42 replies to this topic

[EmHope]

I currently have the emotion power assist wheels and have been using them for about 5 years. I got them when I ordered my first wheelchair fresh out of rehab. They were brand new and just on the market then. I think mine were ordered from Germany because they hadn't made it to the US yet. The emotion wheels have helped me a ton because they have allowed me to use a "manual" chair even though I have no hand function. I just really don't like power chairs. I just don't like the way they feel/make me feel or look (big). And power chairs aren't as easily maneuverable. And I need maneuverable because I am in grad school for SLP and work with little kids in the clinic setting.

Anyway, I am due to get a new wheelchair this summer and I want the smallest most compact chair I can find + I would like to have power assist wheels. I found the power assist brand called iglide a while back and was in love with the frame and the power assist wheels because it all looked so "normal"---- however I think they stopped making these chairs. I'm not sure why?

I think another brand of power assist wheels is called the Quickie Xtender. Does anyone know anything about any of these power assist chairs/wheels or other brands I haven't mention? I would appreciate any information from both any type info people have by word of mouth or of direct personal use!

[Tim13]

I have no idea if these will work for you or not but you might check them out:

http://www.magicwheels.com/

[mephibosheth]

Hi there!
I've just ordered myself a set of the Quickie Xtender wheels after trying them out a few weeks ago. I've never seen any other type of power assisted wheels so I can't really help much by way of comparison, but give me a few weeks & I should be able to give you more info on the Xtenders... from what I've seen & heard they are a very very good thing! Not sure if they fit on all chair types, but I know they fit on a Quickie GT (with the right axle setup), which is pretty nice looking chair.

[lune14]

My friend has been using the Quickie brand for two years and she loves them! She's a C5/6 and has found amazing independence with them. She's kicking my butt up ramps now! One thing to keep in mind is they do add width to your chair so account for that, especially if you are using a lift.

[Bulky]

I was going to get e-motions but then Googled Xtender and read some reviews. I've tried both for a "short push" and the Extenders came out on top by a mile! My Quickie GT with Xtenders gets ordered soon..........I'll make sure I post feedback as soon as I've got some miles up in it (great gramma!)

[downunder]

hi, i triied the e-motion and extender then bought an iglide. it wasn't great for me, i had to buy it sight unseen here in australia and while it looked wonderful the frame/seat didn't suit me so it wasn't comfortable. i sold it and bought the extenders, i think they are magic, improved my quality of life heaps, and more. i prefered the extender over the e-motion as only one battery, easy on/off no other settings. has been 100 percent reliable. i have them fitted to a quickie gpv. my understanding is that they are rebadged from yamaha jw-2 which has more fitting options. i understand there are 1.5 and 3 times assist, i have heard the 1.5 is dissapointing, mine are 3 times.

one thing with the iglide is that it adjusts the assist based on the grade/surface you are on. this is quite different to the emotion/extender. with the iglide you push the same over uphill/downhill/grass/concrete. i find the constant assist more natural and better indoors. one other issue i had with it was the auto-off after 3 minuites, this is a pain. the extender is 5 minuites and this is bad enough.

try before you buy.

hope this helps.

[jane]

I got the emotion wheels, but they are on my bromakin chair.

I love them, they have given me a new lease of life

[Alin Steglinski]

EmHope, on Jul 1 2007, 08:37 PM, said:

I currently have the emotion power assist wheels and have been using them for about 5 years. I got them when I ordered my first wheelchair fresh out of rehab. They were brand new and just on the market then. I think mine were ordered from Germany because they hadn't made it to the US yet. The emotion wheels have helped me a ton because they have allowed me to use a "manual" chair even though I have no hand function. I just really don't like power chairs. I just don't like the way they feel/make me feel or look (big). And power chairs aren't as easily maneuverable. And I need maneuverable because I am in grad school for SLP and work with little kids in the clinic setting.

Anyway, I am due to get a new wheelchair this summer and I want the smallest most compact chair I can find + I would like to have power assist wheels. I found the power assist brand called iglide a while back and was in love with the frame and the power assist wheels because it all looked so "normal"---- however I think they stopped making these chairs. I'm not sure why?

I think another brand of power assist wheels is called the Quickie Xtender. Does anyone know anything about any of these power assist chairs/wheels or other brands I haven't mention? I would appreciate any information from both any type info people have by word of mouth or of direct personal use!

he he im weird, i love the way powerchairs feel and make me feel, and well TDX5s are EXTREMELY manuverable, hello turns 360 on its spot. i cant wait till i get the cash needed so i can get a powerchair and get my life back on the tracks. http://www.apparelyz...?showtopic=4370 take a look at the powerchair i need, cant get any of that stuff in a manual with PAW's, see its all case to case. depends on your cases needs!

Edited by Alin Steglinski, 03 July 2007 - 06:46 PM.

[itsjustme]

Hi EmHope,

I have no experience with so I can't offer advice except I don't blame you for wanting a manual chair. For various reasons I am in a power chair and I don't love it. I feel like I am sitting on a tractor in the middle of the room.

We were in a restaurant and it was a good bit before I realized that the girl at the table across from me was in a manual chair. I didn't even notice it as opposed to this big contraption that I'm sitting in.

Best of luck in school!

[Bulky]

I have about 3.5" of dump in my day chair (seat height of 15.5"and a front height of 19"). The rep told me today that I need a minimum of 19" seat height for Extender wheels! WTF! I have had it speced fot 12 months n funding just got approved and now this! My whole house and workplace has been set around my current day chair. HELP!

Edited by Bulky, 15 July 2007 - 12:43 AM.

[milosh]

i've bought e lately and love it a lot! the best piece of gear for a quad.

yeah... powerchairs suck high to the hell. compact manual chairs are so cool and so sexy. ;)

[katierolls79]

I'm in a similar situation, I have been in the E-Motion for 4 years, but I thought the Extender was much better, I had that wheel system when it was owned by Yamaha before quickie bought it and mounted it on their frame...it honestly works the best on a ti-lite frame if you can find someone independently to remount the wheels and the battery...I preferred to have the battery mounted underneath my seat....One other thing. The benefit to the emotion is the wheels come on and off very easy, not the case on the extenders, or it wasn't the case 3 years ago.

I'm going for the magic wheels next i think?

Other question those of you on power assist, how do you drive....full size van w/ lift? My wheels are almost too wide to wheel up my mini van ramp....have to drive from my power chair.
thoughts?

[Bulky]

Hi katierolls79, thanks for the information. I am in the unenviable position of having my wheelchair funded by the government and then on "long-term line" from the government (I live in Australia). the problem therefore is that everything has to be by the book and have no "extra modifications." I am now looking down the path of a quickie GPV with e-motion wheels. this will be my "outside and work chair" and all use my current day chair as my inside the house chair. I do not drive so size isn't really is an issue for me. when I get my new chair, I will be catching van taxis and therefore sit in the back of the taxi. On the weekends, it will be pulled apart by my wife and put in the back of the station wagon. I recently heard from the quickie representative that the extender wheels are a pain in the backside to pull apart (from a partner perspective) whereas the e-motion wheels are pretty simple when it comes to disassembly. I am hoping that the e-motion remote-control is as good as it looks on the website.

[slider3]

I have tried the e-motion tires and I found that they are definitly not for me. Im a C4-T6 so i have no movement from the best down. I am all upper body and they broke several times for me. The guy who kept fixing them for me actually worked for e-motion and he said that I was being to rough on them. The e-motion are for people who are more disabled and need that extra push. If your looking to get the extra push once in awhile but not all the time I would not recommend this. If you are just a little to rough on them the actual push rim will fall completly off (happened three times).

Bulky, on Jul 19 2007, 09:53 PM, said:

Hi katierolls79, thanks for the information. I am in the unenviable position of having my wheelchair funded by the government and then on "long-term line" from the government (I live in Australia). the problem therefore is that everything has to be by the book and have no "extra modifications." I am now looking down the path of a quickie GPV with e-motion wheels. this will be my "outside and work chair" and all use my current day chair as my inside the house chair. I do not drive so size isn't really is an issue for me. when I get my new chair, I will be catching van taxis and therefore sit in the back of the taxi. On the weekends, it will be pulled apart by my wife and put in the back of the station wagon. I recently heard from the quickie representative that the extender wheels are a pain in the backside to pull apart (from a partner perspective) whereas the e-motion wheels are pretty simple when it comes to disassembly. I am hoping that the e-motion remote-control is as good as it looks on the website.

I used to use the e-motions and they are extremely hard to put the wheel back on. Taking it off is easy but its hard to get in perfectly in place. I had times where I thought they were in place and a half hour later my tire fell right off

[jane]

my emotion wheels come off ok - i think there is a knack to them which i have only just found.

I drive and put them in my boot and then stagger to the drivers door. they are not light and it takes a lot of strength sittin on my boot to lift them up and i always accept help to lift them when offered.

mind you, just got back from hols and one of the batteries was playing up so i needed pushin and didn't have light wheels withme so hubby wasn't happy. battery working now - strange.

[jimwa]

I have been using a chair for 30 plus years. This past couple of years I read about power assist and tried all three. The iglide seemed great but few options and no longer available. I couldn't get medicare to approve(appealed twice) so bought a used set of xtender wheels on ebay(sad commentary on u.s. medical system). I like them alot but I go thru a battery quite quickly. Even if I don't use it alot battery still low by evening. Also the rubber coating seems to rip very easy. The chair is very difficult to push without the power on. With all this new battery tech I wonde if they will come out with lithium ion battery or would it be possible to adapt(convert battery) to lithium ion?. This is first new thing I've used that has lots of potential. I still drive a 20 year old van w/lift. Makes my 14 year old son cringe. Anyone comment on xtender battery life and rubber on pushrims?

Jim

Edited by jimwa, 10 August 2007 - 05:22 PM.

[COOL Mobility]

New baty technologies are evolving all the time. NiMH were a potential but LiIon lighter but a fire/explosion danger if mishandled and very expensive. Now there is LiFePO4 batteries that I am going to start testing on my currently NiMH powered Kangan Roo sports power chair design - http://www.coolmobil...hairP3Video.htm.

I'm in the process of writing an article on battery evolutions so if you have questions, feel free to contact me.

[Stewart Tate]

I have a Quickie GP SA with the Xtender wheels. They are the 3X versions and work well for carpet, and hills. The system is well designed and uses a 7Ah NiMH battery.

The NiMH battery packs are better then NiCad battery packs in a few ways, no charging memory effect, fast charging but support a fewer number of charge cycles over the life of the battery pack.

While a NiCad battery pack correctly charged and discharged will support thousands of charge cycles, a NiMH battery pack costs more and supports perhaps a thousand charge cycles.

Given the battery pack must be charged daily, a NiMH battey pack will last 2-2.5 years before needing to be replaced. I point this out because the Quickie / Yamaha charge almost $1K to replace the battery pack. I've searched and found it for $795 but this is still way over priced.

I've opened the battery pack (which I expect will need replacing this year) to see if a lower cost option exists. I wanted to know -
Are the NiMH batteries used in the battery pack custom or standard?
How much effort is required to replace the batteries?

It turns out the battery pack case holds a controller board and a collection of standard NiMH batteries that could be ordered from any good electronics source.

It would be possible to swap out the batteries and replace them with fresh for < $100.
So, why is Quickie and Yamaha charging anything near $1K?

Of course, a new battery pack comes with a new controller board and plastic case.
As an engineer, I'm willing to allow another $100 retail for these parts (which shouldn't require replacement with the batteries). Actually, I'm sure I could build the controller board for $20 retail.
This leaves $80 for a plastic case. Injection molding is costly for the first unit :-)

The controller board should have been built into the battery holder. Yamaha do you care?

Ideally, the NiMH battery would have been one of many battery options for the Xtender.
Yamaha, I would recommend a 12V 10Ah or 12Ah deep cycle battery.
Even a standard motorcycle battery that is not deep cycle (12V 10Ah) would have been a solid choice. Of course, using a deep cycle storage battery would add alittle weight and size (not much) and take longer to charge (7 hours .vs. 3 hours). The run time of the Xtender would increase with a 10Ah battery. Why not setup the system to allow one or two batteries for a longer run time?
Mount one battery on each wheel (right and left) just as you have currently mounted only one battery on the right wheel.

The cost of a deep cycle battery is approx $40. The life of a deep cycle battery correctly charged is approx 5yrs .vs. NiMH is approx 2yrs. This works out to $8 per year .vs. $50 per year in battery cost if one opens the battery pack and has the skills to replace the NiMH batteries. If you don't have these skills, the cost is $8 per year .vs. $500 per year ($1,000 / 2).

While I like the Quickie (Yamaha) Xtender, I feel the battery pack costs are out of line.
Hope this helps.

[jimwa]

Thanks for info on rebuilding xtender batteries. I agree other battery options would be a benefit. My xtender battery wears out by end of day even if I don't go that far, but will allow me to push 2+ miles if I use it early in the day
The roo power chair by colin looks great as a power chair(mentioned in previous post) but I still prefer option of pushing with xtender help.
I had to buy my xtender used as medicare, even after appeals would not approve, so maybe I'll try battery rebuild.
Jim

[firewheels]

A Thousand thanks to Stewart Tate for the heads up on rebuilding Xtender batteries! I've had a Quickie GT /Xtender wheels for about two years after seriously messing up a rotator cuff. Managed to get my ins. to pay for a replacement battery after the first dropped to 60% capacity in a little less than a year. Strangely it's still going strong at that level, whereas the second one is down to 80% after about a year, too soon I think. Nonetheless by switching back & forth I still get a full day's worth of travel out of them, and charging time is really short. When I'm going any distance, I carry the spare in an underchair carrier. Used to be very adept with a manual, couldn't get around much at all now without the power assist. - fw

[firewheels]

Couple of things I forgot - I don't know why they make a 1.5X assist model when they have the 3X. True, it's hard to push when the battery dies, I don't know if the 1.5X would be easier, but even so that wouldn't outweigh the disadvantage of the lesser assist. I did rip the pushrim covering (not whatching where I was going). Found that vinyl patch kits work fine; just put the cement under/in the tear, hold it together for a few minutes, then let it sit for a few hrs. or overnight.

The thing is built like a watch, but seems sturdy enough. Two things I'd like to see is some sort of clutch, so that unpowered pushing would be easier, and a regenerative arrangement so that the battery would charge while slowing down. HTH - fw

[Bieke]

Does anyone know iff the Extenders will fit on a Quickie Ti? And on a Kusschall K4? Trying to decide whether I should buy the Extenders or the E-motions. Any recommendations? Thanks!

[firewheels]

Bieke, on Mar 3 2008, 06:12 AM, said:

Does anyone know iff the Extenders will fit on a Quickie Ti? And on a Kusschall K4? Trying to decide whether I should buy the Extenders or the E-motions. Any recommendations? Thanks!

Definitely not the K4. I can't see how the Xtender would fit on a Ti frame, but the Quickie (Sunrise) website says

"The Quickie Xtender is available on the Quickie 2, Quickie 2HP, Quickie GP/GPV, Quickie GP Swing Away, Quickie GP, GT, GTX, and Titanium chair models."

So you'd better check specifically with sunrise. Get email addys & phone nos. at http://sunrisemedical.com. I believe they have an office in Belgium.

FWIW, the Xtender is much lighter than the e-motion, and you have to handle only one battery. In any case if at all possible don't get either one sight unseen. They are expensive-enough items that a dealer should let you go in to the shop or showroom for a thorough trial run before you buy. HTH fw

[Bulky]

I heard a rumour that the manufacturers of e-Motions were/have been bought out by the manufacturers of Quickie. Also, extenders will be replaced by e-motions as part of the buy. My wheelchair rep told me this the other day - he sold me my current Quickie GPV Comp.

[mal's niece]

Bulky, on Mar 5 2008, 09:03 AM, said:

I heard a rumour that the manufacturers of e-Motions were/have been bought out by the manufacturers of Quickie. Also, extenders will be replaced by e-motions as part of the buy. My wheelchair rep told me this the other day - he sold me my current Quickie GPV Comp.

Great information especially since am also looking at power assist wheels. I'm looking at a Quickie GT with the Xtenders but not sure whether to spend the money on the GT (maybe just get GPV which are a bit cheaper) as thinking that the reasons I like the GT so much (small under frame, light, adjustable and looks) won't be such an issue if using power assist wheels as they add to the weight. Can anyone tell me if I take off the power assist wheels off to put other wheels on to push in manual- can you still have the same propulsion set-up?
I'm worried that the position of the axle is different for both set ups. I know I will likely need to adjust brakes but what about axle?
Thanks for your thoughts.

[firewheels]

mal's niece, on Apr 7 2008, 02:48 AM, said:

Can anyone tell me if I take off the power assist wheels off to put other wheels on to push in manual- can you still have the same propulsion set-up? I'm worried that the position of the axle is different for both set ups.

The extender kit comes with two cylindrical spacers; putting these on the inside of the manual-wheel axles (they are tightened in place with tiny Allen screws), the manual wheels then fit into the existing axle-holes as the Power units. So yes, you can go between power and manual pretty easily. - fw

[mal's niece]

Thanks for that. I'm also told that the lowest Rear seat height you can get on the GT is only about 17.5" with the Xtender? Anyone else had this problem? I'm needing a RSH of 16.5" and FSH of 19.5" so I think this may be a problem - not so big a problem if using the Xtender but will definately notice it if go into MWC mode withouth the Xtender attached.
I only tried the Xtender on a Quickie 2 set up with a very flat seat as could only get RSH on that at 18.5" due to the Xtender mounting.
Cheers!

[moff88]

I have tried next mobility power assist chairs. They are located in Canton, MI. I thought they were great chairs. The chairs learn how much assistance you need. Here is the link to their site http://www.nextmobil...deltaglide.html

Hope you find this usefull

[jimwa]

That Next chair resembles the Iglide, which I had tried & really liked. No info on price, sales or product availibility. I still use xtender, wonder if you could replace xtender battery with lithium ion. there is an electric bike on youtube running on Dewalt lithium ion battery packs. Any ideas you battery experts.

Jim

[jimwa]

I just called Next & the chair is the old Iglide & is back on the market. They are sending me some info. I know some of you were Iglide fans.

Jim