Wake-Robin  Farm Carriage Company Inc.

     Importers of Traditional Norwegian Carriages & Harness

     NA Distributor of  Swedish Tidaholm Marathon Carriages 

 

 

Please note that in developing these instructions we have borrowed heavily from the advice provided in the 1991 edition of Competition Vehicles: Choice, Construction, Maintenance, by Walter Lorch, published by J.A. Allen & Co. Ltd.., Great Britain and available from the American Driving Society.  The book was written to address the dearth of available literature from manufacturers, pending the development of an owners’ handbook.   It is admirably suited to fill the current gap in information about our carriages, while the manual is being developed and translated for use in North America.

 

Upon Arrival   Most of our carriages are loaded onto the container fully assembled, from the factory, in Sweden.  In some instances, to create space for more vehicles, the wheels and seats may be shipped separately, as are the shafts.  If your carriage is sent as a single order, it will be crated in Sweden first, using insect resistant (treated) wood, required by NA laws respecting importation, with the body strapped to the base, and the wheels and shafts wrapped in plastic and stored underneath. 

 

When you receive your carriage, especially if it arrives in a crate, please ensure that you have all the parts that you need.  This includes:  seat, shafts, the two pieces of metal into which the shafts are placed, the bolts for the shafts and the piece that joins it to the carriage, the 2 nuts, single bolt and brake pad for the 5^th wheel[1] (underneath the front of the carriage), back stand (as applicable) and any other special items you may have ordered.

 

Attaching the Wheels -  If the wheels are not installed on your carriage when it arrives, please ensure that you apply BLUE LOCKTITE (Locktite 243 in Sweden) to the threads before attaching and screwing the wheels onto the axle.  It will be watery at first but tightens are about an hour.  Bolts tighten in the direction of the front of the carriage. This is essential to ensure safe operation of your carriage.  Tighten in the direction in which the carriage is facing (toward the front) one full turn, followed by a quarter turn.  No more.  Over-tightening will, over time, cause the ball bearings to loosen.  If this occurs, there will be a slight wobble to the wheel, when put on a hoist (5 cm off the ground) and turned, and/or you may hear a small rattle.  Ball bearings are easily replaced.  Contact your dealer and order some.

 

Attaching the Brakes   If the carriage arrives with the wheels not attached, you will need to ensure that the bolts attaching the brakes to the axle are first removed, to accommodate the wheel, and then tightened.  The brakes will make a brushing noise, or faint hum, with each revolution. This noise will disappear after a few weeks of use and is not a cause for concern.

 

Maintaining the Brakes   Sometimes, after the ocean transport, trucking your carriage a long distance, or just a lot of use, you may find that the brakes are not working properly, ie. there is little or no response when you press on the pedal.  If this happens, it means you probably need to remove air and top up the system with any high quality automobile brake fluid.  Save the fluid you remove for future use, once the air bubbles have dissipated. If brake fluid is lost, it indicates a leak in the hydraulic system which must be addressed immediately.  Symptoms of problems with the hydraulics include: drips on the wheels, tires, chassis or floor; vehicle pulling to one side when the brakes are applied; and ‘sponginess’ in the pedal (indicating air in the system).

 

To add brake fluid you will need a plastic bottle (to serve as the oil reservoir) and a length of clear rubber hose.  For vehicles with front and rear brakes, start with the front wheel nearest to the brake fluid reservoir.  Attach one end of the hose to the nipple on the brake, and allow the other end to rest in the jar which has been partially filled with oil.  Unscrew the gold screw (gauge) on the brake and slowly press the brake pedal to a stop, then let it return to its former position without assistance.  Repeat until the fluid passing through the clear tubing shows no air bubbles.  Tighten the gold screw and remove the tube.  Repeat for the other front wheel and then the two rear wheels. 

 

Hydraulic brakes will lose pressure if left standing for a long period of time, rendering the brakes ineffective.  Place wedges under the rear wheels when parking your vehicle on a slope.

 

Rear wheel brakes are by far the most common on our single vehicles.  The addition of front wheel brakes will provide additional strength to hold back a carriage on steep or slippery slopes.  Use of rear brakes only may cause the wheels to lock and skid.  However, hitting the front brakes harder than the rear can cause the carriage to flip forward.  It takes an experienced driver to manage both sets of brakes without difficulties of this type.  Front brakes are optional items for our single horse vehicles.

 

Brake Pads  New brake pads should be installed when the pad has worn down to approx. 3 mm (1/8 “) to avoid damaging (scoring) the brake disc, which is much more expensive to replace or recondition.  Never let the brake pad wear below 2 mm (1/16”).  To replace the pads, remove the retaining pins and slide out the pads.  Using a screwdriver, push the pistons back and slide the new pads in.  Tighten the retaining pins and pump the brakes until you can feel resistance.

 

5th Wheel Brake  We ship our carriages with the 5^th wheel brake dis-engaged. If you look underneath your carriage, you will see that there is a large bolt holding the pad for the 5^th wheel brake, underneath the front of the carriage.  The brake is set for shipping about 3 mm away from the inside rim of the wheel.  Please ensure that you have LOOSENED (DISENGAGED) THE BRAKE BEFORE TRYING TO STRAIGHTEN THE WHEELS for hooking the shafts. The 5^th wheel brake is used in the marathon only, to assist in minimizing rear wheel skid under slippery conditions and helps prevent the shafts from swinging too much.  The brake is adjusted manually and we advise new owners to test it out at different settings, to determine which position they find most helpful.  Some drivers never engage the 5^th wheel brake.  Others use it often. It takes practice to learn how to use it effectively!  A foot pedal for the 5^th wheel is available on the CD 207 and pair carriages upon request (custom order). The 5^th wheel will require greasing once or twice a year, depending on the amount of use your carriage gets.

 

Delayed Steering   Installed on Pairs vehicles only, the delayed steering mechanism should also be greased once or twice a year. 

 

Elliptical Springs  The full, triple leaf elliptical springs used on the CD 207, Xtreme and pair vehicles are intended to provide transverse support, while offering the driver/passenger comfort, stability and longevity (in terms of use).  Almost no maintenance is required but if your carriage springs develop a ‘squeak’, oil them on both sides, using a penetrating oil.

 

Rubber Torsion Bar Suspension  Tidaholm equips it’s 206 with front and rear torsion springs.  On the CD 207 and  Xtreme, only the front end is supported by a torsion bar (allowing the swingle tree to be inset much closer under the dash, and bringing the horse closer to the carriage, for maximum control).  Four rubber rods, held in place by a steel centre tube, sits at a right angle to a lever which contains the end of the axle.  The rods compress and release in response to changing load and surface conditions.  Torsion bars provide a ride similar in smoothness to that of leaf springs but offer the additional benefit of independent action. Attached to lever arms, the torsion bar allows each wheel to move up and down, independently, over rough ground. 

 

Wheels   The wheels, axles and torsion bars on all Tidaholm vehicles are made to our specifications, and not purchased ‘off the shelf’.   The hub, spokes and rim of our wheels are made of an extra-strength, high quality Swedish steel alloy.  Spokes are offset for increased resistance to impact and side-thrust.  The wheels are fitted with adjustable roller bearings which reduce friction which are sealed and do not need lubrication.  You should expect to have to replace the roller bearings on your carriage after approximately 6-8 years.  Otherwise, you should not need to do anything to maintain them in good working order.   The smaller wheels on the back of some models is intended to allow the navigator to get closer to the ground, lowering the centre of gravity and increasing stability in turns.   Some carriages, such as the Pony Pair, have a straight rather than shaped tree guard, and all 4 wheels are small. This lowers the carriage to achieve the necessary reduction in height.

 

Tires    FEI rules require the use of solid rubber rimmed tires for competition.  Tidaholm uses what is known as the “Continental” method of attaching tires to the rims.  Using a strong glue on the rim, the proper length of rubber is clamped into the channel created and the wheel rotated until the tire is fully stretched and the ends overlap. Once the glue has dried, the extra rubber is trimmed and the ends fused together.  If the wheel is damaged, because the metal channel must be bent to accommodate new rubber, the tire must be returned to the manufacturer for repair or an fitter who has the machinery needed to straighten the channel. 

 

Adjusting the Shafts   All shafts are shipped at their maximum length (79”).  Before hitching your horse, stand the horse between the shafts and determine the approximate length needed.  Using either an electric metal cutter or a manual pipe cutter (available from plumbing supply stores) cut the shafts to the desired length.  We suggest doing it in several steps – 15 cm at a time, and testing to see that you have it right.  If you damage the paint in the process, touch it up with acrylic enamel spray paint (car paint).  

 

The single horse carriages (CD 207 and Xtreme) are made with a torsion bar in front to allow you to position the horse as close to the carriage as possible (FEI min. distance is 50 cm.)   Measure from the point of the hock to the swingle tree, with the horse standing square.  Ensure that the shafts are inserted almost to the end of the short pipes which attach the shafts to the carriage.   Tighten the bolt underneath.   It is not necessary to drill holes in the shafts so that the bolt passes through both sides of the pipe.  If the shafts are set almost to the back of the tubing, with closed loops resting at the saddle and open shafts at the point of the shoulder, you should still be able to engthen them to fit bigger horses.  

 

Paint and Finishing   Tidaholm relies on Jotun, a high quality powder coated paint to finish our carriages.  Two or three coats of powdered paint is applied through a nozzle with a high electrostatic charge and deposited on the metal surface then heated to melt the powder and fuse it to the metal.  Spray cans of the paint to match that of your carriage are available from Sweden (on request) or you may be able to find it locally.  Touchups can be done with any acrylic enamel spray paint, if you can find a close colour match. The following lists the RAL number for some of the most commonly used colours:  Midnight Blue    (Ral 5004); Sunburst Yellow  (Ral 1016);  Wine Red (Ral 3005) and Deep Green (Ral 6009).  Some carriages are also coated with a third gloss coat, to provide even greater protection.   When re-touching a scratch on your carriage, sand very lightly with a very fine emory paper.   If the scratch is deep (down to the metal), we recommend coating with a rust retardant (blue or red) first.  Then sand again and spray lightly, using several applications, to avoid drips.

 

Cleaning Your Carriage   There are a number of products available to maintain a high polish on the painted surfaces of your Tidhaholm carriage.   In Canada, we recommend a Canadian Tire product, Turtle Wax (Wet’nBlack) to maintain a deep black/wet look for your tires.  Make sure you hose down your carriage after each use but we do NOT recommend power washing as it may cause water to accumulate behind (and warp) the wood paneling).  Power washing will also remove the tape (pin striping).  Direction water over the brake discs and the brake calipers will extend the life of pads and discs.

 

Pin Striping   Hand painted pin striping is an option on all Tidaholm carriages.  However, we advise most of our customers that taped pin striping is more practical.  In our view, it makes more sense, and is much easier and less expensive, to simply replace a section of tape than to have to repaint the pin stripes when it is damaged.  A supply of tape should be included when you take delivery of your carriage.  If not, or if you need to order more, please contact us immediately.

 

Suggested Maintenance Schedule (according to Lorch):

 

Before each competition/event:

• Grease turntable and wheel bearings
• Check wheels for play
• Check springs and tighten all nuts and bolts
• Check level of brake fluid and system for leaks
• Grease shaft or pole supports
• Check tires for cuts and remove stones

 

Yearly:

• Change brake fluid and bleed brakes
• Check brake pads and disks for wear
• Remove wheel bearings, clean, refill and grease
• Check pole/spring dampers (if applicable).

 

Essential Spares:

• 1 set of brake pads/wheel
• 1 set of bearings/wheel
• split pins, nuts, bolts and washers
• 2 flexible brake tubes
• duct tape
• binding wire
• brake fluid
• water repellant grease/gun
• oil spray
• Locktite
• Joint sealer
• Matching paint
• Black paint

 

Tools

· Carriage Jack

• Adjustable spanners
• Wheel spanner (with order)
• Pliers/screwdrivers
• Mallet/hammer

 

Note:  If you find a wheel is difficult to remove, look for a tool (name unknown!) available at most hardware stores that allows you to grip the back of the hub (by the rim) while braced against the axle (in the centre of the wheel). The wheel can be prised off  easily by just tightening the screw.  We will post a picture of this very useful tool on our website, as part of the upgrade now in progress.  We can email you a picture, in the meantime.  : )

[1] Available on the CD Lite, CD207, Xtreme and Pair Carriages only, unless by special order.