If you’re thinking of upgrading your personal computer setup and considering bringing a high-quality epic-looking gaming chair into the party, making sure it is strong enough to support your weight is very important. That’s where the material of the gaming chair base comes into play.
You might be wondering, Nylon Legs vs. Steel Legs, which ones are better for gaming chairs? Well, that’s precisely what I’m here to tell you.
In this article, I will talk about the importance of the base of the gaming chair, nylon gaming chair base, steel gaming chair legs, how they both compare to each other, and which ones are better, ultimately helping you make the right buying choice. So, let’s get started.
Table of Contents
Significance of the Gaming Chair Base
Although gaming chairs nowadays are mostly known for their adjustability, comfort, and aesthetics, the most overlooked and important part of a gaming chair is, without a doubt, its base. If you’ve bought a gaming chair before, you must’ve realized while building it that the base has the most weight to it. Well, there’s a reason for the gaming chair legs being so heavy.
The gaming chair base is responsible for holding and supporting the entirety of the chair and the person sitting on it. Larger gaming chairs with heavier weight capacity have thicker and heavier gaming chair bases. The material of a gaming chair base also matters a lot in this case. It’s not always about the size or the weight. For example, if you’re using plastic legs on a gaming chair, they’re going to wear out quicker than steel legs.
There’s also the factor of how many legs does the gaming chair has. At times, more legs on a gaming chair base mean better stability and even pressure on all legs providing better support. That’s why all gaming enthusiasts need to make sure they’re getting the right gaming chair base to avoid investing in the wrong product.
What Makes a Good Gaming Chair Base?
If you’re wondering what factors into making a good gaming chair base, you’re in luck because I’ve made a list of factors you need to consider if you’re buying a gaming chair. Here’s what the base of the gaming chair needs to have:
- Decent Weight – A good gaming chair base doesn’t always need to be extremely heavy. So if you’re looking for a good gaming chair, you’ll get it with a decent weight that isn’t very heavy or very light to be unable to support larger weights.
- Strength and Durability – Another factor that needs to be considered while buying a gaming chair is that the base and the legs need to be strong. The strength of the base will make sure that it can lift weight and not get damaged over time. Durability is quite important as well.
- Aesthetic Design – Gaming chairs themselves need to look super-aesthetic, but the gaming chair base also needs to reflect that aesthetic look. This can be done through painting or adding a design element into the base that helps everything look crisp.
- Premium Quality – One of the major things that a good gaming chair base must have, is a premium quality to it. You can basically see the difference between a bad gaming chair base and an expensive and high-quality base. So, make sure you find the right one and make the right buying decision.
Nylon Legged Gaming Chair Base
One of the most common gaming chair base materials is nylon or plastic, as you might have heard. Almost all cheap to moderate quality gaming chairs sport a nylon gaming chair base.
Nylon-legged gaming chair bases aren’t bad per se; they are usually less durable and not very supportive of heavyweights compared to other materials and tend to get damaged quicker.
But there are also gaming chairs with high-quality plastic and nylon bases that actually have a light frame. However, they can still lift heavy weights and support larger individuals, so I believe it is more about quality than Nylon as a material itself.
Steel Legged Gaming Chair Base
Steel Legged Gaming Chair bases have steel as the primary material in their construction. They’re also common but not as common as nylon-legged gaming chair bases.
These chair bases are heavier than others in comparison usually and also stronger and durable. But they’re also on the more expensive side. Visually, steel-legged gaming chair bases are shiny and aesthetic.
But there are instances where I used a gaming chair with a steel base which literally broke after a while. So, the quality of steel, construction process, and tempering also matter a lot when we talk about a good steel-legged gaming chair base.
Nylon Legs vs. Steel Legs: Which Ones Are Better?
People often compare nylon legs with steel legs to find out which ones would be better suited as gaming chair bases. Well, to make things easy for you, I’ve made a proper list of factors that either of the materials is better at than the other. So let’s take a look.
| Factor | Nylon vs Steel |
|---|---|
| Price | Nylon |
| Durability | Steel |
| Weight Capacity | Steel |
| Base Weight | Nylon |
| Aesthetic | Steel |
Price
Price is a significant factor that comes into play when you’re buying a gaming chair. If you’re thinking of skimping out on quality, you’ll be able to get a gaming chair at a low price. However, affordable rates would mean low-quality materials and a nylon gaming chair base most of the time, which is not long-lasting and durable.
On the other hand, if you’re thinking of spending more and getting a good quality gaming chair once and for all, you might end up getting a gaming chair with a steel base. The prices usually range from moderate to expensive for these gaming chairs.
Durability
Durability is also where these two materials differ quite a lot. So, for example, if we talk about the durability of nylon gaming chair bases, we’re not going to see much of it. In fact, most of the time, nylon gaming chair bases are very brittle and often get damaged quickly.
But that’s usually not the case with steel legs. If you get a gaming chair with a steel gaming chair base, you can expect a decent amount of durability and great longevity. The strength of the base will be higher than that of plastic, which is why it will be a better option.
Weight Capacity
Weight capacity is crucial if you’re a big guy who loves to play games and spend most of their time on the computer. Unfortunately, gaming chairs with plastic bases usually have a fairly low weight capacity and tend to be only in the market for people with average weight.
However, if you look at the higher quality branded gaming chairs from SecretLab or DX Racer, the chairs with higher weight capacity are often equipped with a strong steel leg base. This shows that the weight capacity of steel gaming chair bases is higher than nylon.
Base Weight
The heaviest part of a gaming chair tends to be the base of it. However, in the case of plastic or nylon gaming chair bases, that’s not the case. Nylon gaming chair bases have one major advantage over steel gaming chair bases; they are very light and easy to maneuver.
On the other hand, steel gaming chairs are very heavy. These bases are extremely heavy compared to other materials and often feel difficult to be moved or assembled, giving nylon chair bases an edge over these.
Aesthetics
Visual looks are also considered very important in gaming chairs. For example, plastic gaming chair bases are usually modeled to look according to the design of the gaming chair itself, but it lacks a certain element of flair.
Compared to plastic gaming chair bases, steel gaming chair bases take the win in terms of aesthetics because of how slick the shiny steel surface looks. Of course, if there are designs on the steel surface, that’s a plus, but even plain steel legs look pretty amazing under a gaming chair.
Which Base is the Best?
If we come out of the spectrum of Nylon and Steel Gaming Chair Bases, another material is loads of times better than these two and it’s aluminum. Aluminum is both lightweight and strong, which means that it has the best of both worlds and is incredibly durable and long-lasting. So, if you’re thinking of going right for the best gaming chair base in the market, go for an aluminum gaming chair base.
Conclusion
Both Nylon and Steel Legs have their own benefits as gaming chair bases, but in almost all instances, steel legs outweigh nylon legs in terms of advantages. Not only are they more aesthetically appealing but also quite durable and longer-lasting. Although it largely depends on your budget, I recommend getting a steel-legged gaming chair for better performance and longer durability.
I hope you learned a lot from this comparison guide and that you’re going to utilize this information to buy the right kind of gaming chair for yourself. Have a great gaming experience with your new chair!