Review on Black Rose Garden Arch By Gardman R350 - 75 Inches Tall, 39 Inches Wide And 19 Inches Deep by Peter Bates

It has been hard to find an arch small enough for the space where my blackberries are (am using to organize my bramble) and so this arch was the logical choice. The arch arrived promptly and looks like the picture, but there were some special challenges to assembly. I am the child of an engineer and grew up having to assemble things so I can put almost anything together and make it work. This arch was unique in its difficulty. First, the instructions are just not clear. Its not a rocket so you can figure it out, but the pictures are not entirely clear and the instructions do not use terms consistently. The manufacturer also has a clever idea of putting tight plastic tubing over the couplings, although I found them impossible to put on because they are too tight. First you have to put them on the thick part of the metal rod, and then when the sections are joined, you have to move them over the junction to keep them water tight. I have burns on my hands from this process, and tried 3&1 oil, and heating them. They just wouldn't budge, so I ended up getting my black gorilla tape out and taping over the junctures instead of using the sleeves provided. You can't see the tape and it was way easier. In addition, the crossbars don't fit tight enough, so I put those in place and put a ring of tape below where I wanted them to sit which also worked well. May not be water tight forever, but as I thought it through, I am not sure keeping the junctures from rusting together is a high priority for me--I plan to keep it put for a while. When you assemble, make sure you have the small ends lined up correctly so they point up on all for posts when you are ready to put the arch on (all 4 arch ends are big ends). When assembling, I did the first side with measurements, and then made the adjustments to the second side by placing it over (see picture). Second picture also shows juncture in arch as it comes (without the protective sleeve) and then as I taped it. The post hole maker was a brilliant idea and it made placing very easy. I'm pleased with it--it just took an extraordinarily long time and a bit of ingenuity to assemble.