Lcw from HM and Vitra?  

I'm not sure
I'm not sure HM offers the hide covered LCWs in the US. I would caution against getting the black or the red versions - as the coloring is no longer a penetrating dye, but simply a surface paint. So that means if it gets scratched white will show. It also means that in 50 years the chair will STILL be bright red (if its not scratched) rather than the absolutely gorgeous red wood toned LCW's of past.

The red version from Vitra...
The red version from Vitra is indeed painted.
I'm a bit worried buying american furniture, as I remember the barcelona daybed from knoll I inspected 10 years ago was not the quality I expected from a 40,000 francs (yeah, it was french francs at that time) furniture. I'm wondering if HM LCW is on par with the vitra LCW.

Function
Function seems to be fine with the LCW. I use it on a fairly regular basis. The backrest flexes on the shockmounts, the wood is solid, the seat is comfortable. I'm just SUPER cautious about sitting down with anything metal on my pants. I've grown accustomed to that anyway since I have a bunch of the fiberglass shells in my house. The one thing I've heard horror stories of are pants with heavy rivets sticking out. So frisk all of your guests before seating them.
I havent encountered the Vitra versions. Are they the same? I know HM is simply importing the Vitra plastic chairs rather than mfg them in the US. Perhaps Vitra is importing the LCWs.
PS. The LCW is also a perfect place to pile up blankets and pillows when changing bed linens - it catches them without letting anything touch the floor. Also works for teddy bears, throw pillows, and anything else soft and zipper-less. LOL.

I don't know if the HM versio...
I don't know if the HM version is the same, that's what I'm trying to figure out asking here 😉
The plastic side chairs are indeed rebranded vitra.
Being somewhat of a midget, the vitra LCW is perfect for me. I haven't found the exact measurements of the HM one. Maybe it's bigger to fit americans? (no pun intended, I thought I read something like this on this forum concerning the differences between vitra/HM lounge chairs).

670 Lounge Chair
I know the measurments are slightly different on the Vitra and HM versions of the 670 leather lounge chair.
If you want decent measurments for the American version of the LCW go to www.designwithinreach.com and look. They have a nifty little chart that shows seat height, backrest etc.
http://dwr.com/productdetail.cfm?id=0115

The seat height differs on...
The seat height differs on the vitra and HM LCW, the HM is 15.5" and the vitra one is 14 1/4"
Weird.

there are some subtle differences
I have a Red Vitra LCW and a Walnut HM LCW at home. There are some sublte differences
(bolts silver and black, one of them is fixed using bolt and glue!, shock mounts forms). I never noticed that the height was different. I can post some pictures if needed...

Thanks delabasse. I'm very...
Thanks delabasse. I'm very interested in your comparison and pictures.
Regarding seat height, I just looked at the vitra pdf and Designwithinreach measurements. All measurements are the same, including the overall height (!).
Can you check the seat height for me? Wh I have seen from the pictures is that the vitra has a plain double shockmount on the back rest, whereas the HM looks like it has two round shockmounts instead.
Which one is glued ? 🙂
Thanks.
loki

LCW : HM Vs Vitra - the verdict !
Here are the differnce I could spot. I would say the HM version looks better. It seems that the height is a bit different but I have to admit that it is hard to tell difference if you don't have the versions next to each others.
http://flickr.com/photos/delabassee/sets/72157594282747558/

Wow! thanks a lot for taking...
Wow! thanks a lot for taking the time to publish all these very detailed pictures.
This is great comparison work! Now I just need to find a US dealer who will accept to ship me a LCW to Paris.
I always preferred the walnut version, which is not available from Vitra anyway...
loki

volvo
delabassee; are those pics of the c30 taken at the A8-E429? just curious...

Volvo
Another kind of design.
Indeed, I took those pictures 2 weeks ago while going to work on the E429. I have been told they'll debut in Paris in a few weeks and are manafcturerd in Gent.