Converted Trailer Makes Great Cattle Hauler

Converted Trailer Makes Great Cattle Hauler LIVESTOCK Handling Gary Bueckert converted a semi trailer into a ground loading cattle hauler for less than a quarter the cost of a new one The former 53-ft van carries around 30 head at a time broken up into 4 groups of 7 10 10 and 3 “I sized the front pen so I could use it for calves when hauling cow/calf pairs ” says Bueckert “We moved the axles forward and lowered the last 7 ft of the van to about 18 in from the ground It rides on air bag suspension so when we deflate it it drops another 4 in closer to the ground The cows step right on ” Dropping the rear section of the van nearer to ground level required Bueckert to cut away the floor surface and its I-channel supports “We extended the interior frame of the van sides down and installed a sub frame using 2 by 4-in steel tubing for sides and for a rear bumper in case we had to pull it ” says Bueckert “Cross supports were 2 by 2-in steel tubing and the old I-channel with 10-in wide fir planking for the floor ” Once in the rear van section it’s easy for the cows to step up the heavy-duty ramp to the standard deck Bueckert split the ramp in half because it was built so stout too stout he thinks now “If I were to redo it I would build them with aluminum tubing instead of the 2 by 2 1/4-in steel tubing ” says Bueckert “When the trailer deck is loaded we hang the ramp on the walls to make room for the last 3 head ” Bueckert installed gates 12 ft 29 ft and 46 ft from the front end Each gate mounts to 2 by 2-in steel tubing welded to the original trailer sidewall tubing frame “The sidewalls on a dry van are a little flimsy for hauling cattle ” says Bueckert “The added tubing stiffened it up ” The sidewalls were further strengthened when he attached 4-ft wide 3/4-in plywood sheets immediately above the 1-ft kick plate that ran around the interior The plywood also sealed off the space behind the kick plate At the rear he installed a standard livestock trailer endgate It opens the full width of the 8 1/2 ft outside width of the trailer or he can open a smaller sliding door in the gate He also installed a 16 by 16-in cleanout door on one side Ventilation is provided by 5 1/2-in holes cut in the wall of each pen area and two in the front-end panel The sizes were determined by the availability of a 5 1/2-in hole saw Bueckert allows that he would make them bigger if redoing it However like the rest of the trailer they have worked well “I contacted the transportation department about modifications before I began ” says Bueckert “It has passed inspection every year without a problem ” Bueckert says he paid about $6 000 for the used trailer and spent another $6 000 on materials That represents a considerable saving over the $34 000 he had considered paying for a similar sized conventional livestock trailer It’s an even bigger savings over a new trailer “New ground loading livestock trailers run about $1 000 per foot or $53 000 for one this size ” says Bueckert Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Gary Bueckert Box 90 Austin Man Canada R0H 0C0 ph 204 466-2818

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