Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

The Drive Medical Non Tilt Top Overbed Table that I received has manufacturing defects. If perfectly made, this would be an average product. A person sick in bed could put up with it for a few days, but it isn't a table you'd want to use for a long period of time . The whole unit is light enough to be lifted easily, but the column lock does not keep the top top from rising up. It only locks it against going down. If you try to lift the whole unit by holding the table top, only the top is lifted.. (This is not because of a manufacturing defect. The product instructions say "To raise top to desired height, apply light pressure upward at any point under table.") Since you can't lift the unit by holding the table top, the only convenient way to move it is by pushing it around. The product I received had the following manufacturing defects: 1) The base was slightly out of level. On a hard surface, this causes 3 of the 4 casters to roll and the other one to only slide. 2) The bottom of the L-shaped support piece that goes against the bracket on the table top was not flat, so the bracket wouldn't fit squarely against it. This caused the table top to rock slightly. (I used a vise to flatten things out.) 3) The two pieces that form the "L" of the support column don't fit snugly together. This leaves only the welds themselves to support the weight and it makes the table top unlevel. I contributed photos to the product page that show some of the defects. Previous reviews complained about a mislabelling of parts (4 vs 14) in the assembly directions. Those parts were labelled correctly in the directions I received. The instructions appear to be a reasonable effort by To English The Product Manuals We Translating Inc. , but a few annotations may help. "1. Open end of box. Slide contents out of box. Lay on level surface. Remove base, tabletop and hardware." The directions explain how to assemble the table while it is upside down. You can check for the product defects mentioned in this review before assembling the table. "2. Insert column assembly (2) into top brackets (5) as shown. Be sure the trip rod (inside column) is fully inserted inside the column. Align holes in column and top bracket and install 2 bolts (6) & fasten." The lock washers (6) are used on the bolts (6). The bolts have large Phillips heads. After you do this step, you'll be able to tell if the table is going to rock back and forth slightly on the support column. "3. Install trip lever (3) as shown, rounded side facing table top. Be sure trip lever sits on top of rod inside column. Align hole in trip lever (3) with hole in top bracket (5) and insert bolt & nut(4) to fasten the trip lever & top bracket." If you put the trip lever on upside down, it won't lock the table. However, its possible to recover from this mistake even after the table is completely together without redoing everything. The nut and bolt (4) have 10mm heads. "4. Place 2 bolts (12) through bolt plate (11) and 2 bolt sleeves (10). Place bolt assembly into base to column." This is where you attach the support column to the base of the unit. The bolts have 14 mm heads ( a 9/16 " SAE wrench might also work). You might accidentally let one of the bolt sleeves slip off inside the base. If that happens, pull off one of the plastic end plugs on the base to let the sleeve slide out. "5. Install casters (8,9) as shown and replace with chrome screw." This is really two steps. You put the casters in the base, which requires some force. The casters are not all identical. One pair of them has a small latches that lock the wheels. (To me, the logical place to put those two casters is on the side of the base nearest the support column.) The holes that secure the step of the casters are in the plastic end plugs on the base. If you have trouble inserting the casters, check that the holes in the end plugs line up the holes in the base. Use a drop of light oil on the stem of the caster. You remove the temporary assembly screw on the support column, which releases the spring. You insert a chrome colored screw in its place. The product I received is described as "silver vein". Most of it is painted in dark brown with a so-called "hammered finish" which has some light streaks in it. The top is describe as a walnut laminate. It appears to be made of particle board with a thin laminate on both the top and bottom faces and plastic trim around the edges. I rate this product as two stars out of five to indicate that it is an inferior overbed table. If you're lucky enough to get one without defects then I'd rate that as a three stars, an average table.