I strongly suggest you buy a set of 1/4" shank hex driver bits, to use with a smaller sized battery-operated impact drill. If you don't want to buy the drill, there is a perfect set of different hardware-installing bits that come with a RATCHETING screwdriver that accepts 1/4" bits on Amazon and Walmart, for $7-15 depending. The magnetic bits may cost a few dollars more but it's worth it. Next, be careful with the first hex head screw you put in, and if using the electric impact drill, start at low torque setting and gradually increase the torque until you notice you have begun to deform the thin metal of the square tubes, forming a shallow depression you can only see up close. Keep your impact drill at that setting, and just quickly assemble both of them. It's easy. Now, iof you are doing this manually, then you must have already bought that ratcheting bit driver, right? Good, you have! Then make sure the ratcheting driver's mode switch is pushed into the down position, put the hex driviong bit in the receiver, put a screw onto the bit, and then slowly maneuver it into place in the hole in the tube, and then hold it there and screw it in manually until there is enough friction to enable the ratcheting feature to work. With that first screw, get a good tactile sense of how much force you should end with to fiormly seat the screws. HOWEVER! For both cases, I strongly recommend you back off on the torque setting or manual torque level so that all screws are left just at the point where the necessary torque to continue turning the screw increases. This results in two fully assembled benches that are not sturdy and sway back and forth as you inspect the benches. NOW return to the full torque setting, electric or manual, you determined at the beginning, and then quickly tighten every screw from the top down, using tire rim style criss-crossing of screw tightening where you can, so that you do not end up locking in a non-squared shape that doesn't sit flat or seat flat. This took me an hour using a manual ratcheting bit driver screwdriver. Whatever you do, please don't just try and use the included L-shaped hex driver. It will take you hours, hurt your hands, and very likely result in your damaging the tubes or stripping the screws due to non-square repeated insertions. Get the ratchet, they're cheap and it will make you enjoy putting furniture together, instead of ruinikng whatever you are assembl;ing and possibly abandoning the project halfway, for any number of reasons, and then there goes any more new self-assemble furniture you may want in the future!One warning, the cross member near the bottom of the bench is mounted pretty low, so if you own a roomba, make sure it is low enough to fit under that cross-member! It is possible to remove that cross-member completely, just make sure you've mounted the legs with the diagonal brace plates totally square, or when you sit at some point you'll hurt yourself by falling on your buback as the legs both warp enough to be bent by your weight until they both fail. BAM! OW! What you could do, which is what I plan to do when I buy a mopping roomba next years, is to buy two pairs per bench of thick 4" long mending plates, drill sufficiednly large holes in each end, and raise that cross-member up. Make sure to spray paint the plates flat black before installation on both sides.And voila! two awesome, very attractive benches! One I am using to replace my home office desk chaIr, and it's amazing how comfortable this hard bench is, compared to a chair cushion! And, you can slide back and forth which is very useful! The other bench I'm using like a couch table, but instead on the side of my bed, to put things on. So versdatileand attractive and easy to assemble! Enjoy!