Thought it might be time to update this review.
It recently came time to replace our two favorite camping chairs after a decade of use. These were what I call "sling chairs" they unfold, and you sit in a semi-bucket of canvas with a canvas back. Reasonably comfortable, but not good support and you felt a pressure ridge under your thighs at the front edge of the seat. The legs also sank excessively into lose ground/sand. They folded up into a tube shape about 6" wide and 40" long.
Old chair being demonstrated by OZY:
I know I wanted: a chair with a solid bar leg to provide solid soft ground support, arm rests, a pocket or two for phone/drink/bug juice, and critically be able to fold down and store two of them in my side storage boxes. I was also looking for a fairly upright, well supported sitting position, properly "up" off the ground.
I hit Dicks, Wal-Mart and REI and sampled some chairs. The backpacking/hiking chairs were too small, too lightly constructed and required too much assembly. Nice for hiking and carrying, but as a vehicle-based overlander those attributes do not push my high-priority buttons. Others were just too large for my storage area. Others were just too low to the ground, too reclining or way too expensive. I did like the general design of the "director's chair" type...but the ones I saw would not fold down to my storage space requirements.
Looking online I saw an offering from Front Runner, the Expander Chair. Plenty of reviews & videos and many years of being on the market. A seemingly a well-designed and made product. The clincher was that a pair of them would fit into my storage area. The price was reasonable, so I bought a pair.
Key Specs:
Materials used:
Fabric: Black 600D polyester
Frame: Black powder coated steel
Product dimensions:
Folded: L 61mm (2.4") x W 444.5mm (17.5") x H 417mm (16.4")
Unfolded: L 521mm (20.5") x W 444.5mm (17.5") x H 787mm (31")
Seat Height: 432mm (17")
Load Capacity: 115kg (253lbs)
Weight:
4kg (9lbs)
Link:
FR Expander Chair
All packed up:
