INNER TUBE 1:25 CASTER BEARING: 9:30

Here's one issue specific to ambulatory wheelchair users to check for. When I'm getting in and out of my chair a lot at something like a theme park or convention, I have a habit of stepping on and off my foot plate with one foot. That can knock the foot plate ever so slightly off level and pull the casters out of alignment just enough so that one caster is slightly off the ground. It's a good idea to loosen your foot plate and re-level it during regular maintenance. To make sure you keep it at the right height, this is easier to do with two people or by putting some books under your foot plate to hold it where it should be.

Been in a wheelchair for almost 30 years. never used this technique for replacement bearings. and I've changed bearings every summer due to fishing in the ocean up to my waist in saltwater LOL. learn something every day!

wish i had seen this years ago! i am a PT and used to try and help my patients fix "minor" WC problems. It always took me FOREVER!!!

Of all the videos you guys I have made, THIS one has me the most fascinated. The practical side of having a wheelchair - and there's so much of Richard's personality in it! Easy to follow too. Thanks for teaching me a couple things!

This is great! I work for a DME company and we actually lose money on our repair department due to low reimbursements from insurances. We are also understaffed and so repair times can be delayed. I am going to share this video with our clients. I would love to have you show how you maintain your cushion if it's air filled or have your friends who use power wheelchairs show their maintenance.

Hey, I'm a part time wheelchair user, and I was wondering if you could make a video about how to deal with others who make rude comment, etc when they see you stand from your chair. I use my chair mostly for long trips and in the future to save my energy for going to school so I can focus on learning, but I struggle. I feel as if I live a double life because yes I can walk, but it's sometimes really taxing in my body. Yet, as I said above, I feel weird and uncomfortable when people find out that I can in fact walk or vise versa. It would be a nice world if people could just accept everyone as they are, but I realize that that's not possible. I was just hoping you could give some advice, but I'm pretty sure you'll never see this comment. I love your videos and I've learned so much, I appreciate every little tip and trick you've given and doing my own repairs will be so much easier now. Thank you so much, and I will definitely keep watching, I'm always excited about what you'll take about next

Thank you so much for this step x step and very detailed explanation on how to properly maintain a wheelchair. I know mine needs it, and thanks to this video I can.

Hi there! I want to thank you for all the videos! I am a wheelchair user and I am FINALLY getting my custom chair tomorrow!

This saved me from having a breakdown your channel has really helped me ! Thank you , I’ve been in my chair all my life and never had anyone to teach me these things and can’t depend on insurance and wheelchair mechanics to fix it I’ve been rolling on a broken castor wheel since January and am about to just order and fix it myself now .

Im not even a wheelchair user Why did i watch this But also Richard so why not

Great video, just a few little pointers (from a Dutch former cycle mender, who is now also in a wheelchair). Over here we have these tools to remove the tire from a rim, they are blunt and rounded so no chance to damage your tire/rim or your hands (Brand is Simson). And after you remove the inner tire you first want to check the outer tire for anything sharp before putting the new inner tire in (can be visual, but using your fingers works better, just take it slow to not hurt yourself). When putting the new tire on never use any kind of tool, you will not be the first to damage the inner tire while doing so and you can start all over again. if you cant flip that last part over you can start from the side that is firmly on, grab the tire and kind of squeeze towards the part that still needs to flip on the rim, this is also why you dont want to screw on that ring around the valve stem to tight, while doing this you can damage the inner tube. After the tire is 100% on you can just move it a bit so that the valve stem is not all wonky out of the hole, then you grab the vale stem and just push it in as far as it will go (if it was in the way of the outer tire you will feel it plop into place), make sure the outer tire is set on the rim and fill the tire with air, this will prevent the unset tire as seen in the video.

Thanks Mr Weelchair-fix! I know now what to do about my manual chair going to the right. It's my bearings (not mine ha-ha) I will share you're Tube with my friends. Tanx again my Friend, God bless! From South Africa :-)

Richard, thanks so much for all your helpful tips and tricks! I work in Physical Therapy and find myself fixing and adjusting assistive devices/chairs for my patients. Your videos about life in a chair has also helped me be a better advocate and clinician for my Patients. Thank you for all you do

The valve on your tube is a Schrader valve, not a presta. It's important to know the difference, since a presta valve is narrower in diameter & would reqire a smaller-diameter hole in the metal wheel rim. A Schrader won't fit the small hole on a presta rim, but a schraeder-sized hole on a rim can be fitted with a grommet (available at most bike shops) in order to "down-size" the hole to fit a presta valve. Here's another tip: Marine grease is an excellent choice for wheel & caster bearings, and it's much cheaper than bike grease. It's commonly sold in 14-oz. tubes in the automotive section of most big-box discount stores, usually for less than 5 or 6 dollars per tube. Cheers!

Love this. I just got a bike shop to do a tyre change. Next time i might try do it myself. The only thing i’d do different is i often use a socket wrench socket over a bearing to press on just that outer lip, and hammer the socket thing, that way no direct hammering on just one part of the bearing, and it leaves a convenient hole in the middle that a screwdriver/screw can poke through to keep everything lined up while still being able to hammer over the middle instead of having to slowly work around the sides. The same socket wrench I use to adjust the pivot bearings is about the right size. The other bit of maintenance i try to keep an eye on is occasionally going over every bolt head i can find and tightening them up if they’re loose enough to finger turn. Sometimes those bolts that hold down the carbon fibre board the seat cushion lays on can work their way loose especially. Good to get some loctite in there but it doesn’t last forever.

I totally agree, if you are reliant on your wheelchair 24/7 its always a good idea to be able to perform some maintenance on it yourself. I usually carry a small emergency kit with me for some basic maintenance while on the go, as I travel frequently for work, and always ensure I at least have two spare inner tubes in it. Yes punctures can be repaired, but your when mobility is impaired while performing the repair, this is a simpler sure bet fix to just replace the inner tube. That said I have never seen a wheelchair tyre being changed with a screwdriver that way, I much prefer the traditional tyre levers used on bicycles so I can avoid pinching the tube accidentally or damaging the rim. As for bearing maintenance I carefully remove the seals and clean them with a de-greaser then repack them with fresh grease again and that increases their lifespan dramatically, I will only replace them if there is too much play in them. For axle pins I normally use a dry lube commonly used on bicycle chains, this way there little chance of getting grease on your clothes or car interior when transferring, and still having the benefits of a wet lube.

First off I greatly appreciate everything you share with your fellow wheelchair users. I used the Reds ceramic bearings for about 4 months. I switched to Bronson Ceramic speed skateboard bearings. Theyvare cheaper and last me about 25% longer than all the Reds bearings ive tried.

I use the other kind of tires that don’t require air when their flat is there a reason you use those kind of tires ? And thanks for the vlogs they are always educational! I’m still watching this video even thou I don’t use tires that require air. Again who are the people that put thumbs down on the video of you don’t like it just leave the page . The videos are very educational for people that use all types of wheelchairs. I don’t understand how people come and dislike the videos!

In one year I had a flat tire in the Montreal Airport and had to push a mile on a flat. The taxi driver stopped at a bike shop to have it fixed and the same year I had a flat in Johannesburg. I told a friend on my rugby team and everyone was using airless tires. The last 4 to 6 years or as long as my wheels last. If you remove the hair when needed it will prolong the bearings lifespan. I didn't know about the hot and cold on the bearings, great trick 👌. Good video good 👍.

Good Video, I really need to clean my wheelchair. You are right, it is our legs, so we need to keep them clean. I will check my bearings in my casters today. Hopefully they are good. But if not, I will be ordering today. Thank you for this video, keep them coming, I will be looking for more!

Thank you for this, Richard - it will be very helpful when I get my chair. But I gotta say: I love that little air compressor! I got one for Christmas (because of your video), and I was able to inflate my completely flat bike tires in about 5 minutes total - if I had used a hand pump (which I do have, and it's what I've used in the past), it would have taken me forever, and I would have been completely worn out before they got even 1/3 full. Also, I didn't use it until 4 1/2 months after I got it, and the battery was still perfectly fine (still almost fully charged), even without having charged it. So excited to be able to use it when I get my custom wheelchair later this summer! I think I'm going to get one for my parents as well, since one of the nozzles fits our air mattresses perfectly (such a pain to blow up by hand, or with the only other pump they have, whose nozzle isn't small enough so you have to hold it in just the right spot the entire time), and because I don't want to have to pack mine when I fly.

Thanks for teaching us something very useful

This video was so helpful! My chair needs to be worked on and I didn’t want to wait months for it to be serviced. This is my first chair, so I’m SOL if something goes wrong with mine. Love your content!

I used to run solid back tires, then I needed to change my hand rims (push rims) and discovered I had to take my tires off to work on the hand rims. Problem with solid tires is they have to be cut off and you need a machine to put them back on so you don’t damage the wheels. I cut them off and put air tires back on. I will never go back to solid tires. I can air them down if going on gravel or off road and for curb jumping, but can then air them up for in the house and on the sidewalk/street. I recently had an issue with the spokes on my Spinergy wheels and was able to remove the tires, hand rims and D’s Lock ring before taking them to a bike shop. Only cost me $12 to have the spokes adjusted on both wheels because I had everything off. Then while my wife was shopping in Walmart I put them back together in my van in the parking lot with just a few hand tools. I carry a spare tube, air pump and some extra hand tools in a backpack I keep in my van.

Metric is definitely best, the most logical and precise scaling :)

That’s a Schader valve, the Presta valve needs to have an adapter to pump and usually used on hand bikes or racing chairs. Enjoyed the video, keep it up.

Yessss RED BONES!! 🤟👌 all time favorite

Love your videos and the way you explain things. Thank you, Ted

I honestly don't know what started me watching your videos, but i am very grateful for you uploading them.

Great videos! It been a great help for a newbie to sci.

I love all your vids I always find them super helpful

This is fantastic, thank you so much for all the how to and tips! I still have a clunky rubbish chair right now while we figure out if I can manage self propelled or if I will have to go powered but having all this info is such a big help!

Thank you, This is so helpful! Incredible information and I have learned so much watching your videos.

Great video. Looks so easy when you are doing this :) respect your professionalism.

I use white lithium grease for my powerchairs suspension. I used to get someone else to do it but it needs doing so often I just purchased my own. 😂 Most repairs on mine require specialist repairs sadly. I agree about the pristine thing. Clean yes but it gets damaged in daily life. I just used metal paint to repaint the 4 leg things on mine as it was scratched to buggary and i have some car stuff to make the plastic and tyres look better. lol

Thank you for these videos!! They help so much!!!

I love your stuff man, it's so good to see you informing people on how to fix their own stuff with a "joie de vie" that's infectious . Get someone interested and it can be a turning point in their life. I used to fix my bicycles when I was younger, but questions like "how will I know if I've tightened the bolt holding the wheel bearings enough /too much?" or the uses of (and I'm talking of concepts that where at best "non-intuitive" to a young boy) simple temperature /mechanical properties, like , expansion and contraction of my bike parts & how I could use this, were only available by asking my elder brothers and dad (this I have to admit was some 40-55years ago). Since then I have had reason to apply those experiments and experiences to my present & changing life. You know? Since then I've made plenty of mistakes, but I've increased my mechanical aptitude/confidence to the point where I know about "mechanical Empathy". , and most often been able to sort out these simple mechanical repairs, wheelchairs are very similar to bicycles. I have found that one of the best ways to discover what's wrong with something is to clean it Welland intricately by hand, in this way I've had to look over every component. When I've checked every component this way I will know what I am working on /with. Hope this helps Patrick.

As a brand-new wheelchair user Thankyou so much. Those tips were so helpful.

Awesome video guys, and yeah when I got my tilite wheelchair I had to buy a set of imperial allen keys- wtf?! Seriously get with the times America haha 😂 Also - Richard, get some tyre levers bro! I cringed when you used that screw driver to remove your tyre 😬🤦‍♂️ Haha

You had my like at the metric comment!!! This stuff is seriously important but never taught, I removed my castors for the first time since I got this chair, it was ghastly and super sluggish from trapped hair and grease... Luckily you brought this video out before I replace the bearings, which will be soon! Thank for the videos!

Another great video and as always thanks for sharing

Richard you’re the man!

Great video!!

Just to add some info! For those that have tires that don't go on as easy as yours, like mine that have never went on easily. Lol Pedro tire levers and Kool stop tire bead jack make things quick and simple. I used to use a screwdriver but seemed more likely to end up with a small hole in the tube or end up scratching the rim. Instead of using the white Lithium, try using dry lube that doesn't attract dirt, etc. 😊 For the bearings, if you're cheap like me, you can repack them if they're not totally destroyed and get some more time out of them. Not critiquing, just adding! 🤣😋

Been using wheelchair for 10+ years and I actually just learned a few things here....since my daily wheelchair goes thru my patio and is dirt at that part it does takes a beating, my front small wheel left side is completely off bearings they are long gone worned out and is the "Walmart" cheap brand so at the same time gives me the feeling to just get a new one but when I imagine it on the dirt again kinda makes me sad 😅, to put a new one down there so I'm learning as much as I can about casters and maintenance

I needed this video 13 years ago

Excellent video

Great job!! Good tips, too.

Lotta bike shops in California won't do the wheel work anymore thanks to insurance stuff. This is why I'm glad I can do this on my own as long as I have what I need.

Awesome video love it

Awesome videos!!!

Loved it! Thanks for all of the info

Some people are so new to wheelchair maintenance you might want to break things down to toddler size info. I'm not a user myself but know others and if I'm unsure I know they probably are too. Thanks for this video.

Like, even though your spine is hosed, you're an awesome mechanic. Way to go, babe!

You should also feel around inside the tire to see if what ever caused your puncture is still in there. Also, they make plastic tire levers so that a metal screwdriver won't gouge up your carbon fiber rims.

Tip on putting the end caps in. Instead of tapping directly on them, get you a socket that’s the same size in circumference and use it. Place the socket on top of the end cap of the bearing and tap on the socket. It will keep it from flipping on you. Love the vids. My son was recently in an auto accident and it caused him to be paralyzed from the chest/nipple line down. Your vids are great and really help ppl.

Am I the only without a disability yet still watches the videos?

Excellent instructional video!

cool thing to show with care...thx

Thank you

Zumiez also does bearing replacements for free using their press, not sure if all casters would be the right size to fit their press, but they also sell red's bearings. They're what I used to use on my boards lost the ability to skate.

Richard, I use a C clamp to press my bearings, and eliminates some of the time you use in your steps. Just a possible option you might like to check ut. I like the heat the caster idea, never thought of it, combining c clamp instead of hammering might speed your process up, Im going to try it myself.

Ty 💪💪💪

très précieux merci!

When you are changing the tires sometimes they are sooo tight you just can't get them over the rim. Talcum powder is lubricant for rubber. Pour some baby power in your hand and run it over the edge inside and base of the tire and the entire tube. it doesn't have to be COVERED but some small amount will make that tube and wheel slip right over the steel (carbon whatever) rim of the tire, Sorry if someone else mentioned this but I always use baby powder when I'm changing tubes, it works great.

A few tips, plastic tools are cheap on Amazon for the tire change. Also you can easily do a tube with the tire only off on one side. That said I went to the solid tire INSERTS years ago and honestly I'll never go back

Changed a tire on vacation in Boston and must have had the inner tube pinched. Later in the day while riding the elevator in the Hancock building the pressure change coming down caused the tire to blow with a very loud bang that scared the crap out of everyone in the elevator.

Dang, haven't ever done a tube tire, but they look way easier than solid inserts!

Get a hex bolt the size of your axle, 2 large washers and a nut. This will press your bearings in evenly and gently

‘D Locks... best brakes ever!

yes metric the way to go!

Tip: have someone to fetch you stuff from your freezer or you might just have to crawl yourself there lol

I love these practical video's. You seem pretty strong in your hands, when you're puting the outer tube off and on. As a Dutch guy I did not know that you could use a screwdriver for it. We learn how to change a bime tire, before we can bake an egg. ;-) Ever thought about bike levers (you need less power for those) or a bike repair kit? Did you check the inside of the outer tube for glass or pointy objects? (I learned the hard way that it could puncture your inner tube twice.) And do you fix/patch your punctured inner tube, or do you throw them away?

Great information as usual.👍👏👏👏👏 next video, how to mount a pulse jet onto your wheelchair.😉😬😬😬😬

It took them six months to do wheelchair maintenance on my chair. It’s like I’ve never even heard of it. My doctor went back-and-forth with prescriptions, but they didn’t get them - such a confusion and a mess -

I have a TiLite ZRA2 and wish I could find a video on how to replace the castor wheels - I found a video for those w mono forks but I don’t have those!

Good thing you got gloves

WHeelchair maintenance is really important if you use a wheelchair. :)

Hi fellow charioteer, great channel. I'd like to make one comment, you should check the inside of your tyre for the foreign body (i.e. thorn) that caused the puncture in the first place or it will be ready to greet your new innertube when you inflate it ♿😁

You can use a Bolt that is the same diameter as the spindle and a washer that is the same size as the outside of the bearing. This ensures that the bearing is evenly inserted with the least amount of hammering and the bolt will keep the spacer from flipping.

How often do you go through axel quick release pins? I must have had 3 go on me in the space of 3 years, the little ball bearing that pokes through the hole to lock it in place seem to wear away at the metal and fall through.

I was taught to just take off one side of the wheel. As a kid I would never have had the strength to do it the way you did. And we fixed our bikes from a very early age. Remember, if you are fixing a flat, check the inside of the tyre for the culprit: a stone, thorn etc. No point going through all the steps, just for your new tyre to pop immediately.

Hey Richard should you know when you measure your wheelchair what are the most important dimensions like width length etc to measure for the perfect fit ?

One tip if you just can’t change your inter tube yourself but can’t wait for a maintenance. You could try going to a bike shop if you have a spare inner tube on hand. A bike shop may be able to change the inner tube for you as bike tires are similar. Or if you have friends who cycle they may be able to help you out?

Line up the valve with the label on the tyre. If you have a flat then find the hole, and make sure the debris is no longer in your tyre, else the new tube will just get a hole in the same place. Also - get a set of cycle tyre levers rather than a screwdriver. The wire bead should be pushed down into the bottom of the rim well so that there is enough slack to get the wire out on the other side.

What make/model wheelchair do you have, bro?? Luv that clear coat brushed aluminum/titanium look!

Have you tried any of the new gel-filled inner tubes?

Wheels walking: what kind of chair do you have? My hubby needs a new one and yours looks like it would fit him good. 🙂

where should we get new seat cushions , could you add a link to your wheel locks

How can I get my front wheels to stop wobbling when I speed up? I just got new casters and wheels yesterday and I still have this problem. Not as bad as before but it still happens. Would using these bearings help me?

Yay

please make a video about your wheelchair brakes.

Can the maintenance video for caster bearings be transferred to a Rollator/walking frame?

What if your tires don't have tubes yet they still sound flat against the ground. Also, is a loose wheel the cause of when you roll the left back tire and the same left front tire turns left instead of right? If not, how do you fix that?

What's the name of the part connecting the wheel to the chair? Something in there has made my wheel off center to the point where it eventually fell off. Maybe my caster fork angle it messed up. Feels like I am not centered on my right wheel causing all sorts of stress.

I prefer to use plastic tire changing tools as the screw driver runs the risk of puncturing tubes. Also I dont use gease on axles because I find it attracts more dirt and grim when taking wheels off to transfer into vehicle. If anything I use wd40 on occasion in winter to keep release smooth.

I was wondering if they make tubeless tyres? Are tubeless ones recommended for wheelchairs?

I’m a paraplegic and I upload informative content also... I love your channel✨

Do you use rodebike innertubes and tire.