Hi All,

A friend recently gave me a present of an old GILSON brand adjustable office chair.  For those not familiar with this chair it’s an old-style arm chair made entirely of oak with a curved back rail and a comfortable carved-in seat.  It has a 4-wheeled base and an adjustable spring mechanism under the seat which allows the chair to recline. 

The only thing wrong with the chair is the underseat spring mechanism is missing so it can’t be sat on there are no springs to keep it in an upright position.  I tried doing an internet search for Gilson seats but only found archive information on the family.  I don’t know if these seats are still manufactured or if there is a source for spare parts.  I have seen one of these chairs with a complete spring mechanism, it consists of two rather springs held in place with a type of bracket with a metal knob located in between the springs to adjust their tension.  I have the knob and it’s engraved with the words “Gilson, Guelph, Canada” arranged in a circle.

I’d like to know where I can find a new or used replacement spring mechanism for this Gilson chair or can I make one out of stock parts I can obtain from a hardware store, and if so how is it built?  I live in Montreal, Canada so I would prefer a source close to my home.  If anyone has any information on these chairs please let me know, thank you.