At McKee’s Rocks Forgings we have a variety of terms we use to describe various parts, products, and processes. When ordering products it is helpful to know the lingo of your vendor. This 200 series of blog post is going to cover some of our terminology and how it applies directly to the end product. This is directly about the terms that define the geometry of the Wheel, but we should not forget that the material and heat treatment are crucial as well. Those are topics for another day though.  

The following terms in this post relate to our largest selling part: Double Flanged Crane Wheels, however many of these terms are common across the other products we offer.

When looking at the cross section through a crane wheel, we can visualize as seen in the picture above. Typically the horizontal centerline running through the picture will show a symmetrical product. However in this case to illustrate how a hub can be offset, the wheel is not symmetrical.

When requesting a wheel from MRF, there are certain parts to the wheel that are “critical” for us to provide you an accurate quote. Below is a list of “critical” areas and what MRF is expecting. While our customers may not have all the critical information initially MRF can work with you using our extensive history and knowledge to fill in the missing information.

Critical Parts:

·         Bore: This dimension is critical to the installation to the machine’s shaft(s) and is typically measured as +/- .001 from a three place decimal value (if tolerance not provided).

·         Tread Diameter: This dimension is important to the alignment of the machine riding on the existing rails. Treads typically are parallel to the bore but can be requested tapered or contoured to suit the needs of your application.

·         Rim and Tread widths: These dimensions relate back to the rail in use and can affect the life of the crane wheel the most if not sized properly. These dimensions and the rest of the angles and radii of the tread can be generated from one the various industry reference documents.

·         Hub length and diameter: These dimensions also relate to the installation and alignment of the wheel to the machine. These dimensions also have an important relationship to the forging produced and can negatively affect your cost if they require custom tooling. MRF will work with you to avoid unnecessary forging costs by applying tooling from our extensive inventory.

Knowing the lingo can help clarify and expedite everyone’s communications, so stay tuned for more information to helps us all be aligned.