Cross sills, sideboard cleats, straddler
staples, running boards, sliders, sway bars, bunters, fifth chains, standards,
circle irons, brake shoes, reach boxes, box straps, boot ends, bolster iron
extensions, box tighteners, rub irons, sand board plates… The list can go on and on. Clearly, there are a lot of
technical-sounding terms used when referencing wagons, coaches, and other
western vehicles. Beyond the obvious
advantages in allowing easier communication with others, understanding these
designations is the first step to gaining real insight into the purposes of the
designs themselves. To help grow
knowledge of many of these near-forgotten terms, a few years ago, we created a
first-of-its-kind illustration of wagon parts and made it the centerpiece of
our Making Tracks limited edition
print.
For the sake of discussion here, we’ll
cover just a few of the designations mentioned above. ‘Cross sills’ on a wagon refer to the
hardwood supports attached beneath the box floor. Positioned transverse to the box length, the
more cross sills a wagon has can be one indicator of the original expense of
the vehicle. Beyond the added cost of
the material and time to install it, wagon boxes with more cross sills were
often more desirable because they tended to be more stable and solid – all
things being equal with other box designs.
The old adage, “You get what you pay for,” was just as true a century
ago as it is today.
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A forward positioned cross sill on a wagon box. |
‘Box tighteners’ are typically placed
over or mounted onto the sideboards of a farm wagon. To get a clearer picture of these devices, we
need to understand their purpose. First
and foremost, they are engineered to help pull the sideboards tight to each
other. The intent is to seal any gaps
between the sideboards, thereby helping prevent the loss of smaller grain and
seed. There are a variety of different
designs that do this. Some also work to
help eliminate gaps between the lowermost sideboard and the floor while also
stiffening the sides of the box. Often,
these ‘tighteners’ were used in conjunction with metal flashing between the
boards to help further prevent spillage.
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This is just one of many different types of box tightener designs. |
Some time back, I received a question
about rub irons. On a wagon, these are
the metal bars or plates positioned behind both front wheels on the lowermost
sides of the box/bed. They can be shaped
a number of different ways for different reasons, but their primary purpose is
to shield the box from damage caused by a wheel turned too tight. Beyond their protective purpose, many aren’t
aware that each iron is built to be able to be used twice. In other words, when the abrasion from a
wheel’s metal tire eventually cuts through the iron, leaving it too worn for
effective use, the piece is designed to be unbolted, turned around, and
switched to the other side of the wagon box.
This is an important distinction I’ve seen misinterpreted numerous
times.
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Rub irons help protect the box from wheel damage. |
At the end of the day, the best advice
for any involved subject is… Don’t be afraid to ask questions. We all have to learn sometime. Getting to know proper vehicle nomenclature
and design purposes will help minimize challenges from miscommunication and
give you an even deeper appreciation for the original builders of these
vehicles.
