Customer Reviews

Rand Mcnally Us Wall Map (M Series U.S.A. Wall Maps) 50"x32"

5 star:		(31)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I purchased this and the "World Map" together from Amazon, since they are made by the same company on the same material, much of my review will be the same:

I was hunting for maps large enough for a 6 and 10 year old to look at and comprehend, but cheap enough to be replaced once things change or the kids did too much damage to it.

The positives - this map is correct, it's large (we tacked them up in the hallway to the kids' rooms) and it's very colorful, which is good for 6 year olds. It has time zones, capitals, waterways, and mountain ranges all clearly marked

The negatives - it's not laminated, now if I was buying this for myself that would be fine, but the paper is also some strange form of paper that attracts and holds small sticky fingerprints. Being maps, little fingers are naturally attracted like magnets.

If you are making the purchase for an adult or a classroom, or if you intend to frame it, then I highly recommend this map. If you are buying for little ones, I'd spend the extra money to get a laminated version.

One last note - if you purchase from Amazon, they are not particularly well packed. They put them in a tube that is too large for the map so it bangs around and the ends get a bit bent up. Also they don't tape the ends of the tube so I had to have a second one sent after my first tube arrived empty and without ends on it. (It was actually the world map that was missing from the tube, but this one was packed in the same manner)

The map is great and the packaging was also good.

I would give it 5 stars, but the lamination was a bit of a let down. When I read laminated, I think those laminating pages that you put on a paper and then send through a machine, resulting in a heavy, near indestructible page. This lamination is fine for writing or whatever, but it's very thin and wouldn't stand up to much abuse.

Not necessarily a fault. Just FYI to anyone else looking at it.

The map itself is quite nice, which is the only thing keeping me from giving this a one-star rating. Two things really stand out, and most other reviewers have already noted these:

- this product is shipped in an envelope, not a cardboard tube like the world map from swiftmap that I ordered (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0006I59E8/ref=oss_product). Officemap really needs to fix this because my map arrived with all sorts of crinkles in it. If it weren't such a hassle, I would return the map.

- the lamination is not true lamination -- it's more like what you get when you buy inexpensive glossy photo paper for your inkjet printer, if not thinner. I won't be using any dry-erase markers on this map unless I cover it with plexiglass or some other laminate.

This map is easy to read and laid out well. It is also easy to write on this map with dry erase markers. This makes it very useful.

This is a great product, a very large map with many details and cities of the U.S. Lamination is a nice protection feature. I got another map with no lamination and it's bad already.

This map is ideal for kids bedrooms and offices. You will need a poster holder or a very large frame in order to put on the wall.

This map is 32" tall and 51" wide, displays timezones, parks and roads, and has very vibrant colors. Other reviewers mentioned the paper was too thin, but for the cost and size of the map I think it's fine. I would compare it to butcher paper.

To frame a map this large would have been expensive, so I went to my local craft store and bought (2) 38x40 (the largest size I could find) 3/16" thick adhesive-backed white foam boards. Starting in the left-hand corner, I attached the map to the first foam board, and then cut the second foam board to fit the last 11" of the map. If you match the 2 foam board pieces up tightly, you won't be able to see the seam when you hang the map. A piece of masking tape on the backside helps too.

Instead of nails I used (6) 3M adhesive tabs to hang it. You can usually find these in any picture frame/hook aisle. I hung it in a high-traffic hallway upstairs. I am amazed at how long my kids stay and study it.

The 3/16" foam board is also great because it provides the cushion needed to add push-pins. Everyone in our household has their own colored push-pin and we've marked each location we have visited. If all 4 of us went on a family trip, that's also a different color push pin. (It's a good idea to make a key in the left hand corner of the map so you remember who's color is who's.)

I am currently volunteer tutor in an adult GED prep class. The students had only a world map, that was not sufficient to study US geography. The instructor can use a dry erase marker to illustrate such things as The Mason-Dixon Line, The Cumberland Trail, and The Appalachian Trail, than erase the marks when no longer needed. It is an invaluable tool in any classroom.

I have this map displayed in my cubicle at work and it has proved to be a great reference and conversation piece. It's a good size and very colorful. I especially like that it came rolled in a tube instead of folded. It's easy to read and just interesting to look at. People stop by my desk often to talk about where they have been and where they'd like to go and ask me the same. It's a good way to brush up on U.S. geography at any age!

The map itself is excellent. It is very colorful and the states are clear and simple to read. However the way it was sent damaged it so that when I took it out of the box it had crease marks. I was a bit disappointed as you can see it when you look at it on the wall.

This map was exactly what I was looking for. We, as a family, wanted to keep track of all our travels and this map is just right. It is large, colorful, easy to read, and already laminated which allows us to put stickers or pictures of our visits without damaging the map. This would be a great addition to a child's room, classroom, or framed for an office or study.