NWR - shopping help for grandchild

CMGragain

My daughter wants a swing set for 3 year old grandson and grandson soon to be.  The really nice ones seem to cost $1500, which is more than I want to spend.  We are currently looking at a Backyard Discovery set which is designed for young children.  Does anybody have any advice?

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Backyard-Discovery-Weston-Cedar-Swing-Set/22861792

ernursej

I'm not sure how easy this would be, but my sister and her husband found their playset on Kijiji for cheap and it was barely used. I hesitate to pay full price for most things.

SP29

It looks like a nice set- my only question would be, what is the weight capacity? I didn't see it listed on the website (but I skimmed). I ask because, is it a set the children can continue to use when they are 10/12 years old? Even as a teenager, my friends and I would go to the park and swing, while we chatted.

With the weight capacity, can it hold a few kids on it? I remember the basic metal frame sets were common when I was young, but you could rock the feet off the ground if you had 2+ older kids really swinging on it. That might happen with any set, but something to consider if this set is designed for small children.

cgss11

Oh gosh, the metal swing set comment is giving me flashbacks. We had an A frame one in our yard as kids and we always tried to see how high we could get it to rock off the ground. 

CMGragain

Metal swing sets are not allowed in their community.  They must be wood.
I think the kids will move to a larger house in 8 to 10 years.  If the grandkids take after our side of the family, fifth grade will be the limit.  If they take after son-in-law's side, no problem.  Right now, #1 is three years old, and #2 is due in June.
I would love to give them a more expensive set, but DH doesn't like the idea.

ahoywedding

@cgss11 YES! We totally did the same thing. I think my dad even participated.

@CMGragain I used to work in Walmart in the toy dept and at that time their swing sets were nothing fancy but typically held up fairly well and we had little to no complaints about them. Cedar is a pretty solid choice and that one looks quite safe and stable.

Heffalump

We actually had a Backyard Discovery set at our old house.  DH pretreated every single piece before assembly, and it held up well.  However, it was never really the same after we moved, and now we're replacing it.  (In retrospect, we should have probably just left it, but it was in such good shape that we figured it would be fine to move.)  So assuming they're planning to stay put, I would go for it--I thought it was a really good value compared to Rainbow et al. and it was perfect until the move.

kvruns

I can't imagine paying $1500 for a play set!!! That one looks nice as long as it would be ok for the kids when they are a few years older.

banana468

I think  and our playset was $1000.   When you think of all those smaller wood pieces and the supporting structure the cost adds up.

The only concern I'd have is how much weight those swings can hold.   I'm not sure about your daughter but I'm on the swings with the kids sometimes and I'd want to feel safe that I'm not about to take a tumble. 

I think Consumer Reports may have the ratings out there of the companies. 

CMGragain

We checked Consumer Reports, but had no luck finding any ratings.  My daughter is 6 feet tall. and weighs 200 lbs, (pregnant) so she knows she won't be able to swing on those swings.
Daughter is currently filing for a permit to set up a swingset in her backyard.  Yeah - HOAs can be a bitch.
Thank you, everybody!