WOOD USED BY THE WHEELWRIGHT. 



139 



Section IX. — Wood used by the AYheelwright. 



Fig. 40. 



The wbeehvright, besides carts, also makes a number of 

 articles used in agricultural work, and comes iu this respect next 

 to the blacksmith as an indispensable village artisan ; he usually 

 obtains his wood directly from the forest. 



Wheelwrights' wood should be even-grained, long-fibred, 

 tough and dense, and free from knots and all other defects and 

 patches of decay. 



The chief industry of the wheelwright is the construction of 

 carts and waggons, the principal parts of which are the wheels, 

 axles and shafts. 



The wheels consist of the nave, spokes, felloes and tires. 



The nave or hub is generally made of oak, elm or ash, and in 

 the case of carriages, of walnut, or, more recently, of plane-wood. 

 The wood should be hard and dense 

 to prevent the loosening of the 

 spokes, which are morticed into the 

 nave. [It is said that wych-elm- 

 wood is tougher, finer-grained, and 

 more easily bent than common elm- 

 wood, both woods are largely used 

 lor naves and felloes. — Tr.] 



The felloes, which are afterwards 

 morticed together in a circle, are 

 generally made of split wood of elm, 

 beech,birch,ashorrobinia, elm being 

 best for the purpose. The wood 

 should, if possible, be naturally 

 curved, and as the pieces are only 

 about 2 feet long, there is generally 

 little difficulty in getting nearly the 

 suitable curve, the wood being then 

 cut into shape with a band-saw. 



There is a large export of felloes 

 from forests, and in Germany they 

 are usually sawn out of split 



pieces, with their flat sides parallel to the annual rings (fij 

 which enables them best to support the pressure of the i 



* FeniiinJez, Utilization of Forests, p. 54. 



Moile of cutting out felloes. 

 Feinaiulez. *) 



(After 



;■ -iO), 



spokes 



