I originally made this video for my "Scrap bin" channel: ua-cam.com/users/IBuildItScrapBin But felt it was good enough to post here. What do you think? Rebuild this with a proper wooden frame, of scrap it down for the parts? Interesting thing to do with the motor and lead screw mechanism is to make a TV lift, but I don't need one of those. Could just leave it as it is as a piece of kinetic art, just run it in a continuous loop. Just watch your fingers in those pinch points!
John Heisz - I Build It please rebuild it the way a woodworrker would. I have a leather version of this and the motor died on me so I’m looking at projects for the internals too.
Build a new 2 piece(removable back for door clearance), smooth contoured see through chair with Plexiglas, wood and epoxy resin so you can see the inner full workings of the electrical and mechanical.
My deceased father would have definitely repurpose that mechanism for something. I like the idea of an outdoor lounger that sits under a large umbrella. Built in beer cooler,optional .Cheers bud...
It's a standard linear actuator. I scavenged one from a bed thrown out in the curb. I just used it a few days ago to push back a heavy closet into its place, after I moved it and it somehow got stuck. Took 10 seconds!
David Lowe it's the earrings my wife had. For YEARS she had one earring and had lost the other of the pair. Finally she got tired of the one that she still had reminding her that she had lost one, so she threw it out. The NEXT DAY (after the garbage had been picked up, of course) she found the missing one.
You got 6 years from a $400 chair? Wow! I'm impressed! I got only 2 years from a $1000 La-z-boy... I couldn't believe how cheap and unstable they are now!
Great idea John. My 20+ year old chair got dirty and worn out but the mechanism was still very good, just manual. I stripped out the mechanism and built a cherry Morris Chair frame, installed the mechanism, had a new cushion made and I reupholstered the rest using the same material as the cushion. I'm loving it, so go for it.
Earlier this year I got my grandmas old lift chair and harvested 2 linear actuators from it.... still working what cool thing I'm going to make with them.
Outtake: A daily scene in my shop! LMAO!!! Definitely do a rebuild!!!! Minimal to keep the skeleton showing for sure. Something I've used on a number of seating projects that give the performance of leather with even easier cleaning is motorcycle seat/saddle upholstery. 1-2" closed cell, dense foam or neoprene for a low profile modernist/industrial look. Now ur gonna get my eye-balling every recliner I see at the side of the road...... thanks a lot!!
Please... Rebuild! I'd love to see your take on it. Especially since I don't imagine you (like most of us males), have sewing skills. I've researched the idea of making couches and recliners for years now, the sewing has always been the real obstacle... And no one really has presented an alternative that looks good.
Definitely make a hardwood frame...maybe even a motorized deck chair or something...or add wheels and another motor and make a miniature bobcat kinda thing!
Hard wood frame and slats to leave that beautiful mechanism exposed. Add cushions with zip-off covers for cleaning. LED lighting below like some custom cards ;-)
Hi John. A young child was strangled by a reclining chair in Australia a few years back so safety needs to be taken into account. I enjoy your videos thank you.
Loved the video, especially when I thought you were going to attack the chair with an angle grinder. My vote would be for you to build a new chair. Can't wait to see all the comments from the safety trolls about getting sensitive parts of your anatomy getting trapped in the mechanism!
Exactly what I was thinking ! How do we know these chairs weren't sent from the future by the robot overlords for the bots to recline in for their oil changes?
“Strip off all this shit right here”, was exactly what I said to my ex wife the night we met... in retrospect, her all to eager compliance should have been a sign.
As a mechanic, it never ceases to amaze me how people can look at a couch or an arm chair (at least this one has a few moving parts, but a lounge chair has not a single moving part) and say things like "what are you gonna get for $400?". You can buy an entire working registerable CAR for $400!!!! Clearly I'm in the wrong game.
Looks and moves like Arnie at the end of The Terminator. The skeleton of Chairinator. Looking forward to see how John turns it back into something to sit on.
Not sure what kind of hobbies you are into but my old roommate used a frame like this to make the ultimate PC racing simulator that could go from upright (rally car) to reclined F1 style race car.
Me, too. My wife actually wants me to do that to two old La-Z-boys. Now I know how to begin the project, but am lost from there. If anyone can figure it out, it would be John. Go for it!
5 років тому
Awesome "disassembly"... For the up-cycling I'd definitely call Matthias W.
"That's the wing." Great video and I'm voting for a minimalist recliner build. I also have to say I am worried about the pressure of fame becoming too much for Focus as it would seem he is having a hard time staying away from the corn liquor.
How about a coffee table, with the 'Foot rest', a small lifting table that comes up when you need it for some notebook type work. Then you can sit in your lounge, have this brilliant, and immediately, hit the button, raise the table and do some work without having to go into the office. Ok, Ok, just a thought don't slag me off. :)
Build a nice looking, multiple wood essence, reclining chair. With curved arm rest this thig would look good. Either that or flip it upside down and make a robot walking chair. :) Cheers from Canada!
rebuilding is a good idea, something that looks like a "rock back chair" using a single scheet of plywood, but with a recliner mehanism sounds fun for me ;) but using this mechanism could be also good for so many things for exampe an adjustable hight small workbench or a power operated foldable/slidable table would be funny
"Like cutting up chicken" is where you got me. It was at that point that I subbed while laughing out loud. The naked frame vaguely reminds me of the pods in 2001 a Space Odyssey. I guess it's the outstretched arms that look a bit a pod to me.
I couldn't help but start giggling as you started destroying the chair, haha!! I am, however, going to try to figure out the hardware placement, and *repair* mine (several fasteners have either come out or broke. Now I have to figure out where they were....)
I worry the mechanisms might fail but I dont think ive seen a video like this. Bell hit!!! I really want to see this progress to its final conclusion... good or bad
I wish that I had seen this 3 months ago. The wooden frame (left side and back) for my power lift recliner broke and dumped me off while punching a big hole in the drywall behind it. Like yours, the frame was OSB and little bit of solid wood plus a box of staples. OSB doesn't hold staples well at all. I was too pissed at the chair to rebuild it but I might have tried if I had seen a video like this.
I used one of these a few years back and made a motorised router table . Was pretty good just didn't have a way to adjust height in really small increments.
I think that would be an awesome build video to turn that into a wooden chair. It would also be a very interesting piece once done as you were saying being able to see the bare mechanism. It would certainly be an eye catcher and conventional piece if nothing else.
LMAO! I think that if you make a wooden chair out of it you should use thick plastic for the base so that you can see the mechanism function. That would look cool John.............. :)
This is weird, I took one apart just last week to make one with a hardwood frame and without all that padding and stuffing. But mine was just a manual kind. But I did keep the seat and back they were in one piece and actually pretty good wood. Now I just have to build a hardwood frame with nice small arms and nicely styled legs and all. Definitely make a good recliner out of it. Thanks for the video....as usual very well done.
This might be the funniest video of yours. Lol. Especially the outtakes at the end. The exasperation is pretty damn funny. We all know how that feels. Go with it.
I'm thinking powered drill press table lift, but that might be a waste of a good purpose built motor. I'm usually not a fanboy, but if I'm ever in Canada, spending a day with John, Matthias, and Jerry from Bullshit Korner would be an experience of a lifetime.
I have one that I need to pick up today, I am planning on using a drill press table lift, (my table is very heavy especially when I have a vise on it).
Perhaps you should think about reviewing scrappy built furniture and tearing them apart. After that you show how to do it right. I found that video very entertaining and funny ;) Please more of it *g*
Mount it to the frame in your ceiling, hook up a remote control to it and mount a projector on top of a ceiling tile. So it looks like there's nothing in your ceiling, then you hit the button and out pops your projector! =-O Edit: Also, how do you stand after so many Molsen Goldens?!?!?!? XD
I used to sell La-z-boy recliners and there is one big difference with their power chairs, well two, but the first affects the second. The first is an actual four-sided box for the chair to sit on. Instead of just a bottom rail connecting the two front feet, they connect with a full side parallel to the back. Basically, the mechanism sits inside the box. There are holes for the mechanism to operate, but the box provides rigidity. If you build a "minimalist" chair, look at some historical chairs from La-z-boy. Oh, the second difference is the price. They're definitely more than $400.
You could use the remaining metal frame and motor to build a Halloween or Christmas animatronics decoration. Better yet, design it so that you can easily switch it between the two! Imagine the number of views and the new audience you would draw in.
I would love to see what you finely ended up doing with the mechanism of the recliner. I have a brand new electric recliner that l feel like putting a hacksaw too 😅 it just doesn't recline far enough and it's so uncomfortable, l regret buying it
lol - you ALWAYS have to stay to the end of John's vids. Hey - you could make a cool indoor Adirondack chair - that would keep all the parts visible, be a lot cooler than leather, and stay of lot cleaner than fabric. Plus the wood would likely be so uncomfortable after a short time you'd like get up and be less sedentary. Seems like a lot of wins.....
Well John I subscribed years ago but only came across this when I started looking for 'how to build a motorized recliner. I have always been interested in building a motorised recliner for myself - so to answer your question I would love to see what you would come up with to see if I could incorporate any of your ideas.
This is cool. I liked the end bit when you saw it naked and got inspired... Be interested to see what you do as I have two worn out recliners (manual, not electric) but may be able to get some inspiration from your project to give them some more life. Hope you do it (but if you do go a different direction, I'll still be interested!!!!) Thanks for the content as always John!
I originally made this video for my "Scrap bin" channel:
ua-cam.com/users/IBuildItScrapBin
But felt it was good enough to post here.
What do you think? Rebuild this with a proper wooden frame, of scrap it down for the parts? Interesting thing to do with the motor and lead screw mechanism is to make a TV lift, but I don't need one of those.
Could just leave it as it is as a piece of kinetic art, just run it in a continuous loop. Just watch your fingers in those pinch points!
John Heisz - I Build It please rebuild it the way a woodworrker would. I have a leather version of this and the motor died on me so I’m looking at projects for the internals too.
You should totally make it into a chair! I
Build a new 2 piece(removable back for door clearance), smooth contoured see through chair with Plexiglas, wood and epoxy resin so you can see the inner full workings of the electrical and mechanical.
My deceased father would have definitely repurpose that mechanism for something. I like the idea of an outdoor lounger that sits under a large umbrella. Built in beer cooler,optional .Cheers bud...
Can we get more John Heisz After Dark vids too? Definitely build a new chair, or use the mechanism to upgrade your camera gantry!
You'll take the motor out and store it for 20 years, falling over it daily. Eventually you'll take it to the dump, then you'll need it immediately.
It's a standard linear actuator. I scavenged one from a bed thrown out in the curb. I just used it a few days ago to push back a heavy closet into its place, after I moved it and it somehow got stuck. Took 10 seconds!
But the mechanism that attaches to the linear actuator, is very cool.
In those same 20 years people will be saying, 'they just don't build 'em like this anymore.'
David Lowe it's the earrings my wife had. For YEARS she had one earring and had lost the other of the pair. Finally she got tired of the one that she still had reminding her that she had lost one, so she threw it out. The NEXT DAY (after the garbage had been picked up, of course) she found the missing one.
Definitely rebuild it but you have to add the Steve Austin bionic sound effects.
You got 6 years from a $400 chair? Wow! I'm impressed! I got only 2 years from a $1000 La-z-boy... I couldn't believe how cheap and unstable they are now!
Though John didn't admit it that OSB was pretty darn tough to take bust apart.
Today on I Build it, We demonstrate how to field dress the big game chair you just shot :p
Great idea John. My 20+ year old chair got dirty and worn out but the mechanism was still very good, just manual. I stripped out the mechanism and built a cherry Morris Chair frame, installed the mechanism, had a new cushion made and I reupholstered the rest using the same material as the cushion. I'm loving it, so go for it.
Photos?
I would love to see this!
This looks like the start of a terrifying Halloween animatronic nightmare
Insectoid... footrest hardware looks like a praying mantis
My brain instantly went to using something like this for a large scale animated Halloween prop.
I loved this video John! And yes, I think that an elegant high quality wooden chair (with no cushions) would be awesome!
Exactly!
John losing his cool and giving focus the business was pure gold
Earlier this year I got my grandmas old lift chair and harvested 2 linear actuators from it.... still working what cool thing I'm going to make with them.
Ohh ya and make a new wood chair from the old one, would be interesting to see
Outtake: A daily scene in my shop! LMAO!!! Definitely do a rebuild!!!! Minimal to keep the skeleton showing for sure. Something I've used on a number of seating projects that give the performance of leather with even easier cleaning is motorcycle seat/saddle upholstery. 1-2" closed cell, dense foam or neoprene for a low profile modernist/industrial look. Now ur gonna get my eye-balling every recliner I see at the side of the road...... thanks a lot!!
Please... Rebuild! I'd love to see your take on it. Especially since I don't imagine you (like most of us males), have sewing skills.
I've researched the idea of making couches and recliners for years now, the sewing has always been the real obstacle... And no one really has presented an alternative that looks good.
Definitely chair build. A wooden recliner would look awesome.
John, you're much more entertaining when you're half drunk :)
I was gonna say he seems half cut, haha
Try playing it at x 0.75 speed! 😀....now where's those munchies!!
Yes! Angry, drunken John is hilarious. I think he might actually be my spirit animal.
Much more cursing. I love it.
The violent cold open and the ending bit looping back to it chronologically, might be acid.
Stone lift for building pyramids
lmao
Definitely make a hardwood frame...maybe even a motorized deck chair or something...or add wheels and another motor and make a miniature bobcat kinda thing!
Animatronic dinosaur.
I used the mechanism to open and shut my shed window, practically identical chair in Scotland !
Hard wood frame and slats to leave that beautiful mechanism exposed. Add cushions with zip-off covers for cleaning. LED lighting below like some custom cards ;-)
Build a wooden chair around it! That would be the coolest project ;-)
My girlfriend had a sofa made like that. I cut it in half with recip saw inside 30 seconds. It was quite therapeutic.
That would be a cool project and you'd solve your chair problem. Build it how u want it.
Hi John. A young child was strangled by a reclining chair in Australia a few years back so safety needs to be taken into account. I enjoy your videos thank you.
An Amish Barrington Style Recliner but with an Electronic Drive! That would be A Great build!
Loved the video, especially when I thought you were going to attack the chair with an angle grinder. My vote would be for you to build a new chair. Can't wait to see all the comments from the safety trolls about getting sensitive parts of your anatomy getting trapped in the mechanism!
Two words: seat beads. That's how you beat the sticky, sweaty, leather chair. They are are gift from the gods.
It looks like the Terminator T-800 with its flesh removed.
Exactly what I was thinking ! How do we know these chairs weren't sent from the future by the robot overlords for the bots to recline in for their oil changes?
Reprogram it and send it back in time to yourself
“Strip off all this shit right here”, was exactly what I said to my ex wife the night we met... in retrospect, her all to eager compliance should have been a sign.
This maybe your best video yet. I think you need to make a chair and add speakers to it too. Cause... Why not
You could always build a small workbench that lowers/raises for comfortable working height!
As a mechanic, it never ceases to amaze me how people can look at a couch or an arm chair (at least this one has a few moving parts, but a lounge chair has not a single moving part) and say things like "what are you gonna get for $400?".
You can buy an entire working registerable CAR for $400!!!!
Clearly I'm in the wrong game.
John Heisz - uncensored, uncut and uncaring. I love these honest videos.
Lmao that's the first time I've ever heard you swear on here and it was only 30 seconds in.
Keep up the good work.
Watch the one where he's connecting his floor heating system on the home reno channel - I learned a few new swearwords myself on that one!
Looks and moves like Arnie at the end of The Terminator. The skeleton of Chairinator.
Looking forward to see how John turns it back into something to sit on.
New chair! I cant even picture a wood recliner
me either. I just sounds horribly uncomfortable
Not sure what kind of hobbies you are into but my old roommate used a frame like this to make the ultimate PC racing simulator that could go from upright (rally car) to reclined F1 style race car.
Oh yes, I'd really like to see you build a new chair around this mechanism
Best video yet! Not because I think You need to cuss, but because it seemed real. Like an everyday Guys Workshop!
I think it might make an interesting snow shoveling machine
I would vote for a Morris Chair style, possible incorporate a foot stool into the design to use the full mechanism.
Me, too. My wife actually wants me to do that to two old La-Z-boys. Now I know how to begin the project, but am lost from there. If anyone can figure it out, it would be John. Go for it!
Awesome "disassembly"... For the up-cycling I'd definitely call Matthias W.
John, get a nice throw blanket to cover the leather chair in summer. Cool to the touch n washable. They do slide a bit though but I love mine.
"That's the wing." Great video and I'm voting for a minimalist recliner build. I also have to say I am worried about the pressure of fame becoming too much for Focus as it would seem he is having a hard time staying away from the corn liquor.
How about a coffee table, with the 'Foot rest', a small lifting table that comes up when you need it for some notebook type work. Then you can sit in your lounge, have this brilliant, and immediately, hit the button, raise the table and do some work without having to go into the office. Ok, Ok, just a thought don't slag me off. :)
Build a nice looking, multiple wood essence, reclining chair. With curved arm rest this thig would look good. Either that or flip it upside down and make a robot walking chair. :) Cheers from Canada!
The chair idea is cool. The motor, and lead screw, might also make for the basis of an interesting vice build.
That's the wing! I kinda want to see what you'd build all wood. But that motor, who knows what you would come up with.
Yes, rebuild it! I'm thinking of doing the same thing to an old recliner and have no idea where to start.
Rebuilt chair would be amazing!
rebuilding is a good idea, something that looks like a "rock back chair" using a single scheet of plywood, but with a recliner mehanism sounds fun for me ;) but using this mechanism could be also good for so many things for exampe an adjustable hight small workbench or a power operated foldable/slidable table would be funny
"Like cutting up chicken" is where you got me. It was at that point that I subbed while laughing out loud.
The naked frame vaguely reminds me of the pods in 2001 a Space Odyssey. I guess it's the outstretched arms that look a bit a pod to me.
I couldn't help but start giggling as you started destroying the chair, haha!! I am, however, going to try to figure out the hardware placement, and *repair* mine (several fasteners have either come out or broke. Now I have to figure out where they were....)
Quite entertaining! Looks like you were having lots of fun.
I love how REAL you are in this video!
This is the BEST unboxing video I’ve ever seen.
John, I really like the idea of a naked chair. I too believe it might look pretty cool. Give it a try
I think that would make a cool fold away work station.
A hardwood recliner sounds Awesome!
I worry the mechanisms might fail but I dont think ive seen a video like this. Bell hit!!! I really want to see this progress to its final conclusion... good or bad
I wish that I had seen this 3 months ago. The wooden frame (left side and back) for my power lift recliner broke and dumped me off while punching a big hole in the drywall behind it. Like yours, the frame was OSB and little bit of solid wood plus a box of staples. OSB doesn't hold staples well at all. I was too pissed at the chair to rebuild it but I might have tried if I had seen a video like this.
I used one of these a few years back and made a motorised router table . Was pretty good just didn't have a way to adjust height in really small increments.
Electric Reclining Morris chair!!! With spalted maple triangle details!!
A wooden chair built on this mech would inspire us all.
Oh I really wish you filmed and posted a video of a rebuild. I personally think it would have been a great build.
My grandmother passed a week ago and I saved her recliner… looking for ideas to repurpose the mech…. Maybe motorized shelving and workbench in my van
This video lowered my stress level. Thank you.
"It's like cutting chicken"
"here is the wing"
🤣🤣🤣🤣
I think that would be an awesome build video to turn that into a wooden chair. It would also be a very interesting piece once done as you were saying being able to see the bare mechanism. It would certainly be an eye catcher and conventional piece if nothing else.
I think an all/mostly wood recliner would be really neat opportunity
With a bit of playing about, that would make an excellent sim racing setup! Cheers for the inspiration.
You seemed to enjoy taking it apart quite a bit ... Do whatever you think you would enjoy more
LMAO! I think that if you make a wooden chair out of it you should use thick plastic for the base so that you can see the mechanism function. That would look cool John.............. :)
This is weird, I took one apart just last week to make one with a hardwood frame and without all that padding and stuffing. But mine was just a manual kind. But I did keep the seat and back they were in one piece and actually pretty good wood. Now I just have to build a hardwood frame with nice small arms and nicely styled legs and all. Definitely make a good recliner out of it. Thanks for the video....as usual very well done.
Rebuild it based on your own design. Very simple and awesome.
This might be the funniest video of yours. Lol. Especially the outtakes at the end. The exasperation is pretty damn funny. We all know how that feels. Go with it.
Now it looks like an Alien Ant.
Cool.
Thumbs up.
Willy from Belgium
A hardwood chair with the mechanism exposed would be really cool.
Unless your pets have tails!
Could make a ceiling mount for a TV. It is flat up against the ceiling when not in use or folds down when you want to use it.
How about a lift table one that adjust different high's for your work shop.
I can't wait to see where this goes!!
I'm thinking powered drill press table lift, but that might be a waste of a good purpose built motor.
I'm usually not a fanboy, but if I'm ever in Canada, spending a day with John, Matthias, and Jerry from Bullshit Korner would be an experience of a lifetime.
I have one that I need to pick up today, I am planning on using a drill press table lift, (my table is very heavy especially when I have a vise on it).
Yes! A hardwood chair with removable cushions would look cool.
Perhaps you should think about reviewing scrappy built furniture and tearing them apart. After that you show how to do it right.
I found that video very entertaining and funny ;) Please more of it *g*
"like cutting up a chicken!" True.😆 Go for the build! Pretty neat to watch the articulating, if sloppy, mechanism.
Mount it to the frame in your ceiling, hook up a remote control to it and mount a projector on top of a ceiling tile. So it looks like there's nothing in your ceiling, then you hit the button and out pops your projector! =-O
Edit: Also, how do you stand after so many Molsen Goldens?!?!?!? XD
Rebuild! A reclining adirondak chair would be awesome
I used to sell La-z-boy recliners and there is one big difference with their power chairs, well two, but the first affects the second. The first is an actual four-sided box for the chair to sit on. Instead of just a bottom rail connecting the two front feet, they connect with a full side parallel to the back. Basically, the mechanism sits inside the box. There are holes for the mechanism to operate, but the box provides rigidity.
If you build a "minimalist" chair, look at some historical chairs from La-z-boy.
Oh, the second difference is the price. They're definitely more than $400.
Great video! I really appreciate your use of the word "shit." Very funny.
That's it! A body for Focus Master!
You could use the remaining metal frame and motor to build a Halloween or Christmas animatronics decoration. Better yet, design it so that you can easily switch it between the two!
Imagine the number of views and the new audience you would draw in.
After watching this video I subbed! Funny, creative, and loved it
I would love to see what you finely ended up doing with the mechanism of the recliner. I have a brand new electric recliner that l feel like putting a hacksaw too 😅 it just doesn't recline far enough and it's so uncomfortable, l regret buying it
You could try and use perspex, totally see through, and you can mould it to get different shapes so there's no sharp corners.
Your skelechair idea is awesome...so would an automatic outfeed support for the tablesaw lol
lol - you ALWAYS have to stay to the end of John's vids. Hey - you could make a cool indoor Adirondack chair - that would keep all the parts visible, be a lot cooler than leather, and stay of lot cleaner than fabric. Plus the wood would likely be so uncomfortable after a short time you'd like get up and be less sedentary. Seems like a lot of wins.....
I like the wooden chair idea but wonder if the motor can handle the weight.
you should absolutely make a new chair with that mechanism
How about a motorised sun lounger? Made from some nice hardwood? That's will still show off the mechanism
Well John I subscribed years ago but only came across this when I started looking for 'how to build a motorized recliner. I have always been interested in building a motorised recliner for myself - so to answer your question I would love to see what you would come up with to see if I could incorporate any of your ideas.
This is cool. I liked the end bit when you saw it naked and got inspired... Be interested to see what you do as I have two worn out recliners (manual, not electric) but may be able to get some inspiration from your project to give them some more life. Hope you do it (but if you do go a different direction, I'll still be interested!!!!) Thanks for the content as always John!