A good looking futon for occasional use; would not suggest to use as your main couch
Received as a gift / was purchased by family members as a Christmas present when it was steeply discounted
Summary:
This is kind of a weird one. Overall happy with it / its exactly what I wanted: a good looking piece of inexpensive furniture for a spare room that can provide extra seating or be slept on in a pinch. Most of the time it will be expected to sit there in my office unused and not look ugly / which it is perfectly suited for.
Far sturdier than it seemed it would be before assembly and sturdier than I expected, but I would not want kids jumping on it.
Almost unsettlingly firm though / to the point I would say it is not suited as a piece of furniture youll use every day unless you like your couches extremely firm. Best to have a foam or memory foam cover if you expect guests to sleep in it, but it would suffice in a pinch unless someone had back issues.
Details:
/Comfort/
Has the opposite issue of many inexpensive futons / the cushion material is extremely firm. This makes it more suitable as a spare sleeping surface than a daily use couch. I am glad I have a spare memory foam mattress topper though / because even though I do prefer a firm sleeping surface it has almost no give. If you have to use it as is in a pinch, its better than the floor. If you plan on offering it to your friends as a place to sleep Id get a pad so they dont hate you.
/Assembly and included tools/
If you have a screwdriver or drill with a couple sizes of hex bit (or even better a long ratcheting wrench) as well as a regular open wrench, assembly will be fairly quick. There are 8 bolts with lock washers (for the two arms) and 24 hex/keyed bolts. As long as you dont rely on the included open wrench, one person can assemble it all in about 15/20 minutes (can be award positioning yourself/propping it up when installing the arms, but its light so its not difficult).
The included Allen keys are fine / theyre Allen keys it would be a challenge to make them not be fine. The open wrench for the 8 nut+lock washer+bolt combinations on the arms is useless. Its a piece of cut stamped sheet metal that isnt quite sized right. Would have been far better to have just left it out of the package and note that a wrench is required for assembly. Its not like it is advertised to have all necessary tools included so it just seems like an odd choice to put it in at all.
Overall though assembly was simple and mostly straightforward / I had someone helping so it only took us about 10 minutes and most of that was just deciphering how it fit together.
/Other Notes/
The seat cushions are hollow and open on the bottom except for a zippable flap that covers them and integrated into the frame. While this is necessary for how it is assembled, it does explain the almost shocking lack of give in the cushioning (theres no place for it to give to). As a side effect you are left with two somewhat sizeable zippable compartments under the piece / so I guess thats a bonus of sorts.
Im not sure if I can get across just how firm and un/couchlike it is. If youre expecting something soft to relax on then dont get this. The feeling is more like an upholstered wooden dining chair. Its not uncomfortable exactly, but its not what I expect when I sit on a couch.
The design has a nice side effect of actually being rather stowable. By only removing 8 of the hex/keyed bolts (center legs) it can be folded up to the size of a large suitcase, and you can store the legs and bolts inside the zippable compartments to keep it all together. So even if you eventually replace it with a maybe nicer single/purpose couch or spare bed, it can live on as a backup you can store in a closet.
A good looking futon for occasional use; would not suggest to use as your main couch
Received as a gift / was purchased by family members as a Christmas present when it was steeply discounted Summary: This is kind of a weird one. Overall happy with it / its exactly what I wanted: a good looking piece of inexpensive furniture for a spare room that can provide extra seating or be slept on in a pinch. Most of the time it will be expected to sit there in my office unused and not look ugly / which it is perfectly suited for. Far sturdier than it seemed it would be before assembly and sturdier than I expected, but I would not want kids jumping on it. Almost unsettlingly firm though / to the point I would say it is not suited as a piece of furniture youll use every day unless you like your couches extremely firm. Best to have a foam or memory foam cover if you expect guests to sleep in it, but it would suffice in a pinch unless someone had back issues. Details: /Comfort/ Has the opposite issue of many inexpensive futons / the cushion material is extremely firm. This makes it more suitable as a spare sleeping surface than a daily use couch. I am glad I have a spare memory foam mattress topper though / because even though I do prefer a firm sleeping surface it has almost no give. If you have to use it as is in a pinch, its better than the floor. If you plan on offering it to your friends as a place to sleep Id get a pad so they dont hate you. /Assembly and included tools/ If you have a screwdriver or drill with a couple sizes of hex bit (or even better a long ratcheting wrench) as well as a regular open wrench, assembly will be fairly quick. There are 8 bolts with lock washers (for the two arms) and 24 hex/keyed bolts. As long as you dont rely on the included open wrench, one person can assemble it all in about 15/20 minutes (can be award positioning yourself/propping it up when installing the arms, but its light so its not difficult). The included Allen keys are fine / theyre Allen keys it would be a challenge to make them not be fine. The open wrench for the 8 nut+lock washer+bolt combinations on the arms is useless. Its a piece of cut stamped sheet metal that isnt quite sized right. Would have been far better to have just left it out of the package and note that a wrench is required for assembly. Its not like it is advertised to have all necessary tools included so it just seems like an odd choice to put it in at all. Overall though assembly was simple and mostly straightforward / I had someone helping so it only took us about 10 minutes and most of that was just deciphering how it fit together. /Other Notes/ The seat cushions are hollow and open on the bottom except for a zippable flap that covers them and integrated into the frame. While this is necessary for how it is assembled, it does explain the almost shocking lack of give in the cushioning (theres no place for it to give to). As a side effect you are left with two somewhat sizeable zippable compartments under the piece / so I guess thats a bonus of sorts. Im not sure if I can get across just how firm and un/couchlike it is. If youre expecting something soft to relax on then dont get this. The feeling is more like an upholstered wooden dining chair. Its not uncomfortable exactly, but its not what I expect when I sit on a couch. The design has a nice side effect of actually being rather stowable. By only removing 8 of the hex/keyed bolts (center legs) it can be folded up to the size of a large suitcase, and you can store the legs and bolts inside the zippable compartments to keep it all together. So even if you eventually replace it with a maybe nicer single/purpose couch or spare bed, it can live on as a backup you can store in a closet.