Tire Skates Don't Work

C

Colonel

Senior Member
I purchased a set of 4 tire skates from the MAC catalogue for my A PU. Bottom line is you can't roll the truck with them underneath the wheels. MAC will accept their return but I have to pay shipping which is about a third of the price of the skates. OUCH! I hate to do that. Anybody had a problem with these? What do you have that will work so one guy can roll around his truck on a nice smooth concrete floor?
 
Could it be as simple as squirting a little penetrating oil on the caster wheels?

I have a set from Harbor Freight under my roadster and I love 'em. I can roll the car all around the garage. I never had to do anything to them though. They just worked out of the box.
 
I have a couple of sets of aluminum TireSkates from Accessible Systems because of the quality. Like you Colonel, several years ago I purchased a cheap import set and they would not work. I got my money back and stepped up to a good set. Since then I have purchased another set from them. And, from that point on all of my carts, rotisseries, frame jigs, etc. all have high quality casters so one person can mobilize them easily.
 
I have the imports and the last time I had to roll a car across the garage it was my Hemi Dodge, presumably heavier than your Model A. Could it be the fasteners that mount the casters are interfering with the wheels? If so, turn them the other way and it might solve your problem. The other questions about how smooth and clean your floor is are also pertinent as the wheels are pretty small and won't tolerate much obstruction. Which might suggest a cost effective solution for you. Price out some decent, larger diameter casters of suitable material for your floor condition, if it balances with the shipping cost (iffy considering you need 16) then it's a wash.
 
I have had the same problem with a cheap set but found that if I first line up the casters for the direction I want to go, I can easily move my roadster around.
 
Wheel dollies that dont work well under a car....you can use them as a engine dollie.
A Motors fit them real nice!
Wick
 
Ditto Uncle Bob's comment- Bought a set and assembled them with the bolts pointing down. The end of the bolt and the nut interfered with the casters being able to swivel. Reinstalled the bolts pointing up with the nuts on top and they worked fine!
 
Buy bigger casters. This is where the import versions save the money. Get a larger diameter set of wheels and they will roll much easier.
 
Casters are expensive. I have made a few carts for motors and various other things. I have a cheap set from Harbor Freight, and they work great for me. I am restoring the coupe and have no problems moving it around the garage.
 
Speedway offers skates at two different prices. Bought the higher priced set and couldn't move the car. They sent a call tag and I purchased the less expensive set that worked fine. Cheaper set had cast steel wheels and expensive set had rubber wheels. Go figure.
 
Colonel said:
I purchased a set of 4 tire skates from the MAC catalogue for my A PU. Bottom line is you can't roll the truck with them underneath the wheels. MAC will accept their return but I have to pay shipping which is about a third of the price of the skates. OUCH! I hate to do that. Anybody had a problem with these? What do you have that will work so one guy can roll around his truck on a nice smooth concrete floor?
Click to expand...
Cononel,
Harbor freight/others also sell a fairly cheap "furniture dolly" which can be used for model A and for furniture/engine moving when not used as wheel dolly. Bigger wheels too! And, if you cut a 1" piece of plywood to fit between the padded end boards, it can also be used to hold floor stands..if so desired, to get the model A higher and still be rolled around. My experience and more utility for your buck!
 
I agree, the furniture dollys are very useful and work well. I have two sets of skates with steel wheels and they work well with all sorts of vehicles. Alighning the wheels before moving is a must on my sets. Once moving it is easier to change direction slightly.

Be careful not to step on a loose dolly. Now how would I know that? yup!
 
I'll second the suggestion by Brent for the TireSkates. I can move my cars very easily by myself with these rollers. Superior product.
 
hardtimes said:
Cononel,
Harbor freight/others also sell a fairly cheap "furniture dolly" which can be used for model A and for furniture/engine moving when not used as wheel dolly. Bigger wheels too! And, if you cut a 1" piece of plywood to fit between the padded end boards, it can also be used to hold floor stands..if so desired, to get the model A higher and still be rolled around. My experience and more utility for your buck!
Click to expand...

Did the exact same thing!! At about $10.00 each you can't beat it. Even if they only hold 2/3 of the 1000 lb advertised weight, it comes to over 2500 lbs.
 
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