---
title: Small Rolling Wheel (小翻車) — Eight Step Mantis
---
**小翻車 (Xiǎo Fānchē, "Small Rolling Wheel")** is a foundational empty-hand form of the [**Eight Step Praying Mantis**](https://wulin.openmindspace.org/eight-step-mantis) curriculum of [**Wei Xiaotang (衛笑堂)**](https://wulin.openmindspace.org/wei-xiaotang) — **38 postures** built on the **翻車 ("rolling-wheel")** action, in which the body wheels over to deliver chopping smashes (劈砸) and avalanche punches (崩捶). It is the smaller of a pair with [大翻車 (Large Rolling Wheel)](https://wulin.openmindspace.org/eight-step-large-wheeling).
## What it trains
- **The 翻車 rolling-wheel action** — the whole-body turnover that powers the chop
- **Chopping smash (劈砸) and avalanche punch (崩捶)** chains
- **Mantis trapping (採手 / 摟手 / 勾手)** feeding the wheel
- **Named accents** — 美人照鏡 ("a beauty gazes in the mirror"), 白虎洗臉 ("white tiger washes its face"), 回馬鞭 ("turning-horse whip")
## Full posture script — 38 postures
The posture-name list as set down in the **松傳古藝武術學苑** 拳譜 (the 林松賢 / 左顯富 line, direct Wei Xiaotang disciples), reproduced under fair-use citation; the English are the wiki's own working glosses. Eight Step movement names are longer and more *descriptive* than the tight four-character Seven Star style.
| # | 中文 | Working gloss |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | 捕蟬勢 | Catching-the-cicada posture |
| 2 | 開步崩捶 | Opening step, avalanche punch |
| 3 | 上步劈砸 | Advancing step, chopping smash |
| 4 | 反捶 | Reverse punch |
| 5 | 翻車 | Rolling wheel |
| 6 | 摟手蓋捶 | Scooping hand, covering punch |
| 7 | 勾手騎馬撐捶 | Hooking hand, horse stance, propping punch |
| 8 | 偷手劈砸 | Stealing hand, chopping smash |
| 9 | 挑抱 | Lifting embrace |
| 10 | 插捶 | Inserting punch |
| 11 | 雙捋手 | Double rollback hands |
| 12 | 掛手縱步騎馬疊肘 | Hanging hand, leaping step, horse-stance stacked elbow |
| 13 | 摟手崩捶 | Scooping hand, avalanche punch |
| 14 | 偷手三捶 | Stealing hand, three punches |
| 15 | 右圈捶 | Right, circling punch |
| 16 | 左圈捶 | Left, circling punch |
| 17 | 美人照鏡 | A beauty gazes in the mirror |
| 18 | 白虎洗臉 | White tiger washes its face |
| 19 | 美人照鏡 | A beauty gazes in the mirror |
| 20 | 白虎洗臉 | White tiger washes its face |
| 21 | 採手靠步劈砸 | Seizing hand, leaning step, chopping smash |
| 22 | 翻捶 | Flipping, punch |
| 23 | 偷手劈砸 | Stealing hand, chopping smash |
| 24 | 三跺 | Three stamps |
| 25 | 掛手支捶，摔落 | Hanging hand, propping punch; throw down |
| 26 | 偷手三捶 | Stealing hand, three punches |
| 27 | 回馬鞭 | Turning-horse whip |
| 28 | 勾手支捶，摔落 | Hooking hand, propping punch; throw down |
| 29 | 偷手右攔馬 | Stealing hand, right, reining the horse |
| 30 | 掛手進步海底取寶 | Hanging hand, advancing, reach the sea-bottom for treasure |
| 31 | 挫掌 | Grinding palm |
| 32 | 轆轤 | Windlass |
| 33 | 挪步外掠 | Shifting step, outward sweep |
| 34 | 偷步盤肘 | Stealing step, coiling elbow |
| 35 | 摟手崩捶 | Scooping hand, avalanche punch |
| 36 | 回身撩陰掌 | Turning back, rising groin palm |
| 37 | 摟手窩肚捶 | Scooping hand, belly punch |
| 38 | 後封手沖捶 | Back, sealing hand, charging punch |
## Place in the curriculum
An early-curriculum foundation set, after 七手 and 力劈. **Note:** distinct from the **Seven Star** 小翻車 — that branch's "Small Water Wheel" has no surviving open script (see the [Mantis Forms map](https://wulin.openmindspace.org/mantis-forms)); the Eight Step 小翻車 documented here is a different, well-preserved Wei-line form.
## Videos
- [[八步螳螂拳] 小翻車 (王聖穎)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HGfodQ0udvg) — lineage demonstration
## See also
## Sources
**[1]** 衛笑堂 Wei Xiaotang, *實用螳螂拳* series (1968 / 續集 1972 / 秘笈 1977; Yiwen 逸文 reprints) — the in-copyright primary published source for the Eight Step curriculum; cited, not reproduced.
**[2]** **松傳古藝武術學苑** (suntrans88.blogspot.com) — the 拳譜 posted by the **林松賢 / 左顯富** line (direct Wei Xiaotang disciples). The bare posture-name list is reproduced under fair-use citation; the English are the wiki's own working glosses. Source post: [http://suntrans88.blogspot.com/2016/11/blog-post\_6.html](http://suntrans88.blogspot.com/2016/11/blog-post_6.html).