Eclipse, by Colours/Permobil

The Eclipse is a decent all around rigid frame wheelchair. It is not the best chair, nor is it the worst. It is not the lightest chair, nor is it the heaviest. It has served me well for several years of full-time (and not very gentle) usage.

Pros:

• Solidly built rigid frame
• Relatively lightweight
• Compact frame design

Cons:

• Default casters fell apart within weeks of getting the chair (new)
• Back upholstery sagged rapidly

This chair was ordered new from a vendor dealing directly with the manufacturer. The chair arrived relatively quickly and fit well. Coming from having used the Quickie GPV for several years, I thoroughly enjoyed the more compact frame, where my legs were at 90°, placing my feet below my knees, rather than sticking out front. This allows you to get much closer to objects. It also makes it look like there is “less chair, more you”.

While the Eclipse is sold as an “ultra-light” wheelchair, it is not particularly light in view of today’s chairs. Back in the late ’90’s, it was a chair at the cutting edge of design. The design could be considered “aged” nowadays.

Over the years, the chair has suffered uncountable “kerb jumps” and more radical jumps from heights of 3 or so feet. Cracking the frame is always a concern when doing extreme activities like that, but the frame has held true (and continues to do so).

The casters that came with the chair originally promptly fell apart after a few weeks of using the chair. Once new casters/forks were in place, the problem was solved, but as Frog Legs were used, the problem wasn’t solved from Colours’ end. And most fabric upholstery sags at some point, but the fabric that came with the chair appeared to give much faster than I would have expected.

Would I purchase this chair again? Probably not because of the new designs available. But if you were looking for a first, used chair, I would not hesitate to recommend it to you.