Outdoor Play Sets

Try Menards they have some great sets and they aren't overly expensive...otherwise watch the papers and Craigslist.org you will find people selling used ones. Good luck!
T.

I just bought one a little pricier then you want to spend it is a creative playthings one that I got from abcdirectshopping.com it is great and they have lots of different choices, also if you watch the website they do free shipping and free accesories aswell. Good Luck on everything.

Rainbow Play sets are great but expensive. You get great quality and service for the price. We were going to get one but the price was just way too much for us right now. We ended up getting one from Home Depot. All the boards are cut the right length. They say you can build and play in the same day. That didn't happen for us. It took maybe 2 days, but things don't always go as fast when you have children to look after! Even though it took a bit longer than they said it would take it was easy to put together. It came with a DVD and there's a helpline which we did use and they were very helpful. Our boys love it and play on it a lot. Good luck!

Happy birthday to your one year old and congrats on the upcoming wedding! I know you don't want to spend a lot of money, but if there is ANY way you can afford a Rainbow Playsystem, I HIGHLY recommend it! We got ours at the end of the summer last year and LOVE it! I wish we had done this years ago! We got it during the State Fair special and got it at almost half off! It is SOOOOO worth the money! We have a 4 yo, 5 1/2 yo, and 17 yo (well, he doesn't play with it much but I wish we had it when he was younger!) and I run a home daycare. This set has made huge differences in our family and my business. Our own kids love it and spend so much more time outside, it is awesome. A Rainbow really is worth the extra money and I could go on and on and on about how much I love it. :0) If it is at all possible, I recommend getting one. If you can't afford new, people sell them used often, so you could watch ads for that and get a good deal. Good luck.
S.

I just bought a nice woodern one at walmart for 288. They had an even bigger one for 370. They are in the store too, so you dont have to throw down the 100 for shipping. Check back all the time or call before yougo cause my local store was out and we had to go to New Richmond to get ours, but it was worth it. Its pretty nice. Also, check ebay. You can narrow your search by your area code and go pick one up. There was a nice one there last week, in Inver Grove Heights. Good luck!

Have you looked at Toys R Us ..I got an ad from them last weekend and the ones they had looed nice for a reasonable price.

If you (or anyone else reading this) is planning on building a set, I have 2 different plastic slides. They need to be washed up, but are in decent shape. FREE!

Have you checked craigslist? It's like ebay, but only local. The web sight is http://minneapolis.craigslist.org/ I typed in "swing set" and got lots of wooden sets under $400.
Best of luck!
M.

Try Walmart or Menards. When we were looking for a playset for our daughter we saw Menards had the do it yourself kits for not alot of money.

I know they do have some at Menards that aren't as expensive that you put together yourself. They're pretty easy because all of the lumber is precut and there are instructions. We're going there one of these weekends to get a big one and put it on the no interest financing so we'll have a year or 2 to pay for it. We're not so great at saving up but we can do the no interest financing great :o)
Your better bet might just be a metal one. They have some nice ones of those too. I was just looking at the Toys R Us ad the other day and they had a bunch on sale.
Otherwise you can watch the ads for a used one because people sell them all the time.
Best Wishes,
J.

If you are interested in a the trapeze bar I have one from a Rainbow swingset that I am looking to get rid of. It's yours for free if you want it. Sorry that's all I have. It was given to me for free and we hung it in a tree but moved so can't use it anymore and they are spendy.

i agree with craigslist, we just bought ours there! We wanted to spend around $400. So we could buy one new from walmart/menards and have a basic one (not the highest quality wood) or buy a really nice one that is used and get the best wood. We found one that retails new for around $1600 and got it for $400. It is solid, and is in great condition. We did look at another one that was used and it was in rough shape though. If you have a bit of time and are willing to check craigslist multiple times i would highly recommend it!

I live down by Mankato and my father in law bought one that you put together yourself and paid about $379 for it. YOu have to put it together yourself and takes one good saturday afternoon but worth it. It has two swings and one for two. a slide monkey bars. I think he got it at Menards or Home Depot

I don't know of any new that are that inexpensive, so I will check back on the answers you receive! Check craigslist, http://www.craigslist.com and click on the Minneapolis link. Also, put wanted ads. Some people will give them to you cheap or free if you haul them out yourself.