Dump wagon build

[Levibridge]

I just bought this wagon frame. 6' wide by 8' long. Had a water tank on it that the guy removed for a truck restoration he was doing. I want to make a dump wagon out of it. I'm looking for a wagon Dump hoist but don't want to invest 1500 into a new hoist. I have an idea of using a winch to operate the dump but not entirely set in my ways. Any ideas?

 

[RogerinIowa]

Do you have a tractor with hydraulics?

 

[Levibridge]

(quoted from post at 18:59:21 04/04/21) Do you have a tractor with hydraulics?

Got a jd 50 and a b I'll be using to power it.

 

[paul]

Hydraulics is easier of course.

Winch is nice when you are pulling with a pickup or some such no hyd around.

The old add a hoist units sell real cheap on old retirement auctions, but they are getting harder to find any more. Have to be careful they were designed for 2000# of
pressure or so, some modern tractors can cause some issues with higher pressures.....

Paul

 

[Levibridge]

Yea I plan on using antique tractors with it.

 

[rrlund]

Back when they were dumping wagons without hydraulics, they used an A frame with cables and pulled the wagon under it. I think if
there was a way to do it with something on the wagon, somebody would have figured it out a long time ago. If they ever did, I never
saw it.

 

[paul]

There was a brief time wagons with a crank and cables running up the front on a post were popular. I think there was a kit sold by one of the short line companies back in the 40s or 50s? Saw a lot of them sell for a 10 or 20 dollar bill back in the 1990s, most are gone now dont see them often on a sale any more. It looks like a good thing, but a persons arm gets really tired cranking that much...... might be ok for a hobby load of stuff, but if you want to unload 16-20 loads of ear corn a day like we did back in the day.......

Then there was the hand pump hyd setups, they had a lever you pumped and would pump up the hydraulic lift cylinder. Those were real popular with construction folk, put the old shingles on and could unload at the dump. I havent seen too many, but they are out there too. They were also a short line factory kit.

Sorry I cant remember the names of them.

 

[rrlund]

This is still a typical novice mistake though. Buy something that's not what you need because it looks kinda like what you need, then spend a fortune in time and money to end up with something that won't work anyway. Dad was good at that. Best thing to do with that running gear is sell it and buy what he needs. Seems like we see it at least once a week on these forums don't we? More so this time of year.

 

[paul]

I just try not to look in a mirror at this point in life. Sigh....

Paul

 

[derwen1959]

Can't see how it's going to work satisfactory
I have old trailer that my late father bought in 1962
Which is still in working order it has a screw tip
Were they ever made across the pond?

 

[495man]

(quoted from post at 07:58:12 04/05/21) This is still a typical novice mistake though. Buy something that's not what you need because it looks kinda like what you need, then spend a fortune in time and money to end up with something that won't work anyway. Dad was good at that. Best thing to do with that running gear is sell it and buy what he needs. Seems like we see it at least once a week on these forums don't we? More so this time of year.

Yup. I was going to build a dump wagon from an existing gear, just needed a hoist and a box....

Sound familiar?

I ended up buying a complete dump wagon with hoist, balloon tires, running gear (heavier than what I had), metal framed box with tailgate for LESS money than a hoist was for my "project" and I still had the other running gear I started with for another non dumping wagon.

 

[rrlund]

LOL. I remember Dad looking at stuff in the iron pile and saying he couldn't believe some of the stuff he came up with. I didn't admit to the fact that some of those mistakes that had been cut up were mine.

 

[paul]

We have gotten kind of discouraging here......

In a search I found this thread from 8 years ago, might be helpful.

https://www.yesterdaystractors.com/cgi-bin/viewit.cgi?bd=toolt&th=340519

I even see a picture of one that was for sale set up on your style of running gear. Your gear is a little different with the 2 frames, instead of a typical center tube.

We old folk tend to wander and make up our own comments when we dont get feedback.

So, the questions were,

do you have hydraulics available?

Do you want/need a hydraulic type or a cumbersome hand powered setup?

You mentioned some tractors, but you really didnt say what you wanted for the hoist. And often times tractors might or might not have hydraulic option installed, I dont
know on your specific tractor.

So we all wandered off track on you.

Good luck with the project.

Paul

Old thread

 

[Determined]

I have a complete hoist with frame sitting on a 1950 Chevy ton and a half you could have if you were closer.

Must be something sitting in some ones tree row around you that would work.

Easier, cheaper and quicker than starting from scratch.

 

[DRussell]

Here is a hoist cylinder that will lift anything that running gear can carry.
Untitled URL Link

 

[Timmycornpicker]

You couldn't go anywhere out in the midwest without falling over a wagon with a hoist. Hoists are not common here back east. Most everybody seems to have gone
from shoveling off barge boxes to small gravity boxes. When a wagon with a hoist in good condition does show up, expect to pay $2000+ for it.

 

[paul]

It used to be if you bid $50 at the farm auctions on one of these hoists they would help you load it for paying so much, but of late there are more folk like you wanting one, and less of them left on old farm sales, so Im not sure the current going price.

I cant even find a pic of the hand crank ones, they are older.

For the most part these deals were designed to work with ear corn, maybe oats, and retrofit an old barge box. So, they tend to be on the lighter side, ear corn doesnt weigh so much for the volume, oats is light, and the wagons were 100-120 bu in size back then when this equipment was new.

I got a small flair box a decade ago with one of these hoists, and it is a handy extra wagon for stuff, the hoist is nice, but I do have to be careful to not load it up with rock or dirt to the top or anything like that. I think I paid $125 for the running gear, box, and hoist all together.

Paul

 

[rrlund]

There was a place here in Michigan that made a ton of rear dump silage wagons in the 70s, 80s and 90s. The early ones were made out of tongue and groove lumber, the later one from 3/4 inch plywood. They had 12 ton running gears with 8 bolt wheels with floater tires and Midwest hoists. The later ones will bring $2500-$3500. I think I gave $2700 for this last newer one that I bought. The early ones with the tongue and groove sides are all getting pretty rickety and can be bought for half to a third of that. You can just cut the sides down on those and have a pretty cheap dump wagon.

 

[ss55]

To be able to get the full stroke out of those big diameter low pressure hoist cylinders, it was common to add extra hydraulic oil capacity to most older tractors. Even a simple pipe extension on the fill tube will help. Newer tractors that use the transmission case for a hydraulic sump do not have that capacity limitation, but their high pressure hydraulics can burst old cylinders at full stroke. Try not to stall the hoist at the top of stroke when hooked to a high pressure tractor.

 

[Levibridge]

Where are you located?

 

[Timmycornpicker]

I need to find me a few of those to tow behind the 800 Uni-picker I just got.

 

[Levibridge]

(quoted from post at 11:54:35 04/06/21) You couldn't go anywhere out in the midwest without falling over a wagon with a hoist. Hoists are not common here back east. Most everybody seems to have gone
from shoveling off barge boxes to small gravity boxes. When a wagon with a hoist in good condiotion does show up, expect to pay $2000+ for it.

Found one in Iowa but that's to far for me. I might just put a box on it for yard work.

 

[Levibridge]

Ur right it is easier and cheaper to buy it new but I like a good challenge on fabricating things. I'll probably jut put a box on it

 

[Levibridge]

(quoted from post at 07:49:51 04/06/21) We have gotten kind of discouraging here......

In a search I found this thread from 8 years ago, might be helpful.

https://www.yesterdaystractors.com/cgi-bin/viewit.cgi?bd=toolt&th=340519

I even see a picture of one that was for sale set up on your style of running gear. Your gear is a little different with the 2 frames, instead of a typical center tube.

We old folk tend to wander and make up our own comments when we dont get feedback.

So, the questions were,

do you have hydraulics available?

Do you want/need a hydraulic type or a cumbersome hand powered setup?

You mentioned some tractors, but you really didnt say what you wanted for the hoist. And often times tractors might or might not have hydraulic option installed, I dont
know on your specific tractor.

So we all wandered off track on you.

Good luck with the project.

Paul
<img src=https://www.yesterdaystractors.com/cvphotos/cvphoto84095.jpg>
Old thread

This frame had a water tank on it from a fire company that the guy took off for a antique truck restoration. That's why it's not the typical center pole frame setup.

 

[Steve Metcalfe]

I put one of those dump insert beds made for a pick up truck on a wagon frame a couple
of years ago. I found one that was pretty well used for only $200 and was able to make
a few repairs and it works out great. All one unit with the dump bed and self
contained motor pump assembly. Just need a 12 volt battery to operate.

 

[paul]

That wagon frame was a well known name, was it Ford that made the 2 rail style? But it just wasnt as common as the center pipe type. I think you might need to add a
cross support as in my pic below to work with some of those hoists. Not a big deal.

Lot of folk design their own hoist system, more so on a 2 wheel trailer, but all pretty much the same. Lots of that on the Internet, youtube and such. A little above my
welding skills!

Paul

 

[Leroy]

Too late you probably will not see this but that is an IHC-McCormick Wagon think a 4 ton gear. And a long length stroke hydrolic jack will work good. I had 3 of the factory made ones but never used them when the farm had to go 3 years ago.

 

[Destroked 450]

Cousin gave me this wagon hoist a few years ago when I mentioned I wanted to build a dump wagon for ear corn

Then I purchased this Oliver flare box with hoist to get it's hoist, cousin wants the flare box to go with his oliver tractors.

Going to set the hoist up on a couple 12" flat wagons with sides to haul 50-60 bushel of ear corn
I'm getting to old to be kicking ear corn out of a gravity bed.