I made the unfortunate mistake of buying a bookcase at IKEA. It was from their HEMNES series. I chose it because we already have a couple of living room end tables from the same HEMNES series. Unlike the bookcase, they were easy to put together and are very sturdy. We’ve owned the end tables for years. IKEA no longer sells the HEMNES end tables.
The HEMNES bookcase was difficult to put together. The pre-drilled holes and corresponding capture points did not completely line up correctly. Worse, the hardware was of such poor quality that it would snap off when attempting to secure it.
Even though IKEA makes the HEMNES furniture series from solid pine, it employs the same type of garbage cam lock nuts and cam screws it uses in its medium-density fibreboard (MDF) furniture.
Why IKEA uses cam lock nuts and cam screws in its solid wood furniture seems stupid to me. The end tables I mentioned earlier do not have cam lock nuts and cam lock screws holding them together. Coincidentally, they are much more sturdy than the bookcase.
Even after replacing the broken cam lock nuts, my HEMNES bookcase is a rickety, unstable deathtrap. I was going to try to re-enforce everything, but decided to just scrap it instead. It’s a poor, unstable design. Choosing to use cam lock nuts and cam screws for the HEMNES bookcase was a big mistake by IKEA.
Take my advice and avoid anything from the HEMNES series at IKEA.
You needed F-4 tape and safety wire, my friend.
What I’d give for a roll of F-4 tape. ?