A lot has happened since this blog was posted. One of them being, the camber issue, it appears to have not been the cause of the clicking at all. In wheel set #3, all was installed well and right and clicking began the same day. Craig discovered a broken spoke. It was repaired. But then since, 3 spokes broke and upon closer inspection, the spokes clearly have been installed improperly. In fact then the dealer tried to replace the new spokes Sunrise sent, they just kept breaking as well. We have consulted with others who know about spokes and clearly, they should not have been set the way they are. He was given a temporary replacement on April 15, 2016 if a new demo pair of Xtender wheels and it is obvious, improvements to the spoke installation and the spokes themselves have been made. I will be posting a detailed article with comparison photos, on all of that by April 24, 2016.
And for the first time in 3 pairs, the demo has had no clicking for a whole week, clearly, because of the improvements. stay posted for the details on all that. Click here to see the beginning of the reason for the clicking, discovery.
If you have been following WWO, you know that Craig received his wonder Quickie Xtender power assist wheels about 8 months ago and even though they work great, they have had a constant clicking sound. Sunrise/Quickie did replace them, but sadly, within the same day...click, click, click... again. Desperate to solve the problem, we did make videos and blog entries about it recording the sound, hoping it might help the powers that be, to see and hear and then maybe find a resolution. It might have worked, because about three weeks ago or so, Sunrise asked the dealer, Shoppers to take Craig's chair and remove the "camber" from his wheels. (See the previous article about Coolness and Camber),
Lesson Learned
They did, the wheels were straightened to the upright position. Excited for a whole twenty minutes or so, the clicking was gone. Then came the familiar sound again. That was when, we realized that his wheels shouldn't have been installed with a camber (a tilt to the wheels), it was most likely too late, the damage may have already been done. So the new wheels wouldn't suffice.
It was an honest installation mistake, and a lesson learned by all of us. Now we know, and can help anyone else who may have the same clicking issue. Or how to avoid it.
Craig's original wheels had a slight camber to them and it only made sense that the technician installed the Xtender wheels to be the same way. Mind you, it meant an adjustment during bracket installation, big enough that meant Craig lost one inch of height to his seat to floor height and therefore had his front wheels switched from eight inch pneumatics to six inch rubberized casters. From what we now understand, turned out Quickie changed the mounting bracket design to accommodate all wheelchair models and brands. This was the difference from the original demo model that Craig tried a year earlier. Originally, he didn't lose any height and based on video I took, the demo was put on camber free. It all makes sense now!
Thank You For Great Customer Service Sunrise Medical/Quickie
The long and the short of it is, Sunrise/Quickie, in no time at all, sent the second, then lastly, the third replacement set of Xtender wheels in no time. Shoppers installed the third pair on Friday, December 4th, keeping the camber out, and voila! Perfect. We wanted to wait at least the whole weekend before sharing how the wheels did. Well, they are doing great! No clicking, nothing, just the usual sounds of the device - just as it should be!
We know it has been a big mystery for us, the dealer and manufacturer, trying to resolve the clicking and want to say that based on all that has happened and how it was handled, we still fully recommend Sunrise Medical/ Quickie Xtender. It took a bit, but once the ball got rolling, everyone was very kind and helpful. I was able to contact Quickie through their Twitter link (I assume a non-technician person) and they always did their best to make me feel "taken care of." The never ignored our please for help and did what they could to answer questions promptly. It made the whole experience a positive one. As you can imagine when thousands of dollars are spent on an important device and something goes wrong, it really matters to deal with a company that does their best to make sure their product works or if something isn't right, to find a solution. We don't know why the dealer didn't know to remove the camber when installing, perhaps there was a miscommunication. It doesn't matter to us, we know we all learned a lesson about Xtender wheels and my husband has new, working - non-clicking wheels! All is fixed and quiet!!!
Like I said before my husband and I have always been Quickie fans and will continue to be.
Craig Should Become the Xtender Ambassador
In fact, my husband (regardless of the clicking thing) has recommended the Xtender power assist wheels to more than a few fellow wheelchair users and two guys so far have bought a pair because they loved what my husband showed them. Personally, I think he should be the Quickie Xtender Ambassador! If only he could get a commission :o)
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