Nantucket Table - Millbrook Chairs - Goldenteak Quality Review

Goldenteak,
I'm happy to report great satisfaction on each of the categories you mentioned - quality, value and delivery - all 5s.

The internal packaging of each chair and large table showed extreme care, that allowed this order to be trucked across the entire United States (from MA to CA) without a scratch, and that's after making the journey from Indonesia to Massachusetts in perfect condition. Even more impressive is the precision cutting of the mortise and tenon joinery. Unless I held the pieces at the absolute correct angle, they couldn't be joined. Once precisely aligned, they slid firmly and smoothly into place. Tiny details, like the dowel pins, are not only the correct diameter, but the correct length for the pre-drilled holes, so tapping them in carefully leaves no excess material to be sanded about 90% of the time. The tip about tapering the dowels with a pencil sharpener was helpful.

I chose to oil all items with tung oil, after previous experience with and further research on this marvelous finish. Which is when I discovered another remarkable quality of your furniture. While the unfinished wood was already sanded to a silky smoothness, after the first coat of tung oil, which was absorbed within a few hours, the oiled surface remained silky smooth.

Most satisfying, as a wood lover, is seeing the rich color and beautiful grain patterns enhanced by oiling. Nothing can match the elegance and understated beauty of solid wood. And speaking of solid wood, the chairs and table are all made with substantial, heavy members, designed to last generations with proper (but not demanding) care. My table and eight chairs weighed in at 500 pounds, so you can do the math and figure out when you might have last dined on furniture that robust. At the same time, the lines are graceful and elegant, not some chunky stumps from a medieval castle.

You asked why I chose Goldenteak. After hours of up close and personal experience assembling and oiling my Goldenteak set, I'm blown away by the quality, which turns your price into a great value. When you realize that you are purchasing something that will last fifty or more years, the annualized cost makes this a no-brainer. This is the last patio dining set I, or my children, will ever need.

KG, CA