So. . .

Broken wood ? Or just a loose part ?

If broken, can we see a photo ?

Sounds like...
... your shock mount has come loose from the seat shell. Search the forums and you will find threads regarding this repair. Unless there is significant loss to the wood or the rubber shock mount has sheared in half, you should be able to have it simply re-glued to the wood shell.

The entire chair comes apart with a screwdriver, so get to work and see where it has come apart.

Knows when to hold 'em, knows when to fold 'em (but don't know how to post 'em...)
Indeed this does sound like the case from the descriptions of the two posts above.

No damage to wood, or to arm padding.

Yes, I recognize that the entire chair does come apart with a screwdriver. I have several screwdrivers, different types of heads, which vary in size, even have a variety of magnetic flat heads which fit on my drill.

I tried searching the threads for this repair before posting here (found nothing, but will try again) as so many of the other threads were remarkable in their visual and instructive detail.

Insofar as my "Rate Your Capacity to Fix this Great 20th C. Furniture Piece At Home Alone" is concerned: I know my limitations and where to pull the proverbial plug before the night ends in tears.

I appreciate the help here. I will send a photo.

Actually, I'll send several, but those belong to other threads; ain't like I'm "design stoopid." (Or "stupid" -- whichever. I swear: I can spell.)

Damn, you guys are tough, tough is good.

Chair is in my "professional" office...I'll send a photo, maybe you can help me i.d. exact nature of the fault if I cannot figure it out.

I have
not owned or worked on one of these chairs. My literature describes the arm as "twelve-gauge steel plates, bonded with foam rubber and upholstered with matching leather.: No fasteners are visible; does the leather come off to expose bolt-heads on the inside of the arms ?

People ?

(The finish is described as hand-rubbed wax. Is that still the case ? Surprising. . .)

Chair repair
Please send your photos of the overall chair, and the loose parts and we will let you know what is the problem.
Peter
(edited by DA - no advertising please)

They are attached to the shells
The front armrest shock mounts are glued to sides of the seat shell,while the rear shock mounts are attached to the backrest on the inside of the curved "lobes".

Herman Miller Eames Lounge Chair Shock Mount failure
It is best to replace all the shock mounts if they are old. Neoprene oxidizes, a plasticizer evaporates out over the decades, and the neoprene (or later polyurethane) loses its strength and ability to adhere to wood.

Most likely, your shock mounts separated because they are old and oxidizing, losing elasticity, and don't have the internal strength to hold together any longer. Re-gluing the shock mount will not last long, and incurs additional risks. When the shock mount fails, the sitter can fall backward onto the floor, the back swings around, and a plywood "ear" of the lower back shell anchoring the shock mount (on the opposite side of the failed mount) often breaks off entirely as well, which is a fairly major repair. This happens a lot, and could injure the sitter. I am surprised the Consumer Product Safety Commission doesn't cite this problem.

Assuming that your neoprene shock mounts are old, they are irreparable, and must be replaced.
Concerning the shock mount types, you can use the neoprene/steel threaded plate sandwich design that Herman Miller uses, but our opinion is that design is one of the biggest design flaws found in modern furniture. That shock mount design should not be perpetuated, though Herman Miller seems to rely on their icon status and not improve it. A superior, proprietary design is to use ebonized solid beech wood plates with the same radiused shape and sectional profile as the neoprene shock mount, with holes drilled into the plates, into which threaded T-nuts are inserted, with easily replaceable neoprene bushing around the T-nuts, to provide the shock mount flexibility, without its fallibility. We have repaired numerous Eames lounge chairs over the past fifteen years with our proprietary shock mount design, and have not had any failures. Herman Miller only warrants its Lounge Chairs for 3 1/2 years, all their other furniture is warranted 15 years.

(edited by DA - no advertising please)

Where to buy new Shock Plate for Eames Lounge.
Hello,

Need help in finding new shock plates for Eames Longe Chair. Enjoy chair alot. Did design work for HM. Saw chair being made. What kind of glue is used?

Thanks Mark Anderson

xxx's shock mounts won't leave you on the floor agonizing over a broke Lounge Chair
Lucifer, I understand you prefer to have your chair shock mount fail and put in a rubber mount. Tell me if that is the case when you fall backward out of the chair and the opposite ear breaks off. What are you going to do, happily trash your chair, secure in the knowledge its still authentic? Good for you, but not everyone thinks like you.

We get dozens of inquiries with broken Eames Lounge chairs monthly. People should not have to be in this situation. Our "Frankenstein" mounts, as you call them are indistinguishable from the Eames mounts- we are willing to bet you could not tell the difference looking at our mounts, or Herman Millers'.

The real difference between xxx's mounts and Herman Millers', or the repros. of Herman Millers, is that our customers have never had a lower back shell chair break on them. And xxx's customers have only fixed their shock mounts once. Take your choice.

I think it would be really annoying to take Lucifer's advice, and then get lip service from him in this column when someone's treasured Eames Lounge chair shock mount and lower back shell break. Lucifer has little to say about this problem.

(edited by DA - no advertising please)

Missing mounts
My inherited chair has had what appeared to be collapsed flex mounts. But dissassembly reveals no mounts whatsoever. So the slack condition must have been some slop of bolts to plywood and couple bolts were missing. And the steel angle armrest connecting back to seat with the 4 holes and 2 holes for mounting leather covered square angle plywood arm base differs from the curved steel as your picture shows. I have not released padded backs and seat from the plywood shells but would like to know how to do that, as reconditioning leather and refinishing plywood shells should be easier and cleaner.

Thanks for any help. Larry

Man, Peter you're a broken re...
Man, Peter you're a broken record. It's bad enough you incessantly tout your services, but when someone disagrees with you you talk to them like they're an ignorant little puppy. Is this the way you want to earn business? No matter how good you are, I have a tendency not to do business with arrogant know-it-alls.

Obviously,Peter's posts have been deleted-GOOD!
Enough of his redundant pablum.W