Where can I buy ready assembled bookcases?

[petermaverick]

Originally Posted by PallasCat

Thank you for the input everyone. I've got an injury which makes getting about and doing anything really difficult.You've all given me some good options to think about. It's much appreciated.

Have you tried a local to you facebook group?

[chip75]

Originally Posted by PallasCat

I never thought to ask on gumtree. Thanks!

If you have the means of collection, do a search on Facebook Marketplace, you'll see a good selection in your area, usually there's a few IKEA units for free or nice oak units for reasonable amounts.

IKEA stuff you can usually add shelves to from their site, and if you're able nice wooden units can be finished to your liking.

[HotRats]

See if there's an auction house in your area. Best place to find wooden furniture at good prices and they'll usually deliver.

Ikea stuff has declined in quality over recent years, just read the reviews on the site. Old Billys are much sturdier and denser and Bestas are a shadow of themselves. Metal and wood components have been replaced with plastic, the fibreboard is lower grade and the veneers are paper based instead of plastic or wood. It kept the prices low but the quality is barely better than Jysk now. If you use Ikea be prepared to strengthen with wood glue, wooden batons and metal corner plates on the back.

Look for charities like Emmaus which reconditions and sells donated furniture to help the homeless.

[Deadend45]

Cheap wooden stuff fall apart sooner or later.

[darrellmaclaine]

Originally Posted by HotRats

Ikea stuff has declined in quality over recent years, just read the reviews on the site. Old Billys are much sturdier and denser and Bestas are a shadow of themselves. Metal and wood components have been replaced with plastic, the fibreboard is lower grade and the veneers are paper based instead of plastic or wood. It kept the prices low but the quality is barely better than Jysk now. If you use Ikea be prepared to strengthen with wood glue, wooden batons and metal corner plates on the back.

They are still absolutely fine for this use though. Nobody's buying Billys or MDF anything to last a lifetime, it's cheap modular shelving to replace at the same time you redecorate. The only newly plastic parts are the cam bolts which work no less effectively in my experience but which can easily be replaced with your own metal ones for pennies, they aren't proprietary designs, they're just 15mm cam bolts you can get from Screwfix in metal if you like. The two-part locking plastic pins on the back boards, which are a new part of the Billy design, are an upgrade in my opinion in terms of accessibility if nothing else. You can still add panel pins on top if you want and as you say wood glue over joins or damp seal coat the back of the back boards or any added steps you need. Paper foil is paper foil, it looks fine and can be touched up if damaged. You’re going to get that everywhere, it's just how MDF is being finished now, not just for cost but also it makes it more compostable.

A lot of people's problems with Billy bookcases comes from overloading the 80cm wide ones beyond the tolerance it recommends. For heavy books or anything weighty it always pays to use 40cm ones and combine - they look better anyway with the extra verticals!

[cooey]

Don't know how local you are to the Cambridhshire area, but I've got at least 4 of these in 'oak' you can have for free if you can collect them

https://www.ikea.com/gb/en/p/gnedby-...hite-40277143/

[PallasCat]

Originally Posted by cooey

Don't know how local you are to the Cambridhshire area, but I've got at least 4 of these in 'oak' you can have for free if you can collect them

https://www.ikea.com/gb/en/p/gnedby-...hite-40277143/

Thanks for the offer but I do not have any means of transportation. Still I appreciate the kind offer.

[cooey]

Originally Posted by PallasCat

Thanks for the offer but I do not have any means of transportation. Still I appreciate the kind offer.

I'm presuming you're not local at all? I'd happily drive them over to you if you are.

[PallasCat]

Originally Posted by cooey

I'm presuming you're not local at all? I'd happily drive them over to you if you are.

No, I'm not local to Cambridgshire. Thanks for the offer though. It's really kind of you.

[bleedandtrim]

Originally Posted by darrellmaclaine

A lot of people's problems with Billy bookcases comes from overloading the 80cm wide ones beyond the tolerance it recommends. For heavy books or anything weighty it always pays to use 40cm ones and combine - they look better anyway with the extra verticals!

Yeah seconding the shorter Billies - used to have the wide ones for my book collections but ended up warping badly over time. Have had eight of the 40cm towers (with top extensions) bolted to the wall for a few years now and they've been flawless.

[Ben_R]

I read the new Billies have stick on laminate instead of wood veneer, cheaper or less dense chipboard and now need supporting on the corners.

Were they really downgraded that much?

[darrellmaclaine]

Originally Posted by Ben_R

I read the new Billies have stick on laminate instead of wood veneer, cheaper or less dense chipboard and now need supporting on the corners.

Were they really downgraded that much?

YMMV but in my opinion the new paper foil is not a downgrade, it's just a different way of doing it. The previous veneers were hardly high quality. The new foils are also easier to prime and paint whereas the previous incarnation was notoriously resistant to any redecoration, and with the growing trend towards 'hacking" IKEA elements to create custom fitted furniture I suspect this is another factor in the redesign.

Seen no evidence of the chipboard being worse. Chipboard is chipboard - it's a low quality material designed to fill space rather than add strength. Two coats of Damp Seal to the back is a good hack to mildew-proof it, but that was no different before the changes.

Not heard of needing to add support at the corners. As ever, there are limitless additional steps DIY enthusiasts can do to reinforce them and that's always been the case. If you mean the plastic cam bolts, you can use your own metal ones, but actually plastic cam bolts can give a better connection in some applications as the stress on the tightened plastic gives a grip whereas a metal cam bolt can move back and loosen.

There are design upgrades too - the rounder edges and the back board pegs - which aren't often mentioned. It is a complete redux of the Billy design and it's not all for cost or logistics reasons.

[ViscountCarnacki]

Ikea do a home assembly service. Of course you pay for it, but given how versatile the classic Billy bookcase is, it's worth it. They also do slightly fancier bookcases too, as I'm sure you know.

An alternative is to hire a local handyman to do the assembly. When I moved house a few years ago, I had a tonne of new Ikea stuff to assemble like a huge wardrobe and a big kallax. I was so busy with the move that I got a handyman to do it. In my area, the town's local independent hardware store offers a handyman service, but I'm sure one would be easy to find.

[darrellmaclaine]

Originally Posted by ViscountCarnacki

Ikea do a home assembly service. Of course you pay for it, but given how versatile the classic Billy bookcase is, it's worth it.

They use TaskRabbit - see my cautionary tale on page 1. Handyman contractors are over-armed for IKEA assembly and you have no idea who you're getting.

[Ste7en]

If anyone collects memorabilia (or Lego, Funkos, etc.) these seem to be pretty good add-ons for Billys:

https://www.wickedbrick.com/pages/ho...play-solutions

[ViscountCarnacki]

Originally Posted by darrellmaclaine

They use TaskRabbit - see my cautionary tale on page 1. Handyman contractors are over-armed for IKEA assembly and you have no idea who you're getting.

Oh I missed that. Yeah, not great. Maybe a local handyman then. In my example, from the local hardware store, the guy is the store owner, and we have a good chat beforehand about what I want (which includes not using power tools), I make him a cup of tea, and he gets going. It's in his interest to do a good job, to get repeat business. Unlike an Ikea contractor!