Gimme A Brake!

It may just be me.

But I have a strong feeling that it's not.

Growing up as a proud Albertan in the late '70s and early '80s, I  remember that the two wheelchairs I recieved during that time, one of which was a classic Everest & Jennings model, had this amazing quality to them.

They were durable.

And the parts were of good quality. The brakes braked.

And they had a shelf life of at least eight to ten years, give or take.

I remember I had a Stainless brand chair similar to this one..

...that lasted ten years.

The reason I bring all this up is that for the last couple of months I have been dealing with a loose brake on the Quickie chair I have now. It has been fixed once,through an authorized government vendor, but with the least amount of pressure has a tendency to bend forward, severely impeding my ability to brake the chair while riding in it, or even the act of getting into the chair. A runaway wheelchair is the bane of every disabled person, as serious injuries can result from a chair rolling away from someone as they are getting into it.

So I wonder...

Are wheelchairs now just cheaply made?
Are there better wheelchair parts availiable that just aren't bought because the government finds them prohibitively expensive?

Food for thought...

Your Partner In Life