I bought this for my 9 month old son so he could pound the balls and learn to aim with the hammer - at first he just loved to carry around the hammer! Now he's 14 months old and he is great at hitting the balls with the hammer, but the hammer doesn't stand up well to this - the wood is chipping on the edges and it won't be long before I have to make it "disappear" for his safety (splinters). The wooden balls, however, are superb. The paint hasn't chipped at all, and he loves to carry them around and throw them to watch them roll. Overall it's a good toy, though the hammer won't last long, we've gotten lots of use from it.