Roger’s $0.02 - Put Wheels on It! (Patreon)

Wheels are great. They provide us with mobility and mechanical solutions to everyday problems. And as of this past weekend, they made moving my PC a tad bit easier. Gone are the days of yore when I had to physically pick up all 33 lbs to reposition it a few inches or a few feet around for cleaning or to make room. Why? Because I put wheels on it!

When it comes to building a PC a lot of thought is given to its performance, appearance, and its silence. Beyond the actual internal components like the processor, GPU, motherboard, drives, and cooling a lot of time is given to its curb appeal. Does it have enough LEDs? Does it have the right LEDs? Is the case the right shape? But I’ve noticed, at least in my case, very little attention has been paid to its mobility. With some rigs sporting multiple high-end GPUs, multiple HDD and SSD drives and large wattage power supplies the weight of some machines can easily pass 30 or 35 lbs.

With ease, I can roll out my PC from underneath my desk and roll it back into place when I need to vacuum or check for loose cables. All it took was a $40 purchase. Originally I was looking for just a simple CPU dolly. Something to put some casters underneath my case because frankly getting on all fours anytime I need to move my PC is tiring. There are of course a number of options. But because my PC is on the chonky side I need something that can support its weight without tipping over.

A majority of the available CPU dollies come in two varieties; a furniture mover-like device that’s just wheels attached to a flat platform, and a dolly shaped like the letter “U” with attached wheels. In both the lack of handles was a turn-off. Plus all the CPU dollies shaped like a “U” had weight capacities that fell short of what I needed. So after a bit more searching, I landed on this number.

It’s a thin metal cart with two metal mesh shelves. The product description explicitly mentions each shelf is capable of holding 40 lbs. Like all products on Amazon, I know nothing about, I immediately head to the critical reviews. Many of the critical reviews mention poor build quality. But the good reviews make up the majority of reviews. So click goes the order button.

Three days later I got a rather small box delivered. Lo and behold it's the cart. I immediately begin to assemble the product. And almost as quickly I noticed some parts don’t fit together as well as they should. Each metal shelf is shipped in two pieces. You insert the tab from one side into the other and screen them together. The problem is one tab on one shelf is splayed one millimeter too far making them impossible to fit together. However, it turns out a couple of raps with a hammer easily bent the metal into place. Fifteen minutes later the cart is finished and put my CPU inside. It holds together well as I pull the cart around to see how it handles. Not bad. I then put my stereo receiver on the top shelf. It still pulls but I notice the added weight makes the cart feel flimsy as the metal bends before it actually begins moving. Furthermore, I notice an ever-so-slight bowing on the bottom shelf that my 32 lbs is sitting on. Hopefully, the specs are correct and I have 8 lbs of additional capacity.

Time will tell how the cart holds up but overall it's been a great addition. It makes everything so much easier to deal with. And now that I’ve experienced what it's like to have wheels underneath a PC I don’t think I’ll ever go back to owning a PC without a cart of dolly to put it on.