by SweetBearCub » 04 Jan 2022, 09:11
I had a 2008 Invacare TDX SP. It was an older version than the one now, with black wheels, gray tires, and a 5.8 MPH maximum speed.
It was my very first power wheelchair, and I didn't even know that I had other choices at the time.
It was an unmitigated piece of junk.
- In the 4 and a half years that I owned it, it had at least 3 complete motor/gearbox swaps, both sides.
- It ate up at least 5 cush drives.
- The right side gearbox separated from the motor and leaked gear oil all over my apartment.
- It had numerous front caster bearing replacements, because the front casters would begin to flutter after a few months.
- It began to lose speed as its MK5 SPJ+ joystick wore internally, not allowing the full 0 to 255 range.
- The joystick handle was a 2 piece design, and the top piece wore out much faster than the P&G one piece version.
- It left me stranded once as I was rolling down a sidewalk, only to come to a halt, flashing an error. We found out that the motor connections to the control box were on the bottom of the vertically-oriented module, so that vibrations and gravity could work them loose, even though there was supposedly a locking collar system.
As much as Mark E. Smith may not have been the most technically minded person and maybe even a corporate shill, he is the person who showed me that I had the right to demo several makes and models of wheelchair, and his articles on various subjects gave me a better understanding of different aspects. He was also nice enough to mail me a spare charger at no cost, even though he worked for Pride, and my chair was not a Pride product.
I replaced it with a MUCH better Sunrise Medical Quickie S636, and I do mean better in every possible way.