Sherlock 45L Steel Tray Cart BBGC45

I would rate this a five for the wear and tear it has come thru. It has carried everything from garden pots to soil to pavers. But after 8 years one of the wheels needs replacing. This is where my 3 comes in. I have been to Bunnings twice and still can't get the right wheel. At the moment my only option is to buy a whole new cart

Sherlock 45L Steel Tray Cart - great design let down by execution – Just purchased this Sherlock 45L Steel Cart from our local Bunnings, put it together and put it to work. So this is definitely no long term review. I shall update this over time as required. We have a small garden and need a cart to move plants, soil, wood bark, mulch, etc around. Don't really want a wheelbarrow because you need to make sure it is balanced or else it may tip over on the side spilling everything inside. Having two or more wheels avoids this problem.

Why this little 45L Two-wheeler Cart? Originally, we were attracted to four-wheeled carts such as the Sherlock 67L Poly Cart or Gorilla Carts 115L Poly Dump Cart. Gorilla Carts certainly look better designed and put together. However, all the four-wheeled carts are just too big for what we need. I would prefer one that is small enough that my wife would feel comfortable using, lifting and moving around with. Despite the Sherlock four-wheel cart is 67L compared 115L of the Gorilla Cart, it has very similar width and in fact slightly longer than the Gorilla at over 1m long, tray alone.

Therefore, we went back to two-wheeled carts. Initially wanted to get the Sherlock 60L Poly Cart. It has twice the number of reviews compared with this 45L steel tray cart. But I was really disappointed on closer inspection. While thank God the handle bar isn't covered by foam grip like the Sherlock four-wheeled cart, its single handle bar does have rubber bicycle handle bar grips and I definitely was attracted by the poly cart - no rust! However, the cheap hard wheels (so called solid puncture proof wheel) don't have bearings like the 10" x 3" pneumatic wheel the 45L steel cart has. The axles where the wheels are fitted are only partially painted and they are already rusted, right out of the box! And the nuts are huge and therefore heavy. This all metal cart is not much heavier than the larger 60L poly cart sibling from Sherlock. So we chose this 45L steel tray cart.

The Good 1. Pneumatic wheels - this cart has proper (and standard size) pneumatic wheels with bearings. The wheels spin freely and inspire so much more confidence than the hard wheels. They absorbs bumps and makes for much more comfortable feel traveling on uneven terrains. 2. Taller - because of the larger wheels and stronger frame compared with the 60L poly cart sibling, the metal tray sits above the wheels, making the cart taller and contents inside easier to access and easier to tip out. 3. U-shaped handle bar - the 60L poly cart sibling has a t-shaped handle bar and a t-shaped metal frame. This 45L steel cart has a much stronger chassis underneath, especially with the u-shaped handle bar, even though it is not wrapped by anything. 4. Metal bath tub tray - while the steel tray may rust, it is easy to clean (and restore when required) and it holds its shape well. Unlike poly tray, it has no holes. 5. Easy assembly - it doesn't get any easier and instructions have pictures which are easy to follow. Frankly, you don't need instructions.

The Bad 1. Tolerances are poor - while the design is good. This product has a major let down in implementation. As some reviewers pointed out, either one axle or one wheel is larger than another. One fitted really tight while another really loose. But thanks to bearings, this does not present a problem. I added bearing oil to each wheel during assembly. Likewise, the steel frame joints are really loose. The rods don't need to be pushed all the way in for screw holes to line up either. Even though I very tightly fastened all screws / nuts until the spring washer are completely flat and beyond, the bars still has quite a significant amount of play. Thank goodness the final step of attaching the tray to the frame tied everything together and reduced some of the play. I reckon it is this play that gets the screws undone as reported by other users. Recommend you add thread lock to all screws during assembly. 2. Single wing nut to hold the tray to the frame - not sure why the tray is held onto the frame with a wing nut. Is it supposed to be removed from time to time? I added thread-lock to all the screws except for wing nut. I think one day I will add thread-lock to the wing nut as well. If there are two nuts holding the tray to the frame, it will be much stronger. And there is a screw or two at the base of the tray holding onto the cross bar underneath then this tray cart would have been perfect. 3. The screws should have been hex screws rather than having a large flat screw head. The head is very shallow and requires a large flat screw driver. Without the right screw driver, it is likely to slip and damage the head. Why not include a screw driver with this product? Otherwise, the holes should have been hex shaped and bolts likewise could have had a hex shaped inner part, so they lock into each other and not spin freely when installed. Then tightening would be much simpler via the hex nut alone rather than needing to hold the nut and use a screw driver at the same time. Alternatively, the hex nut could have been welded on to the tube. 4. Wing nut should be on top rather than bottom. Upon removing the wing nut for whatever reason, the washer and spring washer are at risk of falling off and getting lost. Why not have the wing nut on top instead, especially if one is expected to remove it at times (as the design suggests).

All in all, this 45L Two-Wheeled Steel Tray Cart is a strong, easy to use cart with 100 kg max capacity. Easy to use and maneuver, but I am concerned about the play in the frame when carrying heavy load.