Plain guides on choosing, measuring, maintaining, funding and travelling with mobility equipment. Each one lists its sources and links to the products it talks about.

All 12 guides

• Gear · 7 min read

  How to choose your first active wheelchair

  Your first active chair comes down to three things: frame type, five measurements, and the people who help you get them right.

• Gear · 7 min read

  Rigid vs folding frame

  Rigid frames win on weight and push efficiency. Folding frames win on packing size. The gap is smaller than it used to be, so check real figures.

• Gear · 8 min read

  Power add-ons compared: front, rear and wheels

  Front attachments give speed and distance, rear units give light help, power wheels boost each push. Here is how they differ and what to check.

• How-to & Maintenance · 8 min read

  How to measure yourself for a wheelchair

  A few body measurements, a firm tape and a helper are enough to prepare for a wheelchair order. Here is how to take each one and what it becomes.

• How-to & Maintenance · 8 min read

  Tire and caster care in 15 minutes

  Soft tires and hair-wrapped casters make every push harder. This short routine keeps both in order and tells you when parts need replacing.

• How-to & Maintenance · 8 min read

  Choosing a pressure-relief cushion

  No cushion type is best for everyone. Learn how air, gel, foam and honeycomb work, then choose with your clinician and look after what you pick.

• Money & Funding · 8 min read

  What a prosthetic leg really costs and who pays

  A prosthetic leg is a fitted service, not a boxed product. Here is what the bill is made of and which funding routes to ask about first.

• Travel · 8 min read

  Flying with a power wheelchair

  Know your battery type, tell the airline early, strip off the fragile parts, and inspect the chair before you leave the arrival gate.

• Sport & Outdoors · 8 min read

  Getting started in wheelchair tennis

  You need a racket, a court and a chair you can borrow. Here is how the game works, what a tennis chair does, and how to find a first session.

• Sport & Outdoors · 8 min read

  Beach and trail chairs explained

  Three designs solve three problems: sand, steep paths and rough ground. Pick by terrain, by who supplies the muscle, and by what fits in your car.

• News & Tech · 8 min read

  Personal exoskeletons: what you can take home today

  A few powered exoskeletons are cleared for use at home, mostly for spinal cord injury, on prescription and with a trained companion. Most others stay in clinics.

• News & Tech · 8 min read

  Bionic hands in plain words

  Three kinds of prosthetic hand, how you tell each one what to do, and why water ratings and repairs matter as much as the number of grips.