Casters and wheels come in a wide variety of designs, sizes, materials, load capacities, and mounting types. One of the most basic questions when choosing wheels is, rigid or swivel? The answer depends on your space constraints, how often and how far you need to move the item or material, and how much it weighs.

Rigid or “fixed” casters can move forward and backward only—they can’t turn corners or change course. Rigid casters are stronger than swivel casters, and they have higher load ratings. If you need wheels that can maneuver items or material in tight spaces, swivel casters are the right choice. They have ball bearings so they’ll turn even under very heavy loads.

If you need to roll cargo backward and forward and change direction, you can use both swivel and rigid wheels, one type at one end, and the other type at the other end (think shopping carts). That way, you can move the item over longer distances, and it will still be easy to keep the swivel casters from going off-course.

 California Caster has a comprehensive selection of both rigid and swivel wheels for virtually any business, commercial, or manufacturing need. Please feel free to call us anytime for friendly, knowledgeable assistance.