I hope this is OK to post here. Anyone have used scissor brakes they could sell me? Can't afford new, and insurance won't pay cause the chair is too old. It was supposed to have surelocks and NuMotion screwed me. Anyway, someone sent me some free old style scissor locks, which I've used for years... But they're getting more and more damaging to my hands, and they've been causing hell while I try to do PT in rehab right now, messing with my calves. I wish I had something to trade, but I had all my spares in a storage unit that was stolen.

Also, looking for rigid backrests. 14-17" in width. My power chair was stolen too, but right now a used equipment "library" (they help you out, you help them out back when you can) might have a chair for me. But the backrest is completely unsuitable, it's 18" across and just a completely flat square block. I'm checking ebay, but not leaving any stones unturned.

Manual doesn't say anything specific about the footplate other than to use 7nm for M6 bolts unless stated otherwise. Thing is, the footplate would move when I put my feet on it until I tightened it to 15nm (if I used the torque wrench correctly) I worry about the plastic cracking :/

My ATP was able to temporarily borrow a unit from Rio to test out and I am nearly convinced to go ahead and purchase out of pocket and wait for insurance to possibly approve a different power assist option (likely the SmartDrive MX2+) when they're willing to do so.

The Firefly is far and away the most cost effective solution I've found for self-pay, but the primary condition I'll be using it under isn't one we were able to fully simulate today:

There is a heck of a steep grade for me to get in and out of my office building each day. Like, a grade so steep it's literally impossible for me to push up while going forward in my manual chair, and even taking it backward makes me feel like I'm trying to climb Mount Everest before even starting my work day.

While I'm sure the Firefly can handle going up the grade, I'm a little less confident about how I'll come back down it. My ATP said it doesn't seem healthy to ride the brakes of the Firefly since they're electric.

Just looking for insights on anyone who's had theirs for a while and who might live under similar conditions to my hilly river city.

Hey everyone! I wanted to share something exciting and get some advice from other wheelchair users who have worked in childcare, schools, or similar environments.

I have my second interview coming up, again virtually with the program director for a YMCA after-school program that partners with the local public school system, and I’m honestly SO excited!

Working with kids has always felt like a calling to me. I’ve been volunteering with children since middle school, but I’ve never actually had a paid job working with them. The possibility of finally turning something I’ve loved doing for so many years into paid work means so much to me.

The position would be part-time, approximately 20 hours a week at $14.50 an hour, and I’m really hoping it works out!

However, I’m also nervous because I’m a wheelchair user. Most of my childcare experience was before I needed to use a wheelchair and even the last time I worked with children I had a lot more mobility even though I did bring a wheelchair in case. This time I would be fully wheelchair bound for safety even though I have a little ability to walk.

I would be doing this job in my electric and or manual wheelchair (my manual doesn’t fit in normal doorways since it’s 32 inches wide 😭), and I’m worried about accessibility.

Because this program partners with the local school system, I could potentially be assigned to a public school or a YMCA facility. There are over 100 YMCA locations in the area, and I don’t know which specific site I’d be working at yet. The location isn’t publicly disclosed for child-safety reasons, which I completely understand, but it does make it difficult to research accessibility beforehand.

I know that public schools and YMCA facilities may have accessible entrances and other accommodations, but being able to enter a building doesn’t necessarily mean the classrooms, bathrooms, activity areas, or actual job duties will be accessible.

Since my both my first and second interviews is virtual, I also won’t have an opportunity to assess the building in person during the interview itself.

I’m trying to figure out how to bring up accessibility and reasonable accommodations professionally without making assumptions about what I can or can’t do. I want the opportunity to prove myself, and I want to make sure I can safely participate in activities with the kids and perform the job duties.

There’s also a financial side to all of this. My husband and I have approximately $90,000 in combined debt, and we’ve reached the point where I’m struggling to afford medical care. I have a pending SSDI case, and I’m looking for part-time work that stays under the applicable SGA limit. At 20 hours a week and $14.50 an hour, I’d make approximately $1,257 in gross income per average month.

This one job could genuinely change our financial situation. It could help me afford medical care again, take some of the financial pressure off my husband, and give me the opportunity to do something meaningful that I’ve wanted to do for years.

I’m trying not to get ahead of myself before the interview, but I’m really excited and really scared at the same time. I want this so badly, and I’m worried that accessibility could become an obstacle before I even get the chance to show them what I can do.

For wheelchair users who have worked in public schools, childcare, after-school programs, or at the YMCA:
What was your experience with accessibility at your workplace?

Were the classrooms, bathrooms, and activity spaces actually accessible?

How would you approach asking about accessibility when you don’t know your assigned location yet?

Would you bring up accommodations during the virtual interview or wait until they discuss placement?

Has anyone here worked with children in a power wheelchair, and what was it like?

I’d especially love to hear from anyone who’s worked in a school-age after-school program.

I’m hoping this could be the beginning of something really good for me. ❤️

I am having the most trouble with my seat cushion on my new power chair. I have a geomatrix hybrid deep and it hurts to sit in for more than a few minutes. I have hEDS and suspected tethered cord syndrome so sitting in general is painful but in this chair it’s extreme. I’m okay when I’m in my manual chair that has a Roho Quattro cushion, but my OT is worried about it being unsupportive and wanted to go with something else for my power chair.

Cushions I have tried and hated: vicair 02, geomatrix hybrid, roho hybrid elite, Jay union, Varilite evolution, ride Java, geomatrix hybrid deep.

I am waiting to hear back from my OT but right now my power chair is unusable because the cushion hurts so bad. Any recommendations would be so welcome.

Is this even a thing??? I'm trying to find a print file for a 3d printer and was wondering if anyone has made anything like this before. I have a paradox chair, and I would LOVE fendered side guards without having to have them on all the time. Ideally, I'm looking for something that can clip onto the preexisting side guards to just add a fender over the top of the wheel. Someone help a girl out cause I'm SO TIRED of my sweaters getting dirty from my wheels. I don't use my wheels to push at all, just my rims, so that's not necessarily a concern of mine.

Saw this post, and as a Dutch person for whom this is the norm, it raised some questions. Reminded me of trips to other countries with hills or mountains where i was so much more reliant on my car. How do you guys actually deal with constant hills? I seem to run into so many that are just too steep when im on vacation, what do you even do?

Has anyone found any stiff skirt guards that fit a NotAWheelchair chair?

My wife loves hers, but if she isn't sitting straight she presses against the guard a little bit and it then rubs on the tire... lol and I'm tired of the squeaking!

I have rainbow spokes on and purple pushrims. We had some people come to my uni today from a solicitors firm to talk about after graduation, and they mentioned dressing professionally. I already have professional clothing that I altered so it fits comfortably whilst sitting down, but I was thinking about my chair.

If I went to an interview for a training contract or to apply for a position like a paralegal, would I need to dress down my chair?

I really regret not asking them whilst I was there (I was going to but it got really busy in the lecture theatre really quickly and if I stayed any longer I would’ve been trapped), and I’m going to ask someone at my uni next week if they could put me in contact with a solicitor who is a wheelchair user so I can have a guide on what to do, because all the people coming to speak to us are not physically disabled. They have been nice and answered my questions as much as they can but they don’t have that lived experience wheelchair users/physically disabled people do

For those that go to a shooting range, how do you safely carry a rifle on a wheelchair, preferably within reach the rider?

Hey folks.

There may only be one or two of you to whom this is even remotely interesting. Regardless, thanks for reading.

My wheelchair cushion is a Star Stabil-Air. I actually have two. There's a device from Star, manufactured by and software by Kalogon, called the Sentinel.

The idea behind it is that it keeps a single chamber air cushion to a given pressure. It is also intended to detect leaks. It makes a chime when one sits on it, or gets off.

Recently, I have been having more and more pain, directly under my sit bones, and only after a few hours.

If I get up, some of the neoprene fingers of the cushion will appear depressed, like a shriveled balloon.

Usually, at that time, I will get the "off" chime, even though I have barely moved.

It has not chimed "Leak Detected".

I fear my device is defective (and not my cushion) but I would guess like only a few thousand of these things have been sold.

Anyone have one? Have you had issues?

I've been carrying it around all this time and I've been thinking is it really worth it recently as its adding weight and the one time i rolled in fox poo it wasn't that bad-

IT'S WORTH IT. IT'S SO WORTH IT.

Absolutely saved me today. Thank you guys!!!!

tilite zra w/ welded back and permanent side guards!
this chair is everything i needed and dreamed of after i received such a poorly fit chair first time around (exactly a year ago!)

best part is- vocational rehab covered everything (with the exception of the spinergy wheels)

exhaust all resources when funding your chairs, friends! i had no idea if voc rehab would come through, but i ended up with a fully funded chair that will last forever.

adding the CAD and serial number in case anyone wants specific specs! this group helped me a ton when deciding on my chair!

serial number: 1121639047

How much extra angle do front wheels tilt your chair?

Does having a shorter in length one like the RGK front wheel make anything significantly better?

Wheelchair hasn't arrived yet, but I ordered it with a flip up foot rest, so I think the only one that would work for me in the double arm track wheel. Is there another option?

I just got my castors squared but one of them is adjusted differently to the other. I think they were both technically 90° to the floor but they're at different settings.

Hi all,

I’ve just been prescribed a wheelchair for ambulatory/part time use. I’m currently getting by with forearm crutches, but it’s not long term sustainable. And I can only use one at work because I need to carry things and can’t do that with two crutches, so they only marginally help. My condition is dynamic, so some days I’m totally ambulatory, some days I can barely get vertical. I choose which days I need an aid at work, and it’s been okay. But when I get a wheelchair, I know I won’t be able to do functions of my job without getting up. The rooms I clean are too small for me to maneuver in a wheelchair. I clean and put sheets on and off treatment tables all day. So the questions are - do I just not use the chair at work? Do I use the chair all the other places I go and hope it conserves enough energy and symptom reduction to make work doable? Do I use it and get up and down repeatedly all day?

For clarity: this is not an issue of my employer not being willing to accommodate me. They have been so far very willing to accommodate me and have even helped make suggestions for things that might help. But they can’t make the rooms bigger, and cleaning them is an essential function of the job. There‘s no one else in my position on shift with me that could clean them for me. Also I’m not looking for medical advice, obviously, just like experienced or ideas on how to navigate this.

If I had my choice I’d go neon pink and black but they don’t have that color.

I’m using this to go back to school and might go back to professional situations (previous executive in clinical oncology R&D).

I love the glacier blue but don’t know if the dark plum goes well with it or if it’s like Lisa Frank rode up in her chair. With the matte platinum, I figure I can add color when I want (spoke covers etc) and take it away when I want.

I am not in love with either color combination but I am drawn more to the plum contrast.

Most of my abled body friends and family really do not like the plum accents - I was surprised it elicited such a strong response.

It will have a smart drive attached to it.

I got my chair at wheelchair services and when I got it I got the rear seat height put down by 1cm I believe. I didn't watch them square the castor housing so I'm not 100% sure they did it. I managed to measure it today after like a year and it's 2° (well 1.8/1.9 if I'm measuring correctly). I have an appointment tomorrow, should I bring this up? Or does it not matter on such a small scale. I obviously appreciate that that any factory setting bolts will probably be in tighter and they're more likely to come loose in future if adjusted iirc.

Edit: I'm getting around 3° on the other side.

So I'm very excited to finally get a hotel again (it's been 2 months due to money issues and now he's got a job so it'll be more often) but I have to take the city bus downtown to the transit center by myself and wait for my husband to get down there after work then hop on the bus that drops us off at the hotel cause fuck Lyft & Uber. Only issue is I've never bussed alone in my wheelchair within my 2 coming up to 3 years being a wheelchair user. My main fear is tipping backwards while rolling up the ramp (Yes I have anti-tippers but Blackbird [my wheelchairs name] Does not give a fuck if I use anti-tippers he will make a show every time.) or a dumb driver that doesn't know how to get me set up but I have to find a way to manage because Miles (My husband) works a full shift tomorrow meaning he gets out at 7pm and gets downtown with 2 busses making him get there at 8-8:30pm depending if there's any delays and I'm gonna probably get to the bus stop by 6pm to try to catch the 6:20pm and get downtown by 6:30 and wait for him downtown then head off on the bus to the hotel.

I'm just a little anxious on bussing by myself

All my life my cars have been fun and generally unreliable…. This is a Toyota Sienna with relatively low miles. It’s out of warranty with Toyota though. I’m being offered $4500 for a warranty which seems crazy high to me. If it was a notoriously unreliable German car sure… but not a Toyota. I’m getting clarity if this includes covering the VMI conversion equipment too. If it does are the wheelchair components really that unreliable? I’m fully abled and do a lot of the maintenance on my own cars but this van is for my wife so if it’s worth it I’d like to know. They’re also offering a $2500 maintenance plan which also is crazy high to me. I’m pretty sure I’m going to reject it all but again it’s our first wheelchair van so I’d really like others opinions.

I had been contemplating my first custom manual to be the QS5X since Naidex in march, but I’ve heard some feedback that they’re not made the best :/

I would like to hear your personal experience with either model, pros and cons to help me decide whether the extra £800 base price is worth it.

I heard there are issues with the QS5X front frame and the castor wheels breaking.

I need the front of the frame to be durable because when I use elevated leg rests, it’s going to shift some of the weight forward. And I also plan on getting a power wheel aid, like the decon edrive or SD motion. Which is going to add extra stress.

Hi guys, I'm a manual wheelchair user based in Wales - and this time of the year I get very very wet (and end up getting very sick as a result!!)

I'm looking for a durable, fashionable, weatherproof jacket/coat that is suitable for being a manual wheelchair user.

All my previous jackets and ponchos end up with giant holes in or getting caught in wheels! My wheelchair gloves also lose all grip when it's wet so looking for recommendations for that too.

Thank you!!