American Easel Oak Maestro Easel-Golden Finish

Easel is make of great oak and is pretty sturdy. On arrivel, there was no dammage to the box, but... Inside the box, the bottom tray was assembled and cracked. I called the company several times, but always got a voicemail. I left my phone number, but nobody never called me back. As another buyer mentioned: it was not to difficult to repair with some wood glue, but you still see where the cracks are. Manual was in the box. I would give it a 5 for the easel itself (nice piece) but only a 3 for packaging and a 1 for service.

I wanted to return the easel (it was a present for my wife) but she was so impatiant to work with it, that I just saved myself the work of returning and put that energy in repair. I wanted to email to this company, but nowhere found an email address...

Advise to the company that sells these easels: don't assamble the lower tray! It is so easy to put together (8 screws) and it saves a lot of problems.

By the way: my wife loves this easel a lot!!!

I'd gotten used to using an easel for drawing in several of my art classes and wanted one to use at home, but was having a hard time finding one that was affordable AND sturdy. I'd find ones that seemed like they fit the criteria, only to find out that shipping was an additional hundred dollars or so.

I liked that this easel was not only over half off the list price, but that it also qualified for free two day shipping with my Amazon Prime membership. I ordered it and it arrived quickly and in excellent condition. It wasn't too heavy, but it is in a very large box, so I needed help getting it upstairs to my apartment.

I was able to assemble the easel quickly, using only a screw driver. I did have a hard time tightening the screws in all the way, but I got them in most of the way. Anyone who has weak, girly hands like I do may want to use an electric screwdriver to get them in all the way.

Assembled, the easel is great: adjustable, sturdy, has a neat shelf for supplies and a removable metal cup insert, and it isn't too difficult to move around. I am VERY happy with my purchase.

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This easel is of excellent quality especially considering the price! It is super sturdy and durable, nice solid oak wood; heritage quality even. I didn't encounter any damage from shipping as others have mentioned and it did include a brief set of instructions. Set up was quick, 20-30 minutes tops. The pre-drilled holes for the hinges were slightly off on one side but it doesn't affect the overall use or quality; they were also a little difficult to screw in by hand but were by no means unmanageable, a hand drill would make it super quick. It is a little bulkier than I thought it would be but seems about average for a studio easelThe tray is very convenient, that's really why I selected this particular model. Also, there IS a stainless steel cup included and it is located on the right hand side of the tray unlike the photos. Very pleased indeed.

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This appeared to be just what we'd hoped for until we found that the wood was cracked and breaking off in one place. If it weren't intended as a gift for someone else, we'd have simply glued it and kept it because the damage would not interfere with function. Returned because no one should pay full price for a damaged product. It appears the packaging was not sufficient to protect the product in shipping. Also, it did not arrive with packing slip, or assembly instructions. Gave it three stars because though it is on the heavy side and is not something you'd want to plan on moving frequently, it does seem pretty sturdy and if it could arrive it probably isn't too awful bad. I would wonder though about quality of oak that breaks off so easily.

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Had it set up in under 10 minutes, its very well put together and its great how it can be stored laying down or up against a wall. It looks great in the computer room where my g-friend paints.

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Quartet 300TE Quartet Reversible Mobile Presentation Easel, Dry-Erase, 30 x 41, Neutral Frame

• Total Erase® reversible small mobile presentation easel has two dry-erase surfaces, flip chart pad holders and four casters.
• Just a simple flip doubles your writing space - double-sided easel features two Total Erase® surfaces.
• Rotate the board for additional writing space on reverse side.
• Surface is perfectly angled for comfortable writing and viewing.
• Total Erase® writing surface will not stain or ghost and has a subtle grid pattern.

I think the positive features of this dry erase board are exhaustively covered by the official description. It's big enough for my daily todo list, today's appointments, call list and some reminders. I have one next to my computer station (which is on Anthro cart, also wheeled) and this is so much better than having post-it notes around my screens. Every time I take a break, or get a cup of tea, I look at the board and it reminds me of what else I need to do today. Things just get into my eyes better and more often. That's what the reminder is about.

The strength of this product is that I can flip the board when I have a client coming to my studio (I'm a photographer). I can also roll it around in my studio, depending on where I want to sit each day.

Now negatives. There are several.

The board itself is plastic film on particle board. I don't know how durable it is in a heavily booked meeting room. The board had several deep scratches and small dents already when I opened the package. Upon single writing-erasing cycle, the scratch already turned into a dark line. The board is not magnetic.

The metal frame is of reasonable quality, but some parts were poorly machined and assembled. One of the screw didn't tighten because of the wrong hole size. Frame is painted but somehow one column had rust on it, which I couldn't wipe away. The other column had dents on it. The flip chart hooks and their counterpart holes on the board had wrong sizes I had to force them in very hard.

The caster wheels included in this product are pieces of junk. These are the worst casters I ever saw. You can pull or push the frame and they don't even point the right direction to roll. So you will have heavy friction and some noise from the floor. These casters don't have bearings or nylon parts. These are plastic junk. These casters have screw stems attached so you can buy better casters from third parties anyway.

After all, the concept and the design of the product are pretty good, but you don't have to look closely to tell the parts are made from cheap materials and without good craftsmanship. When it comes to rust, scratches, dents and other quality issues, this product it terrible. The build/strength is only slightly better than Ikea standard. At this price, I did not intend to buy a "disposable" item but I feel a bit like that's what I got. That's why I don't give it 5-stars.

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EZ Rest Painting Handrest - Mahl Stick

I'd been intrigued by EZ rest for years as the concept seemed great on paper sadly it's a bit off the mark. Here's some overall observations that might help you decide if this is right for you:

The item is 3 separate pieces; a wooden (stop-sign shaped) mahl stick, a wooden block w/ a pivot (both unfinished), and a metal bracket for securing the apparatus to your table or easel. The wooden block didn't fit on to my Mabef Easel and it didn't fit securely on my art table, because of the pencil ridge.

The unfinished condition of the wood block made it difficult or impossible to fit it into its bracket from all sides (as suggested in the pictures on the package) the unfinished mahl stick also is rough and difficult to maneuver once it's in the pivot -

I suspect that an afternoon of sanding and finishing might yield a usable tool, but honestly, there's a variety of sticks and bridges out there that are usable right out of the box and let's face it I'd rather be drawing

I have 2 easels, and it wouldn't fit either. It wouldn't work on the table because the block part is too high and therefore the hand is too far off the canvas. The block needs to be resized about 1-1/2 inches in height and at least 1/2 to 3/4 inches on the side to fit either easel. This is a great idea, but it has obviously been made to fit a certain easel.

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H323 Heavy Duty 6' Easel

I love these Da-Lite folding easels. You can fold them down to sit on a table or open up fully. All models have little fold-out holders at different heights to accommodate whiteboard or other display data. If you get the crossbar model, you can hang flip charts, or charts that might not stand well on the stands. They're light weight and store nicely went not being used. One caution, though, about the way people advertise these. They always show you the three-easel picture from Da-Lite's web site, but you can't see the tiny numbers in the picture. ONLY the D305 comes with the top crossbar in the picture. If they're advertising a stock number beginning with "H", it doesn't have the crossbar.

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Winsor & Newton Winton Oil Color Easel Set

I'm being asked to rate this as a toy; not sure why. So as a toy I rated it 5 stars. Now for the real review: I thought the oil paint colors included would be the basic ones since they are not listed in the description. Upon receipt I found the three NOT included were white, black, and blue, three I absolutely require. So be aware of what you are receiving before ordering. The six colors included are: Cadmium Yellow Pale Hue, Cadmium Red Deep Hue, French Ultramarine (purple), Viridian Hue (light green), Yellow Ochre, and Burnt Umbre (brown). I've since ordered paints that included the primary colors everyone uses. The rest of the set is as expected--plastic palette, 3 canvas boards, wood easel, etc, as pictured. Good (almost) basic set for the price.

This set does not include everything you need to try oil painting as it may suggest. First, the color white is not included which means that you basically are only able to paint with super bright colors or colors mixed with black. You neither will be able to prepare the canvas as supposed to w/a white underlying paint. Second, it does not include cleaners for the brushes. You will not be able to get oilpaint out of brushes or even from your hand with soap; you will need turpentine. Third and last, the color from the brush shaft peeled off after the first 5 min. So, all in all not a complete set with not so good quality.

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ADJUSTABLE BOARD STAND Drafting, Engineering, Art (General Catalog)

This holder is exactly what I was looking for to give me the functionality of a drawing desk without taking up extra furniture space in my small apartment. I got a 20" x 26" board to use with this stand, and it fits well. The stand never feels unstable or top heavy, even though the stand itself feels rather light.

This is the best stand of its kind, in my opinion. Drawing boards with a built-in stand don't seem to raise up more than a 45-degree angle, and this one goes beyond that, much more like a drafting table. It also is set up to let the edge of the board hang over the edge of the table you're at, so you have access to the entire board. If you've ever tried a table easel and been frustrated because the table blocks your arm, you know what I mean.

Besides, getting a stand like this allows me to take the board off and draw with it on my lap if I feel like it, or to turn the board from vertical to horizontal. I can see an artist with more than one project in process -just switch boards to change from one project to another.

My only gripe is that the item description says is it "Walnut-stained" wood, and it's not. The wood is *painted* to look like walnut stain. A little started to chip off the corners where I bumped it while setting up/taking down. That's why I took off one star.

I pretty much agree with the two other reviewers here but would add that the stand has stained my white Vyco drawing board cover, which it sits on top of.

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I initially wanted to buy a table top adjustable board to help my back and neck when drawing, but found the prices of other boards too expensive and the angles too limiting. After reading the only review saying that the angle goes beyond 45 and that it hangs off the ledge of the table, I was pretty much sold.

Out of the box, the two bars in the center come detached for the user to screw on. I think you can use it without if you're using a large enough board on it, but otherwise it's nice to attach it for more support and you can put smaller boards to draw on too.

The wood itself isn't super solid wood. It's lightweight without being weak or unstable, but I noticed that my product is already warped in some parts. I'm slightly concerned that over time it may become warped to the point that it rocks when I draw, but I hope that consistent even use of it helps hold its shape.

I feel like the quality could have been better in terms of the materials used, but in terms of the price, design, and functionality I am very satisfied.

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