Viewing 11 posts - 1 through 11 (of 11 total)
  • long shot – anyone made an office/swivel chair from a car seat?
  • rogg
    Free Member

    rogg Jr has decided he wants a swivel chair for his room and I had the bright idea of making one from a leather car seat (passenger seats seem to be cheap and generally better condition than drivers seats). Anyone ever done it? Can you buy swivel bases, or should I buy a crappy old office chair and dismantle it? Car seats are pretty heavy IME, can normal bases take the weight? Are they unstable?
    Thanks!

    br
    Free Member

    I think you’ve hit on the problem of weight, and instability.

    Just buy an office chair.

    househusband
    Free Member

    Interesting project!

    Bearing in mind how much car manufacturers must spend on the ergonomics and anthropometrics behind car seats I’ve often wondered that they’d make comfortable chairs – last time I looked into it I did find some reclining gaming chairs using Sparco seats.

    Fresh Goods Friday 696: The Middling Edition

    Fresh Goods Friday 696: The Middlin...
    Latest Singletrack Videos
    wwaswas
    Full Member

    franksinatra
    Full Member

    Like these ones?

    http://www.rallyofficechairs.com/

    Seem to have got over the weight issue by using light weight racing seats.

    dantsw13
    Full Member

    If you could fix a metal plate to the base, it would add stability.

    downshep
    Full Member

    Gaffer of mine used a Recaro velour car seat from an early Astra GTE as his office chair. He removed the runners to lower and lighten the seat and bolted the frame to a ply board before bolting the board to a five castor height adjustable office chair frame. 1st attempt was rear heavy, risking comedy ‘off the back’ potential. He drilled more holes in the ply and mounted the seat and ply further forward on the chassis.

    Worked well, if a little understeery. 🙂

    EDIT Very similar but far cheaper concept than the professional examples posted above.

    rogg
    Free Member

    Cheers ds, sounds like a plan, if I use a reasonably robust base.
    Should be able to get something sorted for £70 or so judging by what’s available on eBay. Someone’s selling ready made ones with Alfa Romeo seats for around £200, maybe I should try to make more than one…

    sneakyg4
    Full Member

    I have tried this with an Alfa GTV seat, I gave up in the end as I could not get the weight distribution right. I also found that it was not actually that comfortable; you really need to sit a lot more upright in an office chair than you do in the car, so the seat itself was not ideal.

    However I kept the seat itself and I am planning to build it into a fixed wooden base with some arms so it can be used as a recliner.

    molgrips
    Free Member

    I’ve often wondered that they’d make comfortable chairs

    They do – a ‘mate’ of mine (aka person we used to mercilessly rip the piss out of) once bought a car and decided he would renovate it. It was an ancient Escort that was totally knackered, and he was only about 15 at the time.

    He got as far as removing the seats, on which we would sit whilst taking the piss out of him as he randomly broke bits of the car. He had to pay to have it taken to a scrappie in the end.

    The seats however were tremendously comfortable when sat in outside the car. Having said that we were reclined quite a bit.

    boltonjon
    Full Member

    No, but i do know a guy who built an office chair out of the pilots seat from Concord

    Ultra cool!

Viewing 11 posts - 1 through 11 (of 11 total)

The topic ‘long shot – anyone made an office/swivel chair from a car seat?’ is closed to new replies.