NEW PHILADELPHIA ‒ RTY officials say they think the 1926 C.W. Parker Ferris wheel at Tuscora Park may be back in operation in time for First Town Days in July.

The vintage amusement ride was completely rebuilt over a year ago under the direction of the Rotary Club of New Philadelphia and its nonprofit arm, RTY Inc., which operates the rides at Tuscora Park for the city. It operated for about a month in 2023 before it was shut down due to a noise. An inspection later revealed that the main axel was fractured.

A new axel was recently installed.

Gradall Industries in New Philadelphia engineered, built and donated the new axel, which was installed by Dover Tank & Plate and C&G Erectors of Malvern.

Gradall and Dover Tank & Plate used FEA (finite element analysis) to engineer the new axel, according to Rotarian Greg Rees, who spearheaded the reconstruction project. They tried different materials and designs on a computer to come up with a design.

More on Ferris wheel: Rebuilt Tuscora Park Ferris wheel to be dedicated May 28

The new axel is designed to last for 1 million cycles, he said. The old one, which lasted for 28 years, was designed for 12,000 cycles.

“It far exceeded the 12,000 cycles,” Rees said. “We got our money’s worth out of it.”

New train ride

At the same time, RTY is awaiting delivery of a new train it purchased for Tuscora Park.

The train is being built in Texas, and the cars are currently in the paint process, Rees said. The project is running behind schedule because of the difficulty in finding skilled workers to do the job.

The train, when completed, will be Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) compliant, he said. It is being constructed so that two wheelchairs can be loaded on the train. The Ferris wheel will also be ADA compliant, he said.

Both the Ferris wheel and the train will have to be inspected before they can begin to operate.

Reach Jon at 330-364-8415 or at jon.baker@timesreporter.com.

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This article originally appeared on The Times-Reporter: Tuscora Park Ferris wheel gets new axel to allow it to operate again