Most wheelchair marketing photos show a 60 kg rider on flat pavement. Real life is heavier. A heavy-duty chair is built around three honest numbers: user weight capacity, motor torque, and frame gauge β this page explains what each means and when the extra steel pays for itself.
Three things, in order of importance. Frame material and gauge: our heavy-duty line uses thicker carbon steel tubing at high-stress joints β steel carries more load per dollar than any alternative, which is why serious bariatric chairs are almost never aluminium. Motor and gearbox rating: a chair carrying 130 kg up a ramp needs torque, not just wattage; our heavy models pair higher-ratio gearboxes with matched controllers that do not overheat on long climbs. Battery capacity: weight costs range β the 20Ah option exists exactly for this line.
Rated capacity and comfortable capacity are different numbers. If the rider weighs within 10% of the rated maximum, choose the next class up β a chair run permanently at its limit wears bearings, brakes and gears at twice the rate. Our recommendation after years of after-sales data: under 100 kg, any series works; 100β120 kg, carbon steel 5000 series; above 120 kg, the 5000 series with 20Ah battery and a seat-width check.
Seat width matters more than people expect: a heavier rider on a narrow seat loads the frame asymmetrically β the most common cause of cracked armrest mounts we see in repaired chairs from other brands.
In our repair data, the failure order for outdoor chairs is: casters (front wheels) first, then joystick potentiometers, then armrest foam, then β only after years β the frame. Our heavy-duty models fit larger casters as standard and use sealed joystick housings rated for rain exposure. Brakes are electromagnetic, so they hold on slopes without draining the battery.
Heavy-duty chairs dominate rental fleets and nursing-home procurement because they survive strangers. We supply this line with reinforced packaging for container shipping, spare-parts kits (casters, joysticks, chargers) priced into the order, and OEM branding. Ask for the institutional warranty sheet β coverage terms differ from consumer sales.
