Were there no pictures of it on the advert? It looks really cool (even if it's not in the best condition) Really handy that it folds up into a box like that. I wouldn't consider it a lesson to not buy online but definitely ask for closer up photos next time as I imagine paint splatter and stuff should show up on a close-up photo. Don't be afraid to ask for more photos. If they are hesitant or give you an attitude, that's a good sign to stay away from them. Did they have any reviews on their page for bigger furniture items like this? As that'll be another thing to look out for (I always make sure to check the worst comments to see what types of complaints they are - I do take it with a pinch of salt though)
Yeah, but like I said, it didn't look as good "in person" as it did online. There were no photos of the back of the item at all - I should have asked for some. It's sitting up against a wall now so that side doesn't show. There are quite a lot of splatters, and they're not tiny, so it's not as if they wouldn't have shown up in a photo. There was just no photo.
If I'm careful I might be able to get them off, but it's not urgent right now. There were a few reviews, all good. But I'd have no way to know if they were real or faked. Communication with the guy was very spotty throughout, which didn't help me feel very comfortable. And the delivery was a fiasco. But it got here - thankfully, we had decided to postpone going out of town until next week! I had at the last minute put off booking our bus tickets to check on something else, and right after that is when the guy phoned to let us know he was coming the very next morning!
In looking at other people selling the same model, in slightly better condition, I did get a very good buy on it. It's going for like £345 on another site, and I got it for waaaaaayyyy less than that.
It is kind of a cool thing, really. It is a "Newcraft Home Office", and English (according to the tag in it).
It's now out in the hallway right near the router. So I can put my laptop in there and it'll get a good signal, unlike in the rest of the house and when the Daughter needs to be online while I'm online she can be using it there. (I might see if I can get an Ethernet cord into it, too.) And it does have a large pull-out drawer under the desktop (which is red leather with gold scroll-work around the edges) that also locks. So it'd be a real safe place to keep cash in the house, I'd guess. And passports. As long as we don't lose the skeleton key to the whole thing!
The lamp is toast, so I'm going to re-wire it to have a multiple outlet plug inside the unit, so a lamp can be on the same time the laptop is plugged in. There's already a hole in the back where the factory ran the cable in for the broken lamp, so that's really easy to do. Assuming I can get the parts. (Some days I really miss Radio Shack.)
Still hoping someone can recommend a furniture polish for it. I'd read years ago that Pledge was actually not good for old wood, and this is veneer so I can't oil it too much. I'm completely unfamiliar with the brands over here, but I'm thinking a good buffing with a good quality wax would make that look a lot better. Same with something to conserve the leather desktop. Murphy Oil Soap maybe? (If it's available here.)
