Customer Reviews

Solar System Mobile Kit

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

No children... bought this mobile for my office, I'm setting my sights on the final frontier. A better mobile might exist, but I never found it. The mobile consists of cardstock photos from NASA; I would not say it is durable, but it hangs from the ceiling so that should not be a deterent... as children should probably not be hanging from the ceiling anyway. It's easy to put together if you have two sets of hands and hangs beautifully once in place. Unlike a lot of the other mobiles I saw, this one has a sun... nice touch. I would highly recommend this product. The world needs more mobiles.

I wish that I would have paid more attention to the previous reviewer's comment about this mobile not being very durable. I bought this mobile for my 6 year old son. I loved the fact that they used NASA pictures. This mobile was by far the most attractive looking solar system kit out there that I saw when I was shopping around. There's another kit that has 3D balls that looked very fake and cheap to me. To assemble this mobile you have to use 8 metal rods that you insert into tiny holes. Well, as soon as I would apply the smallest amount of pressure to insert the metal rod into the hole, the rod would bend. By the time I was done inserting all 8 rods, then I had to hang each planet from a rod. Here again, every time I touched one of the metal rods, it would fall out of the tiny hole and I would have to re-insert it. By the time I was done the rods looked really bad. The pros about this mobile are that it is educational (it comes with a poster full of great facts that my son loves reading), the pictures on the planets and sun are beautiful to look at (the detail is amazing), and it uses thread instead of fishing line like other solar system sets out there, which makes this set very easy to hang. The cons are that it is very flimsy and a pain to assemble. But once I actually got the mobile up and all the rods straightened out, I was happy with the way it looked. I'm just hoping my son doesn't shut his bedroom door too quickly causing a big gust of air to knock those metal rods out again!

The thin threads that you hang the planets with started breaking the day after Christmas(we hung it on Christmas day). My grandson wanted the mobile in his room where there is an overhead fan, and he was very excited that the planets "moved around the sun" when we got it put up! Because of the constant motion, the threads broke quickly. I wish it had been a bit more sturdy. Perhaps the thread could be replaced with nylon thread? The rods *do* bend, but my grandchildren didn't seem to mind! All in all, it was a hit.......but very short lived.

I searched for this product because I had a previous, smaller mobile with NASA photos of the planets and the sun. The pictures are beautiful but it is not easy to assemble if you follow the directions. If you don't follow the directions as noted below, the mobile appears very crowded, but still shows all the gorgeous photos.

If you follow the suggestion of the previous reviewer and use the longer wires pushed halfway through the holes, assembly becomes much easier. If you push the wires through the larger holes instead of the smaller holes, you don't bend the wires at all. I used small rubber bands to secure the wire placements so I could adjust the wires to make the mobile level after the planets were tied on. I also substituted nylon fishing line for the line to the ceiling and between the hubs, because my previous mobile fell down when a hummingbird trapped in my classroom landed on the mobile and broke the thread. Normal classroom breezes will tangle the mobile, but not break it. After a week in the classroom, I would like to add: get help to use all the wires. The extra distance between the planets will prevent tangling if you put the planets at the end of the wires. Don't forget the plastic caps!

I would also like to suggest using a yardstick extended from a counter, weighted on one end with books, to suspend the mobile while under construction.

In the photo, it looks like each planet is a ball. However they are just round prints on flat paper, each turned to the camera for a misleading picture.

Shipping is so expensive that it wasn't even worth returning it for a refund.

My wife and I had a little trouble assembling this mobile, and I think this is definitely a two-person job. There wasn't any extra string, and I didn't have the dexterity to tie the small knots. The rods were difficult to insert, and my wife didn't have the hand strength to push them in.

Several people have commented on the difficulty of inserting the rods. You can do this without bending them if you use vice grips to hold the rod while inserting. They are definitely too small to grip with your fingers, and they require quite a bit of pressure to insert fully. I used needle-nosed vice grips and they went in like a charm. Once inserted, I haven't had a rod come out yet.

In order to have the mobile hang in a balanced way, you have to match planets of similar size and put them on opposite sides (e.g. Jupiter opposite Saturn).

We put the mobile up in late winter (cold weather, windows closed), but when spring arrived and we opened the windows, the string holding up the mobile broke. I've recently purchased a fishing swivel and fishing line to hang this again, but I haven't had the chance to test my design. I think the manufacturer should have used stronger string and that they should have included some extra string.

My 3 year old loves this in her bedroom. We have glow-in-the-dark stars [...]

I bought this as part of a Halloween costume (I'm Uranus so I wanted the other planets around me) but it's a shame to turn it into a costume and wear to a loud obnoxious party. It's a really nice, well constructed model with the images printed on both sides, in clear, vivid colors and realistic shapes. There's also tons of good information on the solar system on the poster included. Someone should buy this for a kid to learn, not just for a dumb joke costume!!

I can't believe how difficult it is to find a darn solar system mobile. Cardboard cutouts?? I could've made one and it would look better.
Don't bother with this.

The other reviewers are right on the money when they say this product is flimsy. After I finally managed to tie the thin threads (which you have to cut yourself), I bent the rods when trying to secure them in the tiny little holes in the plastic hubs. Finally got those rods straightened only to have them fall out when the most gentle touch was applied. I gave up at this point and put this tangled mess away for a time when I have some more patience. Only buy this if you have the time and presence of mind to muddle with the unforgiving materials. There has to be a better way!

SAD
POORLY CONSTRUCTED WITH BASIC MATERIALS PRICE SHOULD REFLECT COST TO BUILD.
TOSSED IN TRASH IN 3 MONTHS AFTER IT FELL APART