Even among the polar opposites of those who love to be the “handyman” and those who despise such manual labor, there seems to be a general consensus on assembling store-bought futon furniture: it can be a real pain. The pictures-only directions, the myriad bolts and nuts in startling numbers, the sometimes gymnastic feats required of you to hold piece A and B together while sliding in piece C….
Enter a Night & Day Furniture’s new system of futon construction, which just may deserve the title of “revolutionary.” This system is predicated on a few mechanical rubber parts that together are known as “Shoe Fitting” technology. The three parts, the “Snapper,” the “Sea Horse,” and the “ThumNuts” all perform different tasks.
The Snapper, according to Night & Day, was developed after an extended trial and error period and numerous consultations with rubber engineers. This is perhaps the most vital piece of the entire Night & Day futon frame. It is the hinge between the seat and back which gets its name from the easy installation that allows you to simply “snap” the seat to the back.
The Sea Horse gets its name from its unique shape. On a complete futon, the Sea Horse is located on the inside of the arms and is the key part of a smooth rolling track that essentially allows you to “drop in” the back of the frame and avoid the annoying “keep-the-bolts-loose while struggling to fit” fate of less fortunate futon owners. Like the Snapper, it is made of sturdy rubber that is molded to last and last.
ThumNuts are ingeniously simple nuts that secure the seat of the frame to the arms. These nuts go into the seat at a right angle while the accompanying bolts fit into the hole in the side of the nut. The most innovative aspect of the ThumNut is its clamped down, pinched-flat end which allows you to use your fingers to effortlessly secure the frame.
On top of all this, the tough rubber of the Snapper and Sea Horse acts as an effective shock absorber against the inevitable abuse that your futon will endure. The manufacturer’s page states that “…the rubber will take the use and the abuse. But it will also take the fall. In fact, in the very worst scenario the rubber is designed to fail; fail before the wood fails; fail before you get serious and expensive breakage. Is that cool or what?”
When you’re talking about frames as nice as Night & Day’s, that is definitely something cool.
Posted on June 25th, 2008 by aaron
Filed under: Futon News
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