Atlantic 38435715 Oskar 1080 Media Wall Unit P2

Good value, good looking
Feels very unstable when under construction, but don’t panic, it all firms up nicely in the end! Looks good once assembled.

The best shelving unit for large media collections
As a Canadian this can be a little on the pricey side for what you’re getting, however if you’re looking for a really tall shelving unit for holding media this is the best shelving unit out there. This will hold DVD cases, CD cases, NES carts, figurines, and other collectibles and looks fantastic.The only drawback that I can see is there is a stationary shelf about halfway up that can make it difficult to get the spacing you want if you fill this shelf up. But that’s a minor issue and you can work around it easily.I previously used the 

which worked better than the original once
Ok, I bought two of these, and put them up last week. I always thought that Ikea was cheap, but this system is even cheaper, OMG this is cheap material. It’s incredible flimsy, and fragile. Putting these cabinets up, was a challenge for me, because you need to be so careful not to wreck or damage the thing, I used a battery drill on the screws and this simply destroyed them. I had to use a few of my own home depot screws, which worked better than the original once, there where no instructions on how to put this thing up, so I had to go to the American Walmart website who had the instructions posted online on their website. I put two up next to each other, against the wall it certainly needs the wall anchors otherwise it would simply tumble down. I put two cabinets next to each other, but they don’t line up properly one sticks out more to the front and I the spaces in between aren’t the same everywhere, so that some shelves are looser and others are more tight. I used a lot of wood glue to make the thing more sturdy, I am not sure if this did anything. Moving these cabinets aren’t a option for me because they would simply be destroyed while trying to move them (The backboard is holding everything in place). One of the cabinets wasn’t even complete!? It was missing certain holes, and missing the plastic screw plugs, I put it up anyways because it was the first cabinet I was putting up and didn’t know any better (This didn’t help my frustration level it was peaking). These cabinets are Chinese craftmanship at it’s best. I bought these for my Dvd’s, books, and NES collection, the multi functionality of these cabinets work fantastic and that is the only reason I am keeping them. I can put so much stuff in these cabinets it’s incredible, you can adjust the shelves to your needs, and it makes your collection totally transparent and the choice of a title so easy. I think these cabinets are way overpriced, and I understand that they come from the US, where there cheaper and shipping and handling is higher for Canada, but these cabinets should be half of the price they are asking. These cabinets are definitely not making it through the next generations of your heritage, as long as you don’t move them and treat them like you would treat your grandmother it will last you maybe 20 years. I wouldn’t be surprised if the cabinets warp, change colours, or peel from the different temperatures and lights in your house. The colour Maple looks like a American taste from the 80′ or earlier, I didn’t had choice I needed the lighter colour for my room setting but it is one ugly and out of fashion colour. Black would have been a better choice if your room allows it.

The hardware provided with these shelves is cheap and either doesn’t fit or easily breaks.
I used this product to hold a CD collection. The shelf pins easily fall out because the holes are drilled too large. The fastening hardware is made of cheap metal that easily breaks. I had to replace a number of pieces. These problems make the unit over-priced and poor value for the money.

Important! How to assemble– I bought these for the size and capacity and read the comments about how to put together so it doesn’t snap. I thought I figured it out for the first one, it snapped, then I figured it out for the second one and it went together in 30 minutes quicky, smoothly, and with NO issues. No breaks, nothing. And looks great.Below, I have tried to make clear the steps I followed for a very successful build–bear in mind, the other comments were helpful, but did not make the steps clear.Here is how to do it, from someone who is not skilled, but was able to build in 30 minutes with no problems:1. Build the top first. And that means connect the top piece of wood as well. Build with the finished side facing you.2. Turn over.3. Nail the correct backing to the top.4. Now, work on the bottom. Build with unfinished side up.5. You are “changing” from the instruction page here.6.The wooden sides are opposite the instruction picture because you need to building this bottom section with the unfinished side up. This is key. If you don’t, it will snap when you turn over. It is unconnected, unsupported, and if you follow the instructions, it HAS to snap.7. You need to build this opposite way so you can nail the back on it easily for support. This is the Holy Grail bit of advice for building this–if you follow, it will be perfect.8.Just keep the same wooden sides next to each other like the picture, but in reverse since it is upside down from the instruction photo. Translation: the letters on each piece of wood need to be next to each other like the picture, just turned so that the shelving pin holes make sense.If I can figure that out, anyone can.9. Because the base sticks out, it won’t be flat when unfinished side is facing up. That’s another snapping issue.10. I used 7 of the little shelves to place under the sides to “level.”11. Screw in the sides, and level them as well for support.12.. You should be ready to join the 213. BUT here is where it can snap.14. Put levelers (I used the styrofoam and cardboard from box to make the Bottom half as high as the the unconnected top half (which should still be on the levelers.)15. Slide the bottom over to the finished top–which is heavy and supported.16. Note: I put some wood glue on the wood pins, but it does not matter.17.Both halves should be same height, and you should be able to position the bottom (unfinished side up) into the pins without any problem or stress whatsoever.18. Push together and tighten those cam bolts.19. IMPORTANT20. Nail the second backing panel into the back. Use all the nails and make secure.21. Congratulations, the hard part is over.22. It should be stable, but I turned it on its side, and slid it to where it would be resting.23. I did this by myself, and it was perfect.The problem with all the other reviews saying build it side first and nail on the backing–they did not say when you had to change from the instructions, and that created confusion.I hope this helps! It certainly made it easy for me, and I just ordered 2 more.When built like this, it really was as advertised!

Brief- I recommend this product for many reasons detailed below. Just wrote a longer review so people know what they are getting and getting into. I had assembled a couple similar ones in the past but it was long enough ago that I had to re-learn some lessons. Keep reading and it will save you time and (maybe) trouble.Long:Assuming you already bought this then read before assembling. If you haven’t yet then there are a few things you would want to know prior to purchase.First — For those who are about to build the unit:In step 4 they indicate not to overtighten the wood screws (T). As the unit is made of particle board, overtightening the screws might cause the wood to split. This is potentially a cosmetic problem but not a major issue.What the instructions FAIL TO MENTION is that in step 3 it is CRUCIAL not to overtighten the part “P” bolts. The fitting into which they insert is plastic while the bolts are metal. Years back, similar products used a metal fitting, but no longer. Therefore if you tighten the bolt it will continue to screw into the fitting and leave an insufficient amount of length for part “R” to clamp to. If you make this error it is easy to fix by backing “R” out a bit. Best practice if not in a well lit room is to tighten R using a flashlight to see the residual air gap between it and the board. Once this is no longer visible STOP. Tolerances are very tight and any further will lead to the unit being unstable as these joints will separate when under any strain.The other tip is to have an assistant available for at least 5 minutes at the end of the assembly process with a work-around indicated in the text below if you do not.—-As to a review of the actual product.There is good news and bad news.The (not very) bad news is that an identical unit purchased 10 years ago was of better overall quality – the shelves were deeper and thicker (not an issue as the weight they hold is minimal) with better hardware to keep them in place. The current metal pins for that task are smaller while the holes they go in are not so they are apt to fall out until you actually fill the shelves to put some tension on them. It just takes a bit of patience putting them back in but in the end they work fine. The shelf depth becomes a consideration if you have this in a public space since they now measure a hair over 4.5 inch rather than just under 5.5 in. As a result, the ends of dvd/blu ray/CD cases will overhang the end of the shelf which may not be cosmetically pleasing to some (on the upside- no dusting!).That’s really it as far as bad news.The good news is that this does what it is supposed to, isn’t unattractive and will hold a fair number of items.It will arrive in a fairly unwieldy package. I will repeat this a couple of times to make sure the point gets across. This is a large heavy object prior to and after disassembly. The shipping weight is 65 lbs. In a pack or suitcase that’s not a problem to get up several flights of stairs. In a box this size and without handles it is a two person job unless you are in a situation where you can cut the box open and take the larger pieces up first and the rest later. Just something to be aware of.One really big piece of GOOD NEWS is that the box is thick cardboard with considerable foam packing to keep all the pieces from moving around during transit and while not indestructible it should survive being dropped from low heights during transit. After all the reviews of similar items I read complaining about damage which happened prior to arrival, I didn’t take this as a given. Unless they drop it out the back of the truck or drive the truck over it, you should be ok!You will need floor space larger than the final size of the unit to be able to assemble it (for those who haven’t before). The instructions have you assemble the whole item face up (finished side up) then flip it over to put the back on it. (as an aside my unit conveniently had the stickers on each part located on the inner face of each piece making it less likely one would end up with it pointing the wrong way [but this wasn’t specified in the instructions])Assembly was straightforward and should take 30-45 minutes with a screwdriver and hammer (a little longer if you are a newby and/or alone). Apart from getting the parts up the stairs, you really only need an assistant for about 5 minutes of that time to get the unit flipped over and from horizontal to vertical.Flipping the unit over is a bit problematic, particularly by yourself. Once all the shelves are in the unit will have considerable structural strength. It’s actually quite solid (read heavy) and my other one shows no signs of aging. Barring water damage these are likely to outlast me. HOWEVER, until the shelves are in and PARTICULARLY prior to getting the back on the thing there is not much in the way of torsional rigidity.So it is possible to damage the unit (or have it come apart temporarily) while moving it with the back off. This is more likely to happen if you are doing it by yourself and the unit is, therefore, under greater stress.As I was working alone I departed from the instructions (NOT recommending this course of action, just saying it will work). I built the top of the unit (including putting the back on carefully) then built the bottom and had that upright first and subsequently lowered the top onto it (resting the latter against an adjacent wall with a protective blanket between it and the wall). Once I lowered the top unit onto the base unit I tightened the fasteners between the two and put the back on the lower half (the latter not being nearly as easy as doing it flat but doable). It really helps to have three hands and the wall acted as that. This avoided putting strain on the unit during assembly.If you do it flat be advised that the base is wider than the rest (so it won’t tip) and when you roll the unit over so it is “face down” this will leave the middle unsupported. It is best to have something to put underneath it to help support it so that the junction between top and bottom halves is not unduly exercised (particularly as you are about to beat on the back of it with a hammer to get the nails in place). YMMV.One more thing to be advised of. The screws which go through the bottom of the unit have holes for them to be started in BUT not tapped for the screw heads. Therefore the heads of the screws will protrude slightly from the bottom of the unit (remember they said to not overtighten to avoid splitting the wood). If this is going in a carpeted are or on a rug, no issue. If you plan to place it on a wood floor then self adhesive furniture pads (small) to cover the screw heads are a must purchase.