Comparison of solid seat pan materials?

[chasmengr]

Aluminum, CF, or just an ABS cushion insert?

I'm about to order a manual chair with a 7" ergo seat frame. I currently use an aluminum pan, which I have bent to ergo shape then side notched to fit down between the non-ergo frame. I find no off-the-shelf solid ergo seat pans on the market (anybody know of one?), so I presume I'll need to fashion one myself (again). The ABS cushion inserts (like this one) are inexpensive.

How does ABS holdup/perform as a solid pan?

I'm sure I can make it work (the bend may even make it stronger), but just how does it compare compare to Al or CF.

[sowseng]

I always want to try the PVC material on my KAFO, it looks like more comfortable than aluminum seat pan.

[stephen212]

The seat pan does not have to be a single piece, you can use 1 or more strips so no need to bend anything. This thread and this one might be give you some inspiration.

[elarson]

I was going to recommend the exact same thread. I think the CF strips ala Toto would work well.

The seat pan does not have to be a single piece, you can use 1 or more strips so no need to bend anything. This thread and this one might be give you some inspiration.

[nonoise]

... The ABS cushion inserts (like this one) are inexpensive. How does ABS holdup/perform as a solid pan? ...

As an insert, is it meant to be a pan?
Are you sure it is ABS? ABS is a great plastic, much better than pvc and others. But it is not cf, however cf is expensive and what you could do is use two or more layers. As you know ABS can be bent using heat, it's used in 3D printers and DWV, Lego, great stuff.

[chasmengr]

I'm very aware of that CF pan thread, but I'm cheap. Why buy CF if ABS works? One can buy a lot of ABS for what one CF pan costs. (Even though it'll cost me nothing out of pocket, I'm still a tax payer.) I don't mind bending; strips of ABS would be weak; bending a sheet of ABS carefully with a straight edge and heat might actually make it less subject to bending.

My very first chair experience was a borrowed Quickie folder. It's cushion had a black plastic insert (ABS I presumed), which is why I asked for my own first chair to have a solid pan. (That was back when I was a brand newbie.) I told VA that an insert would be fine, but they ordered me an aluminum pan. Now the time has come to make detailed decisions again, and I'm just wondering why plastic seat pans are not available, but plastic cushion inserts are; do they not do the same thing? And would not Velcro attachments work as well on a plastic pan as a CF or aluminum pan? If a plastic cushion insert works fine on a folding chair, will it not also work fine on a rigid?

I've learned the devil is in the details, so I was asking - I don't know what I don't know.

[chasmengr]

I did some online research. The flexural modulous (resistivity to bending) of CF is 10x that of ABS. I suspect the cushions I presumed to be ABS may actually be G10. ABS is way too flexible.

[nonoise]

I did some online research. The flexural modulous (resistivity to bending) of CF is 10x that of ABS. I suspect the cushions I presumed to be ABS may actually be G10. ABS is way too flexible.

bummer

[sowseng]

Is ABS strong enough?

[chasmengr]

Is ABS strong enough?

Strong enough how? It won't break, but it will bend unless it's reinforced somehow. IMO fabric seat upholstery will sag much less than a thin ABS sheet. And if you reinforce ABS enough to work, it becomes as pricey as CF but not as nearly as thin. Thus I'm convinced aluminum, G10, and CF are the best choices for a solid seat pan; I just needed to find out why for myself.

[sowseng]

What is G10? I saw this in the choice of Tilite wheelchair.

[TiLite]

What is G10? I saw this in the choice of Tilite wheelchair.

G10 is fiber glass composite laminate consisting of a continuous filament glass cloth material with an epoxy resin binder. It's most well known use is for mother-boards for computers.

[totoL1]

I'm very aware of that CF pan thread, but I'm cheap. Why buy CF if ABS works? .

And why buy ABS if playwood Works? just painted in black or put a cf stick on it.

[totoL1]

. This thread and this one might be give you some inspiration.

Great thread

[JeffAdams]

Bamboo could be an option - you could also buy a carbon sandwich panel or sheets of carbon - this place sells both: http://www.protechcomposites.com/sandwich-panels/

You could do the ergo shape by using two pieces that you seam with a bent joint of aluminum or abs.