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Aluminum Chicken “Tractors” Easy To Move
Dave Lambright’s chicken “tractors” are easy to move. Flip a lever on either side to raise them up on wheels, and push them onto fresh ground. Flip the levers back, and the lightweight coop frames are back on the ground, keeping the chickens safe from predators.
    “We’ve sent them all over the U.S.,” says Lambright, Dalam Welding. “People use them for laying hens, geese, goats, ponies, broilers and more.”    
    The smaller size is 4 by 6 ft. and 4 ft. tall. It is designed for laying hens and comes with a 2-hole nesting box on the backside. The box offers access from the outside to gather eggs. The 18-oz. roof tarp has a zippered opening so the owner can reach inside to do feeding and other maintenance.
    “It is so light that our 7-yr.-old pulls ours around the yard,” says Lambright.
    The larger model is 10 by 12 ft. with a 6-ft. peak. It has a 44 by 24-in. door at the front end. Extra framing at the rear is designed to carry an optional 2-hole nesting box.
    The larger coop uses 1 by 2 1/2-in. aluminum tube frames. The smaller model uses 1 by 1-in. tubing. Both are sided with zinc coated, 14-ga. netting. The larger model has stainless steel latches and aluminum hinges. Cross braces in the center and rear as well as side braces add rigidity. The cross braces also serve as roosts for chickens.
    Like the smaller model, the roof is an 18-oz. tarp that extends to near ground level at the rear and the rear halves of each side.
    “The tarps on both models can be rolled up for more air movement,” says Lambright.
    The 16-in. solid rubber wheels on both models can be adjusted from zero to 5-in. lift to match grass height and density.
    “We made the first ones to raise 2 in., but that wasn’t high enough for heavy grass,” says Lambright. “The second one raised the coop 5 in., but in light grass, the chickens could slip out. Now we use a stainless steel chain to adjust the height.”
    The larger coop is priced at $1,265. The suggested capacity is around 40 full-size broilers. The smaller coop is designed for around 8 laying hens and is priced at $875.
    “Actual capacity varies greatly,” says Lambright. “It depends on bird size, as well as how often the unit is moved. One customer says the large model can handle up to 70 broilers, but he moves it several times a day.”
    Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Dalam Welding, 7665 S. 200 W., Topeka, Ind. 46571 (ph 260 593-0168, ext. 1).


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2018 - Volume #42, Issue #5