Solar System Mobile by Authentic Models, Educational Planets Model, Multicolor Space Decor for Baby, Kids, and Adults, Large Decoration for Astronomy and Science Enthusiasts, Easy to Hang and Assemble

Santa hung this up in my son's room while he slept, which was no easy task. Practically a scene from Mission: Impossible. The assembly is best done with two people - one to attach the wires together and hang planets, and another to hold pieces in place so nothing gets tangled. It can be done with just one person, but you'll need patience with it.The first thing you should know is that this is not a toy for playing with, but a model for observation, learning, and just looking cool. The planets and the entire display itself is held up by very thin strands of string/thread. This is so they don't distract from the planets, making the string appear "invisible", and easily allowing you to imagine the planets floating in space rather than dangling. For similar effect, the metal wires are also thin, making it all too easy for things to bounce around.The pamphlet doesn't give any instructions for hanging, so I thought I'd write something up to help out anyone without prior experience.1. Pick up some hooks from your local hardware store - ones with a wood screw shaft. I chose the ones that are coated in rubber because the string is thin and a metal hook might (over time) break through it. Hooks are typically in the hardware section with all the other screws, nuts, and bolts. Chat with an employee if you have questions about this process.2. Find a joist in the ceiling so the hook goes into wood and not just drywall. Then, drill a pilot hole into the joist using a drill bit with a diameter slightly smaller than the screw portion of the hook.3. Hand-screw the hook into the pilot hole until the thread of the screw portion is no longer visible. If using the rubber coated hook, the metal portion won't be visible and the rubber portion will be touching the drywall above. DON'T overtighten. Give a gentle tug on the hook to ensure it bit the wood and the model won't come crashing down after you hang it.4. Determine how far down you want the model to hang and unwind the thread from the white tag to match. Keep the excess thread on the white tag and do not remove it. It will help keep the thread in place while you tie the knots.5. Double or triple knot the thread around the hook, sliding the white tag through the loops. Keep holding the model up while doing so as the thread will have a tendency to slide through the knot and the model will lower slowly. After your second or third knot, the model will stay in place. I recommend at least three knots. You can then hook the white tag with the excess thread onto the hook through the tag's hole. This let's you keep the excess thread without cutting it off in case you wanted to move it or lower it later.4. Hang the planets according to the instructions. Your planet strings might have Venus labeled twice by mistake, with Earth missing. Refer to the instructions pamphlet as it tells you where Earth and Venus truly goes.5. If the balance of one metal wire is off by a little bit, wrap a couple paperclips around a pen, remove the lighter weighted planet and place the paperclips on top so they're sitting around the planet's hook. Rehang the planet. Add more paperclips if necessary.

It is huge. My space obsessed child had been hoping for this for a long time. We finally got it for a special birthday gift. It’s beautiful! It’s very nice and I know she’ll enjoy it for a long time - even if she outgrows the “space” thing. It’s classy and cool - and everyone loves it.Easy to assemble and arrived in perfect condition. Glad we bought it!

We are changing our nursery into a more toddler-appropriate space, and since our little guy is all about rockets and robots I went looking for a solar system mobile to go with his solar system themed bedding from Land of Nod. At first I thought I would try to make my own, but then I found this one. I was a little hesitant given the price, but I think it is completely worth it. The planets seem sturdy (our little guy couldn't keep his hands off them when we were assembling it), it is all wonderfully balanced, and the wire arms and strings virtually disappear when it is installed. I like that it is big and bold without being unwieldy, and it doesn't look cheesy or juvenile. I like that the planets are covered with photos of the actual planets' surfaces. You can see the seams, but I don't really mind that. My only complaint is that one arm did not seem to fit together too securely (you just push the ends together) but a little glue will fix that if needed, and it seems to be holding so far while hung despite coming apart multiple times while we were assembling it. Overall, we couldn't be happier with this.

I purchased this for our second child's nursery, and I am so pleased with the model. It is large, but it fits very nicely in the 9' x 11' room without overtaking it. The planets are well made, it was very easy to put together - it took under 20 minutes, and I love how it gives dimension to the room without being too obtrusive in the space.My only complaint is that it didn't come with a built-in mechanism for hanging. It comes with a very long string, and I haven't yet determined what is the best way to hang the model while preserving the length of string for future adjustments. This concern stems from experience with our first child and her mobile, which she promptly ripped down from the ceiling during nap time once she graduated to a big girl bed and discovered the joy of jumping. This was pure unforeseen error on our part, but we won't be fooled again!

This solar system mobile is overall pretty good. It's a little pricy, but better than other less expensive mobiles. The planets have what are essentially individual sections of printed photos of the actual (real) planets glued onto them. If you look at the planets up close you can clearly see the printed slices/sections that are slightly overlapping each other to create the effect of a complete photo-realistic planet. This has a positive and negative aspect to it. If you standing close to the planets, they look somewhat hand made. However, at a distance they actually look quite nice. It seems that the company that makes this solar system mobile is manufacturing them in relatively small quantities. This clearly limits the manufacturing process to a small scale, hand built design. If a big toy manufacturer was to make something similar, they could probably make the planets more realistic looking up close, but that would only be feasible if they sold tens of thousands. Anyhow, considering the limitations in the design of this niche product, it overall looks pretty good. One thing to be aware of is it's size. It may not be obvious from the photo's, but once it's hanging in a room, it is close to 5 or 6 feet across between the two widest points. It's also close to two feet from top to bottom. Keep that in mind when deciding where to put it, or whether to buy it. Lastly, make sure you have a hook in your ceiling that you can secure the string to. And make sure there is room for the planets to move, since they will move with the natural air flow in your room.