wvscott
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Sunday, July 28, 2019 9:35:38 AM
it seems whenever you read an article about large events, the large wheels are always described as one of the most popular rides. Who all exactly moves a very large wheel (bigger than chance giant wheel) and what do you know about them (loads) ?

Here is what I could find so far from what I read as quoted by the show owners in news articles:

Reithoffer has a Dutch Wheel they move (120 feet high - 4 trailers) purchased in 1986

Strates (126 feet high - 4 trailers)

RCS has 3 very large wheels, one called the Big Wheel (108 feet high - not sure number of loads), another called the Grand Wheel (108 feet high - not sure number of loads) and also the La Grande Wheel XL (164 feet high - 22 trailers) purchased in 2017. RCS had all 3 set up at Houston.

Wood/Wade Sky Eye Wheel (150 feet high - 12 trailers) purchased in 2017

Powers Parthenon Wheel (108 feet high - 4 trailers) purchased in 2016

Talley Amusements Giant Wheel (108 feet high - 4 trailers) purchased in 2018

are there others?




Dave
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Sunday, July 28, 2019 6:50:03 PM
https://carnivalwarehous...ers-big-rides-1553040000 
This article says the wheels are viable. Wades Woods is a 5 buck ride and the fair board gets a smaller cut in lieu of naming rights sponsorship. I cant find the article it was minnesota state fair where it had listed the number of riders over 100,000 maybe it was more.
thunderbolt85
Monday, July 29, 2019 7:12:34 AM
Originally Posted by: wvscott 

it seems whenever you read an article about large events, the large wheels are always described as one of the most popular rides. Who all exactly moves a very large wheel (bigger than chance giant wheel) and what do you know about them (loads) ?

Here is what I could find so far from what I read as quoted by the show owners in news articles:

Reithoffer has a Dutch Wheel they move (120 feet high - 4 trailers) purchased in 1986

Strates (126 feet high - 4 trailers)

RCS has 3 very large wheels, one called the Big Wheel (108 feet high - not sure number of loads), another called the Grand Wheel (108 feet high - not sure number of loads) and also the La Grande Wheel XL (164 feet high - 22 trailers) purchased in 2017. RCS had all 3 set up at Houston.

Wood/Wade Sky Eye Wheel (150 feet high - 12 trailers) purchased in 2017

Powers Parthenon Wheel (108 feet high - 4 trailers) purchased in 2016

Talley Amusements Giant Wheel (108 feet high - 4 trailers) purchased in 2018

are there others?







As far as I can remember you nailed it pretty much, I know there are several shows carrying smaller European wheels that only travel on one trailer. But here is some history as well as to who had what if your interested:

Deggeller had a Dutch wheel for a while (80s). Reported as 110 feet high, first appeared at the FSF and came with a straight truck from Europe but it had to be cut up due to pollution req. here in the USA. That wheel now resides at Knoebels park in PA. Traveled on 4 loads.

Conklin had a Dutch Wheel up till they became NAME. It was 4 loads and last I heard it was junked sadly.

I have seen pictures of a dutch wheel in an Amusements of America company brochure, but from what I understand they never owned one, and I have not seen that type of wheel again or know of anyone who had it in the USA, so could have just been a picture they used.

Interesting note, when Strates (and I believe Deggeller and Reithoffer) first had their Giant Wheels it was actually 5 loads. The fifth load was a dog house and either carried spare parts or was a bunk house. But they soon dropped that extra load to reduce costs. I can remember seeing it parked behind Strates wheel and the guy inside operating.
Also, I know Reithoffer's had a back wall, but I think Deggeller's did as well although he never used it that I saw.
ridejocky
Monday, July 29, 2019 6:49:39 PM
Strates’ doghouse sat on the back platform and moved on four loads when it was new, unless you count the Pettibone hydraulic crane.


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Bill P
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Monday, July 29, 2019 9:40:49 PM
First Dutch wheel I saw was Deggellers at 1985 Ohio State fair. No lights on the wheel just a whole bunch of quartz floodlights in the trusses of the A frame. The turbos were added later. You can still see the brackets for the floodlights in the structure at Knoebels.

saw Reithoffers in 1986. It only had orange lights on the sweeps. half had them full length and half only halfway out if I recall correctly. 2 or 3 years later they added more lights and computerized them so it could do flashing, windmills etc.It now has a typical LED light package.

The Strates Dutch Wheel was delivered at Hamburg, NY in 1986 but the tubs didn't arrive on time so it didn't run there. It first operated in Syracuse , the next spot. It only had lights on one side from 1986-1992. The second side was lit in 1993, more recently converted to LED. Strates was also the first one i saw with the solid tube A frame.
ridejocky
Monday, July 29, 2019 10:11:10 PM
Originally Posted by: Bill P 

First Dutch wheel I saw was Deggellers at 1985 Ohio State fair. No lights on the wheel just a whole bunch of quartz floodlights in the trusses of the A frame. The turbos were added later. You can still see the brackets for the floodlights in the structure at Knoebels.

saw Reithoffers in 1986. It only had orange lights on the sweeps. half had them full length and half only halfway out if I recall correctly. 2 or 3 years later they added more lights and computerized them so it could do flashing, windmills etc.It now has a typical LED light package.

The Strates Dutch Wheel was delivered at Hamburg, NY in 1986 but the tubs didn't arrive on time so it didn't run there. It first operated in Syracuse , the next spot. It only had lights on one side from 1986-1992. The second side was lit in 1993, more recently converted to LED. Strates was also the first one i saw with the solid tube A frame.



The ride was not really complete when it was delivered. The tubs were shipped in pieces and had to be assembled at site. The railings on the tubs were fabricated locally. It really was a mess. A crew of guys came over with it to get it done and up the first spot.

As I understand it, due to currency fluctuation the company (Houser?) that built it lost a butt-load of money on it.
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thunderbolt85
Tuesday, July 30, 2019 7:16:02 AM
Originally Posted by: ridejocky 

Strates’ doghouse sat on the back platform and moved on four loads when it was new, unless you count the Pettibone hydraulic crane.




Maybe it only moved on four loads, but I know I remember that wagon behind the wheel with a window as a doghouse and someone sitting in there watching the wheel. I believe the trailer was black with Giant Wheel on it, I will see if I can find some pictures. I mean I know you were there with the show, but maybe you will remember the trailer I am thinking of, maybe it was just a bunkhouse with the window and they parked it behind the wheel. But yes, the last few years I saw it they were running it on the back platform.
thunderbolt85
Tuesday, July 30, 2019 7:20:27 AM
Originally Posted by: Bill P 

First Dutch wheel I saw was Deggellers at 1985 Ohio State fair. No lights on the wheel just a whole bunch of quartz floodlights in the trusses of the A frame. The turbos were added later. You can still see the brackets for the floodlights in the structure at Knoebels.

saw Reithoffers in 1986. It only had orange lights on the sweeps. half had them full length and half only halfway out if I recall correctly. 2 or 3 years later they added more lights and computerized them so it could do flashing, windmills etc.It now has a typical LED light package.

The Strates Dutch Wheel was delivered at Hamburg, NY in 1986 but the tubs didn't arrive on time so it didn't run there. It first operated in Syracuse , the next spot. It only had lights on one side from 1986-1992. The second side was lit in 1993, more recently converted to LED. Strates was also the first one i saw with the solid tube A frame.




Yeah Deggeller' s was the first one I saw and that was in 88, had that awful looking "pinkel" color on the towers. Wasn't it green and white or something when they first got it?

Strates wheel was sharp when I first saw it in 88, once Deggeller set his up at the Upper SC State Fair, then Reithoffer put theirs up at the Piedmont Interstate fair, and Strates in Anderson.

Strates had at one time some nice decorative lights around the outside of the platform but I think they have dropped those now and all the lights were very coordinated and all of them lit. In Anderson that first year they tore it down on Friday night leaving only the towers and base (without the platforms) on the last Saturday.
thunderbolt85
Tuesday, July 30, 2019 7:24:00 AM
A bit off topic, but you know I believe that 1001 Nights there at Knoebels was the one Cumberland Valley Shows had, not sure where Deggeller's went.
wvscott
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Tuesday, July 30, 2019 8:34:37 AM
I just rode that Dutch wheel at Knoebels last week. It still rides good and has led lights only on one side. The cars look like they may have had lights on the bottom of the tubs at one time, but now those holes are covered with plates. You can barely tell these days that the wheel once moved over the road. At least it found a good home.
ridejocky
Tuesday, July 30, 2019 6:46:27 PM
Originally Posted by: thunderbolt85 

Maybe it only moved on four loads, but I know I remember that wagon behind the wheel with a window as a doghouse and someone sitting in there watching the wheel. I believe the trailer was black with Giant Wheel on it, I will see if I can find some pictures. I mean I know you were there with the show, but maybe you will remember the trailer I am thinking of, maybe it was just a bunkhouse with the window and they parked it behind the wheel. But yes, the last few years I saw it they were running it on the back platform.

.

No black trailer that I knew about. I could be wrong, but I remember base-load, tower-load, tub-load, and spoke-load. They may have added a trailer later, it could have used another.

The guy that moved it after me (Billy Truex) had a semi-trailer living quarters that might have been parked behind it, but I think that was brown and had a cabover Ford that pulled it.

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JW
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Tuesday, July 30, 2019 8:48:36 PM
Originally Posted by: thunderbolt85 

Maybe it only moved on four loads, but I know I remember that wagon behind the wheel with a window as a doghouse and someone sitting in there watching the wheel. I believe the trailer was black with Giant Wheel on it, I will see if I can find some pictures. I mean I know you were there with the show, but maybe you will remember the trailer I am thinking of, maybe it was just a bunkhouse with the window and they parked it behind the wheel. But yes, the last few years I saw it they were running it on the back platform.




thunderbolt85:
I think this is the trailer you are talking about (?)...

https://i.ebayimg.com/im...AOSwmPFcXHJo/s-l1600.jpg 


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JW
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Tuesday, July 30, 2019 8:53:15 PM
Originally Posted by: ridejocky 

The ride was not really complete when it was delivered. The tubs were shipped in pieces and had to be assembled at site. The railings on the tubs were fabricated locally. It really was a mess. A crew of guys came over with it to get it done and up the first spot.

As I understand it, due to currency fluctuation the company (Houser?) that built it lost a butt-load of money on it.



ridejocky:
That is is an interesting back story about the wheel.
"Don't forget to be half fair and give a little credit to the small concessionaire"
Bill P
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Tuesday, July 30, 2019 9:04:15 PM
I had heard that two wheels were ordered from that company in 1986, one by Strates and the other by Bob Moegerle. Story as I heard it was that Strates made arrangements to get their first and the company went out of business before they finished Moegerle's wheel.

Bill P
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Tuesday, July 30, 2019 9:08:24 PM
1001 at Knoebels has inspection stickers from Louisiana State Fair 1996 and the State of Texas 1996 and 1997.
That might help identify who owned it before the park.