Head gate advise?

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Sniper338

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My corral has a chute, but no head gate on it. Whole corral is metal pipe. Will a head gate just weld up to it, or should i drill holes and bolt it on?

Which brand/kind are good. Wont ever have more than 30 cattle on this place. We always slipped a pipe after the cow so they cant back up.. thinking an auto catch gate..
 
I'd buy whatever headgate looks good. I'm looking around on Craigslist right now for a cheap headgate to build into a trim chue. Everyone likes the fancy new stuff, but my 1978 model WW squeeze chute works good for us. I almost let the boss talk me into buying a Priefert SO4, sure glad they didn't take my offer at the Sun Belt ag expo.
 
For-Most 30T headgate is by far my favorite.

You couldn't give me an auto catch.
 
I hate auto catches....they teach cattle how to be difficult to catch....
if you are getting along without a headgate then even the simplest headgate will be a gigantic leap forward for you...
as I have stated many times...on this forum...
I give my cattle a cup of feed ever time I catch them in the headgate....
it turns them into animals who want to go thru the chute rather than fighting you all the way....
it is too simple for anyone to believe it works but I have been doing it for fifteen years now and cows will go a year without going thru my chute and remember that I will feed them....and auto load. this include heifers I have raised for my neighbors.

those same cows have to be prodded all the way up the neighbors chute because he won't take a minute to give them a cup of feed....the cows are normally finished licking up the feed before the work is done on the cow...

I contend that it is not the equipment but the skill and adaptability of the manager to make cattle work easy or difficult...

I have an old WW chute that is over thirty years old and has survived one barn fire and the simplest of set ups. I put 21 head thru it this fall for synchrony and AI....by myself and without struggle.
 
cfpinz":1494hz00 said:
For-Most 30T headgate is by far my favorite.

You couldn't give me an auto catch.
The Priefert auto catch works good, if you are smarter then it is
 
We have both Auto and Manual foremost headgates and like them both. We've had the auto for around 25 years and it has seen a lot of cattle go through. I've never understood why people dislike auto catches so much. If they are set right they work fine, especially if you are by yourself.
 
My corral and chute are all pipe with headgate welded. Actually never use the headgate unless we're doing something to their head like applying ear tags. Most of the time I'll just push cow up to the gate and put a pipe behind her.
 
I have a manual on my chute and an old auto head gate on a calving pen. There was a time when that auto on a solid set board chute was all I had. It was a huge step up from a rope. That said I much prefer the manual. As long as the cows will push on the auto enough to trigger it you are fine. Some seem to learn to just poke their head in a little and then back up. That can get to be pretty frustrating.
 
I like a priefert manual, the handle runs parallel with chute making an easier catch when working by yourself. Nice to have a lifetime warranty even on used equipment too.
 
We've always bolted ours so we could take it to another setup if needed. We use Priefert Model 91 and like them. I've never tried the auto feature and probably never will unless it was an emergency.
 
Our cows are pretty wild, and we'd always lose one or two with the one place that had a Preifert auto catch.

We switched all facilities to For-most manual gates. No more escapees, and they don't require adjustment for different size cattle like automatics.

I always weld them in with some 3/8x2 flat bar where needed.

Unless you have a torch, drilling holes to bolt it in will be a pain.
 
i've used quite a few and i like the prefiert ones that are auto and manual combo.

just set it a lil open and the cows run rright in, then can tighten manually.

with calves i just wait and do them manually and not even mess with the auto..

its the best chute design IMO. my cows will never come through the chute even though they get feed, etc when they come out. If i'm near the head gate they don't want anything to do with it. if i walk back to them they will run right through.

I have a powder river manual right now and its so hard to get them to come up to me even with another guy forcing them /grabbing tails.

i'm goign to sell it next year and pick up a prefiert.
 
ChrisB":3j73yf35 said:
We have both Auto and Manual foremost headgates and like them both. We've had the auto for around 25 years and it has seen a lot of cattle go through. I've never understood why people dislike auto catches so much. If they are set right they work fine, especially if you are by yourself.

We had the auto Foremost until about 2 years ago. Dang Jersey cow went through and it didn't catch until her hips. Ended up cutting the head gate to get her out, and that day, we decided to go to the manual. Much easier to get one out if it gets past the shoulders.
 
greatgerts":1hnp49g8 said:
ChrisB":1hnp49g8 said:
We have both Auto and Manual foremost headgates and like them both. We've had the auto for around 25 years and it has seen a lot of cattle go through. I've never understood why people dislike auto catches so much. If they are set right they work fine, especially if you are by yourself.

We had the auto Foremost until about 2 years ago. Dang Jersey cow went through and it didn't catch until her hips. Ended up cutting the head gate to get her out, and that day, we decided to go to the manual. Much easier to get one out if it gets past the shoulders.
Is the formost one of those swing types? Those are the only ones I've seen that give problems. The scissor type of a Priefert has less movement to catch.
 
dun":pxmmjwrf said:
greatgerts":pxmmjwrf said:
ChrisB":pxmmjwrf said:
We have both Auto and Manual foremost headgates and like them both. We've had the auto for around 25 years and it has seen a lot of cattle go through. I've never understood why people dislike auto catches so much. If they are set right they work fine, especially if you are by yourself.

We had the auto Foremost until about 2 years ago. Dang Jersey cow went through and it didn't catch until her hips. Ended up cutting the head gate to get her out, and that day, we decided to go to the manual. Much easier to get one out if it gets past the shoulders.
Is the formost one of those swing types? Those are the only ones I've seen that give problems. The scissor type of a Priefert has less movement to catch.

Yes. It is a swing type. Her shoulders didn't push the doors forward to lock. Had a few calves through the years get stuck, but always got them out. The manual scissor type works so much better. If I am by myself, I have the head closed, and get them in, close the tailgate, then work them up. If I don't have to catch their head, I don't any more.
 
I'm a little surprised at how many people that are singing the praises of an auto catch. Cause more problems, than they fix to me. Even I have an auto catch, I get the cow up the head catch, and block her off from behind. I then go up, and catch her head. I'm also no fan of saloon door head catchers.
 
I would bolt it on. Just weld on some angle clips that have a hole in them. Much easier to disassemble if you move it or need to modify.
I also use a priefert auto catch. It works well once you get the hang of it. I would never have a swinging door type again after a bad experience with a large bull.
 
let me clarify my procedure....
I slide my feed tub into place and pour a cup of feed in the tub....I have a half of a 55 gal plastic drum cut across the diameter, with a big feed pan setting in the open top
in my old WW chute the cows walk up into the chute....I can drop the tailgate or put a pipe behind them...
I generally use a pipe....
they are up there banging on the head gate for me to open it.
I go to the front open the gate and close it and then do what needs to be done...
push the tub away with my foot....
open the gate....
repeat....
these days I do it with the heifers when I weigh them every 28 days so by breeding time they are really accustomed ...
I bred some of the new neighbors cows this fall which had never been to my place and with three trips for synchrony and the fourth for breeding most of them were auto loading by the breeding trip....

Let me summarize by saying that I have absolutely learned to make sure my cut off gate to the headchute is closed and latched when I am breeding a cow...or even putting in a CIDR.
 
A really smart (PITA) cow will learn to stick thir head in far enough so it starts to close then will jerk back. It swings wide open and they are out and gone or they will hang their hips. Wouldn;t have a swing type to save my life.
 
dun":13a6hl18 said:
A really smart (PITA) cow will learn to stick thir head in far enough so it starts to close then will jerk back. It swings wide open and they are out and gone or they will hang their hips. Wouldn;t have a swing type to save my life.

my first one was a swing one and the 2nd cow through hung her hips. had to pull her out with the tractor. i went and borrowed the neighbors chute and sold that one.
 

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