Need help with a new axle for casters . sizing & strength questions .

[The Cobbler]

I need to make a new axle for new ( smaller wheels) for a pallet jack .
The existing axle is shown below, as well as what I need .
in a nutshell, the existing axles are 20mm x 50 mmm long. I need axles 75 MM long and either 19 mm ( if I remove the inner race of the rolle rbearings, or 11.5 mm diameter if I maiantain the inner race .
My concern is , how will mild steel hold up to the bearings if I lose the inner race, and if I maintain the inner race, how will a 11.5 shaft hold up to weight. max weight would be probably 600 lbs, distributed across 4 wheels .
I tried to sketch out what I have & what I need,
thoughts are welcomed.

 

[PCustoms]

I need to make a new axle for new ( smaller wheels) for a pallet jack .
The existing axle is shown below, as well as what I need .
in a nutshell, the existing axles are 20mm x 50 mmm long. I need axles 75 MM long and either 19 mm ( if I remove the inner race of the rolle rbearings, or 11.5 mm diameter if I maiantain the inner race .
My concern is , how will mild steel hold up to the bearings if I lose the inner race, and if I maintain the inner race, how will a 11.5 shaft hold up to weight. max weight would be probably 600 lbs, distributed across 4 wheels .
I tried to sketch out what I have & what I need,
thoughts are welcomed.

Mild steel will not hold up long in a bearing application at all...

 

[The Cobbler]

another thought I have is to make a new center hub, tap it for bolts and support them on the outer ends sort of like a caster would be

 

[PCustoms]

another thought I have is to make a new center hub, tap it for bolts and support them on the outer ends sort of like a caster would be

Can you just get the correct wheels?

 

[The Cobbler]

If I could find a 6" wheel with a 6204 bearing I would be set

 

[PCustoms]

If I could find a 6" wheel with a 6204 bearing I would be set

How confident are you in your measurements?

1/2 and 3/4 axle sizes should be readily available

 

[The Cobbler]

confident

 

[MoonRise]

Mild steel axle with rolling bearing elements (ball, roller, or needle bearing) running directly on the axle OD with no bearing inner race is a NOPE.

Splain exactly what and why you are modifying the pallet jack? Smaller casters or rollers, why?

6" OD caster wheel, 2" wide, 3/4" bore

Whoops, we couldn't find that.

Ignore the 'whoops' in the link to Grainger, the link seems to work anyway (for me anyway).

 

[PCustoms]

Splain exactly what and why you are modifying the pallet jack? Smaller casters or rollers, why?

Yes, please.

6" OD caster wheel, 2" wide, 3/4" bore

https://www.grainger.com/product/5V...ri5p7itnEgK6xAS0GJnGynrfujCBthDxoCikUQAvD_BwE

Ignore the 'whoops' in the link to Grainger, the link seems to work anyway (for me anyway).

Works for me. Seems to be a common size, but the OP dimensions are just a tad outside stock options. So either it's a bad measurement, weird retrofit/mod or chinesium built to an imaginary standard

 

[The Cobbler]

Splain exactly what and why you are modifying the pallet jack? Smaller casters or rollers, why

Want to lower the forks by at least 1/2" so I can add a weight platform on it that is being removed from a worn out pallet jack. but I woke up last night thinking the height may not be an issue, so this thread may be redundant.

 

[The Cobbler]

but the OP dimensions are just a tad outside stock options.

not at all out of dimensions for 7" steer wheels with 6204 bearings .

 

[PCustoms]

not at all out of dimensions for 7" steer wheels with 6204 bearings .

But earlier you said 6", which is outside stock options...

 

[The Cobbler]

But earlier you said 6", which is outside stock options...

it's all in the first few sentences of post #1

new axle for new ( smaller wheels) for a pallet jack .
The existing axle is shown below, as well as what I need .
in a nutshell, the existing axles are 20mm x 50 mmm long. I need axles 75 MM long

 

[whateg01]

11.5mm axle for a pallet jack? That will last until the first heavy thing. Is this pallet jack special? What's the model?

Looks to me like there are better choices.


Maybe a better one.

 

[The Cobbler]

our max load is no more than 600 lbs. nothing special on the pallet jack, it's the only thing I could find with forks narrow enough to fit the weighing system that is being removed from the old beat up one. the model is irrelevant as far as I am concerned. as it sits it's a 4400 lb pallet jack . made in China.
as I said, last night I woke up thinking my concern about height of the forks is probably a non issue. with all of the parts added to the forks they measure in at 3.75" from the floor so it won't fit into a wood palette . I am able to adjust the load wheels down 1/2" . so by going to 6" wheels instead of 7" it would sit level at 3.25" . I was thinking it needs to fit a 2x4 on edge wood pallet, but we use only plastic skids that have a much higher openings (5") for forks than the wood ones do. so it's a non issue

 

[whateg01]

Can the existing axle me modified to fit that wheel from lifts plus?

 

[The Cobbler]

yes, I could turn the original axle down to fit, that is a much better choice for sure . I searched and didn't find anything like that . for now I think I will just build it with the existing 7" wheels and re adjust the load wheels back to the original height . If it becomes an issue in being too tall, I will order these wheels and do a swap .
Thanks for the info!