Building wagon wheels
- Thread starter BBerguson
- Start date
RicinYakima
High Steppes of Eastern Washington
JW, you can watch all the episodes on www.thirteen.com.
Wasalmonslayer
Well-Known Member
That is very interesting!
I love videos that show old school crafting.
Those trades are gone unless some documents it to keep the knowledge moving along.
Thank you very much for that!
I love videos that show old school crafting.
Those trades are gone unless some documents it to keep the knowledge moving along.
Thank you very much for that!
smokeywolf
Well-Known Member
RicinYakima
High Steppes of Eastern Washington
There is a lot of science in wooden wheels; weight, street surface, speed required and climate. Fire engines were the "race cars" of the era.
Bret4207
At the casting bench in the sky. RIP Bret.
Engels Coach Shop has a lot of good videos. My interests are far more prosaic than giant wagon wheels. I've watched his entire series on building a set of ranch bobs several times. Why? 'Cuz' I need to rebuild my own set of bobs! They were the item that taught me the major different between red oak and white oak- resistance to rot!
Petrol & Powder
Well-Known Member
Wooden wagon wheels are an amazing balance between weight and strength. Those folks were not dumb!
Rick H
Well-Known Member
There is a Wheelwright shop at "The Ford" (Used to be called Greenfield Village) in Dearborn Michigan. The complex is an amazing display, a living museum if you will, of Americana. It includes the Orville and Wilbur Wright house, Edison's Menlo Park lab, taken apart and put back together piece by piece. Working shops...Tin shop, print shop, glass and pottery, and yes Wheelwrights....
They don't work on such large stuff as above but they do maintain and "rewheel and tire" the horse drawn wagons that supply and transport people throughout the "Village". It is amazing to watch them work, with period tools and methods.
They don't work on such large stuff as above but they do maintain and "rewheel and tire" the horse drawn wagons that supply and transport people throughout the "Village". It is amazing to watch them work, with period tools and methods.
JWFilips
Well-Known Member
We lost a lot of knowledge because of the industrial age!
A good old Windsor chair has between 4 and 6 types of wood! Why; because each acts against the other! no nails or staples or pins!
What ever the weather They stay tight! Yes The old craftsmen were Way beyond us!
I can tell you a bunch about great gun finishing techniques in the 18th century manor!
No chipping crazing Etc. What they used for a sealer was Shellac!
Because it reacts with humidity and expands to seal the wood so the top coats of what ever do not crack or peel
Modern folks think they solved it with God Awful Poly finishes that are plastic.... may as well make a plastic stock!
A good old Windsor chair has between 4 and 6 types of wood! Why; because each acts against the other! no nails or staples or pins!
What ever the weather They stay tight! Yes The old craftsmen were Way beyond us!
I can tell you a bunch about great gun finishing techniques in the 18th century manor!
No chipping crazing Etc. What they used for a sealer was Shellac!
Because it reacts with humidity and expands to seal the wood so the top coats of what ever do not crack or peel
Modern folks think they solved it with God Awful Poly finishes that are plastic.... may as well make a plastic stock!
Petrol & Powder
Well-Known Member
We didn't "lose" knowledge because of the industrial age. We gained faster and less expensive ways to manufacture products. The knowledge is still there, but the techniques are no longer economical.
Watch that video linked in the first post of this thread and you'll see those necessary concessions to economy:
The machinery used to manufacture those wheels was powered by electric motors.
The steel used to make the rings, tires, bearings, nuts and bolts - were all sourced from modern suppliers. Those giant rings of metal used to make the "tires" for those wagon wheels came from steel mills, not iron formed in a blacksmith's shop.
They use a forklift to pick the steel out of the bed of coals.
They used a large lathe to turn the hub. They used power sanders, electric routers, bandsaws, hydraulic presses and other modern tools. I saw an engine hoist used to move some of the large parts.
I would dare say they held far better tolerances in the manufacture of those wheels than would have been possible 150 years ago.
They still know HOW to make those wheels. That knowledge has not been Lost.
Watch that video linked in the first post of this thread and you'll see those necessary concessions to economy:
The machinery used to manufacture those wheels was powered by electric motors.
The steel used to make the rings, tires, bearings, nuts and bolts - were all sourced from modern suppliers. Those giant rings of metal used to make the "tires" for those wagon wheels came from steel mills, not iron formed in a blacksmith's shop.
They use a forklift to pick the steel out of the bed of coals.
They used a large lathe to turn the hub. They used power sanders, electric routers, bandsaws, hydraulic presses and other modern tools. I saw an engine hoist used to move some of the large parts.
I would dare say they held far better tolerances in the manufacture of those wheels than would have been possible 150 years ago.
They still know HOW to make those wheels. That knowledge has not been Lost.
Bret4207
At the casting bench in the sky. RIP Bret.
For those interested in wood and it's applications in pretty much everything, I suggest starting with Eric Sloans "A Reverence for Wood". A not too thick little volume filled with Sloanes very good pen and ink drawings and more information than you'd believe. I learn new stuff every time I pick it up. He ha a number of other books along the same lines. John Seymour from England (Great Britain is more accurate I guess) also has some nice books covering the arts of traditional building with wood in simple terms.
I spent a good portion of yesterday looking up just what Black Locust was good for. I'd managed to drop a large chuck of heavy firewood on my foot while wearing moccasins and wasn't able to do much else. A neighbor has lots of Locust and I need to rebuild 2 bobsleds for the horses. One even involves steam bending the runners. Quite a process.
I spent a good portion of yesterday looking up just what Black Locust was good for. I'd managed to drop a large chuck of heavy firewood on my foot while wearing moccasins and wasn't able to do much else. A neighbor has lots of Locust and I need to rebuild 2 bobsleds for the horses. One even involves steam bending the runners. Quite a process.
