Monday 23 February 2009

Patio Furniture - strathwood, patio furniture


Unit arrived in huge 5 foot by 4 foot box weighing 150 lbs. Upon inspection the hardware and instructions to build the table were missing. After building the love seat and one of the chairs, the second chair had a defective bolt insert that resulted in a bolt breaking off inside of the insert, rendering the chair useless. Customer service of the manufacturer says that they have no parts to sent as a replacement and that I need to return it. So, I need to disassemble everything, somehow try to repackage into a massive box, and find a way to ship a 150 lbs box back to Amazon.



Not a good experience at all and shoddy hardware. Beware. Strathwood Buckley 4-Piece Outdoor Furniture Set

I did not realize it required assembly of the chairs etc, I wish amazon would state that.



In the end I returned the set. The first shipment one of the bolts broke in the chair. I retuned everything. In the second shipment the set was missing parts.



In the end I returned because getting the missing parts took too much time and multiple attempts.



I will say that during this time, amazon customer service was excellent, polite, and really trying to help.

If you take time to study the picture, what you see is what you get. Its a plastic wicker mesh over a steel tubular frame. It ships unassembled by truck, which for us meant go pick it up at the ABF terminal. That was no problem. Shipping was very fast. Our box looked like crap but everything was in there and nothing broken. They package this thing using the cushions to protect parts that would otherwise damage. This is a good size box but will fit in a pickup bed.



Assembly was simple and about one hour with the wife adding a third hand. The chairs and love seat used two bolt sizes and the coffee table a third. Bolts were steel, but pretty light gauge. The kit comes with one of those very small cheap open end wrenches for assembly. Its OK to use a 10mm socket, however one needs to keep in mind those little open end wrenches aren't just there for convenience or poor people who don't have tools. They are there because that small size controls torque. Using classic metal technique, get them all started then go back and tighten, don't over tighten (tighten to metal to metal flat not bend), the set went together with no hitches and is sturdy with so far no retightening. The use of lock washers on each bolt is good design.



We found the cushions just a tad lighter in color than we expected, but for us that was better. The cushions are of a soft almost home furniture like material not the classic vinyl. This gives a very good comfort level, however we're not anxious to see how this will hold up in rain so can't comment there. The base seat is classic patio furniture strap. The love seat cushion is one solid piece which two would probably have been better due to its a double strap setup underneath (classic for patio furniture). I can't ding it much for that though. It does look better, however just doesn't add to the comfort level due to that bar in the center you have to have to double strap.



We use this in a covered but outdoor application so have very high expectations of a good long life. It appears to be as sturdy as our other set which is on year 18.



All in all, nice set that we were looking at twice the cost in local stores for similar product.

Product arrived next day in good shape. I had no issues with assembly and liked the way they separated parts and instructions for love seat, chairs and table. I like the way the set looks and it appears to be durable. Overall, a great value.

I am an experienced DIY guy, but this set cannot be assembled without having to re-tread the holes in the frame. When I was trying to assemble it, it appeared that the M6 bolts in many cases did not fit the holes. One broke off when I tried to force it in, so now I have to drill the broken bolt out. I did not even try to fasten the others that did not fit well, they would have broken as well. I will buy an M6 threading tool and re-thread the holes that give problems.

The whole set came in one huge box, which was damaged when I received it. The parts inside seemed to be OK (the many cushions that came with the set protect the steel parts), but since the box cannot be used to return the set in, I decided not to return it and to try to make the repairs so I can assemble it and don't have to return it. Needless to say that I am very unhappy with this.

MAttStrathwood Buckley 4-Piece Outdoor Furniture Set

We love this set!! You do have to put it together, but following the instructions was not that difficult. Looks great on our deck. The loveseat is big enough for 2 adults to fit comfortable. I think for the price this set is a great value.

Don't do it! Quality not as described on Amazon. Not Amazon's fault. Bolts had no slot for allen wrenches provided. Manufactured wrong! No one answers the phone at customer service. Be warned, don't buy it.

Received the shipment much later than promised but this was not fault of the seller. It was the shipping service they used out of Atlanta. It finally got settled, but too late for it's initial intended usage (a patio party). We put it together, and was disappointed with the quality of the pillows and cushions. So far, we have used the set, and too little time as passed to judge the lasting quality of the furniture itself.

I would seriously consider buying this set for my gazebo, but if the love seat is really 11.2 feet wide and 7.5 feet tall and 6.75 feet deep it would not fit into my gazebo. I can't help but wonder what kind of giant would need a love seat with those dimensions. Hopefully someone at Amazon will change the description to include the correct sizes. I was also looking at the Strathwood Brentwood Set, but the sizes for it are just as wacky. - Patio Furniture - Patio Furniture Sets - Wicker Furniture - Strathwood'


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