[Valo]

I'm looking to buy a new lightweight rigid frame wheelchair.

I'm interested to hear what people think of wheelchairs by Cyclone Mobility? As well as wheelchairs by Colours In Motion as there is a dealer here in Scotland not too far from me, so I'd like to hear what people think of these also.

I currently have an RGK and I've found there after sales service to be lacking on occasions not to mention very expensive when compared to other manufactures for parts.

If anyone has any other manufactures I should be looking at then please suggest them.

[ems]

Valo, on Feb 21 2008, 03:32 PM, said:

I'm looking to buy a new lightweight rigid frame wheelchair.

I'm interested to hear what people think of wheelchairs by Cyclone Mobility? As well as wheelchairs by Colours In Motion as there is a dealer here in Scotland not too far from me, so I'd like to hear what people think of these also.

I currently have an RGK and I've found there after sales service to be lacking on occasions not to mention very expensive when compared to other manufactures for parts.

If anyone has any other manufactures I should be looking at then please suggest them.

Cyclone! its not been the same for about 5 yrs now, lets just say it had an eventful yr.
I had an XLR8 from them 6 yrs ago, then had a mirage - twice, they had to make it twice to get it right...The XLR8 was crushed by BA on a flight back from Thailand, so insurance job.. and cyclone made me a new Mirage, it arrived in the same condition as when Ba crushed the other chair, they had welded it wonky! They then took another 3 weeks to get another chair out. Now this chair (the second mirage), is OK. But you don't send out a chair to a customer when only three wheels will touch the ground, not for 2700 quid! So although they got there in the end, I think the company has stayed on a flat part of the market, and losing 2 of its best people including their original builder, and I believe the company has also now been sold as well... I wouldn't touch them again.


RGK can do anything that cyclone can do. Their after service has improved in the last yr due to increased staffing. They also have a 6 week policy now instead of 12 weeks build time which was horrendous, and just bad management. We've just had three people order basketball chairs from RGK and they all came in at 5 weeks. On the after sales pricing for parts... don't bother, use america! and a bike shop. You shouldn't need to go back to the company for anything after the purchase... if they've got the order right. I think most wheelchair companies share the same sort of hyped up prices, castors costing 40 quid a pair apparently 50 quid for my quickie ones! Though in sportaid I get the ones that cost the most over here (softroll 4" BY 1.5" wide), for 20 quid a pair.. Kenda Ironcaps for 18 quid a pair not 15 quid each....!!!!


Good luck,

Emma.

[kes]

i recently had the same problem with cyclone. the chair was delivered with a twisted frame, got a refund in the end.

[Valo]

Well that's Cyclone out of the running! I'm still really interested to hear from Colours Wheelchair owners to see what there like.

Does anyone have any other manufactures they can recommend that I should be looking at?

Thanks for the advice so far!

[jules]

I can recommend Davinci wheelchairs, they are based in Liverpool but have reps who will bring chairs out to demonstrate for you. I have just ordered a titanium chair from them, my previous chair also came from them and was excellent.

[silone74]

Tilite make very good chairs i have a ZRA the only thing again is you have to order parts from the states to get a reasonable price but they are very very light and the build quality is great if you know all of the measurments it would be best to order the tilite from the states as it is cheaper also
than to buy from the UK.



Silone74

[Texaswheelz]

colours chairs look awesome imho, I've sold em, but i've never had one. Their a pretty small company though and i've ran across more then one user who has been able to get in touch with the guy that started and runs the company(John Box) when they've had problems, which is always a good thing as he wanted to make sure they got things right for the customer.

I use a TiLite ZRA and love it, had it less then a year and if i had to do it all over again i would order the same one. First chair that I can say that about after 6 months or so of every day use.

[NuthinWillHoldMeBack]

I absolutely LOVE Colours! There chairs are VERY durable and they have a great customer service! I would highly recomend Colours! I have had my chair from them for 3 years and I LOVE it! Its fully welded so it is much easier to push than most, it also fits me like a dream. Unfortunately, it also got run over by my best friend two days ago.......

[Valo]

I like the look of the TiLite ZRA, thanks for the positive recommendations guys

When I have the time (hopefully within the next month) I'm going to get a trial organised of a suitable Colours chair and a TiLite ZRA and see how they compare.

[airart1]

good place to look at chairs...........

http://www.spinlife.com/TiLite-TiLite-ZRa-...=tilite%20zra-p

[Lucydog]

Ive had Tilite, Colors and RGK chairs so far, and Id alwasy go for RGK first and foremost. The main problem is maintenance with Tilite. You may be able to initially buy the chair from the US but from then on you will not be able to buy any add ons as no one will export to Britain. You will always have to go through Gerald Simmons who IMHO charge through the nose and once they know you have an import are not very willing to help you. Ive had very cursory service.

I had a colours chair for a while, cant think which one, it had suspension but I found the suspension didnt wear well and the chair had a less than solid feel to it.

I would always go for RGK. Ive always had v good service from them and you can easily get on first name terms with their sales team. I just got some new upholstery which e thought would take weeks but arrived in 10 days and it was bespoke for my chair. I like the mors solid feel they have to their chairs.

You might fancy going along to the Mobility roadshow in Edinburgh on 24/25th April. Im planning to go. Some of the exhibitors there are Cyclone, RGK and Gerald Simmons, so might be worth and afternoon out.

Cheers
L

[Valo]

Thread Resurrection!

I’ve finally had some time to get on with sorting this out. I took a trip through to the Colours dealer this afternoon. Unfortunately the manager/owner who carries out the assessments and measuring was away at a trade show but they did have a selection of Colours Chairs on show and they look very nice in the flesh.

I think I’ve narrowed it down to the Colours Razerblade & Kuschall Airlite/K4. They’re coming to my home on the 29th May with all three chairs for me to try out and have some measurements taken. Depending on how well the demo goes....I'm probably still better off money wise just importing it from the states as by not having to pay import duty and VAT I'll hopefully save a packet!

Will keep you updated and I’ll try and get some good high res pics of the chairs....if I remember that is

[Valo]

Lucydog, on Feb 24 2008, 09:43 PM, said:

Ive had Tilite, Colors and RGK chairs so far, and Id alwasy go for RGK first and foremost. The main problem is maintenance with Tilite. You may be able to initially buy the chair from the US but from then on you will not be able to buy any add ons as no one will export to Britain. You will always have to go through Gerald Simmons who IMHO charge through the nose and once they know you have an import are not very willing to help you. Ive had very cursory service.

I had a colours chair for a while, cant think which one, it had suspension but I found the suspension didnt wear well and the chair had a less than solid feel to it.

I would always go for RGK. Ive always had v good service from them and you can easily get on first name terms with their sales team. I just got some new upholstery which e thought would take weeks but arrived in 10 days and it was bespoke for my chair. I like the mors solid feel they have to their chairs.

You might fancy going along to the Mobility roadshow in Edinburgh on 24/25th April. Im planning to go. Some of the exhibitors there are Cyclone, RGK and Gerald Simmons, so might be worth and afternoon out.

Cheers
L

I have an RGK at the moment, and up until recently I thought there customer service was rubbish. That was until I decided to get my chair serviced, They organised the pickup and redelivery and everything went like clock work. The chair was stripped right down and built backup with a few new bits and it looks and feels really good with the work they carried out.

However depeding on how my demo of the Colours/Kuschall Chairs goes next week, I'll have a better idea about what feels right for me. Not to mention my RGK was not exactly the cheapest....but you do get a quality product though.

I never made it to the Mobility Show as I was on bed rest (of all the weekends!) Would of made things easier having every type of chair under one roof...just bad luck I guess!

This post has been edited by Valo: 20 May 2008 - 07:48 PM

[Jodie Lynn]

I need a new chair myself but I am not sure how to go abouts getting one I have medicare and medicaid any info or input would be greatly appreciated...

[airart1]

Jodie you simply have to get a script and a letter of necessity from your dr., then give them to your person u get your equipment/supplies from....simple as that...........

[Jodie Lynn]

airart1, on May 26 2008, 08:27 PM, said:

Jodie you simply have to get a script and a letter of necessity from your dr., then give them to your person u get your equipment/supplies from....simple as that...........

Ty i wasn't sure how to go about ti I am still in the chair I originally was given whjen leaving the hospital I need a new one this one is falling apart and very hard for me to get in and out of my ride...

[KimAndSophie]

ems, on Feb 22 2008, 05:26 AM, said:

But you don't send out a chair to a customer when only three wheels will touch the ground, not for 2700 quid!

I had the same thing happen to my first wheelchair! It was a Quickie GT and the whole frame was twisted! Of course the seating "specialist" from the rehab, and the guy from the medical supply store both said it was all in my imagination, but one of the front wheels never touched the ground and never did wear out, even though the opposite wheel did. I never did get anyone to do anything about it. I was only ever given the choice to accept it.



That's why when I got my second chair I ordered it myself online and didn't let anyone else get involved. Even if it did mean we had to pay for it ourselves!



I'm glad you got a new chair to replace it. I have no idea how no one notices these things and sends them out anyway!

[Mr. Hektner]

silone74, on Feb 22 2008, 01:56 PM, said:

Tilite make very good chairs i have a ZRA the only thing again is you have to order parts from the states to get a reasonable price but they are very very light and the build quality is great if you know all of the measurments it would be best to order the tilite from the states as it is cheaper also
than to buy from the UK.



Silone74

I have to agree. I've had a number of different chairs. This is my fourth chair in 11 years and the Tilite ZRa has stood up extremely well. It's the lightest chair I've owned and by far the most durable. Also, with the US dollar being so low these days, you can't beat the price. Good luck!

[Valo]

Well I have just had a long afternoon of trying out chairs and I think I've found a new front runner in the Kuschall AirLite. It's very well made and super lightweight, I've got some costs and it hopefully it won't break the bank.

Colours are out of the running as there build quality isn't so great compared to Kuschall. I'm going to try and get my hands on a TiLite ZRA and see what it's like before I go any further.

[Mr. Hektner]

Valo, on May 29 2008, 09:01 AM, said:

Well I have just had a long afternoon of trying out chairs and I think I've found a new front runner in the Kuschall AirLite. It's very well made and super lightweight, I've got some costs and it hopefully it won't break the bank.

Colours are out of the running as there build quality isn't so great compared to Kuschall. I'm going to try and get my hands on a TiLite ZRA and see what it's like before I go any further.

I also recommend spending the extra buck on the lightest accessories you can eg. Titanium hand rims and hubs etc. The lighter you can make it the easier it is on your shoulders and arms. The chair should hold together for a good 4 or more years so an extra $500 is worth while.

[fiona74]

hi
i have a brand new electric wheelchair for sale im based in Scotland and thought you may be interested

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[airart1]

kurshall makes a good chair........

[Valo]

Holy thread resurrection batman! Well might as well give an update – it took a while to sort out due to work commitments at the time but I took delivery of my Kushall K4 in Feb 2009. I've been using it now for just over a year and it's been great. I've had the odd problem with the breaks losing tension but quickly got them fixed, apart from that I'm very happy I've also had my existing RGK serviced so I know if it's ever needed it's in perfect working order, you can never be too careful

This post has been edited by Valo: 27 March 2010 - 03:40 PM

[M Tustain]

I've just got a quickie Helium, I really like it, it's so light and easy to use! I was just very annoyed at the delivery time which was 5 MONTHS...