Ever replaced a sofa bed mechanism?

[leehljp]

LOML has a sofa sleeper that their family had from the 50's. We brought it over (to Japan) with us when we came 25 years ago. The sleeper mechanism has a few kinks, plus the wire and springs are brittle and several have broken. LOML wants to take the sofa back to the States (and we are) but we are debating on the pros and cons for replacing the mechanism and just taking the sofa back without the heavy weight of the bed mechanism.

I will either replace the mechanism with a new one (if it is easy enough) or make the sofa into a regular sofa, which has been discussed. We have 7 grandchildren and we could always use the sofa sleeper in our USA house.

Has anyone replaced the mechanism and do you have any advice? This is not a major decision but it would be nice to hear from others.

Thanks

[Stytooner]

I would think that getting a replacement would be a nightmare. Not only that, it would likely be cost prohibitive. Repair might be the cheaper way out, but that too would not be without some luck finding suitable replacement parts.
That said, you could luck into an exact fit replacement at a yard sale. I think replacement mattresses should be easy enough to find as well.
If it is an heirloom type thing, then I would replace the frame, but if you just want the looks, you could just modify it into a sofa.

Not much help, am I?

[cabinetman]

I agree with Lee. Considering how old it is, finding exact replacement parts might be difficult. For its age you might say you got your money's worth. You might call some store that sells those sofas or ones like them and they may have a solution that may not be expensive.

We solved the "company staying over" problem with queen size airbeds. When done they just get folded up and put in a closet.

.

[leehljp]

If it is an heirloom type thing, then I would replace the frame, but if you just want the looks, you could just modify it into a sofa.

Not much help, am I?

You and I think alike on this. However for LOML's sake, I am pursuing this line of thought. The sofa has a lot of memories for her and it was reupholstered in the 80s, which is still good. (It looks better now than the new $800 den sofa that we bought in the late '80s for our USA home, so it is worth keeping, if nothing else to make a regular sofa out of it.)

I would need a whole new set of hardware - springs and wire. On the first couple of wire breaks - the area that hook to the springs - I bought some very hard wire and tried to form it about 20 years ago. That hard wire that was tough on wire cutters (and my hands) - I did manage to make the same size as the original pieces that broke. However the new home made ones broke within a couple of years when the kids had sleep overs.

There are several online sites that sell the complete replacement mechanisms (LOML found them) and they look OK. The ones that I looked at have a trampoline type of liner instead of the wire frame of the one we have now.

Motivating factor for pursuing this: When Mama ain't happy, ain't nobody happy!

[capncarl]

I purchased a new "high dollar, high quality" sofa from a furniture store warehouse scratch and dent sale that was part of a busted set for nearly nothing. The plan was to gut the sleeper mechanism and use it in something else. Furniture stores always have sleeper sofas in the back that they need to get rid of. They should be easy to adapt to your sofa case.
capncarl