Lifetime Adjustable Basketball Hoop (54-Inch Polycarbonate)

I liked the larger backboard size (54 inches) relative to others …
I had researched many different portable hoops before deciding on the Lifetime XL. I liked the larger backboard size (54 inches) relative to others in the same price range. I purchased it from Amazon (not a third party) and only paid $220, which I consider a bargain. Amazon delivered the hoop to my doorstep in less than a week.I consider myself fairly handy when it comes to assembling products – this hoop took me 2.5 hours to assemble. It would have gone a bit faster if I had a second adult to assist. I thought the instructions were fine, in fact much better than many products where the instructions seem to be a literal translation from chinese to english.We filled it with sand so as to avoid the potential of the water freezing during the winter and subsequently cracking the plastic base. Once filled the base is substantial yet easy enough for an adult to move over pavement (trying to move in the grass was a two person job).My children (15 year old daughter and 9 year old son) enjoy the height adjustability. Both of them are able to adjust the height by themselves with no difficulty. The backboard is a bit flimsy when compared to a high school gym backboard but I expected this when considering the very reasonable price ($220). The orange rim is very substantial and solid – a pleasant surprise. When a ball hits the rim the ball deflects off with no movement of the rim itself.So, overall an excellent product that will encourage my kids to set down their electronic devices and get some fresh air and exercise! 🙂

Assembly a little frustrating but worth it
The system arrived promptly in perfect condition. After laying out the parts, I discovered 2 wrong bolts & nuts. This was easily remedied by calling Lifetime & within 4 days I had the correct parts. Caution- 2 of the nuts (3/8″) are listed as 2 needed. However, about 8 steps into assembly, you realize that 2 are called for on one page & 2 are called for on a subsequent page. We made a fast Home Depot run and 32 cents later (plus MUCH more expensive gas) and we were back on the job. I highly recommend laying out the parts in order of the instruction pages (NOT how I did it) as you’ll find a couple of parts that you DON’T need at all on the parts list (believe me I checked and re-checked). Apparently the parts list is old or poorly matched to the current kit. In any case, assembly was a bit frustrating at times. The diagrams aren’t nearly as detailed as the parts page (you expect a rim on a nut or a curved end to a pole arm, but it isn’t in the diagram- so you doubt the part). That said, the instructions weren’t terrible & there were lots of steps (39.5) which helps simplify things slightly. All in all, it took two of us about 5-6 hours total to assemble it (we had 3 pieces that had to be removed and installed the correct way – i.e. aligned holes wrong based on only a partial diagram). I’m not the handiest person, so perhaps that’s part of it. The hole and bottom pole installation was easy, but I did end up needing 8 50# bags of concrete for the accurate level of concrete. I used the 10 minute post concrete, this may have contributed… The system itself is great. It looks and feels nice. There’s some give on the backboard and rim with shots, but for under $400, I’m very impressed. The height adjustment is VERY easy to operate. The 6 year old can even do so one handed. In summary, plan ahead – 3 days (+) for the concrete to truly cure & at least 1/2 a day for part layout, assembly and installation. Then, enjoy this great system for the money.

After reading many people’s experience on the installation of this hoop, many saying it takes 4+ hours and some saying even ALL Day, I went with the route of posting an AD on Kijiji for assistance, and I am soo glad I did. I offered $150 and over 10 people responded. I called up some people and had a nice guy come to help. Unfortunately it went south right from the start. Here is my tale. When he first started, the poles were not aligned correctly, and stuck together almost permanently. No amount of MacGyver skill will bail you out of this situation. THANKFULLY, after calling customer service, they recommended to drop the combined poles on the ground horizontally 40 times on a blanket, and they would separate. After 30 LOUD drops scaring the crap out of all neighbors, the poles did separate. Also customer service offered to send me free replacement poles if this didn’t work. This impressed the hell out of me. KUDOS to this company. 2 hours later, I needed to assist as this in NOT a one man job. I held the partially assembled backboard and reclining poles, and when the weight of the backboard fell to one side, my fingers got caught in the reclining mechanism, causing the middle finger to squish out the meat of my finger bursting out from flesh, creating a 1.5 inch gash. I thought I actually lost my finger. I then managed to push all the flesh of my finger back into the skin and then sit and stare at the mangled flesh, thinking about how the hell I will continue project managing my $20 million IT project the next morning. Luckily the “shock” subsided and I decided to just drive myself to the hospital for minor surgery and stiches. The next day, my contractor was happy to come back and finish the job for another $150. I also had a buddy help out and didn’t accept his refusal for $100 for the favor. All in all $450 for the hoop, $400 for labour, minor surgery on middle finger, and the happiness watching the kids play on a sturdy top of the line portable hoop, that is moderately mobile even after filled with water = Priceless. Lessons learned: don’t build this yourself unless you have plenty of non-billable time and 2 teenaged sons to help you and you are over 6 feet tall and love putting together 100 metal parts for 4 hours.

My two boys (ages 14 and 17) put it together. It took several hours but they figured it out and they love it!