Sleds and Wheelcars
This is a time of year when we may see children enjoying themselves in the snow with sledges- depending upon climate change variables! How many of us realise that sleds have been a part of horse drawn farming practice for hundreds of years. Indeed today farmers still use bale sleds towed by tractors to move bales around their fields.
The nature of hill farms in Wales meant that in some areas the use of carts and waggons was not feasible as once loaded they were liable to overturn on steep slopes, hence the need for sleds. There a number of variations I will cover in this article.
The general purpose sled or in Welsh ‘Car Llusg’ generally consists of two runners with a boarded surface creating a platform upon which Peat, Bracken (used for animal bedding) or Hay from upland pasture could be gathered. The example shown was measured on a farm in Penmaenmawr in north Wales and has metal runners due to the stony nature of the hillside.
Such sleds were relatively small as once loaded
it was dead weight for the horse to pull.
In order to carry manure or lime to upland pasture a tumbril sled or in Welsh ‘Cardel’ was used. Many farmers preferred to use this where lime was concerned as whilst shovelling the lime it was below eye level unlike a conventional cart where it could blow back into the face. The example shown is from Llanbrynmair, Montgomeryshire. It features sacrificial runners usually of Beech simply pegged in place which the farmer could easily replace when worn.
Also used were specific harvest sleds also referred to as Car Llusg
which were designed to bring in the corn harvest from upland fields.
These were more elaborate and able to carry a greater load and
were often designed with a sloping construction that reflected the
nature of a particular locality.
This shows the model under constriction, highlighting
the 28 through mortices and at least 16 pegged joints.
Much simpler than a cart to build yet a
complicated bit of work at 1/12th scale.
Where are the wheels?
Now this section of the website is entitled ‘Other Wheels’ and you may well be asking where the wheels are? This brings us to a most unique Welsh horse drawn farming vehicle the Wheelcar. This is peculiar to Radnorshire although some usage in Shropshire is also known. The vehicle comprises a body some 14 feet in length the front part of which is shaped and metal shod to be in constant contact with the ground. The two large cart wheels are fitted to an axle which is fixed to the top of the side members of the Wheelcar thus reducing the centre of gravity. Due to its size this vehicle has a considerable carrying capacity.
When loaded it would be drawn by a horse attached to the end in contact with the ground by trace chains and drawn forward down the slope. To prevent the vehicle running away and into the horse it was not unusual to place a timber baulk on the ground in front of the runners. Where necessary this technique was used for all sleds in use on farms. An additional feature of the Wheelcar was the ability to chain the wheels to prevent them turning thus creating a very large sled. By reputation it was a difficult vehicle to control and its nickname was ‘smellpost’ as it was tricky to control through gateways and usually collided with a gatepost.
The other feature of the Wheelcar to note is the wheels are not fitted with a continuous hooped rim but metal segments known as ‘strakes’ Given the likely wear when skidding the vehicle it would be easier to replace a single ‘strake’ than a whole hooped rim.
For a little more information on this unique vehicle I refer you to my friend Stuart Fry’s website https://farmhistory.uk/2020/03/11/gamboling-along/
This photo shows one of my models on the front crossbar of a Wheelcar in a private collection and gives you an idea of how the scale of 1” to 1ft relates to the full size vehicle.
The original vehicle was built in Llanbister Road which is one of the stations on the Heart of Wales railway line. If you ever ride the line in the area of Llanbister Road the rolling hillsides give a clear indication of why the use of sleds and Wheelcars were important in that area.
If you have not ridden the Heart of Wales line I recommend it the scenery is well worth seeing. I also found it amusing that many stations including my own in Ammanford are request stops where you have to signal the driver to stop.
January 2022
If we consider the old county of Radnorshire with its rolling
hillsides some unique features are to be found that are not
found elsewhere in Wales. The first to consider is the
timber sled, utilised to collect wood for firewood or fence posts.
This example from near Beguildy in the Teme Valley
closely resembles the type of horse drawn timber sled
more commonly found in Scandinavia.
This example from mid Wales was measured in a private collection on a farm in Gloucestershire and was fitted with metal runners.
