Office Chair Cylinder Replacement with Removal Tool (As Seen On PBS) - Heavy Duty Pneumatic Gas Lift Piston for Desk Chairs and Gaming Chairs - Universal Fit Black

My 2002 Aeron cylinder blew (not bad since I sit in it every day and weigh 220, working from home for the past 2 years) so I was looking for a good replacement that didn't require ordering one through the local HM dealer. After evaluating many options I selected the Oasis kit - I looked at some two stage cylinders closer to the OEM but due to either shipment times or functional need (I don't need to go lower) this seemed like a good and affordable option. And the removal kit bits seemed like a good option after watching the numerous videos and reading plenty of forum posts about the difficulty removing old cylinders. Mine has been installed for 20 years, the past two with relatively hard use so I anticipated a challenge and it did not disappoint in terms of difficulty. I'll comment on the cylinder itself, and removal of the old cylinder as separate (but related) issues.The cylinder itself has worked great - as others have noted it does not sit in the base of the Aeron as deeply as the OEM cylinder, thus it does raise the maximum chair height by an inch or two. If this matters depends on the user - for me I wished for maybe another inch with the OEM fully extended - worked fine but the perfect height for my "desk" (a repurposed drop leaf table) would have been a bit higher. So this replacement works well - I have it lowered just a hair as the highest setting is a bit high for my situation but the flexibility is nice. Do note the instructions online for adjusting the lever screw that presses against the cylinder button - I did have to tweak mine a bit as the prior setting for the OEM cylinder was too long and resulted in the replacement not holding the height when seated but it's a quick and easy adjustment - works perfectly now. The button on the OEM part is shorter than the replacement so this was expected - but for anyone wondering the taller button on the Oasis does work with the Aeron!Removal of the old cylinder... I don't have a 12 or 14" pipe wrench and while I have a good assortment of tools wasn't that driven to get one for this project alone (since I've never needed one otherwise in 20 years of home maintenance). Prior to receiving this new cylinder I'd given removal of the old one a go using 10" slip joint pliers, vise grips, with no success. Soaked the joint with liquid wrench penetrating oil and was getting no result whatsoever. Not a budge. Again my old cylinder was well and truly lodged. So I was anxious to try the removal tool included with this kit and using it I was able to dislodge the seat from the post! So it does work - here are some tips for use: first my cylinder had spewed grease/oil when it blew so I found that just wiping the post with a dry paper towel/cloth did not get the post clean enough for the removal tool part that you clamp down to gain a solid grip. I used some simple green degreaser, then a run of rubbing alcohol to insure the post was really clean. Once I did that I was able to clamp down the collar (and do clamp it down tight!) and it held. At that point it was just a matter of slowly turning the "pressure" screws through the collar - 1/4 to 1/2 turn on one, then the other. I did find steady pressure on both sides worked well. If you go in smaller turns alternating each side you'll not need to apply a ton of torque to the allen wrench to achieve a result. I heard a fairly distinct pop when it first started to loosen and then it went pretty quickly - a few more turns and the seat detached from the post. So the removal tool does work with some patience and materials preparation. I've saved it for future use if needed. I do think it was easier than trying to torque it off with a wrench unless you already own a pretty long and heavy duty pipe wrench. Even then the screw pressure requires less oomph overall than even a pipe wrench I would think.Note that the removal tool gets the seat off but does not remove the old cylinder from the wheel base. Given the ability to use a mallet or dead weight hammer on the base (unlike the seat) it probably isn't needed but do expect to spend some effort getting the base removed as well. I used penetrating oil and a rubber mallet with little success. Here are my tips on that part of the job if yours is stuck. First expect to take some whacks at it - like maybe not 2 or 3 ;) I used the edge of my lower deck (around 2 feet off the ground) with some padding to make sure when it released it hit the ground and didn't take off a toe. You'll need a stable surface for sure. I decided to leave mine outside for an hour or two in 40s temps to shrink the metal and that seemed to help. I also alternated hitting the bottom of the cylinder with sitting the cylinder bottom on the deck and alternating hitting the base with a rubber mallet on opposing legs (which gets the benefit of the longer leg leverage, as well as some offset pressure to eventually break the seating). It did eventually release but it does take some time. Have patience!New cylinder install is super easy - I did put some "no seize" lubricant on each end of the cylinder to give some minor aid if I ever need to replace this again - whether it will help I don't know but can't hurt anything.

My chair has been sinking so I finally decided to do something. I didn't want to buy a new one as nothing else is wrong with it. After some research online, I found out one way is to replace the gas cylinder. I viewed several Youtube videos showing people taking it apart with ease: knocking it from the bottom and then twisting it from the top. Little did I know that my chair would require a *LOT* more effort than that.I decided on The Office Oasis' Replacement Gas Cylinder because it also included tools and instructions to help remove the old cylinder that I didn't see in other products. I know I could have saved some money and just buy the replacement gas cylinder only. However I have never done this before so I decided to go with The Office Oasis. I also thought if a company has created a complete solution I would give my business to them.After I made my purchase but before receiving the product, I received an email from the company by the name of Meredith, who I later found out is the owner, with instructions in PDF to get started. I was surprised by her email but was still thankful for receiving the instructions ahead of time. I thanked her and noted that this lets me know that her company is very efficient and dedicated to product quality.After removing my chair's old gas cylinder, which I like to describe later, the new cylinder was installed very easily. I just slide it into the bottom of the seat and also into the wheel base. After so much effort in removing the old cylinder, I forgot to adjust my chair's cylinder adjustment screw and sat on the chair immediately after installing the new cylinder. My chair started sinking again. I realized what I forgot to do.So far the new cylinder works great. I also bought The Office Oasis' clear caster wheels to go with my chair and both the cylinder and the wheels have given my chair new life.Thanks The Office Oasis and Meredith for selling these products. Your company is fantastic.Now I like to describe my journey removing the old cylinder which was spread out over several weeks. I'm not disappointed by it or anything. I didn't mind how long it took as I was determined to see this to the end. My chair is very old such that the cylinder is so deep into the wheel base that it almost touches the floor. Every time I see it I wonder if it was ever like that to begin with.My first problem was removing the bottom cylinder from the wheel base. No matter how hard I hammered away from the bottom, the cylinder just wouldn't budge. I sprayed WD40 at the bottom of the wheel base and waited more than the recommended time before hammering and still couldn't hammer it out. I eventually solved this by first separating the cylinder by removing the metal tab, which I ended up destroying because I didn't know how they work, located at the bottom of the cylinder and then spraying lots of WD40 at the top of the wheel base and letting it sit overnight for a few nights. Then I started hammering from the bottom with a piece of wood between. I wasn't successful on the first try but I reasoned the more I hammer it even if spread out over multiple days it should eventually come out. Also in between my unsuccessful attempts I would apply more WD40 and let sit overnight again. The last knock to get the cylinder out was very satisfying. I noticed the area where the cylinder sat inside the wheel base was full of WD40! Before I did this, I thought I ask my local mechanic for help, even offering to pay for the service, as I don't have a sledge hammer but unfortunately he couldn't help me. He tried to knock it from the other direction but luckily I stopped him and said to hammer from the bottom of the wheel base. He looked at it again and came to the conclusion that something is stuck and didn't want to do it without risking breaking either my wheel base or the cylinder. I tried to explain how those two parts are put together but he had already made up his mind so I figure it was my problem to solve.My second problem was removing the top cylinder from the seat. Actually the provided shaft collars were meant for this but my chair's cylinder simply didn't have room for the collars. Technically my chair's cylinder does have a thin enough shaft cylinder for the collars to hold on to. The problem was there was an external shaft cylinder with a larger diameter that went almost all the way up to the bottom of the seat. It covered a lot of the thin internal shaft cylinder. I tried pulling it down but it was uneventful. I researched online and one good result I found was a Youtube video by Ed Ng that highly recommended taking apart the seat and knocking it out from the top. I wanted to try this but I didn't have the tools to take the seat apart. I decided to contact Meredith for any advice on fitting the shaft collars as I wasn't very knowledgeable in how gas cylinders work and I was surprised to get not only an immediate response but also the responses carried over into the weekend. I'm sorry I didn't get to mention this but I apologize to take up your weekend time. I think Meredith and The Office Oasis are professionals and a quality company! Meredith suggested I use a pipe wrench to hopefully pull the external shaft collar down and if that didn't work to try knocking it out from the top. She also offered to refund me if I'm still having difficulty. I was just amazed at her professionalism. I thanked her for the advice and proceeded to try pulling the shaft with a pipe wrench. I did get a better hold than with gloved hands but it was still uneventful. I finally got the tools to take apart my seat and once I saw the top of the cylinder I proceeded to hammer it down with a long socket in between. Nothing happened as the cylinder was still very stuck. I actually solved this problem first. So to help me hammer it down, I doubled or maybe more than quadrupled down on the instructions' advice of using WD40 to help loosen the friction hold. I poured down a cup of used WD40 into the top of the cylinder. The used WD40 was from spraying the bottom of the wheel base which most of it collected in the crevices. Again I solved this problem first and after waiting a few days, I proceeded to hammer away and the last one was like sweet chin music when HBK knocks down his opponent. So when I knocked out the cylinder from the wheel base, it was HBK all over again!Although I didn't get a chance to use the shaft collars, I like it and am saving it for whatever future use that comes to mind. Thank you Meredith and The Office Oasis for creating complete and quality products and backing it up with professional service. I wish your company continued success.

Got this cylinder replacement for my Herman Miller Aeron chair. Worked as advertised, the fit was just right, it came with the gloves and cylinder removal tool and everything in the instructions is easier than you can imagine. A couple months later my chair would slowly drop and the cylinder seemed to be failing already. I contacted customer service and without hesitation they honored their warranty and sent me a new one. Installed it, same issue. I researched to find there is a little hex screw on Aeron's that can put just a hint of pressure on the lowering button to cause the cylinder to drop. I offered to return or pay as it was clearly not the fault of their cylinder and they were just wonderful to deal with. It's pretty rare in today's society to find this level of customer service I highly recommend if you need chair cylinders, wheels or some desk accessories that you give Office Oasis a chance to earn your business.

I usually find this sort of stuff annoying and difficult, but the replacement is relatively easy and the instructions are clear. The cylinder is great quality (better than the one my chair came with) and works great. No complaints.