Lane vs Flexsteel

Hello all. Thank you for the great forums. I have relied on them heavily in the last few weeks looking for a sofa. In a way however these forums have been depressing. I go to a furniture store, find a comfy sofa that I like, then come to the forums to learn how crappy it is!

I live in somewhat of a wasteland of sofas. Almost nobody sells the higher end stuff, and craigslist gets maybe 3-4 new listings a day, usually of very cheapo stuff.
I actually found one place that sells Bradington-Young, but the salesman was some guy in his early 20s who knew less about sofas than I have learned just in the few weeks I have been doing research. This was supposed to be a somewhat ritzy place that carries only USA made brands, but when he was showing me some Rowe sofas, and I asked him what the frame was made of, he said he did not know! I had to turn my heard so he would not see my jaw drop. Quite disappointing.

Anyway, It does appear that in order to get a really good leather sofa, I would have to pay quite a lot more than I am really able to ($4k range?). The only leather I have found that is within my range is the lower to mid tier stuff, so it looks like that is what I will need to get.

I was initially thinking of a flexsteel, but after reading everything about how bad things have become with their quality, I decided to look around more, and found a Lane leather sofa that I liked.

Both are made in China, although Lane assembles in the US (does that even mean much of anything?). Also, the Lane has full top grain leather all around, while the flexsteel has bonded leather on the sides and back. From all the horror stories I have read about the Chinese bonded leather coming apart, it seems that the Lane may be the way to go.

I suspect the majority of opinion here will be of the "well they are both crappy so it doesn't really matter" variety, but I had hoped someone could nudge me in the right direction.

thanks much!

I'm not surprised at lack of knowledge of the furniture salesperson, the average store will pretty much take anyone off the street and make them a salesman, all they tend to care about is moving units - its a volume game. So it becomes a sale-based environment, not an informational one.

You can get a top-of-the-line Hancock & Moore leather sofa for $ 4K if you know where to shop <wink> and stay within the Town and Country promotion posted here in the LEATHER forum. If they are selling you a Flexsteel or Lane in the high $ 3K range, ditch them and mail order your sofa. Simple as that!

"Bonded leather" is closer to vinyl than it is real leather, actually. Its mostly painted plastic - avoid it. Most Chinese-made sofas have less than average durability, and won't hold up well over time.

Thanks for the reply... after reading your post I realized I did not write what those sofas I was looking at cost. They are both $1600.
I really really really wish I had 4k to drop on a sofa.. but the reality is I just don't. I just bought a new home and need to buy quite a few items, as it is my first house, and I have no furniture, appliances, etc. Heck I realized last week after it had snowed here that I did not even have a snow shovel! heh
I am not absolutely set on leather though, is there a good fabric sofa available in the $1000-$2000 range???
I would have to factor in a few $100 for shipping too though...

Yes, you can get a Taylor King in their Portfolio collection for under $ 2K + delivery from my store. They are solid, USA-made sofas, 8-way tied on hardwood frames. I think one of the best values going. Not much on-line about this collection though, but to get you started looking at it go here and see the form factors - then know there are certain fabrics available in that price point to get the deal.

http://www.taylorking.com/PDF/Category/21.PDF