Wheeled Gate Works Great On Slopes

Wheeled Gate Works Great On Slopes FENCING Fence Systems 20-6-10 If you've got gateways on hillsides or rough terrain you'll like this telescoping, wheeled gate that's designed for uneven ground. "I built it three years ago because my corral is on downward sloping ground, making it impossible to use conventional gates with fixed hinges," says Charles Erfle of Morse, Sask. "I looked everywhere - even in the FARM SHOW Encyclopedia - and didn't find anything like it. So I gave it a whirl and it works great." The frame of Erfle's 16 by 4-ft. gate is built out of 2-in. dia. pipe. It's braced horizontally and vertically with sucker rod and band iron across the middle. He uses two universal joints cut off the driveshafts of old swathers as hinges. The top driveshaft extends about 2 ft. inside the top rail of the gate so it can telescope in and out. Universal joints weld to a 1-in. dia. shaft through the gate post. The universal joints act as pivot points, allowing the gate to move up and down. When it does, the shafts ex-tend inside the gate frame allowing it to telescope in and out. Erfle mounted a "space saver"-type spare tire he got for $1 on an axle in the side of the gate to allow it to simply roll down the hill when opened. Because Erfle's gate rolls down a slope, he made it so the top rail telescopes. If the gate rolled uphill, he'd make the bottom rail telescope. Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Charles Erfle, Box 35, Morse, Sask., Canada SOH 3CO (ph 306 629-3713).

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