Essential Medical Supply Free Spirit Knee and Leg Walker with Patented Design, Unique Turning Mechanism, Extra Height Adjustability and 400lb Weight Capacity

I ordered this item from "Medical For You" not because they were the cheapest, but because they claimed to have the item in stock and they said that they shipped next business day from their Georgia warehouse. I would have paid more for Amazon Prime and overnight shipping. I suspect that Amazon drop ships from the manufacturer as well, and that is why the item "requires an extra 2-3 days".I live in South Florida, so I expected them to ship on Wednesday from Georgia and get it on Friday. Instead they drop shipped it from the Orlando Manufacturer a day later, but Orlando is overnight to where I live, even by ground. So even though they did not ship on the day they said they would, or from where they said they would, they did me a service and got the item to me on the day I expected it. YMMV. I sent them a note, and the note was not responded to until the item was shipped, although that might have been random timing. I asked for the tracking number, response was rapid.Assembly is required. You will need an adjustable wrench and an allen wrench. The allen wrench is included, they hide it in the bag. (Wish they mentioned this in the instructions). When you assemble the bars, be sure that the brake cables do not loop over the bars. If you do allow the brake cables to loop over the bars, you will have to disassemble the bars from the stem by removing the two allen head bolts and self locking nuts and washers and put them back in. (Wish they mentioned this in the instructions.) The washers are nice and bright so when you drop them on the ground in the dark, you can find them with a flashlight.You will have to perform three simple tasks to assemble the knee scooter:1. After routing the brake lines to the front and not over the bars, attach the bar assembly to the body with two allen screws and self locking nylon insert nuts. Both screws should go through their holes (it is possible to only put one screw through the hole and not see it.2. Set height of handlebars by removing the screw, sliding the bar up or down to where you want it, and inserting the screw. It is easy to tighten the knob by hand.3. Set the height of the seat in the same way.The whole thing comes wrapped in layers of plastic. The tires are hard black rubber, like some wheelchair tires. They did not mark any floor I rolled them on. They had their own plastic wrap.All height adjustments are made by unscrewing a knob, removing the screw, putting the screw through a different hole, and tightening the knob. The screws are hex head, but there are shaped holes in the side opposite where the knob goes that retains the head. This means that no wrench is required, but be sure to retain the washers.The bars fold down for putting the scooter in a trunk or passenger compartment. You flip up a locking lever, pull a locating pin, and fold the bar down. There is a velcro strap that allows you to stop the bars from flopping. I suspect it will mostly not get used.The brakes are interesting. You pull them to slow or stop, but if you want to lock them, you push the loops until they click. I read warnings about being bitten in these reviews when you flip the brakes off, but I have yet to be bitten. I missed how to lock the brakes the first time through the instructions, and locking the brakes is essential for comfort in transferring to or from the scooter.From the minute I got the thing, I liked it. I have a zero weight restriction on my right foot because of a broken ankle and it is more comfy to use the knee walker than to try and use a regular walker while holding my leg in the air, and was so from minutes after I got it. You can make k turns, or you can stand on one leg for a sec and swing the scooter front. (26 lbs).I looked into rental, but the rentals mostly had very low weight limits. This scooter has a high weight limit and it is very well constructed. Mig welds join body parts, not spot welds..and the quality and weight is like a motorcycle frame, not a bicycle frame. The device is not weak. However, one odd thing. The instructions include, under "Use and Safety Information", the following phrase:"The Knee Rest is not designed for sitting or supporting full body weight."OK, don't sit on the knee rest (although it makes a great foot rest to keep your foot raised when you are in an adjacent chair) but when you use it, you put your knee on the cushion, and you push with the other leg, and then you lift your leg, and you put your body weight on it until you put your leg down. I have no idea what lawsuit they think they are protecting themselves from, but you can't possibly use the knee scooter without putting your full weight on the scooter, at least intermittently.If this sort of apparent contradiction bothers you, then you need to consult a seller or the manufacturer. Maybe they mean "continuously supporting full body weight" and intermittent is OK, in which case they should specify duty cycle at different weights. I'm going to use it the way I think it is meant to be used and not worry, I just found this amusing.The biggest problem with the knee scooter is that with a wheelchair, you have a wheelchair to sit in once you get where you are going. With the knee scooter, you have to transfer into a chair, and then you need to transfer back. Sitting in a low chair or one without arms may require that you get help. The knee scooter is not as good of a platform for transferring as a wheelchair because it does not lock down without weight on it, etc.My wheelchair weighs more than 50 lbs, and it is hard for my wife to move around. I went to a restaurant last night, and it was much easier for her to deal with the scooter than to manhandle the chair. The scooter is much narrower than the chair as well.So, tradeoffs: With a wheelchair, you can rest when you want to. Just set the locks. With a knee scooter, you can stop "motating", but you can't sit and rest without transferring.You don't look as obviously handicapped - this is good and bad.The scooter is much easier to handle - put in the truck, get out of the truck. If this is a task you can't do for yourself, the weight of the scooter is important. Conversely, once you are in the chair, you can relax more, while in the scooter, you are always balancing, pushing, etc. Sitting may be a production.So consider this. I think I will need both, depending on the situation. I do not think I could grocery shop from either, for example, although some groceries have special carts that clamp to your wheelchair. No grocery has one that clamps to your knee scooter, and I feel like I need both hands and the knee/foot to use the scooter properly.

I had foot and ankle surgery about 5 days ago and initially used crutches for 1-2 days until we got this knee walker put together. My podiatrist office has this same walker for purchase for $450 (or $90/month to rent), so I'm pleased to save so much through Amazon, and I know now that I will make good use of it over the next 3-4 months of being non-weightbearing. I am so very glad I bought this walker, definitely worth the money in my case, and though it looks like there are less expensive knee walkers available, I'm happy with this one because it's recommended by my podiatrist, it turns fairly well, and seems to be sturdy and well made.The main advantage of the walker for me is that you can have your hands free while you rest on it, and so it's a lot easier to get yourself a drink, brush your teeth, wash your face, or even get a bite to eat if needed. The carry bag has nice pockets for carrying a drink and other small items,and I may purchase the basket too. I'm surprised at how difficult it is for me to do simple things like get food right now, so I'm very grateful that my husband is home taking care of me and feeding me for these 1st two weeks. Still, reading others' reviews is encouraging because it seems like people in similar situations are able to be pretty independent and mobile using this walker. Once I've had more practice getting around with walker and crutches and and not having to ice and elevate my foot as much, I'm hoping I will be as independent too.Transfers from sitting to standing are definitely easier with the walker than with crutches. When I go to the bathroom I ride the walker in, position it near the toilet, and then stand on one leg while I pivot, rest my hands on top of the toilet seat, and lower myself down. Then I can rest my foot on the seat of the walker while I'm using the toilet, which helps keep the swelling down. To get up, I just push myself up off the toilet seat to standing on one leg and then immediately rest my knee on the walker while I wash my hands. All of this is more difficult with crutches for sure because you have nothing to rest against if needed and can't use your hands as easily.Our bathroom is small, so it's not really possible to turn the walker around to exit, so what I do is either ride it backwards out into the hallway, or just pick the whole walker up and turn it around that way. The walker is lightweight enough that I'm able to do this while standing on one leg. However, I don't think everyone can do this; I fortunately have very good balance and core strength right now because I spent the last 2 months doing a lot of physical therapy, so I'm very glad of this since I'm so frequently having to stand or hop on one leg these days when transitioning from the walker to my recliner or bed.Some things I'm still getting used to with the walker is just driving it. The front wheels turn nicely, but it still takes some getting used to, especially because the turning radius isn't super tight. I have found (after falling several times so far and landing on my cast, very painfully) is that I need to be slow and careful while learning how to navigate this whole new world of one-legedness and not try to do too much. Really just slow down and pay attention to everything. The seat on my walker rotates too (not sure if this is a feature or we don't have the seat locked right), so I need to be careful with that. Also, at 5'5" but short-legged, I find the walker just a little too tall for me, but it's really not a problem. I'm also as I said getting the hang of doing tighter turns with it, and as I said, sometimes find it easier just to lift the walker up & turn it around mid-air than drive it.I will still use crutches occasionally for getting in and out of tight spaces, walking on stairs and outside on uneven surfaces, or just to feel like I'm getting an upper-body and core workout. But this walker makes life so much easier, highly recommend.