Type The Legacy Wheelchair Industry doesn’t want you to fix your existing wheelchair.
It wants you to buy a new wheelchair. As a result, they make it difficult to make DIY repairs. This is not a conspiracy theory. This is the natural outcome of a for-profit system where financial incentives drive the workings (evolution) of the system. Every repaired wheelchair represents a new wheelchair that was not sold (at a profit). Every wheelchair that was refurbished and provided to someone else is a new wheelchair that was not sold (at a profit). Legacy Wheelchair Manufacturers (owned by Private Equity) use as many proprietary components as possible to force you to purchase their “name brand” parts. This situation is analogous to going to the automobile dealership and paying for expensive name brand parts as opposed to a local repair shop which uses less expensive after-market parts.
That being said, the Legacy Manufacturers also use a variety of imported inexpensive aftermarket components such as casters, forks, quick release axles, wheel-locks (brakes), tires, inner tubes, wheels, anti-tippers, push handles, armrests, etc. But if you buy directly from them, they mark these components up considerably. Think about how easy it is to get an (able-bodied) bicycle repaired. The bicycle parts are interchangeable between brands and models, and readily available at your local bicycle shop.
Not so with wheelchair repair and this is by system design!