Wheelchair Bearings

The problem is that without the right tools, you end up using a flat head screwdriver and a hammer. This can lead to serious problems like deforming your casters, which can either permanently ruin them or deform them so much that they roll funny, defeating the point of maintaining your wheelchair.

Replacing wheelchair bearings (or bearings in any mobility device) requires two tools that you might not have lying around the house: a blind bearing puller and digital calipers. The blind bearing puller lets you remove the bearings form their housing, and the calipers are essential for measuring bearings once they’re removed so that you can order replacements. Bearings come in a wide range of types, dimensions, and tolerances. It’s easy to purchase a set of expensive German-made bearings only to realize they’re 0.5 millimeters too small for your application.

For general purpose information about wheelchair bearings (and related tools) we recommend starting with wheelchairbearings.com (the quote at the top of the page is from the owner).