newwheels

We built a Swap Meet Wagon!

I have always admired the little wagons with custom wheels and stout suspension that I see at swap meets. Some are real nice and should be competing at shows while others belong at a rat rod meet. I come to life with a bias toward functionality, so I prefer the ones that can be used.

Well last November while visiting a swap meet I asked a guy if he wanted to sell his wagon. Score! $10! At another spot I bought some nice wheels and tires for $18. Last week I spent $20 on steel and other hardware, and the today $7 for lunch (Burger King) and another $7 at Starbucks and now I have a wagon! And yes the food was necessary if I was to have teenage help...

I was a little slow getting the camera out, please forgive me. But this is what it looked like as we were bolting things together. I prefer to do my welding outdoors, so we did all the work outside under a glorious Washington sun. Lasted the whole day!

Basically we through away the original wheels, tires and axles and replaced it all. I used some 3/4-inch tube and 11/16-inch threaded-rod to form the axles. The tube is welded in the original axle location, and the rod runs through the tube. The tube fits against the bearings, and when the nylock nuts are tight against the bearing on the outside, the load is not the bearings. In Theory...

I've been planning to 'learn to weld' for some time. Being able to weld is part of the project plan for everything else I've got going, so its time I got good at it. I learned by trial and error 25 years ago or more, and having forgotten everything I knew, need some practice. Here is the rear axle tube welding in place.

And this is the front axle tube welded in. I think the pictures do an excellent job of concealing just how messy my welding really is...

Here's the finished wagon ready to go to work. Nice aggressive wide stance ready to handle any swap meet load, or maybe even some work around the yard.

In fact we put it to work getting the tools put away at the end of the day. Since my back screams when I pick that welder up, this is a much better way to move it around. I may need a whole fleet of wagons!

Special things to my son Stu, who aside for pauses for nourishment, put in a full day doing most the grunting and some of the getting dirty to make this possible!

So that's the story. My first modified suspension. So far an unqualified success. Or am I the unqualified one, and the wagon a success?

Last updated: December 31, 2006