Twin Over Twin Bunk Bed with Built-In Ladders

PROS: 1) The most important thing by far is the weight it will support. The manufacturer website rates each bunk at 400 lbs, much more than most bunk beds like this. We wanted something that 2-3 of us could be on at the same time, to read, etc. without worrying about the bed collapsing. 2) Relatively easy to assemble. It comes in just a few pieces (the two ends, the two bunks, and the two rails). Step 1 is attach the ends and the bunks, Step 2 is attach the rails. It is actually possible to assemble the bed with one careful person, though maybe not ideal, and you only need help for the first few minutes. It took much longer to get the bunk bed pieces out of the box than it did to assemble it. One assembly tip: I'd recommend using a rubber mallet, or a regular hammer cushioned by a block of scrap wood, to get the horizontal bunk pieces into the pockets that support them, so that you can install the bolts. 3) The color is a nice blue, not too bright but not dark. 4) The built-in ladders on the ends make it very compact - the ladder doesn't take up space in the room. ISSUES: 1) The space between the bunks is too little, about 31.5 inches. With a 6 inch mattress, that leaves just 25.5 inches of space. They could have, and should have, made the bottom bunk lower. It has 11.5 inches underneath the bunk, far more than is needed. I'm already thinking about how to hack the bed to lower the bottom bunk. 2) The flip side of having just a few pieces to assemble is that those pieces are large, too large to send by UPS. The box is the size of the end of the bunk bed. Also, it weighs 97 lbs. Given the size and weight, if you're having it delivered it will arrive by freight truck, and that can take some time. 3) It's almost inevitable that there will be some dents and scratches, given the weight of the pieces and the way they are packed. (Not much padding.) Luckily the damage was only cosmetic on ours, as it would be beastly to have to ship this back. 4) While overall the quality seems good, some of the welds seemed to be just enough - they were a tack on either side - and more likely to break than if they were welded all the way around where the parts join. One tip on getting it upstairs: open the box downstairs and bring it up one piece at a time.