hay wagon lumber choice

[Fletch3130]

Hay wagon question. I just picked up a 10 ton wagon gear and am going to put a deck on it for square bales mainly. going to go with 16 foot long and 7.5 foot wide. planning to have about 2 foot overhang front and back. going to have some poplar logs off the farm cut 2 inch thick for the deck boards. this wagon will be under roof except when being used in field. my main question is: I am planning to have 2 main beams cut 4"x8" by 16' long. Should I go with oak or poplar? Guy at sawmill I am using said either would be fine. this wagon will be sprayed with thompsons water sealer once per year (usually in the fall). any advice, tips and or tricks you could pass along would be appreciated. also advice on the main beam selection.

 

[Hay maker2]

Depending on where your located and what is available for lumber is the key.

I prefer Larch as it is strong and weathers extremely well.

 

[steve terplak]

We used polar for one hay wagon (went through a period trying different lumbers) - poplar was the worst of all. Did not weather well.

 

[rustred]

only way i would use poplar if it was the only thing available and never saw rain.

 

[showcrop]

For 16 feet long I would go with 4x10 for the main beams. I used hemlock. Before putting the decking down put aluminum flashing on the cross-members.

 

[randy hall]

unless you don't put much of a load on it 4x8 will bow a lot. I use southern yellow pine [ stronger than oak ] 2x10's two on a side. s.y.p. weathers very well. I thought poplar was used to make trim boards.

 

[Charlie M]

I would never put popular on anything outdoors - if its humid that stuff can rot while you are bolting it on the wagon. I've done mine with pressure treated but when its new its quite slippery until it weathers a bit. Oak is probably the best bet and keep it treated for outdoors.

 

[RJKeith]

Black Locust, Pressure treated, or white oak.

 

[Dave8N in Pa]

Sounds like a very heavy wagon. I use 3x10 oak beams and 3x3 cross members. 1 inch hemlock for everything else. Leave 1 inch space in flooring.

 

[Traditional Farmer]

I'd build the whole thing out of White Oak.

 

[Leroy]

That is going to be a very heavy wagon, how high are you planning to stack the bales, 15 rows? to need that or even be able to use that heavy a gear on that size bed you must be planing to stack that high. A 4 ton gear is plenty heavy for a normal load of even 150 bales on that size bed, 125 was considered a full normal load. And a lot of our wagons were old front car axles made into wagons and even with them a 150 bale load was not to cacacity for the axles just bed capacity.

 

[Fletch3130]

I think it was a gravity wagon in its first life. I am wanting to get about 120-125 bales on it.

 

[Leroy]

The gear will be heavier than the load.

 

[4520BW]

I don't know why everyone is knocking poplar. Poplar will weather better than most wood just as long as water does not set on it. My old barn and corncrib are sided with poplar and not showing any signs of rot,let water set on it and it will rot real fast.

 

[Bill VA]

We built two wagon decks from white oak this year, very heavy. Not sure I could have lifted the stringers front to rear without the help of my boys. Mine were 4x8. Used 4x4 cross pieces and 1x6 deck boards. All rough cut lumber. If there is an advantage, the wagon is so heavy/stiff that the bales really stay put in our otherwise lumpy fields, One before these was pine, next one will likely be pine too.

 

[showcrop]

Years ago when the kids were starting out in 4H sheep, I picked up PT,SYP to make sides to go on my tandem trailer for transporting to the fairs. When I got material laid out for one side, I thought, "this could get heavy", so I got my wife to lift one end. I was right it was too heavy. Picked up rough cut hemlock, and it was much lighter and lasted for three times longer than needed.

 

[Nick m]

There's a local guy that builds them out of rough sawn white oak. I have one that's 10 years old that has sat outside about half of the time that is just now showing a little age. He has 8x16 or 9x18. I'd go 9x18 with that gear. Those couple of feet help.

 

[Part Time Pete]

I'm with hay maker - if it's available in your area, larch is the way to go. Very strong for it's weight, and very rot resistant
Pete

 

[brutus49DC]

140 bales at 80lbs is 12,000 plus the weight of the rack is way too much for a 4T gear, an 8T is more like it, and 10T wouldn't hurt a thing I would go a lot bigger on the stringers than 4x8 even if it is oak and I would go a full 8' wide, I have two 18x8 racks made out of bridge plank with 8T gears and I wish they were 10T's, with eight 1600 pound round bales and the rack is plenty of weight for a n 8T gear