Meadowbrook to roadcart...

[Sue_C.]

If I decide to stain or paint my cart, after "deconstructing" it into a road cart, what should/could be done with the wheels? Should they be painted/stained as well, or left natural with perhaps a black striping added to "match" them up to the black stain/paint I use for the cart?

 

[Margo_C-T]

A nice gentleman who built driving vehicles as his business(the late Jack Stewart of Golden Horse and Carriage in CO)once told me that staining/varnishing(accent striping fine)the wheels was a really great way to avoid constantly having to 'fix' nicks and dings on those wheels. Looks great, too...it's how he did my back to back English trap, and it is a beautiful vehicle.

Margo

 

[RhineStone]

We have done vehicles with painted boxes and natural (stained) undercarriage. I think it looks great! And yes, it is a great way to be able to touch up your vehicle easily. Touching up paint is fairly hard to get it right, like trying to touch up your chipped fingernail with polish!

Here are some examples of our stained/painted vehicles.

Pony cart (I've posted this before):

Gig we just remade from a Meadowbrook. The striping on the undercarriage is black to match the box and the box doesn't have any striping.

Now the challenge is that both of these vehicles have separate "boxes". A Meadowbrook's "box" is integrated in the vehicle, so I don't know if it would look silly that only the wheels are stained and not the rest of the "undercarriage" (shafts, spring blocks, singletree, etc.) One way to tell is to take a photo and "color" the parts you want to paint and see what you think. (I wish I had a computer program to do that!

)

Myrna

 

[LazyRanch]

One way to tell is to take a photo and "color" the parts you want to paint and see what you think. (I wish I had a computer program to do that!

)

Myrna

Myrna, does your computer not have a paint or draw program of some sort? Or, if you have Adobe's Elements that would work really well. I have had Apples for about 25 years - I don't know what comes on a Windows machine, but I cannot imagine they don't have something.

The carriages are GORgeous! I just bought my coach a spoke grinder thingie, for a thank you gift - it's an antique. But I am thinking he has several carts waiting for sand and finish, and I'd like to work on them. I have built 2 boats, lived on another and taken care of bright work on several other boats. I figure sanding is sanding, varnishing is varnishing. At least I won't have to caulk decks!