another piece so large, but it was a HUGE hit. We bought this set for our 5 year old daughter, but once built we found that all of the neighborhood kids (and some of our family friends up to age 12) joined in the fun. Plan a long weekend to put it together, but expect outstanding customer support. We were missing a couple of pieces which were immediately replaced by the manufacturer. TIPS: 1) Seperate your pieces and take inventory right away. 2) Be careful not to over-tighten the green double swing unit. I don't recommend using a power tool on that one. 3) Spray the pieces front and back with a sealer BEFORE assembly. We assembled and had to seal after the fact. Bad plan. It's a lot of work afterwords. Do the work on the front end and save time and effort plus take care of the task more efficiently and effectively.

We have had this swing set for a year and when we purchased it, my husband worried about buying such and expensive swing set, but I can tell you that we now both agree that it is worth every penny. It has enough to do on it that the kids don't get board. They play on it constantly. We have needed a few replacement parts, but the company has been great about getting them to us. We are very satisfied with this purchase.

The Skyfort II is great for our kids, currently 7 and 3. They enjoy each level and having their own clubhouse, fort, and lookout. We ordered it just prior to the pandemic and built in the first month of quarantine. It was great for them to have some place to play when parks were shut down. However, building the Skyfort II was a complicated process. Due to work and weather issues, we had to break up the work on it. But it took double the amount of time than what the instructions estimate. There were some boards to split a little during the building process and several that needed holes drilled into them, rather than them having pre-drilled. Since it’s been built my kids and several big kids have played on it. And it has also weathered 3-4 bad thunderstorms. So, it’s proving it’s stability and durability.