Details of How to Make Wheelchair Parts

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HealthWiki > Disabled Village Children > Chapter 66: Designs for 6 Basic Wheelchairs > Details of How to Make Wheelchair Parts

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In this chapter:

 

In this chapter:

HEAVY-DUTY WHEEL HUBS

• A thick bolt should fit tightly inside bearing.
• Bearings should fit tightly inside outer steel tube.
• Carefully mark and drill the outer steel tube for spoke holes.
• Spacer tube fits over axle bolt and holds bearings against spoke heads.

holes for bicycle spokes

Note: Used sealed bearings with a ⅝" inner diameter can often be obtained free or at low cost from electrical tool and appliance repair shops. These used bearings often last longer than standard wheelchair bearings.

axle (steel bolt ⅝")

spacer tube

used sealed bearings

outer steel tube (1¼" thin-wall)

frame of chair

thick-wall tube welded to frame

locknut

To attach the heavy-duty hub to a wood chair, you can weld the thick-wall tube to a metal plate. The bigger the plate is the stronger the mount.

The metal plate can be bolted onto the wood. wood axle

CASTER FORK AND HUBS

nut

sealed bearing

steel bar

galvanized steel tube for caster barrel

bend

⅝" bolt

A sleeve tube spot-welded to inside of barrel keeps bearings in place.

Drill at equal lengths.

Sealed bearings fit tightly inside caster hub and rest against inner sleeve tube.

Weld bolt to steel bar.

Caster axle fits tightly inside bearings.

7 cm

Mount the caster axle at least 7 cm behind bolt. This helps prevent ‘flutter’ at higher speeds.

For slightly different designs, see:

• "Casters and Wheels"
  
• "Casters"
  
• "Front Caster Wheel"

BRAKES

piece of rubber hose bent piece of flat bar flat or round steel bar bolt for attaching to frame weld

Or steel rod can be bent like this for the brake.

LOCKED

UNLOCKED

metal stops to hold brake in place

See other brake designs.

SEAT AND BACK MADE OF CANVAS (strong cloth)

Cut canvas twice as wide as seat or back, allowing 4 cm extra on sides (for seams) and at least 20 cm longer on length. Sew canvas into a tube.	Tuck in ends to add strength where wear is greatest.
Sew seams here.	Drill holes and screw rods to frame.

CAUTION! Measure carefully. On a folding chair, the width of the seat and back control the width of the chair.

For designs of other wheelchair parts, see the following pages:

wheels: "Wheel Size and Position" "Big Wheels" "Casters and Wheels" "Re-Bar and Woven Plastic Wheel chair" "Front Caster Wheel"	footrests: "Footrests" "Slide-out Footrest" "Footrest" "A Plywood Wheelchair with Many Adaptations" "Folding Footrest
seats and backs: "Seats and Backs" "Healthlink Wood Wheelchair" "Re-Bar and Woven Plastic Wheelchair" "Square Tube Wheelchair" "Removable Handle" "Healthlink Wood Wheelchair"	axle mounts: "Hubs, Bearings, and Axles" "Support of Axles" "Healthlink Wood Wheelchair"
tires: "Tires"	handrims: "Handrims for Pushing"
armrests: "Armrests" "A Plywood Wheelchair"	cushions: "Chair and Wheelchair Cushions" "Special Cushions"

Examples of locally made wheelchairs

The plywood wheelchair, with the armrest in place (left) and swung back (right).		A plywood wheelchair for a child with cerebral palsy with inner tube stretching aids to gently pull his feet and straighten his severe knee contractures.

A bamboo hand-powered tricycle made at Viklang Kendra (People’s Village), Allahabad, India.	A wheelchair made completely of paper, including the wheels. Paper is glued together using rice flour in water (Zimbabwe).	A wood design of the square tube wheelchair, two Healthlink wheelchairs, and a trolley made from half of a plastic bucket and wood wheels.

A wood wheelchair in Thailand. The bicycle wheel axles are supported on both sides to keep them from bending.	A metal frame, wood wheel ‘trolley’ in Bangladesh. The rubber tube serves as a cushion and also as a toilet seat.	This trolley, also from Bangladesh, uses a cushion made of coconut fiber covered with rubber.

For more examples of wheelchair designs, see:

• "The Changing Needs for Aids and Assistance"
  
• "Hip Contractures"
  
• "Moving About"
  
• "Self Care"
  
• "Keeping Active"
  
• "Prevention of Contractures"
  
• "Enrique's Story
  
• "Toilet Training"
  
• "Understanding Children with Disabilities"
  
• A Story to be Used with: "How Tomás and other children helped Julia go to school"
  
• "Making Sure Aids and Procedures Do More Good Than Harm"

This page was updated:04 Apr 2024