A worn crane wheel does not fail quietly. The flange thins, the tread flat spots, the crane crabs down the runway, and the rail wears with it. Solution Gear Co. rebuilds and regrinds crane wheels, trolley wheels, track wheels, idler wheels, cable sheaves, drums, and shafts in house in Houston. We weld build up worn surfaces, carburize or flame harden the tread, and CNC machine and grind every wheel back to print. Free shipping, free inspection, and an up to 24 month warranty on every job.
Drag the handle. The same crane wheel, flat spotted and flange worn before our process, then weld built up, hardened, and ground back to size after.
Before
After
Anyone can chuck a wheel and take a cut. A crane wheel that lasts comes from the heat treatment and the grinding that follow the weld. We weld build up, carburize or flame harden, then CNC machine and grind in the same shop, so the tread, flange, and bore come back true to each other and hard enough to carry the load.
Build up, carburize, flame harden, CNC machining, and OD and ID grinding all happen here in Houston. Your wheel is never handed off to a third party shop between steps, so nothing slips out of tolerance in transit.
For over two decades Houston plants and terminals have trusted us to regrind the wheels on bridge cranes, gantry cranes, ship to shore cranes, and heavy trolleys that cannot afford a long outage.
Wheels on the same axle or end truck are ground to a common diameter within thousandths so the crane tracks straight, the rails last, and the flanges stop wearing one side away.
This is exactly what happens from the moment a worn wheel arrives at the shop to the day it ships back, built up, hardened, machined, and ground to print.
We measure the tread diameter, the flange thickness and height, the bore, and the keyway, and we magnaflux inspect the wheel for cracks in the flange root and the bore. The inspection is free and tells you the real condition before any work begins.
When the tread is worn past minimum diameter, flat spotted, or the flange is thin, we weld build up the running surface with a matched filler so there is sound material to machine and harden back to size.
The built up wheel is set up on the CNC lathe and rough turned, bringing the tread, flange, and bore back toward print and removing weld stress before heat treatment.
The tread and flange are carburized or flame hardened to put a hard case over a tough core, the same way the original casting was treated, so the running surface resists spalling and point load wear against the rail.
The hardened wheel is finish ground on the OD for the tread diameter and the flange profile, and on the ID for the bore, so every surface comes back to the exact size and finish the print calls for.
The bore is held concentric to the tread and the keyway is cut or trued so the wheel seats square on the axle and runs without runout that would flat spot it again.
Wheels that share an axle or an end truck are ground to the same diameter within thousandths so the crane tracks straight down the runway instead of crabbing and chewing the rail.
Every dimension and the hardness are checked one last time, and the wheel is magnaflux inspected again before it ships. The completed work carries an up to 24 month workmanship warranty.
From the first cut to the final hardness check, the full chain of machining, grinding, heat treatment, and inspection happens here in Houston.
CNC turning and machining of treads, flanges, bores, and keyways so the wheel returns to print geometry before and after heat treatment.
OD grinding for the tread and flange, ID grinding for the bore, and centerless grinding for shafts and pins, all finished to size and surface finish.
Weld build up of worn treads, thin flanges, scored bores, and undersize shafts so there is sound material to machine and harden back to the original dimension.
Carburizing and flame hardening of the running surface to restore the hard case the wheel needs to carry a heavy point load against a steel rail.
Magnetic particle, or magnaflux, inspection of flange roots, bores, and shafts to catch cracks before the wheel goes back under load.
Crane shafts trued and reground, cable sheaves regrooved to the correct rope radius, and drum grooves and journals rebuilt on the same equipment.
The same CNC machining and grinding capacity drives our roll and shaft repair and our draw block repair work, and worn wheel bores often ride on bearings we restore through babbitt bearing repair and pouring.
Crane wheels, sheaves, and drums carry the load and the line of the heaviest lifting equipment in a plant or a port. We rebuild and regrind all of it.
Overhead bridge crane and gantry crane wheels, end truck wheels, and idler wheels reground in matched sets so the crane tracks straight and the runway rails stop wearing.
Trolley wheels and track wheels on hoists and monorails built up, hardened, and ground back to diameter, with sheaves and drums regrooved on the same job.
Ship to shore and yard crane wheels for terminals, ladle and charge crane wheels for steel mills, and crane wheels for refineries and petrochemical plants across the Gulf Coast.
Crane wheels and sheaves are often rebuilt alongside the hoist and bridge drive, so we handle the gearbox repair on the same unit and the whole drive ships back ready to run.
Not stock photos. These are wheels and shafts we built up, hardened, and ground to size in our Houston shop, the same quality that goes back under your crane.
A reground wheel comes back to the original diameter, profile, and hardness for a fraction of a new casting, and you save up to 50 percent versus OEM. No wheel with sound material is beyond repair.
Free shipping both ways, free pickup and delivery including crating and rigging, and a free inspection on every job. You see the real condition before you commit.
An up to 24 month workmanship warranty on the build up, the heat treatment, and the grinding. Built to carry the load the way the original casting did.
Crane down and a wheel seized? Our 24 hour emergency line answers at 832 270 2009. Rush rebuilds in days, not weeks.
Yes, in most cases. As long as there is enough sound material left in the tread and flange, we regrind the running surface, restore the flange profile, and true the bore and keyway so the wheel returns to print. When a wheel is worn past minimum tread diameter or has a cracked flange, we weld build up the surface first, then carburize or flame harden and regrind it back to size. A reground wheel returns to the original diameter and hardness for a fraction of the cost of a new casting, and it carries an up to 24 month workmanship warranty.
Wheels on the same axle or the same end truck must roll at the same diameter, usually within a few thousandths of an inch. If one wheel is larger than the other, the crane skews and crabs down the runway, which chews the rails, loads the flanges, and wears the wheels unevenly. We grind crane wheels in matched sets to a common diameter and hold the tread, flange, and bore concentric so the crane tracks straight.
Yes. A crane wheel tread carries a heavy point load against a steel rail, so the running surface needs a hard case over a tough core. After weld build up or rough machining we carburize or flame harden the tread and flange, then finish grind to the print diameter and surface finish. The result is a hardened wheel that resists spalling and tread wear the way the original casting did.
Yes. We regroove and regrind cable sheaves so the rope seats on the correct radius instead of a worn V, and we machine drum grooves and rebuild drum journals on the same equipment. Many overhead crane jobs come to us as a complete package, the wheels, the trolley and track wheels, the idler wheels, the sheaves, the drums, and the shafts, so the whole hoist and bridge ship back ready to run. Shipping and inspection are free both ways.
Free shipping, free pickup and delivery, free inspection, and an up to 24 month warranty on every rebuild. Tell us about your wheels, sheaves, or drums and we will reply fast, often the same day.
