This posting may be a little difficult to present clearly. I "had" a no-name office chair, at least I did until last Friday evening. This be a gas strut supported swivel chair that is height adjustable. Perhaps 10 years old.
While turning slightly I suddenly found myself on the floor. The top bracket, a box shaped assembly to mate the chair to the gas strut portion had sheared.
Hate to toss out the chair base/back unit as it is nearly perfect. Searching online (eBay) for replacement base assemblies show they run more than just buying a replacement chair.
If anyone here has had similar experiences I'd like to learn some options.
I've converted a few rolling/tilting/adjustable height office chairs when either the top or bottom went bad. No gas cylinders though. Pick up office chairs at thrift shops. Goodwill, Salvation Arrmy, etc. Just of matter of salvaging top or bottom and screwing one piece to the other. Just make sure what you buy can be butchered to fit what you want to keep. You might need some patience to wait for the right chair to show up. My wife shops these stores often and always runs across what I need. She'll call me and I'll go down there and load it in the car. Sometimes in 2 pieces.
My killer office chair is headed down that road. I gotta disassemble it this week to discover what is failing. Right now, the loose side-to-side slack is increasing and I think something is gonna shear. I figure a stamped pressed metal post/plate something-or-other that's going. We'll see.
Weld repair can be an option but caution must be exercised...... if the weld repair is in such a location as to heat the gas shock, maybe not such a good idea.
Mass market chairs are designed for the average plus some small margin with respect to longevity. My neighbor came over the his gas shock chair plus the new seat bottom bracket.
Unfortunately it looked like the gas shock & seat bracket were a press fit (or thermal fit) assembly with no way to disassemble. The chair mfr had given him a new bracket but it looks he really needed the shock / bracket assembly.
His a big guy..... like 6' 4" & pushing 300 lbs. The chair was only ~ a year old.
Ya get what ya pay for- there is a reason the big-boxes sell 'office chairs' for $79-$200 dollars, and traditional commercial furniture stores sell them for 3x to 5x that price.
Not saying the commercial-grade ones are not overpriced, mind you, just that it is hard or impossible to find durable ones at a mass-market store.
I generally buy mine at auctions or garage sales. and try to keep 1-2 spares on hand, for when the main one gets wobbly. Stand facing chair place one hand on each arm rest, and rock side to side. If you can feel slop, move on.
Yes, and no. Good stores sell crap, too. I'm a welder. I've fixed many metal chairs of this description. Five wheeled star base, various other gadgets. Most were very poorly welded or VERY! poorly welded. And some of the chairs were the expensive ones.
Most were abused from leaning back in them. And some of the desk jockeys would have been too heavy to ride on a camel. Know whut uh mean, Vern?
I resurrected many a chair that would have gone on the junk heap. I had an old mailbox by the front door, locked, with a slot on top and some business cards. When people would ask how much, I'd say, just put something in the box, take a card, and when we have enough, we buy some pizzas for the guys. And bring us your other repairs, too. No one left less than $5, and the most was $20. $10 seemed to be average. They also brought in small quick cash jobs on lawnmowers, benches, etc.
Some of the chairs cannot be fixed, but that's rare. Mostly when the hydraulic unit goes out, or bracing needs to be added, and the person does not like the aesthetic of a piece of angle or flat bar that was visible. Some where the broken metal was near plastic or fiber and it couldn't be taken off. Some where the welding would have been too close to the hydraulic oil.
Steve
I guess word got out, cause we fixed a lot of chairs.
I've found EXACTLY the same chair at two different "office supply" places - one at half the price of the other - so that is not always true. Same part numbers on the chair parts - one had a "big box" office supply name on it, the other in a plain box at a "real" office furniture store. The "big box" name was half the price but you needed to assemble it yourself (a five minute job) while the "real office supply store" assembled it for you (but the one on display had screws improperly assembled etc).
Now perhaps it was not a "durable" chair -by some definition, which would make it overpriced at one store - perhaps it WAS a durable chair
- which made it one heck of a deal at the other store.
A combination of things: Poor welding, poor design, poor load distribution, poor triangulation and bracing, and the poor chair that has to hold up some fat ass who thinks it's a recliner.
Wood does not fatigue when it bends. Metal does. Steel can flex more than aluminum before it cracks - unless it is hard (work hardened) to start with. Cold stamped steel is work hardened and rather brittle
I fixed an armless office chair whose seat and back had worn out. I used two slabs of wood for the seat and back, and had the edges rounded. THen I got a "Windsor Chair Seat Cover" (covers back and seat) to cover up the wood.
I had to look it up since I know where it is on sight (on the way back to my house from the Pentagon, which is how I chanced on it in the first place!) but not by address other than New York Ave.
Washington Used Office Furniture
1100 New York Ave NW, Washington, DC 20005 (202) 223-9241
Be advised that like all other "good deal" places the best deals occur at random - which is why I would stop off once every week or two to see what new loads of stuff they got it. They seriously mark down stuff that's been around too long when new loads come in and with lousy economy, that seems to be pretty frequently. On the other hand, I've been there when nothing seemed like an exceptional deal but it's the place to go if you've got your own truck. BTW, the three Firekings were in perfect shape, and even came with a double set of keys for two of the three (the third had only one key). I was so astounded by the deal I got worried they contained asbestos, but the manufacturer says it's cement and so does my back! They're made of seriously thick steel, not like the typical sheet metal junk. Good hunting!
Thanks, I'll have to remember that. If I ever have free time. Hopefully they are open on Saturdays otherwise I'll never be able to make it there though unless I conveniently have to visit a job site in the city... (but that would be wrong)
I would suggest going to a used office furniture dealer and getting a name brand used office chair for the price of a new Chicom chair and it will last for many years. With all the businesses that have closed down, there should be some very nice slightly used office furniture at the dealers. You may have to scrape the "Solar Energy Rules" stickers off the back of the chair but you can't beat the price and quality. ^_^
Just be warned. Like Goodwill, the good stuff goes fast. The friend that helped me winch the Firekings into my house went down the next day to buy the remaining units for himself but they were long gone. They are beautiful pieces with incredibly sturdy but easy gliding slide mechanisms. Only problem is they weight about 500 pounds each.
Hmm, I might just take a spin down there next week. Now I have a handicapped van that "kneels" and has a ramp that folds down. Great for carrying heavy cargo like fire-proof file cabinets. The National Arborteum is just a short distance away. Make a weekend trip out of it. IIRC, they are open on Saturdays but I'd call first just to make sure. There's also a cheap motel nearby that has served as HQ for a number of serious criminal enterprises, so don't look like a tourist. It IS Washington, DC where only criminals carry handguns.
Hah. I must have that "look" because it seems that nobody ever messes with me. I haven't tried anything blatantly suicidal like walking through Anacostia though.
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