The Steelcase Leap is arguably one of the most popular chairs in the world, made by one of the largest office furniture manufactures. If you’re worried about spending around $1,000 on your office chair, a refurbished version is always a viable option. Not only is a refurbished Leap v2 half the price, the refurb process done here at BTOD brings a lot of life back to a used chair. Today we’ll be comparing the Refurbished Leap v2 vs. the brand-new Leap v2 to find the major differences.
We absolutely love the Leap v2 here at BTOD, as it has been ranked our number one most comfortable chair since 2018, as well as high on other lists for comfort and ergonomics. For this reason, we brought the refurbishing process to our business and have had success locating, refurbishing, and selling these chairs with a second life.
Full Disclaimer: We are an office furniture dealer and sell some of the products we review. To learn more about the products we sell, our review process and why you can trust us, please visit: Why we’re different. Who is BTOD.com and The Learning Center?
Refurbished vs. Brand New Steelcase Leap v2
- What is refurbished?
- Refurbished Isn’t New
- Foam Padding is Original
- New Upholstery
- Aftermarket Parts
- 12-Year Warranty
- Shipping and Installation
- Return Policy
The lack of consistency when it comes to buying a used-as-is chair or a refurbished chair is enough to make anyone feel uncomfortable about buying one; especially if you are buying a chair without a warranty.
The actual definition of ‘refurbished’ technically means to brighten or freshen something up, but that can mean something as little as simply wiping down or vacuuming a used chair. Here at BTOD.com, our Leap v2 refurbishing process is very rigorous and thorough, getting the chairs closer to new that what some of the more basic refurbishing processes include.
When comparing the new and used Leap v2s the first major difference you should recognize is that the refurbished chair from BTOD.com isn’t a brand-new chair. We do reuse some of the original components of the chair like the actual base, mechanism, and frame of the chair. While we do screen the chairs to make sure they are working and in good condition, there will be some unavoidable wear and tear involved with these parts.
When we get chairs in to be refurbished, they are torn down to the core and the mechanism is inspected and re-lubricated to ensure they are working like new.
The second major difference between these two chairs is the foam padding in the seat and back. A brand-new Leap v2 will feature unused foam while the BTOD Refurbished chair will use the used-original foam pad from the chair.
While the refurbished chair does use the original foam pad, it does go through a steaming process to revitalize the foam, bringing back most of its original shape and some of its original density. Since the foam pad doesn’t bring back all the original density in our refurbished chair, we decided to add a half inch of highly resilient, extra-firm dense foam to sit underneath the original foam padding. This helps make the chair feel closer to new.
Both new and refurbished chairs will feature brand new upholstery. On the refurbished chair from BTOD, you’ll find a Guilford of Maine, Open House fabric, available in four different colors, and comes with a highly durable 250,000 double rub count.
When buying a new chair from Steelcase, you’ll have 73 different upholstery and fabric options, as well as six different leather options to choose from. These different options run from 60,000 -100,000 double rub counts.
When you buy a chair from Steelcase you will be getting original Steelcase parts. The BTOD refurbished chair uses brand-new, aftermarket parts that are built to OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) quality. We’ve spent a lot of time and effort to make sure that the components are overbuilt to support the 400 lb. capacity that each Steelcase Leap ensures.
When you take a closer look at the caster of the refurbished chair, you will notice extra bulkiness and an additional ribbing inside of the caster to make sure they could support 400 lbs. The BTOD side and top activated cylinders were manufactured specifically for us to the ratings that we needed to sure our chair was on pair with the quality and durability of the original chair. You will notice the BTOD cylinders are also bulkier than that of the new Steelcase cylinders.
Finally, the arm pads that were manufactured for the refurbished chair are a slightly different shape than the original. These are still built to same quality to the original Steelcase arm pads.
When comparing the warranties of these two chairs, they are very similar, but do have some specific differences. To start, the BTOD Refurbished Leap v2 warranty covers everything for 12 years of usage at 400 lbs. capacity for a 40-hour work week. The Leap v2 from Steelcase warranty covers everything for 12 years of usage at a 400 lb. capacity 24/7.
When it comes to shipping and installation, there is a definite difference between the new and refurbished chair. When you buy from Steelcase, you will receive a chair in the mail fully assembled and ready to go. It can easily cut the side of the large box and roll the chair out.
When you buy a chair from BTOD.com, we send you a chair that requires some assembly, but it is very simplified compared to our competitors. To assemble, you first take out the base of the chair and set it on the ground. The casters are already attached, so all you’ll have to do is gently drop the cylinder into the base after taking the red cap off the top. Next, you can take out the chair from the box and set/attach it onto the cylinder. From there the chair should be ready to operate.
At BTOD, we believe in the Leap v2 as much as Steelcase does, so we offer the same return policy as the brand-new chair. That means if you don’t like your chair for any reason you can return it within 30 days of your purchase for free.
Final Thoughts
As you can see, there are some major differences between the refurbish and brand-new Steelcase Leap v2. Some of the biggest are the fact the BTOD Refurbished Chair is used and doesn’t have brand new parts, however we do believe there is a high level of consistency behind the product from BTOD. Some other downsides of the refurbished chair are the warranty only covering 40 hours a week and the parts being used on the chair are not original OEM parts from Steelcase. On the upside you are getting brand new components on everything you touch and feel while you’re sitting on the chair as well as still getting a solid warranty and free return on the BTOD refurbished chair.
We’re confident that most people won’t be able to tell the difference when they are sitting in the two different chairs. The fact that you can save up to 50% on refurbished chairs from BTOD.com can be a great advantage for those trying to save some money. If you’re the type of person that must have a brand-new chair or likes the consistency that comes from brand-new products, we would recommend that you would buy from Steelcase.com to ensure you get a brand new product from the manufacturer themselves.
