How to Build a Street Vendor Cart

Standard 20-inch bicycle wheels work well for vendor carts.

Street vendor carts can be used for transporting and displaying a wide array of goods. The simplest is an open box cart, about table height with a simple push handle. It can be used to display almost any type of small goods, such as clothing, books or tools. The bed of the cart can be made from heavy-duty plywood. Bicycle wheels work well for making the cart portable. Build the cart to the size you need for displaying the items you intend to sell.

Things You'll Need

• Plywood
• Table saw
• Pin nail gun
• Treated deck screws
• Cordless drill
• Angle iron
• Hack saw
• Wood screws
• 1-by-4 lumber
• 1 1/2-inch-thick dowel
• Bicycle or garden cart wheels

Instructions

Box Construction

1. Cut the cart box parts from three-fourths-inch plywood, using a table saw. Cut two side pieces, 6 to 10 inches wide and 48 to 60 inches long. Cut two end pieces the same width as the side pieces and 36 to 48 inches long.

2. Stand the pieces on edge with the two side pieces parallel to each other and the two end pieces fitted between them, one flush with each end, to form a large rectangle. Apply wood glue along the edges of the end pieces and nail through the sides with a pin nail gun, into the ends of the end pieces, one nail every 4 inches, or at least 3 nails.

3. Drive 1 5/8 treated deck screws through the joints to reinforce them. Use one screw 1 inch in from each corner and one in the center. Drive the screws using a cordless drill, through the side pieces into the edges of the end pieces.

4. Measure the inside dimensions of your open ended box. Cut a piece of plywood to fit the dimensions and set it into the frame. Nail through the side and end pieces into the edges of this bottom panel, one nail every 4 inches. Reinforce the joints with screws as you did for the ends.

Wheels and Handle

1. Cut two pieces of 2-inch perforated angle iron 26 inches long and two pieces at 36 inches long, using a hack saw. Fit the two short pieces to the front corners of the box and drive one pan head three-fourths-inch screw through each hole to anchor them in place with one end flush with the open top edge of the box. Attach the longer pieces to the back corners of the box in the same way.

2. Measure and cut two pieces of 1-inch-by-4-inch lumber 12 inches longer than the box. Round of the corners of the pieces at one end using a band saw. Attach the one-by-fours to the box, with one long edge flush with the box's top edge and the flat end flush with the front end of the cart, using 1 1/4-inch treated deck screws, one every 6 inches.

3. Cut a piece of 1 1/2-inch thick wooden dowel to fit between the two one-by-four pieces. Fit the dowel between the one-by-fours and drive one 3-inch screw into the center of the dowel on each end, through the one-by-fours to create a handle.

4. Fit the axle bolts of two 20-inch bicycle or garden cart wheels through the bottom hole of the short pieces of the angle iron from the outside, and fit a washer and nut on the inside face and tighten with a wrench to complete the cart.