Just my opinion a bit long
Hi Alf
I bought a Bellcrown, after having taken the time to drive all the way from Essex up to their offices in Malpas Cheshire (about 4-5 hours! for us) and having lots of conversations with Martin whos owns Belcrown. Within one week after delivery, it had to go back again
for a refund. They couldnt offer me any trial facilities but we did sit in one in their workshop. I especially needed something that was low to the ground (for an 11hh) and that had good suspension due to my balance issues. Their carriages are in my opinion higher seating than most and are a long way from the floor normally. Both the suspension and height were promised and the fact that it was completely dismantleable was a plus point because we were only going to be able to borrow someone elses trailer which we were not going to be able to modify. They were really nice at Bellcrown, and willing to help - until we found that we had a problem..
We were going to get it delivered but in the end my OH took our people carrier and collected it, and it fitted in the car dismantled. However it was loaded in the evening and when we unloaded it we realised that it was dented on the splashboard, which they promised to replace, they gave us free baseball caps in a matching colour and threw in a lovely gig whip too. Was going brill until we put it together. The holes that the shafts go in are made of the same square tubing that the chassis of the carriage is made from. The end of the shafts are circular. They are held in place with a normal bolt that presses the shaft into the corner of the square tubing. There are no holes in the shaft for the bolt to go through, so its held just by pressure from the bolt pressing on it. Its difficult (near impossible) to ensure that the shafts dont rotate within the square tubing and our bolts were tightened enough so I was worried that we would dent the shafts! The horse end of the shafts are curved and so they tended to rotate completely upside down
this is one of the biggest problems. The carriage itself looked quite boxy, but the finish of the carriage was fine and everything was well painted. I had one of the top of the range carriages too. It was easy to put together, and we even got a pot of spare colour paint to touch up. It was exceptionally heavy, and the wheels were dead weight. It was also quite difficult to balance even with the balance winding system. But had we gone for the cheaper non winding system, then we would have had to turn the carriage over, unbolt the axle move it and then rebolt it!! The main reason for returning it though was the lack of suspension. To get the base of the carriage lower they suggested that we turn the wheels over so that the suspension are was facing up rather than down. Unfortunately that made the suspension like a bone shaker and gave me the equivalent of car sickness in just one trip out. It was a truly awful ride. The seating position I felt was odd, Ben had trouble with the weight even though it was the right size for him. We couldnt balance it properly and the shafts kept moving about even though we had the bolts screwed in as tight as we dared. When I rang Bellcrown and explained that because of my disability I had specific needs which I had discussed with them at great length before the purchase and they couldnt offer me a trial that it had turned out not to be suitable and stated the reasons. Things got a little interesting and it took a large number of weeks to get the carriage returned and get a refund. The owner said that I had 'taken him for a ride' !!! and that other disabled people used his carriages fine and I shouldnt have had a problem! I stated that all disabilities were different and that I had notified him of the problems within two days of it arriving, it had be cleaned and polished and was in exactly the same condition that it had arrived in. It was still a 'big issue' but before the carriage was actually returned to him, it was advertised on the website as a 'trial vehicle for sale'!!
Recommend them, not sure, I wouldnt have much confidence in the shafts not dropping out, and the suspension would only be suitable if you didnt mind a hard ride.
ooops bit long sorry.
