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Thread: "Soft" chair casters?

  1. #1
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    "Soft" chair casters?

    Has anyone come across a source for "softer" chair casters? I'm soon to move my office in the house to a new room in the addition and I'd love to do away with the plastic mat that protects our pine floors from the typical hard plastic casters that come with office chairs. So far, I have not found a replacement caster with rubber or other soft material for the wheels. Any suggestions? TYIA
    --

    The most expensive tool is the one you buy "cheaply" and often...

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    "A hen is only an egg's way of making another egg".


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  3. #3
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    Jim, check out McMaster-Carr. www.mcmaster.com Type "caster" into the search box, and select "about casters". You'll be able to search their selections based on durometer -- the softness of the wheel.

  4. #4
    I really do not belive the chair is the biggest problem it is draging your feet accross the floor. Ray

  5. #5
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    Jim - New Picture !!


    I bought a few kits (five casters each) that are direct replacements for a standard chair. I do not see the link it must be on the old computer - time flys. I remember the owner saying you do not want rubber. These I think are urethane - so they will not leave a rub mark nor will they allow a tack or staple to stick into them and then scratch the floor.

    I also bought some kits (wheels and plates) for my file cabinets and printer station just so I could move them over the floors without damage when cleaning.

    I use the Anthro system in my office -- they sell a wheel for carpet and wood floors - but these will leave a rub mark. So not all soft wheels are for wood.

    So make sure you ask if they are for wood floors

  6. #6
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    To suit our hardwood floors, I replaced the casters on "inherited" dinette chairs with the ball-type like shown here:

    http://www.rockler.com/CategoryView.cfm?Cat_ID=38

    These are fairly hard rubber but not overly large, so maybe the Urethane ones shown would be better suited.

    The replacement had a down side. The original caster spindles were some odd dimension, nearly ½" in diameter, so replacing with the new ones required a homemade shim/collar on each leg. 4 chairs X 4/chair = 16 times!

  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by Ray Peterson View Post
    I really do not belive the chair is the biggest problem it is draging your feet accross the floor.
    With wide pine flooring, the regular, hard casters will leave indentations over time...hence the desire to change them. It's the nature of using softer material on the floors, but it's period appropriate for our home and area. Using the plastic "protector" does eliminate the marking, at least where it covers, but brings into play floor damage from dirt being ground under the edges over time. That's more substantial damage that occurs from my bare feet or the athletic shoes I typically wear daily.
    ---

    Thanks for the suggestions, folks...I'll follow up on them. If there are any others, post at your convenience!
    --

    The most expensive tool is the one you buy "cheaply" and often...

  8. #8
    is there an IKEA near you? that had some that i had gotten but they didn't fit my chairs! (maybe I could have made some adapters - they were too small)

    They had rubber instead of plastic - and inexpensive... like 5 for 10 bucks or so!!! very reasonable.

    Maybe go on their website
    Last edited by Dennis Lopeman; 05-21-2008 at 3:56 PM.

  9. #9
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    Dennis, yes, Ikea is a regular haunt of mine over the years...we had the very first one in the US in this area.

    But that link that Glenn provided got me a company that had exactly what I wanted. Not the product he linked to, but the 1200 series is perfect for my needs.
    --

    The most expensive tool is the one you buy "cheaply" and often...

  10. #10
    Also, Jim, check out Doug Mockett Co.
    http://www.mockett.com/
    They have a lot of "soft wheel" and "soft tire" casters. Their designs tend to be pretty "contemporary" but their product quality and service are top notch.
    David DeCristoforo

  11. #11
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    Quote Originally Posted by Ray Peterson View Post
    I really do not belive the chair is the biggest problem it is dragging your feet across the floor. Ray
    With that smiley I'm not sure if you're kidding or not...

    In my office at work I sat in a chair on one of those tough industrial carpets, and after a few years you could definitely see a "ring" in the carpet from the circle defined by the chair wheels.

    Jim, I put new oak hardwood in my office and we went out to Staples and bought some clear(ish) vinyl chair mats designed for hardwood. So far we're only mostly satisfied (3 months later) and we're quite mystified as to how "stuff" manages to somehow still get under the mat! I can see right now some paper punchouts from a 3hole punch, an elastic band , a small piece of foil, and other bits.

    I blame my kids...

    Seriously, though, we're going to have to regularly lift and clean under them it appears.
    "It's Not About You."

  12. #12
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    Yea, Art. Cleaning "under" the mat frequently is desirable. But in this current room, I had to screw the mat down because it's not a 'flat' floor (very old) or the thing would just float across the room via gravity...really. I have to hold onto my desk to keep from drifting away on the chair casters...LOL
    --

    The most expensive tool is the one you buy "cheaply" and often...

  13. #13
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    I found some at van dykes restorers that are rubber and fit right in my office chair factory holes. You might look there

  14. #14
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    Amazon has these that have received good reviews as far as not damaging a wood floor.
    https://www.amazon.com/Shepherd-Qual...sr=1-5-catcorr

    Urethane Replacement Chair Casters.jpg

  15. #15
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    Jim, I lived with pine floors for years and would like to suggest that the marking is not due to the hardness of the casters, but rather the footprint. I found that heavy objects, even stationary, would mark the floor if a "coaster" wasn't placed under the leg.

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