some very minor drawbacks, but still a great unit for a great price
Once finished, the bed looks really nice and is extremely sturdy. The slanted ladder is a huge plus compared to the vertical ladders with thin rungs that hurt your feet on many other designs. Wish it had been available in a lighter finish to match our boys existing furniture a bit better, but the high quality and low price still made this an excellent choice for us. My only negative comments would be related to the directions. Theres not a word in them - just pictures. For some parts, there is definitely a specific order you need to assemble the components, but the pictures just show them assembled as if everything goes together simultaneously, so you may have to loosen things up once in a while to fit other parts in, then re-tighten. The labeling of parts is also a bit confusing the paper shows parts A1, A2, A3, and A4 - theyre virtually identical, but only one of the physical parts has an A2 sticker on it and youre left to deduce which is which for the remaining parts. This happens in each of the 3 main assembly steps the As, Bs and Cs. It helps to scan ahead to the later pictures to see what attaches where in the later steps so you get the right piece in the right places in the earlier steps. I have a lot of experience putting together kit furniture, so I avoided many of the potential pitfalls, but I could definitely see a less experienced person getting fouled up several times. There also wasnt a single screw left over from the hardware kit. I usually like to see an extra piece of each major type of hardware, just in case one is damaged or left out by accident. There were not shortages, but we needed every single piece in the bag, so it was a bit of a concern as we approached the end. There was also what Id describe as a shoe polish smell that took about a week to dissipate, but not so bad that my child complained about it. Its solid wood except for the slats, which are plywood and numerous and very sturdy - the foam mattress lays over them very smoothly. The suggested weight limit for the top bunk is 165lbs, but Im 180lbs and my son is around 55lbs, and we have no problems at all lying in the top bunk reading together each night. Overall, for all the minor inconveniences, its still a very high quality unit for a very reasonable price. I wouldnt hesitate to get another bed if we ever needed another set of bunks.
some very minor drawbacks, but still a great unit for a great price
Once finished, the bed looks really nice and is extremely sturdy. The slanted ladder is a huge plus compared to the vertical ladders with thin rungs that hurt your feet on many other designs. Wish it had been available in a lighter finish to match our boys existing furniture a bit better, but the high quality and low price still made this an excellent choice for us. My only negative comments would be related to the directions. Theres not a word in them - just pictures. For some parts, there is definitely a specific order you need to assemble the components, but the pictures just show them assembled as if everything goes together simultaneously, so you may have to loosen things up once in a while to fit other parts in, then re-tighten. The labeling of parts is also a bit confusing the paper shows parts A1, A2, A3, and A4 - theyre virtually identical, but only one of the physical parts has an A2 sticker on it and youre left to deduce which is which for the remaining parts. This happens in each of the 3 main assembly steps the As, Bs and Cs. It helps to scan ahead to the later pictures to see what attaches where in the later steps so you get the right piece in the right places in the earlier steps. I have a lot of experience putting together kit furniture, so I avoided many of the potential pitfalls, but I could definitely see a less experienced person getting fouled up several times. There also wasnt a single screw left over from the hardware kit. I usually like to see an extra piece of each major type of hardware, just in case one is damaged or left out by accident. There were not shortages, but we needed every single piece in the bag, so it was a bit of a concern as we approached the end. There was also what Id describe as a shoe polish smell that took about a week to dissipate, but not so bad that my child complained about it. Its solid wood except for the slats, which are plywood and numerous and very sturdy - the foam mattress lays over them very smoothly. The suggested weight limit for the top bunk is 165lbs, but Im 180lbs and my son is around 55lbs, and we have no problems at all lying in the top bunk reading together each night. Overall, for all the minor inconveniences, its still a very high quality unit for a very reasonable price. I wouldnt hesitate to get another bed if we ever needed another set of bunks.