On Tue, 18 Aug 2009 08:30:59 +0100, Tim Lamb wrote:

In message
, NT
writes
On Aug 18, 12:16Â*am, "The Medway Handyman"
wrote:

Just something to watch out for when buying commercial furniture
nowadays.

I noted that a bed purchased from John Lewis recently was manufactured
in Vietnam.

When we were looking for a dining table and coffee table last year it was
extremely hard to find anything that had either been a) made locally or
b) made with any kind of underlying quality.

I suspect that to all intents and purposes well-built furniture is a thing
of the past; it doesn't matter (for the majority of mere mortals) how much
money is thrown at the problem - it's still stuff that looks nice but
doesn't last.

We spent a small fortune on tables, they're still made in Vietnam, and
they're full of joints that I can see will need attention in only a few
years (and in fact I've already had to tighten the legs on the coffee
table once in less than a year).

I suspect the best approach is to buy something old and refinish it -
that or just learn how to make your own (which gives me an excuse to buy
more tools ;-)

Softwood door frames supplied by builder are finger jointed. I suppose
it might reduce warping?

Possibly - agree with Dave L that it's cheap, but I've also seen it on
(exterior) door and larger (patio etc.) window frames that are a few
decades* old, so it's definitely not a new practice. I suppose it does
provide a little more give in the frame whilst still doing the intended
job.

* all in the US, where houses are mainly timber-framed rather than brick,
and prone to settling a little over the years; that might be something to
do with it...

cheers

Jules