Balder designs and builds the front wheel drive Finesse collaboratively between Houston, Texas and Norway.  It is their established model, has been on the market since the early 1990's, and has proven itself reliable and an effective performer in a variety of environments.  The chair's primary unique feature I found to be its seat elevator which goes lower (15") and higher (33") than any other chair on the market I have encountered.  At its lowest point I found I could fit under any table encountered, including ones with a support lip under them, such as are commonly found on residential kitchen tables and long folding tables.  With the seat elevator at its highest point I found I was just as tall as I had been previously (5'11") while still in the seated position.  I was delighted to find I was at eye level with everyone once again and could reach higher cubbards and shelves with ease.  Another unique feature I found was tilting forward such as to lean over a sink.

The chair also stands, though I found the ease-of-use of this feature slightly less intuitive than some of the other chairs I have tested.  Basically, the user must manually set the seat elevator, power foot plate extension, and recline angle to their needs/preferences prior to transitioning to standing.  This does not take away from function, but it would be nice to simply press one button to transition to standing.  Apparently, Balder is working to rectify this problem through programming that would allow the chair to remember its user's preferred configuration for standing and possibly for driving.  I was told they expected this should be available to existing users as an electronic chip upgrade when it is brought to market.  I didn't stand quite as comfortably as I did in a few of the other chairs initially, but this mostly should be attributed to the chair not being sized for me and should be corrected with a chair properly set up for me.  

Another point of interest, is that Balder designs its chairs around the concept that their users will most likely be driving from the chair.  in fact, since the company also produces advanced driving controls, they view the chair as an integral component of an overall driving systems solution.  Consequently, they designed and offer a tiedown system option specifically for the chair that has been crash tested with the chair, something they claim has not been done with many other chairs and commonly available time down systems.

I have been impressed with Balder's professionalism and responsiveness throughout my communications with them.  The company has a strong following in Texas and a few other regions, though are lacking in local representation in Minnesota and other areas of the Midwest.  Consequently, I am currently in negotiations with them to take advantage of this opportunity and rectify the problem.  Balder's owner and president personally brought me a chair to demo on Tuesday, August 3rd making a detour through Minnesota on his way from Texas to New York for a large show so I could preview the chair prior to my August 9 seating clinic.

Balder has on staff electronic, hydraulic, mechanic, structural, and upholsteral specialists which makes them seemingly both ready and willing to customize a chair to the users needs.   They emphasize that collaboration between the different design departments makes this possible.  A specially designed seat with pressure-relieving pillow, side leg-support, large back and lumbar support in addition to a 45o/15o tilt-in-space, and recline makes for only one example of a customized BALDER wheelchair.

Balder has an impressive array of different seating systems including a STANDARD, COMFORT LEVEL, RECARO, and an ORTHOPEDIC seating system.  The COMFORT LEVEL seating system is broken up into six different categories with varying seat width, depth, and back height allowing the seat to be configured to the clients measurements.  Pressure relief pads, seat pads, incontinence covers, and big side members are only a few of the options available.  The RECARO seating system is extremely comfortable and the most popular.  On the ORTHOPEDIC seating system the seat slides front to back with ease, is air conditioned to prevent any discomfort, and has a specialized fit which allows the client to drive the chair with ease as long as needed.

The Balder Finesse is competitively priced compared to the other standup wheelchairs I have reviewed here.  It can be slightly more expensive depending which options and seating systems are used however, I must emphasize they have voiced commitment to me to meet a competitor's price if needed.

Seat
Seat height:                       15" - 33"
El. seat tilt forward:             15 degrees
El. seat tilt backward:            45 degrees
El. back:                          0 degrees - 90 degrees

Seat width & seat depth            ca. 17" - ca. 19"

Armrest
-    Flip up
-    Adjustable height
-    Adjustable angle
-    Depth regulated

Footrest
Centre mounted split electrical footrests.

Chair dimensions
Width from outside drivewheel:     26"
Length without footrest:                35"
Length with footrest retracted:     45"
Axle distance:                                24"
Height under chassis:                    3"
Maximum speed:                     Up to 6 mph
Front tire dimension:              3 x 8"
Rear tire dimension:               2,50 x 3"
Batteries:                                2 x 12V 55 Ah
Weight:                                   277lbs

Accessories

Balder's  clampdown units are designed specifically for driving from the chair and are crash tested with the chair and approved in accordance to ISO/DIS 7176/19.

Guidance control systems come from Dynamic, which have the markets largest choice in guidance systems.






Sidepads for better seating.

All our chairs can have lights, front and back.