What caster's / Rollers for roll off, roll on roof?

[Astrokev]

I've bought various things from aluminium wharehouse but you needed to buy a goodly amount to make it woirth their carriage costs. 5m ali tube for my weather station mast (in 2 sections with a smaller diameter top section).

I agree Gina; their shipping costs are quite expensive, but in this case it still works out cheaper than other sites, even with the shipping included (unless I can find a local supplier and pick them up in person; although driving with 15 feet of aluminium channel waving around on my roof may present challenges !

[yesyes]

I thought long and hard about what rollers/wheels to use.

In the end I went for V-groove gate wheels. I have ordered 8 of these (will use 6 and have 2 spare, just in case)

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/161011184587?var=460167771196&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1423.l2649

They will run on inverted angle bar. I haven't ordered that yet. Since the wheels are steel, I guess aluminium angle is not such a good idea. So I will most likely use two 5m lengths of this mild steel angle:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/271172319822?var=570147096513&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649

[Gina]

I think mild steel angle should be alright. You can paint it with Hammerite paint and apply a smear of grease where the wheels run. That should keep the rust away. Hammerite paint is excellent for outdoor ironwork. I found it even held up well from dunking in the sea many years ago when I went dinghy sailing - I used it on my iron launchiung trolley.

[Astrokev]

I thought long and hard about what rollers/wheels to use.

In the end I went for V-groove gate wheels. I have ordered 8 of these (will use 6 and have 2 spare, just in case)

http://www.ebay.co.u...984.m1423.l2649

They will run on inverted angle bar. I haven't ordered that yet. Since the wheels are steel, I guess aluminium angle is not such a good idea. So I will most likely use two 5m lengths of this mild steel angle:

http://www.ebay.co.u...984.m1438.l2649

Those wheels look the business Chris. Looking at the sellers ebay shop, he seems to have quite a range. I look forward to seeing how they turn out. I've just committed to nylon castors, so my path ahead is defined.....until I change my mind yet again

[Gina]

I changed my mind several times on this with my build. I started off with nylon wheels and aluminium channel then changed to larger rubber tyred steel wheels with roller bearings. The ali channel changed to mild steel angle and then I went for just wooden rails with guide strips. Finally, the guide strips went and the final design had plain timber rails 75mm wide by 47mm deep and the rubber tyred steel wheels. Sideways guiding was done by roller skate bearings.

[Astrokev]

I changed my mind several times on this with my build. I started off with nylon wheels and aluminium channel then changed to larger rubber tyred steel wheels with roller bearings. The ali channel changed to mild steel angle and then I went for just wooden rails with guide strips. Finally, the guide strips went and the final design had plain timber rails 75mm wide by 47mm deep and the rubber tyred steel wheels. Sideways guiding was done by roller skate bearings.

Yep, it's quite tricky to settle on a final "best" design

[Freff]

The wheels and track was probably the only part of the design set in stone from the start for me. I was given the the materials for the tracking long before the build proper. The wheels were going to be either the nylon or rubber. I choose nylon because I had heard at the time, that besides them getting flat spots, after a couple of years they tend to get brittle and break up due to extremes of weather change. Apparently, they are not designed for outdoor use. I have not seen any evidence of the latter.

@ Kevin, great website, love the solar images.

[Astrokev]

@ Kevin, great website, love the solar images.

Thanks Tony. Much appreciated.

[yesyes]

Those wheels look the business Chris. Looking at the sellers ebay shop, he seems to have quite a range. I look forward to seeing how they turn out. I've just committed to nylon castors, so my path ahead is defined.....until I change my mind yet again

I wanted to use nylon wheels on aluminium angle. I quite like the idea of V groove wheels as they don't need any additional guide. I couldn't find any affordable nylon v grooved ones. So I ordered those steel ones. They will probably be a lot more noisy than nylon wheels.

I was considering casters for a while but I need something lower profile. I have a problem staying within the permitted height with those high foundations.

[wxsatuser]

This is what I am using.

Low level castor

They have rubber 50mm wheels and hold 20kg each.

Have 6 on each side of my roof in the making and can get a real close fit to the

roof top plate.

[wxsatuser]

Link went wrong for some reason.....again.

This is what I am using.

http://uk.rs-online.com/web/p/plate-castors/4462058/?searchTerm=446-2058&relevancy-data=636F3D3126696E3D4931384E525353746F636B4E756D6265724D504E266C753D656E266D6D3D6D61746368616C6C26706D3D5E5C647B337D5B5C732D2F255C2E2C5D5C647B332C347D2426706F3D313426736E3D592673743D52535F53544F434B5F4E554D424552267573743D3434362D323035382677633D4E4F4E4526

They have rubber 50mm wheels and hold 20kg each.

Have 6 on each side of my roof in the making and can get a real close fit to the

roof top plate.

[Astrokev]

I wanted to use nylon wheels on aluminium angle. I quite like the idea of V groove wheels as they don't need any additional guide. I couldn't find any affordable nylon v grooved ones. So I ordered those steel ones. They will probably be a lot more noisy than nylon wheels.

I was considering casters for a while but I need something lower profile. I have a problem staying within the permitted height with those high foundations.

That's a good point. I may struggle myself with overall height; must check my drawings.

Keeping the roof aligned is a major advantage of grooved wheels. I'm fairly happy with the castors I've just bought, but am not sure how I'll ensure the roof is fully aligned at the critical point of closure. I'll probably figure this bit out during the actual build, rather than in pre-build design.

[r3i]

That's a good point. I may struggle myself with overall height; must check my drawings.

Keeping the roof aligned is a major advantage of grooved wheels. I'm fairly happy with the castors I've just bought, but am not sure how I'll ensure the roof is fully aligned at the critical point of closure. I'll probably figure this bit out during the actual build, rather than in pre-build design.

That's probably the best way - I designed most my observatory beforehand using Visio which helped a great deal in quantifying the amount of timber required. I did a design for the rolling roof but in the end I kind of 'winged it' and put it together as it went along.. Seemed to work out OK.

[Carbon Brush]

Castor diameter does not have to affect roof height.

On my shed, the timber runners are fastened to the side of the shed, below the roof height.

This means a large wheel still allows the roof to run at the correct height.

Another benefit is that the roof timber with the castors can be quite thick to prevent bend.

Off the shelf sheds often have tall doors. If the door is on a runner side, the above arrangement can be a problem.

For an observatory big wide doors don't matter. In my case I reduced the door height to clear the runners.

As long as you can squeeze in and out, that is enough. You don't need wheelbarrow width.

If you really want a big mahogany desk in there, lift it through the open roof!

Hope this helps. David.

[Freff]

@ r3i. Very nice website you have Mike. Great images and lots of info.

[r3i]

@ r3i. Very nice website you have Mike. Great images and lots of info.

Cheers Tony