Show Carts - Recommendations

Mini-whinny · Feb 21, 2017

Hi all! I am considering purchasing a new Estate brand show cart. Does anyone have any experience with this brand? Any negatives? Positives? I would love some feedback prior to ordering one. Thank you!

jventresca · Feb 23, 2017

I'm not familiar with that brand of show vehicle. The price is certainly cheap. A used Jerald or Houghton show cart would run $1,500.00. I would get the seat rail that's optional. I looked at their "buggies" and the pictures look like they were taken directly from Pequea Carriage Shop's website.

In general I like to buy locally so if you have issues it's easy to return things. I'm fortunate to live near Pennsylvania's Amish community though.

Margo_C-T · Mar 2, 2017

I suspect a good used Jerald by the original Jerald might run more than quoted, but they are considered the 'gold standard', I'd say. I would highly recommend the 'wingback' seat as opposed to the flat cushion. I've had both, and the wingback is MUCH more attractive and comfortable, in my experience.

OakLeafMiniatures · Mar 17, 2017

I really love my Silver penny farm pleasure cart http://www.ccfdriving.com/Pleasure%20Roadster.htm. It's probably not as nice as a jerald but is way better than my easy entry. As far as I can tell the main difference between Pam's carts and a jerald is the axles. Mine has a solid bar axle and it seems like the jeralds have seperate axles. Not sure it makes a huge difference though.

jventresca · Mar 27, 2017

Ironically Silver Penny Farm sells carts and carriages made by Pequea Carriage Shop. They also make a show cart with many variations. I've purchased about 15 carts and carriages from them over the years. Most recently Melvin made me the blue cart in my member picture. It's based on a show cart with a spindle seat added. It's quite light and has great balance.

Here's a look at the axle of a Meadowbrook that would be similar to your cart

Here's the axle set up of a Jerald with open wheels.

These pictures are from an article I wrote about springs and suspension. That's why the red lines are on them.

FYI - I still own the Meadowbrook built by Pequea and my first mini vehicle (20 years old) and I sold the Jerald years ago. I love that you can change the wheels from wooden to rubber tires to sleigh runners and back!

Mini-whinny · Apr 29, 2017

Thanks for the input. I did order the estate show cart. It arrived last week and I was able to try it out this week. I am very pleased with the quality and finish of the cart. I did order it with the seat rail and roadster options. The ride is really nice and I would recommend this cart. As a side note, it is manufactured at a factory in Pennsylvania.