New or Used Part 2

New or Used Part 2

Posted by howard on Jun 9th 2017

chicken-and-egg-smaller"I’m making something and need wheels”

Finding a wheel for your design that’s going to revolutionize the way product is moved...sometimes that’s a frustrating search. Many wheels look like they’ll work. There are wide gaps in costs. Terminology is puzzling and almost indecipherable. What should I do?

First question for you and for us is, “What do I want this wheel to do?”. Understanding your application will help all of us choose the best wheel.

Next question is capacity needed. “How much weight am I moving?”

Take into account the weight of your product plus the material on it. Rule of thumb—divide total weight by the number of wheels, less one.  Example:  You’re moving 1200 lbs. with 4 wheels.  Each wheel should have a capacity of 300 lbs. each. However, we prefer that you divide 1200 lbs. with 3 wheels instead of 4.  That reflects a more real world example where weight is not evenly spread over each wheel. Now we want a wheel with a 400 lb. rating instead of 300 lb.

Here’s an actual application from one of our customers:

“We are moving trays of eggs in and out of trucks.  Weight of cart with shelves loaded with eggs is not more than 200 lbs.  We need a wheel that can roll over ramps and has a lot of cushion.”

We know what customer is looking for in a wheel and we know capacity rating of wheel is very light—60 lbs. or so per wheel.  Now, we can look into specifics like wheel types and sizes, bearings, costs, and so forth.  But without the application and weight, even if you have a certain wheel in mind, we would not know if that’s the best choice.

(By the way, we will reveal our solution later in the series.  See if you agree or would have picked something totally different!)

Our website is an excellent resource for finding wheels.  We are sure you will discover that more than one type of wheel can fit.  Don’t worry.  We are here to help.

Let’s go a little deeper.  Our next conversation will be about those wheels and where they are generally used.  Till then..