Hartville Tools and Woodcraft Caster Comparison

[Randy Klein]

Based on another thread (http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=73788) I started that asked if anyone knew the difference between these two casters, I took one of the suggestions and decided to do my own comparison.

Short story: There's a clear winner and the Woodcraft version is it.

Long story: Both casters are very similar in appearance and size. The Woodcraft is rated for more weight, but in this case, it wasn't a factor. Both were 3" double locking (swivel and roll) plates.

The biggest difference was in the ability to lock the swivel.

The Hartville had very noticeable slop in the locked mode. I would estimate that it still swiveled about 5 degrees. When I had four of these installed on the mobile base, the base was very easily "shook".

The Woodcraft on the other hand, had almost no slop in the locked swivel mode. I could force it to wiggle by applying pressure, but it was more than what I felt would occur in the shop. I have these casters on other mobile bases, and when locked, they are locked down and can not be shaked.

When I turned the casters over, I saw why there was a difference. The Hartville has only two thin "teeth" to catch the sprocket and prevent swivel, while the Woodcraft has five substantial "teeth" laid out in a smarter design. These should be obvious in the pics below:

Here's the 2 side-by-side, Hartville on the left, Woodcraft on right.

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=80447&d=1201741462

And another:

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=80448&d=1201741477

Here's a picture of the Hartville, locked. Notice that two teeth and the considerable gap left.

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=80449&d=1201741495

And a similar pic of the Woodcraft. Notice how the 2 outer teeth on each side lock on opposing sides of the sprocket.

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=80450&d=1201741507

A set of 4 Hartville Tools casters cost me $35 (tax, shipping, and Woodnet discount included). A set of 4 Woodcraft casters cost me $48 (on sale at the time). The Woodcraft casters go on sale quite often, otherwise it would have cost me somewhere near $60.

Bottom line: The price difference is IMO well worth getting the Woodcraft when they're on sale to ensure that a locked caster won't move or swivel. And when they're not on sale, I'll just wait until they are...

[Peter Quadarella]

I've used those Woodcraft casters on two large pieces of shop furniture and they do work great. The roll very smooth and lock up super tight. Actually, I usually lock about 3 of them rather than all 4 because it is rock solid at that point and I am laz.. er efficient.

[Art Mann]

There is no doubt, from your photos and narrative, that the Woodcraft casters are superior. However, I have been using the Hartville Tool ones for a while now and they do everything I want them to. For example, the casters will not allow my mobile outfeed table to budge when I rip a 4 X 8 foot sheet of 3/4" MDF. More expensive casters would not make any difference. I reckon I am just cheap, but I don't want to pay any more money for quality that I will not benefit from.

[Anthony Anderson]

Randy, thanks for the comparison. I have wondered about the difference between the casters offered by WC and Hartiville. I ended up buying the Hartville, mainly due to the reasons that Art mentioned. But, after using the Hartville casters, I wish I had bought the Woodcraft version, as there is slight movement on the Hartville casters when they are locked. I can see by your pics that the Woodcraft caster will not have this problem, and will probably lock solid, with only two casters locked. Thanks again, Bill

[Wade Lippman]

I just got some nice ones from Grizzly for maybe $6 each. You might want to compare those.

[Russell Tribby]

I just replaced the casters on my ts workstation with the 5" Woodcraft and they have made a world of difference. All I have to do is breath on the thing when I want it to move and away it goes!! I will certainly use them again when the situation arises.

[Bruce Benjamin]

Very good review. I own and have had a chance to compare the Hartville and Grizzly casters and the Hartville casters are clearly superior. But I don't own the Woodcraft casters so this is useful info. I did call and talk to one of the Woodcraft tech guys and when I asked him about the difference between their casters and Hartville's he only responded that their's used precision bearings. I'm curious if you noticed any significant difference in the bearings between the two.

I have to agree with what Art Mann said regarding the use of Hartville casters. I have them on several rolling units in my shop, two of which are quite heavy. I've been completely satisfied with them in every way, including with how securely the casters lock. If there is any play it's never been an issue for me. That being said, the Woodcraft casters do look better and if the price is that close when I need them I would probably purchase them in the future. The only way I'll need to add any more wheels in my shop though is if I either sell something I already have or I add onto my garage/shop.

Bruce

[Frank Stolten]

I've bought casters from Hartville, Woodcraft and Grizzly so I can offer my own opinions on each. The Grizzly's are ok for lighter duty and are definitely the cheapest made. The double locking mechanism is pretty flimsy and the toe piece that you operate with your foot to lock and unlock is quite short and can present a problem to access it, even with the caster mounted at the front edge of a cabinet or bench.

Hartville casters are a lot sturdier with a longer toe piece. The problem I found is the same as Randy commented on, the swivel lock is a poor design that still allows a fair amount of movement when locked down. I really wanted to use them for several projects but couldn't tolerate the degree of movement that resulted so I returned them.

The Woodcraft casters are well engineered and built and it shows. When locked, both the wheel and swivel are rock solid with absolutely no motion of any kind. They also have a long toe piece so access is excellent under a bench or cabinet. Anything I've mounted on them just seems to move quite smoothly. Yes, they're the most expensive of the three but this is a case where you really do get what you pay for. I highly recommend them. They're on sale at Woodcraft through Jan. 31 with 30% off so this would a good time to try them out.

Peachtree also sells the exact same caster as Woodcraft at a similar price on their website. However, at the traveling WW'ing shows Peachtree frequently sells them for a LOT less, one of the best buys in their booth.

Anyway, that's my .02

[Randy Klein]

...he only responded that their's used precision bearings. I'm curious if you noticed any significant difference in the bearings between the two.

It's interesting you mentioned this. I'm not sure if this is related, but the Woodcraft seems to have a swiveling motion that is better. And by better, I mean it feels like the bearings are more "piston fit" than the Hartville. I can't demonstrate this with pics. But I did do this: hold up each caster so the plate is perpendicular to the ground, rotate the wheel so it is "up", and then let the wheel swivel to the "down" position using only gravity. The Hartville casters just zipped on down, but the Woodcraft swung in a much slower and controlled fashion.

Again, no idea if that is due to "precision bearings" or not, but I liked the control that the Woodcraft casters demonstrated in their swing.

[Steven J Corpstein]

I just replaced the Hartville casters on my router cabinet with the Woodcraft ones. What a difference, I like them much better. Smoother rolling and the locks are more positive with no movement at all.

[Adam Slutsky]

If you are looking for a more inxpensive option try the following ebay store: http://myworld.ebay.com/sescasterco

I just bought 4 total locking casters and am happy with them. They have a slight bit of play in them but for $5/each they are a great deal!

[Matt Meiser]

Based on Adam's advise I bought 4 of the casters from SES Caster Company (Search Ebay for seller sescasterco) which are the total locking design. These are great casters. Based on the pictures, they are comparable to the Woodcraft casters, except for the fact that there are 3 or 4 interlocking teeth instead of 5. They are very solid though and I don't execpt that to make much if any difference. I paid $32 for 4 casters including shipping, ordered on Monday night and delivered on Friday.

[Darryl deHaan]

Matt, I'll be interested in hearing what you think of those castors. I have been considering them for a while, but my only concern was the synthetic bearings... I fear they may become mis-shapen after long periods without moving. Keep us updated!

Darryl