Steps to make a chicken tractor

Steps to make a chicken tractor ... unfortunately without a plan.

That don't fare well for an old architect, does it?

But I did follow the diagram for the wheels .. at least. And they work but
do lean when in the down position.

Entire construction was with the lightest wood I had
around the barn. But still durable.

Step one - lay out the over all ideal shape.

Step two - get some rabbit wire and over lap it across boards.
Use rabbit wire because it is welded and it is half the price of regular welded wire.

Step three - Lay out PVC frame

Step four - Lay out coop side

Step five - Lay out back and other side of coop

Step six - Attach walls and layout tractor handle

Step seven - Attach tractor handle, bolt it. then add front wall and door
to the coop. (Cut a 12" by 16" hole.. as you can see I first
drew a line for a 16 x 16 then a 14 x 16 then settled on 12"x16".)
Great planing, Mr. Architect/Designer!

Step eight - Attach tractor handle. Placed two supports and bolted in.

Step nine - Place in door. Square off the PVC frame.
Lay in roof frame. And hang the door.

Step ten - Place in nesting box side and floor.

Step 11 - Detail nesting box.

Step 12 - Attach door, hinges and latch - do it really fast and you
will make it just like I did - in a blur!

Step 13 - A better view, in slow motion.

Step 14 - Lay in an inside perch.

Step 15 - Better view of inside perch.

Step 16 - Begin shealthing.

Step 17 - Roof a layer of wall panel, plastic and sofit plastic.
Permanetly attached on one half. Hinged on other half.
Don't look at the window - I spent an hour trying to build a up-down silder then
chucked the entire idea for a simple swing window.

Step 18 - Ready for paimt - after I redo the window, that is.

Step 19 - I spent a 40 year career painting murals
and all kinds of paintings. I still design in vector.
But I can't paint the side of a barn to save my life,
So Cathy gets that job!

Step 20- Get ready to detail PVC run and coop
after Cathy's paint dries.

Step 21- Add another perch, hagning feeder and feeding tower.
Also placed top of run - just to size it before chicken wire.

A better view of tower feeder and inside coop.

Step 22- Wheel assembly.

Step 23- Will she ever finish already?!?!?!

Step 24- Much easier to lay in chicken wire if elevated.

Step 25- Shape the handle.
What is not shown in these images is a large "L" bracket
I placed under this handle. It was placed in so that I could (and do)
haul the tractor around the farm with my ATV.

Step 26- Handle finished - I even painted it.
The rope is attached to a roofing nail and to the swinging coop door.
An idea I got from someone on YouTube. I thought
the idea was the best thing since butter. But is a common solution to
opening and closing a door surrounded by chicken wire.

Step 27- OK, follow me here...
Buy a large storage container from your local dollor store. I had one
laying around the barn. Put the top on your FOR SOMEDAY SHELF. Then cut out
the bottom of the container (so water drains right through the sand you will
put in the contaciner. Take some swiming pool canvas (or any material that
drains well) and glue it into the container.
The pix here shows from top down: the cut away from the bottom of
the container, the canvas held in place with clamps, the container resting on a
panel of plexi as support.

Step 28- Clamped in place.

Step 29- Clamped in place and glued
Hey, TRUEBOND, send me a check for the hype, will yer!... please?

Step 30- Not the best idea, but does work.
I ran a heavy wire across the roof as a latch to keep bad critters out.
It has ripped the sofit tiles, but that's why I also laid in the plastic to protect
the roof panel from rain. But it is a messy sittuation.

Step 31- See the placstic?

Step 32- Run door is a PVC frame attached with simple wire. It swings up.

Step 33- Cute chick, and the chickens are too.

Step 34- Top is covered in wire with a central area cut away. Then a PVC frame
covered in wire is placed on top and wired in for quick access -for humans.

Step 35- Water tray is wired into a corner. Chicks have a thing for pulling
it off and dumping the water. I have a thing for putting it back - better each of the 12
times I've returned it into the corner. Damn chickens!

Step 36- Sand box.

Step 37- DONE

And it's all for sale at this page, click here.

Rentals
Art Work | Literature | Comics
Coindre Hall | Fun & Games
Mike's LP Record Collection
MyDrawingBoard | An UNO Authority
A Tribute to Artie Turco
Contact