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Sound Cart (build #1)


Richard Ragon

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Greetings everyone,

Now that I've got some ways on my current sound cart build, I'll share some photos.

I've been using a Jr Magliner for years and I love the set up, but it is very difficult to load and unload into my Van. The current set up was having to 'build' the cart every time, and it was starting to get old and cumbersome.

So, here was my idea.. Pretty simple. Just strap on an SKB box, to a set of wheels. Based similar to the Chinhda design as a upright, it would easier to load into a truck. Simply just lay it down on the skate wheels, then pick up the bottom, lift, and roll it in like a casket.

First step, buy a the SKB 16U rack. And, I just happen to find one on eBay for 400 bucks.

Cart_Project_02.jpg

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Wheels are holding up good. I placed in the heavy inter tubes with heavy tread design. The short wheel base makes it steer funny though, but it rolls over grass and dirt well. The problem I have with the weight is with the shocks it looks like.. I bought 500lbs.. I though it would be ok.. they sag under the weigh. So, I'm going to upgrade those too 1000lb. I want them stiff, so I can tilt it back, and not bottom out.

-Richard

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Nice chopper Richard ! I'm surprised that the big wheels are doing ok without a common axle between them or some kind of bracing (an "x" on the swingarm between the wheels) with the load on.

I was looking at the pictures and tought "wow,now this guy sure knows how to weld" then came your dad's picture while scrolling down... ahha!

Congrats, you're ready for NASCART now !

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<wow,now this guy sure knows how to weld" then came your dad's picture >

Same here! The weld is superb. Please tell Dad this, I am sure he will be happy to hear good things about his steady hand! :)

How much does the empty cart weigh? You have used steel overall, maybe aluminum alloy would have reduced weight? But of course this means TIG welding that makes things a little more complicated i guess...

To me weight is important - I wonder why most American mixers don't seem to bother about the overall weight. Especially when they handle the cart themselves and not rely on others to load/unload etc. I am sure there must be a reason for US mixers not mentioning weight of a cart as a factor. Size is another factor as well. Especially when one has to cart off gear by air - freight or extra luggage costs that are calculated as per both size and weight can hit the roof... Although the Chinhda carts are simply superb works of art, I have never seen a weight (unladen) figure associated with them. I know my good friend D. Waelder will surely post here on this when he reads this. :)

-vin

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Wonderful chronology, birth of a cart... I love it! You've done a terrific job with the cart and I'm sure it will serve you well. I was impressed as well with your ability to do all those things, then realizing your DAD is the master welder, very lucky for you! Your cart is way too big and heavy for me, but I have always been very concerned about the size and weight of my carts. I think I am one of the few who has gone from very small cart in the beginning, through to somewhat larger carts, and now back to a cart that is about as small and light as can be and still hold the gear. I still don't quite understand the need for shock absorber/suspension assembly --- seems like more trouble than it's worth. It looks like you are already using an SKB shockmount case, why would you need the base to be equipped with suspension?

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Although the Chinhda carts are simply superb works of art, I have never seen a weight (unladen) figure associated with them. I know my good friend D. Waelder will surely post here on this when he reads this. :)

Hi Vin. Of course I'll post a weight figure for the Chinhda carts. Actually, it is posted on the site. We measured a fully equipped Chinhda cart with two side trays, frames for the monitors, brakes, etc. at 123 pounds. A disclaimer: we don't have an industrial scale in the shop so we had to balance the cart on an ordinary bathroom scale to arrive at that figure. I don't claim accuracy to the last pound. The Set Carts Unlimited catalog shows a very similar weight so I think it's a pretty good figure.

There is also a new lightweight cart but I don't have an exact weight for that yet. Pictures of that are available on this site:

By the way, nice job, Richard. I'm inclined to agree with Jeff regarding size and weight. It looks like an awfully big and heavy cart to me but it's very well realized.

David

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@Jeff - the nice thing about the shockmount cases is that they give you room around your rig to run wires. An inch or two on either side of the cage adds a lot of space.

-Greg-

This is true. I built one cart with an SKB shockmount case, spent 6 weeks on stage building it while on "Strange Days" (working all night on stage, lots of fun). Integrated all the wiring, DC distribution points, audio interconnects and so forth, even built a flat battery supply that sat below the rack in the very bottom of the case. One day before call time I transferred all the equipment over to the new cart, worked the day with it, and HATED IT! Next day I pulled all the equipment out, went back to the old cart and sold the SKB case-based cart to as friend who made it into a music playback cart.

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I understand the frustration with the case cart. My design that I am almost finally going to get built will be an "open cart" design. I don't do that much re-patching of my gear - but when it has to be done, it usually has to be done with little time - in the heat of the battle, and the case sides can often be a hinder...so much so that I wish they weren't there!

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