In search of a chair

[Rastoff]

So, my recliner that we've had for almost 20 years, is failing. The mechanism sometimes won't let us put the foot piece down. Therefore, I'm looking to replace it. I just want a comfortable chair to chill out in.

Anyone got a favorite?

 

[carpriver]

Lazy Boy, I like a rocking recliner, rocking help me with stress, to relax and think/ prayers.

 

[walkin jack]

My Lazy Boy rocking recliner....ROCKS!....and it reclines too. The only problem I have is that I can not stay awake in it.

 

[oldbrownhat]

My Lazy Boy rocking recliner....ROCKS!....and it reclines too. The only problem I have is that I can not stay awake in it.

From another thread I seem to recall that you have cats, too. There's a saying, "As nervous as a cat in a room full of rocking chairs."

 

[amazingflapjack]

need to know your size and weight before you buy anything on line. I was finally successful with Hay needle. really good transaction from beginning to end.

 

[mtgianni]

I heard this as a true story. USAF measured 1000 recruits 12 ways, calf length, thigh length, butt width, length of hips to shoulders, etc and averaged all. Build chairs to those specs and presented another 1000 recruits the opportunity to sit in the chairs and be fit to them. 12 fit exactly. The moral is you have to get what fits you not someone else. Warranties, fabric and track records, places to shop sure but how they fit can only be up to you.

 

[swsig]

Maybe you can salvage it. I had the same problem with my La-Z-Boy love seat of similar vintage -- one leg rest wouldn't go down. I decided that since I had nothing to lose, I'd lube the heck out of it. I used Lubriplate (because it won't run) in every location of its amazingly complex mechanism where it looked like there could be friction. Some places were hard to reach with the Lubriplate tube, so I used my Mil-Comm TW25B gun grease syringe on those. It took me two attempts before I got everything lubed properly, but the leg rest did return to its normal functioning. It has been a year since the lube job, and the leg rest is still working perfectly. Mrs. swsig was so thrilled that we didn't have to spend all that money on a new La-Z-Boy that she made me feel like a real hero. At least until she told me that I then needed to fix the hall bath toilet. So break out your Lubriplate and/or gun grease and give it a shot. If it works, it will make you feel like a hero. For a few minutes at least.

 

[JayFramer]

I heard this as a true story. USAF measured 1000 recruits 12 ways, calf length, thigh length, butt width, length of hips to shoulders, etc and averaged all. Build chairs to those specs and presented another 1000 recruits the opportunity to sit in the chairs and be fit to them. 12 fit exactly. The moral is you have to get what fits you not someone else. Warranties, fabric and track records, places to shop sure but how they fit can only be up to you.

Not surprised the Chair Force screwed up even their own chairs!!

 

[JimBianchi]

Lazy Boy here also.

Just head to a showroom and plant yourself in all of them.

You'll find one you like,

 

[Ivan the Butcher]

I wore out a Laze-boy in the late 90's have the second in the family room, and the leather covered one (3rd) in the living room. The wife bought the leather one as a birthday present a year ago. While shopping around we discovered several other brands that nobody ever heard of. I sat in them and had the sales people show me how to get out. Due to patent laws they can't use the various systems that laze-boy invented and abandoned, so these jokers are stuck with engineering from the 1950's that was rejected then!

By the way, the cloth recliner in the family room is the exact model as the leather one in the living room, just 6 or 7 years apart. Leather costs slightly more than twice what the fabric model costs today. I fall asleep no matter who is talking, a little faster than twice as fast too!

Ivan

PS; the dogs don't like the rocking feature, so they stay out of my chair! An add selling point.

 

[Salty RI]

I have a Lazy Boy leather everyone who sits in it wants to take it home.

Sent from my LGL52VL using Tapatalk

 

[snowman]

If you're at all mechanically inclined, I would turn your present one on its side(the one opposite the foot control of course), try to find the problem, and fix it if at all possible. The malfunction you described doesn't sound like an end-of-chair-life issue to me. But then, my recliner is one of the very few mechanical devices around the house & property I haven't repaired, so maybe they're on a different level of complexity. I don't know if the average Joe can get parts either. However I definitely would give it a try before spending all that money for a replacement.

Best wishes,
Andy

 

[Rule3]

One of the cleverest TV ads.
LB are indeed good bit very pricey, there are probably as good out there for less. Furniture shopping is as much fun as car shopping.

Although a racoon in the house will tear it up!

Stressless type design is also very comfy. depends on your taste

https://www.stressless.com/en/stressless-recliners

[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hX3jEWZyvSQ[/ame]

 

[cndrdk]

My Lazy Boy rocking recliner....ROCKS!....and it reclines too. The only problem I have is that I can not stay awake in it.

Friend of mine has one and said when he goes to sleep in it, it is the most relaxing deep sleep ever. He was telling me not too long ago that he fell asleep in the chair, woke up later, slipped on his sandals, and went to Home Depot. After walking around the store for about 30 minutes he looked down and his toenails had been painted hot pink. He has 2 teenage daughters with a sense of humor, ha.

 

[oldbrownhat]

La-Z-Boy Raccoon Commercial - YouTube

The raccoons sound like Tom and Ray from "Car Talk"!

 

[oldbrownhat]

One of the cleverest TV ads.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hX3jEWZyvSQ

Reminded me of this old Sears Optical ad

[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X7ySvH3UGys[/ame]

 

[vytoland]

bought my lay z boy 15 years ago...its still as comfortable and works as it did on day one.....

 

[NYlakesider]

Another vote for Lazy Boy! We have 2, their identical and are in our front room. Its only me and Mrs Lakesider there for the most part, so both of us get a good chair. Chairs about 15 years old and in spite of having 3 large Maine Coon Cats are in great shape.

As noted its very easy to fall asleep in those chairs. Then you add in a 25# cat and it gets even easier. Its very common to fall asleep on the chair with one cat on you wake up later and find a different cat with you.

My wife fell asleep on the chair one night and decided to just stay there rather than hit the bed room. She woke up much later and thought she was having a heart attack. Had two of our rather large cats asleep on her.

 

[Weimar]

We bought a Layne - it wasn't very good quality, arms started coming off.

Bought a lazy boy, barely a year ago, one arm broke, got fixed, and the fabric is just not wearing well.

Disappointed in both and neither was cheap...

 

[oldbrownhat]

Another vote for Lazy Boy! We have 2, their identical and are in our front room. Its only me and Mrs Lakesider there for the most part, so both of us get a good chair. Chairs about 15 years old and in spite of having 3 large Maine Coon Cats are in great shape.

As noted its very easy to fall asleep in those chairs. Then you add in a 25# cat and it gets even easier. Its very common to fall asleep on the chair with one cat on you wake up later and find a different cat with you.

My wife fell asleep on the chair one night and decided to just stay there rather than hit the bed room. She woke up much later and thought she was having a heart attack. Had two of our rather large cats asleep on her.

My gf has two 25 lb. Norwegian Forest/Maine Coon cats; she claims that she "can't nap." Sounds like it's time to get her a Lazy Boy.

A re-post from "Time for a cat pic update" thread:

 

[Rastoff]

Maybe you can salvage it.

If you're at all mechanically inclined, I would turn your present one on its side(the one opposite the foot control of course), try to find the problem, and fix it if at all possible.

Gents, I have turned it on its side and inspected the mechanism. The cause of the problem has eluded me. I think that's largely because I can't duplicate it while it's on its side. Still, I'll keep trying until I just can't take it anymore.

I don't really want a new chair. This one is all broken in. It's not pretty, but it is large and comfy. Plus it has some memories that cannot be replaced or duplicated:

We bought the chair because my wife was pregnant with our son...

Comfortable enough to put a 3 year old to sleep...

Big enough for three (Mom, son, cat)...

Still big enough to curl up in even when he was 9...

It is the chair I sat in for a year with a broken femur...
I held my cat in this chair as she died from an incurable disease...
It is the chair I was sitting in when the Cavaliers finally brought a championship to Cleveland...
It is the chair I was sitting in when Trump won the presidency even though he was so far behind in the polls...
I was sitting in this chair as the US won an Olympic gold medal in curling for the first time in history...


So, yeah, I want to fix it, but it may be beyond my talents.

 

[snowman]

Rastoff,

If you haven't already, you might check YouTube. As you might expect, there is a large number of videos addressing the troubleshooting and repair of recliners. I just gave it a look, but don't have time to view them now. Maybe in the next few days sometime.

Best wishes,
Andy


P.S. Out of curiosity I just looked under mine just to get an idea of the design and possible trouble points. Didn't have time to accomplish much, but there doesn't look to me to be any parts which can't be readily adjusted or replaced. Of course you first have to determine the source of the malfunction, but I wouldn't give up just yet. I can see why you would want to keep that chair!


P.P.S. You may have a coworker or former trainee who has successfully repaired one and can help. Who knows?

 

[oldbrownhat]

Rastoff,

I don't suppose contacting La-Z-Boy Customer Care (emphasizing the sentimental significance of your old unit) might result in them being able to send you a parts breakdown?

 

[Rastoff]

Well, that might help, oldbrownhat, but mine is not a La-Z-Boy.

 

[oldbrownhat]

Well, that might help, oldbrownhat, but mine is not a La-Z-Boy.

Oops... All I saw throughout the thread was "La-Z-Boy" and neglected to note that yours wasn't so identified! It's held up pretty well nonetheless, though.

Wait... how old is your son now? Kids can often fix stuff that baffles us older folks. (Or does that only apply to technology?)

 

[swsig]

These chairs, La-Z-Boy or not, are pretty stout to last as long as they do. Two days ago, I found the pictured piece (with my Shield .45 for comparison) under the leg rest of the love seat I'd mentioned in my previous post (#7). I thought, "Oh no, this is really the end this time." Nope. The ol' love seat still works great, even without this substantial piece of hardware. Substantial as it is, it represents 5% or less of the mass of hardware under the seat, so I guess the seat can get along just fine with the 95% that remains.

 

[99savage308]

La-Z-Boy in leather

 

[Jebus35745]

Make sure you have a proper burial for your old friend, Larry

 

[DWalt]

I bought a very nice leather (real leather) recliner at Sam's Club about a year ago. It doesn't rock or swivel but I like it anyway. It was on sale at the time, I think I paid about $350 for it. I had another leather rocker recliner with about 10 years use on it but my wife gave me orders that because it was so ratty it had to go. I think the Sam's chair was made in China, but it seems very well made.

"I heard this as a true story. USAF measured 1000 recruits 12 ways, calf length, thigh length, butt width, length of hips to shoulders, etc and averaged all. Build chairs to those specs and presented another 1000 recruits the opportunity to sit in the chairs and be fit to them. 12 fit exactly."

This is over 10 years ago now, but I did probably the largest ergonomic study on hand dimensions ever done anywhere to set the specifications for the proposed new USAF service pistol (which never came to pass), the idea being to require grip sizes which could be altered to fit most hands. It involved making a series of hand measurements on over 2000 basic trainees (male and female) at Lackland AFB. I statistically analyzed that data about every possible way. It's a shame it was never used for anything. I may still have the analysis of all that data somewhere. At least I am sure I didn't throw it away.

 

[phulklip]

I had the same problem three years ago. I turned the chair oven and lubed it with vaseline, no mess no drip, used a q-tip. Still going strong