The stool itself seems pretty good and sturdy, not to mention comfortable. Also assembly was reasonably simple, although I recommend an electric screwdriver with a hex key bit to make it go faster, otherwise your fingers are going to fell it using that little allen wrench that comes with it. My big gripe was the packaging. The individual parts were packaged well, but all the hardware came in a small package, which was broken open in each of the three boxes I got, sending the bolts, washers, and very small lock washers to just float about the box. I didn't realize this in the first box, so when I opened it, those pieces scattered all about my living room floor, and I ended up losing one washer and one lock washer. I was still able to assemble the stools, just without those washers. A very poor method of packaging hardware, so be careful when you open the box.