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I want to buy the desk pictured below:

picture1 picture2

However, I'm pretty sure it won't fit in my sedan, and I'd rather not pay to rent a van, so I'd like to take it apart and then put it back together. It doesn't need to be pretty after I put it back together, just functional. So I plan on just nailing the parts back together; except for the drawers -- getting rid of those.

I was thinking about sawing it at the seams. Does this seem like a viable option, or what you would do? I'd like to have a good idea of what is and isn't going to work, and what is going to be easiest before I get there, so I don't drop money on this desk and then find out what I did to it ruined it, leaving me without a desk or the money.

It's only going to be me working on it so no recommendations that require a second hand, and the tools I use must be handheld and inexpensive -- I'm going to be buying tools just for this task and don't want to be stuck with anything expensive that I can't return and will probably never use again.

Also, this is important, I'm going to be sawing off the bottoms of the legs to fine-tune the height of it a bit. I'll probably do an inch or two at a time by drawing a straight-line x amount of distance away from the edge and using a hand saw to cut it off. Keep in mind that I have no tools and will just be doing this once, so the tools I buy to do this will likely never be used again, so if the tools I use to take it apart double for adjusting the height, then all the better.

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  • Hard to say definitively from the pictures, but that desk can probably be disassembled with a screwdriver and lots of pulling. I wouldn't suggest sawing it at all... it'll be a lot messier and harder than you expect, and I doubt you'll be happy with the finished product. Plus the amount you spend on tools is probably how much it'd cost to rent a truck (depending on where you are). Also, double-check that even the flat-top of the desk will fit in your sedan.
    – Robert Nubel
    Commented Nov 1, 2017 at 16:39
  • Sorry to say there's no way you could saw something like this apart neatly and then put it back together again properly.... partly because it appears to be made from particleboard, which nails like crap, and partly because you have no prior experience. But it's possible the table is already made in such a way that it can break down into pieces. Can't count on it but it's a possibility. So I think tying it to the roof (upside down in case that's not obvious) may be your best option. Protect the roof as appropriate with cardboard, an old blanket etc. of course, and tie through the open windows.
    – Graphus
    Commented Nov 1, 2017 at 16:47
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    "I'm going to be sawing off the bottoms of the legs to fine-tune the height of it a bit. I'll probably do an inch or two at a time by drawing a straight-line x amount of distance away from the edge and using a hand saw to cut it off." Ask this in a fresh Question. Sorry again, it's not nearly as easy to do this as you might be thinking!
    – Graphus
    Commented Nov 1, 2017 at 16:49

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This will almost certainly have come flat packed so it will be held together with those metal pegs and flat circular clamp things. I forget what you call them. enter image description here

If you've ever put together and Ikea furniture, you should have seen them before.

First take the drawers out. From the look of them they will come out if you flick the little plastic bits in the runners and then slide out. This should reveal the fixings for the drawer surround. Take that out first and then turn the whole thing over on its top. After that it's just a case of using a screwdriver to align all the round clamp pieces so the arrow on them points to the join. Everything should them come out with very little force.

Be careful of the pins though as they do tend to move a bit and can break the hole that are screwed into. Just take your time and make sure you undo everything.

If you did have some more pictures of the underside and any fixings you see it would make it easier.

Absolutely no need to saw this thing.

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