# steel rims



## Poodlepill (Jul 7, 2012)

What do you guys think about the steel cart rims with the hard rubber? I've never seen them before and my husband is all over them and trying to buy them for my cart and his too. He has his hand on the buy button LOL

Let me know


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## Minimor (Jul 7, 2012)

I don't know which ones you're looking at; our Smart Carts have steel wheels with hard rubber and they're great.

I'm not sure I would want to buy just any steel wheels and put them in one of my ordinary EE carts--I'd have to look at the particular wheels and get all the info on them and then decide if they would be a good thing or not.


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## Sue_C. (Jul 7, 2012)

Kingston Saddlery has some nice looking ones and they come in a variety of sizes. they are a bit narrower than the Pacific ones, but with the Pacific wheels costing $400 each plus tax and shipping, the Kingston ones for $99 each with free shipping in the US sounds like something worth looking into.


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## Poodlepill (Jul 7, 2012)

The rims like on this cart (yes Kingston Saddlery) my husband wants to buy this cart with these wheels and also get the same wheels for my cart (same cart but with wood). They look kind of cool anyway.


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## BBH (Jul 12, 2012)

I have steel wheels with hard rubber on both an Alpine and a Frontier and love them.....the pneumatic tires just don't last. The steel wheels are a bit heavier but not my much......and accepted for cde/adt and most shows.......from what i have been told. Also have a Houghton cart with black wood wheels and it looks nice too.....yes they do pull a bit harder in mud or nonpacked ground but still like them.


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## paintponylvr (Jul 13, 2012)

BBH said:


> I have steel wheels with hard rubber on both an Alpine and a Frontier and love them.....the pneumatic tires just don't last. The steel wheels are a bit heavier but not my much......and accepted for cde/adt and most shows.......from what i have been told. Also have a Houghton cart with black wood wheels and it looks nice too.....yes they do pull a bit harder in mud or nonpacked ground but still like them.


BBH - can you post pictures of yours? Where did you get the steel wheels for your EE carts and did you have to do any modifications on the axles?

I'm getting the heavier duty spoked wheel from Fairview Country Manufacturing in Millersburg, OH with the solid <hard> rubber, no air, insert on some of mine now. So far my regular spoked wheels have held up w/ the driving we do, but not the innertubes or tires (even the heavier duty ones from a local mountain bike shop only last one drive when we are out on trails here in NC - come back w/ punctures that are slow leaks but hard to repair!). Even "tore" one of the tires once - not even sure where on that drive, LOL. We didn't go thru any close up thickets or get caught in any trees, that time!

Overall, the best tires we've had have been the type on farm equipment. I guess if we ever have to replace them - they are regular car or tractor tires. The set on my wagon are VW tires - 14" (with VW hubcaps) and the pair on my forecart (Hafflinger sized) are 13" like a small car but approx 6" wide - need to measure them. Have had the wagon for 2 years now - sits outside in the weather a lot, but not always. Don't know when the tires were put on it or how long the previous owner had it. The forecart has been here since January and has been used/hooked about 35 times total - at home and out on the trails.












I have had tires go flat while in storage and both the rubber outer tire sidewalls and the innertubes get damaged (er - ok, I've also left them on the cart - not the wisest choice!). I have gone long times in between driving when didn't have ponies/horses that were driving or decent harness options. Have had my sulky cart since 1997(very used then). I pick it up next week in Millersburg, OH - it went to get refurbished and should look like a new cart when I pick it up (all new wood shafts, both straight & curved bar, new singletree and new wheels). I think I also had the seat redone, but honestly can't remember - I can't WAIT to see it!! Total cost - less than a new cart (didn't get the total after having the tires switched out - close to $500, I think w/ that). When I talked to a Jerald rep - it would have cost $300 - PER SHAFT! The shafts are longer - my one mistake - I should have had them shortened when I had the cart redone - but completely forgot about it until too late. I can use it with the longer shafts and then w/ larger tires can still use it to start larger ponies that fit between the shafts.

This is what it looked like in 2010. This was one month before this mare's "meltdown" that included 3 bucks. She broke the circle bar and damaged one shaft and the straight bar in front of Madira's shins. There have been times I've replaced innertubes in these tires 2x in one week when trail driving! Pain in the "arse"...






And here is the cart that will be getting new wheels next week (and maybe some other work? - we'll see what they can do with it - metal shafts are bent uneven, no singletree...Might see if they can either do new metal shafts for me OR preferably wood shafts. May have to stay in OH for a bit...). It's smaller, has shorter shafts, no name brand that is HEAVIER than the larger EE cart I traded to my driving freind because it fit this little mare better than it fit hers...


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## BBH (Jul 13, 2012)

paintponylvr....got my steel wheels from Carriage Driving Essentials in Calif. as it was about the only place at the time i could find them. I will have check out Kingston's web site.......we did not have to change anything about the axle on either the Alpine or the Frontier EE....but use a spacer. With Frontier out of business and i think they had made the axle a bit different since I had gotten the EE you may have to change that now....which in understand is easy enough..finding a good welder to make a new one. I really do not see alot of difference in the ride between the steel and the pneumatic and in either cart. But seeing the Pnuematics weren't going to last eirther in the fields or the white rock roads around here they had to go. The steel wheels are pricey bu you don't have to worry aboutu flats. I will say that i recently had a terrible screeching noise from one wheel and he bearing had gone out so had to get new ones which are fairly easy to get from Calif. and replace....they had lasted a little over two years and i drive alot on some pretty rough/hard ground due to not alot of rain in n.e. Texas.....hope that helps.


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## Matthijs (Jul 13, 2012)

Most problems with pneumatic tires are caused by underinflation!!! Specially the slow leaks. Make sure you have them inflated to the right PSI usually the maximum pressure is printed on the tire, stay just under that.


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## susanne (Jul 13, 2012)

My experience with pneumatics is quite different than what has been noted. I've had mine (with No Mor Flats inner tubes) since 2008. I trail drive over very rough terrain -- blackberry vines, roots, sharp, thin stumps, beach sand and rock, nasty logging road gravel, we've driven off of railroad ties, around barrels and poles. We do not in any way go light on them, yet we haven't had a single problem. No flats, no tacos. But, of course, that is only our experience; your mileage may vary.

Yes, it would be nice to get steel wheels, but for now we're doing just fine with what we have.

The place to look for lift kits and anything EE-related is CTM Products. Their quality is equal to Frontier and their parts list (including lift kits) is extensive.


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