Not Again! Craig's Quickie Xtender Wheels- Update what? Number 5?

Well, it has been about a month or so since Craig received his third replacement pair of Quickie Xtender power assist wheels. We assumed it was all figured out and would never happen again, that the clicking issue in the wheels was attributed to the fact that, the wheels had been installed incorrectly. Meaning, they worked and all that, but the dealer accidentally or unknowingly, left the camber on Craig's rear wheels. Check out this link to see what "Camber is."

Wish I could report that all is silent on the home front, but NOPE, I can't. Craig noticed a more subtle intermittent clicking, at first not wanting to even have to deal with it. He fiddled with his spokes for the first time ever and that was when he noticed it had something to do with lose spokes. Because, when he just pushed on one of them a little bit, the clicking would temporarily stop. Not wanting to do anything that isn't going to mess up the warranty. He did call the vendor/dealer and they told him that they don't deal with spokes, that he should bring the wheels to the bicycle shop. We investigated how to tighten spokes, (Click Here For that Post)

As the ever concerned wife, loose spokes making clicking sounds didn't make any sense to me. But, when I looked at his spokes, it was clear some of them seem ever so slightly bent, where they intersect with other spokes. And there is no denying that when Craig just pushes on a loose spoke, they clicking does stop - temporarily. As days pass, the clicking now sounds just like the original clicking sound! Just not as constant. 

I am putting this question out there to Quickie/Sunrise or anyone who may know from experience. Is it possible that there is something wrong with this particular newer model of Xtender wheels to cause clicking in 3 pairs of wheels? His tester pair that he used last year, worked perfectly. Apparently the latest model changed when the bracket mountings for the actual wheelchair, was modified/updated to have a universal bracket, to accommodate all brands of wheelchairs. His is a Quickie....please someone at Quickie, phone or write us to help us to know what is happening, so it can be rectified for good.

Bicycle Shop?
 It didn't make sense to me, when the dealer told Craig to go to the bike shop because the dealer doesn't do spoke stuff anymore. Since his brand new wheels are under

warranty, he shouldn't have to pay anything toward brand new wheels that are having spoke issues. And we are always told by the company who provides the chair to the vendor/dealer, that only they can handle warranty issues. Now, if they brought his to chair to a cycle shop, under their warranty care, then that would be up to them and whatever the manufacture says is acceptable. But it makes no sense to me anyway, for him to do it on his own at his own expense.

The manager at our vendor told Craig it was okay if he wanted to tighten the spokes himself. But Craig can't, he tried and noticed there actually is a specific spoke that is wobbly and he doesn't want to mess up any warranties. We let the Quickie folks know and as always will share this blog post incase the information can help Quickie Techs figure it out to fix it . 

Weight?
Something else that has caused me to wonder, not so much my husband because he believes he is under the maximum weight level. In recent months, we were reading the Xtender manual and discovered that there is a weight limit for the client of 250 pounds. This was not something my husband was told at his seating clinic for these wheels. The vendor/seller and physic/o.t., the folks that preside over the seating clinic, never weighed him nor did they ask about his weight. Not to mention, he has no idea how much he weighs, and they never asked. Sure hope this all gets figured out. And if it is the weight issue causing clicking? Well, since he had no idea about the restriction, then the seating clinic officials are responsible for selling him a product that wasn't suitable for him and much either reimburse him or find a suitable replacement. Oh, I sure hope it is the spoke thing...none of this makes sense to me. 

Frustrating and Disappointing
It is so frustrating having to keep bugging these guys and the vendor so many times, you worry that they will think you  are out of your mind, or in need of attention, have nothing better to do than have clicking wheel problems. Of course, we want nothing more than to just move forward and not have to worry about clicking sounds and if his wheels are going to stop working all together. 
And yes, now, the clicking is back to the same type of sound!! So hopefully, we have it figured out, that it is spoke related and someone can do something about it soon. We know the vendor is frustrated too and are tired of having to deal with this, with us. Trust us, we don't like having to deal with this but know it is under warranty and expect it to be working well for at least a few years, we'll settle for six months :o)