Why are the front wheels smaller than the rear wheels on wagons?

First, as the diameter of the wheel increases, the draft of the animal decreases, hence making it easier on the horses, mules, and oxen to pull the wagons and carriages. So, a wagon with 48" wheels will pull easier than a wagon with 24" wheels. Now for the second part of the answer; if all wagons had 48" wheels front and rear, we would have an engineering conflict. When we try to steer the wagon, the front wheel would strike the body and reduce the turning radius. Also, the assembly of the fifth wheel would lift the body high in the front. So, to overcome this conflict, we lower the height of the front wheel just enough to level the wagon and increase the turning radius. The results are a maneuverable, easy pulling vehicle.

How much is my farm wagon worth?
Prices vary greatly depending on many factors. But the most discerning factor is originality and authenticity. A wagon that has been untouched may be worth 1000's of dollars more than a wagon that is solid but repainted or altered by the well-intended repairman or farmer.

Can I buy wheels to “fit” my old wood hub farm wagon?
Yes, but each of several hundred manufactures had their own improved design, therefore wheels off one wagon likely will not fit another wagon. To find ones to interchange is very, very hit and miss - not to mention time consuming. We can rebuild from your hub or build new wheels to fit your wagon. We will need your old boxings. This boxing would have to be installed by us in your new wheel.

What is the Boxing & Skein?
The skeins (cast spindle on your wood axle) is a match to the boxing (the cast tapered sleeve in your wood hub). Boxings and skein sizes are numerous and sized accordingly to the capacity of the wagon.

The wheels on my wagon move back and forth on the axle when I shake them, is the axle worn out?
Not necessarily. Your wheel and axle assembly was manufactured with these loose tolerances. Many people today are familiar with a modern Timken bearing axle in which there is no slop, but the old time wagon axle is designed loose in order to create a grease reservoir within the fitting of the axle (skein) and wheel bushing (boxing). On a farm wagon gear the boxing was made approximately 1/8" oversize in diameter as well as length. Due to the design the wagon load is transferred from the wagon to the bottom side of the axle skein and this is carried by the bottom side of the wheel boxing. An old-timer once said that he could tell if his wagon was running with the minimum of drat if he could hear a chuckle of the axles sliding back and forth as he drove down the road, in other words the wagon was floating on the boxing of the wheel.

Should I put leather washers in my buggy wheels to tighten them up?
Yes. Most buggy wheels were designed to accept leather washer seals. We offer these washers supplied in the form of a coil much like a spring. The washers are installed on the nut side as well as the axle collar side, therefore forming 2 seals to capture the lubricant and keep the dirt out. To install them on the nut side, you cut a section of the coil to match the circumference of the nut flange and on the collar side you cut a section to match the ID of the collar flange of the boxing. During clean up of the assembly you will likely find the old dried out leather seals, remove and discard them. Wagon axles did not use leather washers, although we have found steel washers used to take up some end play. We do not offer wagon washers.

What type of grease should I use on my old style axles?
We sell 2 types of axle grease. Block grease, which is a blend of waxes and grease, is recommended for wagons axles. It is heavy grease in the consistency of cheese and is applied by slicing off a sliver and placing it on the axle. Black graphite grease is recommended for buggies and wagons and comes in a grease gun cartridge and is a stringy consistency. The old blackjack grease of our grandfather's days is no longer available.

Is it possible to put rubber tiring on my wagon wheels?
Yes. But if it does not already have rubber we will have to hot-set steel channel on your wheel and then install extruded (solid rubber) on this new channel. Rubber is available up to 2 ½" wide in round or flat top styles.

Should I repaint my old wagon?
If your wagon has any original paint or even an original weathered look, painting will greatly devalue it by ½ or more. The only wagon I would recommend repainting is one that you know has been repainted in the past and has lost its original value due to this.

How can I identify the maker of my wagon?
Most manufactures proudly marked their wagons with a stenciled or decaled logo on the box side and center of the rear axle. Sometimes wetting this area will bring back remnants of the ID. If nothing is found, then the only hope of identifying the wagon is thorough study of similar wagons with exact matching of hardware and design. There are a few reprint catalogs and books that may help in this investigation, see our book department.

Is it possible to determine the age of my horse drawn vehicle?
Makers rarely marked the date of manufacture on their vehicles. Without a documented history of ownership, a vehicles age can be very hard to pinpoint. One should keep in mind the evolution of vehicle design to help determine the general era of construction. As vehicle manufacturers evolved from one man shops to mass production, and then the automobile era, you will notice the loss of complexity and design being replaced with simpler and faster methods of construction.

My wagon doesn't have brakes, can I install a kit?
Yes. We offer several styles of brake systems including:

• Original style brake assembly for farm wagons.
• Hydraulic brakes in 3 sizes for use with modern roller bearing hubs and axles.
• Commercial hitch wagon brakes custom installed in our shop.

The under carriage of my wagon was once painted orange and I see on your web site and other pictures of hauling wagons like mine that the under carriage is painted... is there a significance with the under carriage being painted?  If so what is it?

Most all farm wagons were painted with bright colored gears, red, orange or yellow, while the wagon boxes were painted primarily a dark blue green, similar the hunter green we are familiar with today, the paint was an oil base consisting of pigments ground in linseed oil, providing protection and style. The bright colors of the gear and wheels hid dirt better than a dark color, and the style of the day was for work vehicles to be brightly colored.The brilliantly striped gears and body’s of the farm wagon seemed to be on the verge of gaudy or a competition amongst the many makers to produce the most marketable look.

I have inherited a buggy from my grandfather and I was wondering, how do I figure how much it is worth?

There are many factors in determining the value of any horse drawn vehicle including the maker,age and overall condition. If you would like a professional appraisal send the following to our email address at dwhansen@hansenwheel.com.

• Eight photos with quarter views and detail views.
• At least two photos to disclose any damaged areas.
• Your brief description of the vehicle.

The cost of a single vehicle appraisal is $115.

Were the six sided nuts and bolts in existence during the cattle drives of the old west? I have six sided nuts and bolts on my wagon they look original but i'm not sure should I change to square ones?

They were in use in the horse drawn vehicle days.However that had certain applications.

Also they were of a unique style and size.In my 30 years of restoration I have found original hex nuts in a  few places such as;

Axle nuts

King bolts

Archibald hub bolts etc.

Most of these applications the hex nut enhances the appearance where a  square nut would not look well on a wheel hub.A modern hex nut does not however match the original hex nuts which were heavily chamfered and extra heavy in size.If the hex nuts on your wagon look to be of modern variety , I would recommend changing to square nuts,  but if they appear to be original I would definitely leave them as is.

My wheels are cracked and the bands loose. The hub also is split. Should these wheels be soaked in water to swell up?

Do not soak wheel in water!

 

All wood is hygroscopic, meaning that when exposed to air, it will release or pick up moisture until it is in equilibrium with the humidity and temperature of the air. Because of this, wood tends to expand as it gains moisture and to shrink as moisture is lost, and it does not shrink or swell equally in all directions. Any solid wood or wood component will expand or contract over time as moisture and climate conditions change, and this exchange of moisture is ongoing. In an uncontrolled environment, wood is a dimensionally unstable material.

Wheels being made of wood change in size until they are acclimated. Once the wheels have acclimated they become more stable to that environment. The wheelwright being aware of this then tightens the wheel via means of setting the tire and hub components. This will resolve the  problem of a loose wheel.

Water added to a wheel  via (soaking) is very short term fix and can even damage the wheel, the wheel will swell and then dry to its former state.

What are some unique axle types?

The oldest type of axle is the wooden axle with clouted iron shoes covering the top and bottom wear area of the wood axle arm. The wheel as retained via a lynch pin. This was most common on Conestoga’s, schooners, freight wagons. The lynch pin was also incorporated on steel axles most commonly military vehicles. The thimble skein axle is a method replacing the clouted axle with a thimble of iron on the wood axle, this is what you find on most all farm wagons of of the late 19th century. The most sophisticated is the collinge axle which was an oil bath axles with brass locking nuts to retain the wheel. Another odd axle you will find on some European carriages is the mail axle having the wheel retained via 3 bolts passing through the hub and fastened to an inner captured plate.

How do I remove the wheels on my antique vehicle?

The majority of axles utilized a directional threaded nut to retain the wheel. What I mean by directional threaded is; the axle was threaded with corresponding threads left on the left, right on the right. The principle is that when the carriage is traveling forward the rotation of the wheels bears a tightening force on the nut. If you have ever pushed a buggy backwards across the yard and lost a nut this is why. When removing the nuts turn it in the direction of the wheel going in reverse.