Not really clear which way is intended to be up on this, but honestly I think it works either way, as long as you support it properly. Mine's mounted with the flat side up.I probably wouldn't use it if I had 3 boys on the football team, and I wouldn't get busy on it. Wouldn't really even recommend sitting on it. But for normal table uses it's surprisingly sturdy. You just have to understand that it's quite strong in shear - which means you have it up and supported on the other end. If you press down hard on the table right along this peice, the only way it will break is if the screws tear through the wood sideways towards the floor or are themselves sheared along that the mounting surface. So as long as you have the leg up, you can put a big 5 gallon lobster pot, your big full packed suitcase, etc.BUT if you stand at the far end of the table and lift up, it turns into a giant lever with tiny short fulcrum{?}, and would be super easy to just tear the whole thing out - essentially forcing the hinge backwards past where it's locked out, and it will tear the screws out in a heartbeat. But you'd have to lift it a fairly far and be trying to break it. It's not just going to break from bouncing up going over a big bump. But if you tried, it wouldn't take much force - a little kid could easily do it, and that's just mechanics and has nothing to do with the quality of this item. But it's not so delicate it's going to break if you bump into unless you are like running or something. And if it does break, it will rip out screws before the bracket itself breaks. Unless you put big ones in. I'd rather let them rip out then break my counter, so I'm sticking with small for now.So I have installed mine with the flat surface on top. This way I insert the table with it tilted down towards me, and pop the leg down when it's in place. This way if I screw up and drop it or the leg gets nkocked out, the table will flop down and fall out. If you put it with the flat side down and forget the leg, it will bend and rip out of the table top.Anyway, very happy with it, especially for the price. I got 3 and lined the whole counter top so I can put my table anywhere. Just be sensible about expectations of your design and use - they can't defeat physics.
Rating:
[5 of 5 Stars!]