Sauder Carson Forge Sofa Table, Washington Cherry finish

The top of this sofa table is one of the most substantial pieces of particle board I've ever worked with in years of buying inexpensive furniture. This is a large, substantial piece that matches perfectly with the other items in Sauder's "Carson Forge" line (we bought the coffee table and end tables as well).Assembly is initially intimidating considering the number of pieces and the size of the item, but the instructions were exceptionally clear and straightforward. It went together in about two hours, with two people assembling it.The finished piece looks great and has held up well. There's enough clearance for a power strip underneath, which makes the bottom shelf a convenient spot for a sub-woofer. The one weak spot is the drawers, which feel a little flimsy and are difficult to line up perfectly. I wouldn't put anything heavy in there, but I didn't consider this sufficient reason to deduct a star.

This table is really really nice. For the price, it can't be beat! It took me about 3 hours to put together. Some of the pieces were missing their letter label but I was able to figure it out as the pictures and instructions were awesome. This is not a flimsy piece, the boards are about an inch thick. I had no scratches or dents of any kind and the drawers took a few minutes to align, following the directions. Mine blends in nicely with my reddish/brown wood work. It's classy looking with a bit of rustic flair. I would buy from this line again in a heartbeat.

Table looks really good assembled. Drawers were a bit tricky to get the tracks on right, and I initially built the end pieces with the legs backwards even though this is about the fifth Carson Forge piece I've assembled. I discovered this while placing the bottom shelf onto the leg end-pieces...mmm... the pins don't line up right...wonder why that is? oh..craaap!, that's why! Mis-assembly! Thought I studied the directions pretty good, oh well. I had the sides pieces on the wrong sides and had to change them out.And yes the dowels are somewhat difficult to remove once glued in, as luckily I didn't leave the project to go do something else before the glue cured. While many other items have been delivered unscathed, this one had some minor surface damage here and there most likely from shipping...just used a touch-up pen in dark walnut to remedy, and the few scratches were mostly covered by other material once built.Slight misalignment for the table top cam pins though; best to loosen some of the others to get it to set right on the dowels and the cam-lock pins

I read the negative reviews and still ordered. I wish I had not. I also think that this is my first Amazon review after being a customer for over a decade and hundreds of purchases and thousands of dollars. This is the product that got me motivated enough to write a review. The reviews are correct, the pieces do not fit well together, the black screw connectors are not designed well. It is not sturdy and not safe. The way it is designed it can collapse and hurt someone. I can only imagine a toddler climbing on this and it falling apart. I got to the final step in the assembly (putting the top on) after checking ALL connections to make sure that they were tight. I set the top on and was tapping down the connections and if fell apart falling on my foot and cutting it open. Believe the negative reviews, they are correct. This is no where near a quality piece of furniture. I understand that that this is at a low price point and not expected to be an heirloom piece of furniture but even at this level I would expect a level of quality and safety that are just not there. Returned.

Arrived with a chip on the top piece. Drawers do not work very well at all. Not smooth opening, very rough and jaggedy. Seems like the drawer design could have been better. Very sturdy though.

As far as looks go, the above table is indeed quite lovely. I would rate it a five on appearance. It is heavy, weighs near 90 pounds, and it mostly composite materials with some sort of wood grain finish. The assembly was more difficult for me than others evidently. The first instruction in the 17 page instruction booklet began, "Remover the 32.....", anytime my first step of many is to get 32 parts out of the bag, I know it is going to be a bad day. If over tightened the connectors would break the composite material or particle board of the desk. Fortunately, it only happened a couple of times in areas it ended up not showing, and I learned my lesson. The drawers also were troublesome to me, but they finally worked on one side only? Identical construction, but one wold work on the right and one on the left only. Two and a half stars for ease of assembly.An attractive desk, fairly sturdy and stable, and an excellent accent to my living room as it sits behind the sofa. Just be prepared to take your time and have a buddy present for assembly.

I received the table and assembled it last night. The box was extremely efficiently packed and beware, it's heavy. But that's a good thing. I'm an engineer, so assembling things is a strength of mine, but be prepared to spend at least two hours putting this together. The directions were excellent; I've got to compliment the technical writers at the company. *NOTE* Pay close attention to their directions! You will save time if you carefully read each instruction not having to disassemble portions and re-do them correctly.The finished product looks great and will serve the purpose I purchased it for very well. I'm pleased with the quality and the price, and would recommend.