We bought this for a child's birthday gift. He LOVES it! Want to learn all about the planets

We bought this for our son's room featuring an outer space theme. I looked and looked for an outer-space-themed mobile and didn't like anything that was out there. It was either too cheap looking, flimsy, or simply didn't match what I had envisioned (a lot were alien and outer space theme, cartoon-like rockets, etc.). It had to look like the real thing, and this fit the bill. I painted all the planets and assembled the system in three days: one day to paint the colors and dry overnight, one day to paint the glow and dry overnight, and another day to assemble. There is more than enough paint to get the job done, but the paintbrush is a little cheap - although I was able to complete the mobile with what was supplied in the package. Even though I assembled everything myself, I could see older kids having fun putting this together.

The glow paint is a little faint, but that works for us. Anything brighter and I think it would keep him up at night. The finished product looks great in his room and I am pleased with it.

If you are looking for a good representation of reality, and if you don't mind assembling a mobile, including painting it, this is for you.

I purchased this for my nephew and we worked on it together. The paint was a bit thin and multiple coats would be needed (we just went with one coat). The fishing line was a little tricky and an adult had to do this part. Overall, we had a lot of fun doing this together, talking about our solar system, and laughing together. He now has a nice project to hang in his room and a great memory when he looks at it.

I didn't look closely enough at this before buying it and didn't realize I would be painting as well as assembling the mobile for my sons. I simply wanted a finished mobile as my sons like everything 'space'. I am glad I made the mistake as the painting is pretty easy and it looks great in my sons' room.

The paint dries very quickly (2 hours for a coat to dry in cold weather) so it can be completed in a short period of time.
The mobile is easy to put together. I would have preferred the string to be something other than fishing wire which requires you to knot it more than once to save it coming undone when it stretches. It is a bit fiddly but they are generous with the wire which makes life easier. If you follow the instructions it is easy to balance the mobile.

The poster that is included is a bonus. The fact that the mobile spins slowly in the slightest breeze (like closing the door) just makes it more authentic.

The only bit that really didn't work well for me was the glow in the dark paint. I must have been doing something wrong as it was too thick to apply evenly. In the end I wiped it off and went without. Painting instructions would improve the product as it primarily tells you to follow the picture on the box. A smaller brush is really needed to paint the finest areas properly. The fact that it is hanging from the ceiling (no close viewing) means that you can get away with what is provided.

Overall it is a very good product and makes learning about the solar system fun and interesting. It is a nice decoration for the room and we have fun pointing out the planets and learning what makes them different from each other. To be able to show why it is dark at night and moving on from 'the sun has gone to bed' as an explanation has been my highlight to date.

Having seen the product I will purchase it again as a birthday present for a 9 / 10 year old.

I had a great time making this with my grandson and he really enjoyed it as well.