Medline Rollator Transport Chair

I am a PTA by profession, so you are about to get a look at what someone in the skilled nursing/rehab business thinks of this. I bought this in March of 2017 for my father in law. We have used it nearly every day since then, so I now feel like I can write an accurate review. In short, I love it. As a combination of two different types of mobility equipment, I really feel like they got this one right. It pushes much easier than most transport chairs I have seen, and has a decent turning radius for a transport chair. The turning radius is less than a rollator, but still within a reasonable degree to allow for tight turns. A “real” rollator does turn in a smaller radius, but this does ok. It pushes very easily on even surfaces, and slightly harder on carpeting. With its smaller wheels, it does not push on uneven terrain as easily as a jogging stroller, and is more difficult than a regular wheelchair, which is to be expected. It is easily pushed on pavement and concrete by a healthy person, but could be somewhat challenging for an elderly couple to manage on their own. The footrests are the best part of this combo chair/rollator. They are basically like any swing away footrests on a folding wheelchair, and can be easily removed from the chair. The foot plates fold, and the entire assembly can be swung to the side and latched onto the sides of the chair while transferring or using as a rollator. They do sometimes come out of the plastic clip from that latched position, and alternatively, can be difficult to get out of the clips to swing them back into the front position for use as footrests. The footrests do not elevate, but they do adjust for leg length, with no tools required - button adjusters with flip lever backup for locking to length. As another reviewer mentioned, the backrest occasionally gives us trouble. It can get in the way during folding, and I have found that flipping it away from the handles helps with that. We had problems with the plastic pegs coming out, and used the magic fix all solution: tape. I put a piece of tape across each peg on the user side of the backrest. The fabric near the pivot point is also wearing through after all the use it has received. I’m not really surprised, as the price point on this thing would dictate that they probably used less durable fabric. The seat is a fairly standard sling type, common in folding chairs and some rollators. The overall comfort seems fairly good. My father in law has lost a lot of weight in recent years, so his bum has less “padding” than he used to. I found a cushion made for cars that seems to work quite well for us. The backrest is comfortable to me for the times I’ve sat in it during doctor visits. Armrests are standard for a folding wheelchair. They consist of padded plastic pieces that screw onto the frame, and are set into a desk arm configuration. This allows the person to let closer to a table while eating. The padded portions are considered replaceable on most wheelchairs, and often come loose in nursing homes. We have had no trouble with them at all. I moved the front storage bag to the rear, since we usually use it as a wheelchair, and I keep my pocketbook in there. Having it in the rear also makes it easier for my father in law to get closer to the chair to sit safely. There are also a smaller bag that can fasten onto the outside of the armrests, and a cup holder. We don’t use those much. Speaking of safety, let’s talk about brakes. They are typical of most rollator, in that you can squeeze them for a stop, or push them down into a locking position for sitting/standing from the device. ALWAYS USE YOUR BRAKES! This is the only thing we have had any trouble with, because we use them a lot! We back the chair down a very steep ramp to get out of the house, and use the brakes and assistance of a strong teen boy to get down our non-ADA compliant ramp. This puts major wear on the brakes, so I can tell you all what to do when yours wear out many years from now. We have had to replace the brake cables twice now, due to our abuse of the brakes. The cables are standard bicycle brake cables, which you can find at your local “real” bicycle store for a few dollars. If you aren’t comfortable with bicycle maintainance, you might want to just pay the bicycle guys to do it for you. My husband was able to do this in a few minutes. Our only real trouble with replacing the cables was that the way the ends are secured also started to wear through, as it is made of brass. Most people probably won’t have this problem, but the bicycle man said it could be replaced with a ”knarp” cable stop. Alternatively, you could replace the entire brake and handle assembly, but that starts to run into some serious money, and requires lots of googling to find the parts in the correct color. I would have to say, that for the money, this is an amazing device. A regular folding wheelchair costs hundreds of dollars, and is much heavier and more bulky than this is. I probably wouldn’t have someone sit in this for hours each day, but I am not a fan of folding wheelchairs for long term use for anyone, even though that’s common in most skilled nursing settings, but that’s another discussion...