Review on 🪑 Sauder North Avenue Storage Bench: Stylish Charter Oak Finish & Organizational Solution by Elton Luo

I wasn't expecting a solid wood bench for the price, but the manufacturer could have paid a little more attention to the technical details. I made some changes during the build hoping it would work better and last longer. Part of the bench is a laminate over chipboard. Most of the assembly is done with dowels and screws. I had my doubts that it would hold up well. I see them crumble over time. I used wood glue with the dowels and where the pieces connect to add extra strength. Lightweight steel frame that flexes easily. The frame is so close to the bench that I could barely use the hidden compartment. The support tubes could have been a bit longer. I added a couple of washers to free up some space. Simply loosening the screws would make it unstable and too wobbly. After fully reassembling and tightening all the connections, there was a slight wobble. I tried loosening, twisting and tightening. Everything was useless so I used a piece of felt on one leg. All of these problems could easily be solved with better design and manufacturing. I hope my mods will help this feature work properly and last longer than usual.