For centuries civilisation was kept moving on the skills of the wheelwright, or wainwright.

They were the people who know how to make the spoked wheels that hold horse drawn wagons off the ground.

Dave Harper and his problem wheel.

The wheel type has been around for about 4000 years and has only recently been moved aside by the advent of the motor car.

Pressed steel rims and pneumatic tyres relegated the wheelwright to the history books as horse drawn traffic was pushed aside.

The last horse drawn coach operating in the Bay of Plenty from Rotorua to Tauranga struggled on into the early 20th century well after other routes were replaced by rail.

The Rotorua-Tauranga coach was donated to the Tauranga Historic Village where it is about to be repaired and refurbished at the Men's Shed.

Men's Shed coordinator Dave Harper needs a wheelwright.

'The steering is not quite right and one of the wheels is a bit wobbly,” says Dave.

One individual offered to do up the coach for $14,000, says Dave.

The Men's Shed will do it for free – if the money can be found about the town for the estimated $2500 materials bill.

Meanwhile Dave wants a wheelwright to have a look at the wheel.

The last time he saw a wheelwright there were two 40 year olds working with a 90 year old watching to make sure they were doing it right.