Filson Chute

[kentuckyguy]

I'm looking at buying an older Filson squeeze chute with a automatic head gate. This will be used to put in another pasture that I will AI 8-10 cows a year in.

The price is really good but I wasn't sure if there were any issues or problems to look out for on the Filson Chutes. Looks like it just squeezes from one side.

Any info you could pass along about them would be helpful.

 

[bird dog]

I had just the head gate on a place about 12 years years ago. I didn't like the saloon doors at all and the cows would usually just bang off of them and then back up when I was needing it to self catch. It also had removable pins to adjust the width which I didn't like.

I got my bull stuck in mine once as his neck was to big for the doors to shut but he had already gone in so far as to wedge himself in where he couldn't back out. A real mess. Thankfully he was a gentle ol boy and was patient while I disassemble the thing to get him out. I let the head gate go with the property when I sold it and swore never to own another saloon type gate or chute.

 

[kentuckyguy]

Bird Dog is that a Filson head gate problem or just a saloon door automatic head gate problem in general?

 

[bird dog]

To me its a saloon door problem in general but thousands of them have been sold so somebody is okay with them. I'm sure some are better than others. Mine would work okay with somebody manning it but I am by myself 90% of the time and I need a self catch that works easily and reliably.

I guess I am spoiled now that I have used the scissor doors on a Priefert. To me the design is just superior even on the old ones where the animals has to step over the door guides.

 

[jltrent]

Several years ago we bought a saloon door head gate with the option to return after trying it for one day. We could not get it loaded back up fast enough. Unless the animal was wild you had to push it in. Could not adjust neck size easy and getting them out was a pain in the Azz. You could not give me one, but a lot of people use them. As mention above my Preifert works pretty darn good.

 

[kentuckyguy]

Well now I don't know what to do. I know a priefert is better but it's also triple the price.

 

[Ky hills]

I had a Filson chute with an automatic head gate for probably 25 years. It did what we needed it to do. Did have some get their hips caught in it though. I think that is the saloon style thing as we now have a For Most with saloon style head gate and I believe it is worse than the other on was. The Filson also had an advantage over our new one in that we could actually catch and hold small calves in the head gate.

 

[simme]

Experience I have on saloon door type is with a Sioux system that my brother has. There are two adjustments - one for the opening width when it is closed (move 4 pins into different holes) as well as the adjustment for the opening width when it is set for auto catch (rotated back toward the animal coming in) set by wingnut adjustment. Both adjustments need to be set correctly for auto catch. Especially a pain if you are working a group of cattle of various sizes. You would need to sort them by size and adjust as you work each group. If it is open too much as they enter and they get past the shoulders, they end up getting caught on their body or hips. The more they push forward, the tighter they get. You have to somehow push them backward to release the pressure. They want to go forward, not back. Alternate is to set the wingnut stop so that it will be full open as the animal comes in and use the manual catch lever to close it instead of auto catch. But, got to be quick for a fast mover. In order to use the manual lever, you end up standing in a position that makes them hesitant to come in. If they are pulling back, can be hard to release.

I have a for-most model 30T manual that I prefer.

 

[Boot Jack Bulls]

I'm the odd ball here, I prefer "saloon" type head catch. I have a Real Tuff chute and absolutely love it. It is tall and wide enough (I work 2500 pound bulls through it weekly) and easy to run things on my own. As far as how the head catch performs, I like it. It is worth noting that most of the time, my stock walks in and wait for the butt bar to be slid in. Most of the time, they stand loose/not head caught and I do what needs to be done. If I feel they need to be head caught, I ask them to step up and secure the catch myself if they don't push it all the way shut (most of mine don't). I had a Priefert and hated it. Too narrow, too short, too lightly made, not enough optional add-ons and found the scissors catch a pain in the **s and I've had animals that were strong enough to release on their own (rather un-nerving when you are clipping their face off!). I also don't like them having to step over anything to get out of the chute (not an issue on the newer scissor type set-ups I guess?). It was pretty and sold well enough though. My sister recently purchased a Sioux unit that has a sweep side and a saloon style head catch. Super heavy, but still handy for a temporary set-up to AI cows on rentals. Biggest drawback I've found with it it the head gate is too short and narrow. Works great for our cows, but a mature bull will not get through the head gate without some serious wiggling....

 

[Dave]

There was a Prieferts chute here when I bought this place. I never used it, but every neighbor around me cussed that chute. I took it to a farm equipment auction. The neighbors were happy to see that I had a Powder River chute that I brought with me. It is an XL manual. Being manual it works best when there are two people. One to push the cows and one to operate the chute. But I have worked hundreds of head through it by myself with less screw ups that the old saloon door self catch. I leave the head gate shut. I have a back up stop set where the critter is half way into the chute. Once they are past the stop. I walk to the front and open the head gate. 99% of the time they move forward quickly and I catch them. The chute is long enough that under about 800 pounds I run them clear in and close the back door. Then step up and open the head gate.

 

[skeeter swatter]

If it's in good shape and the price is right, to me it's a no brainier.

 

[SBMF 2015]

We ran for-most A-25s at the sale barn. Mature bulls and horned cows that had never are out of a bale ring were the only ones we had a problem with. We ran enough cattle through a year that 1 1/2yrs was about all we could get out of one before we sprung them.