Handy Devices

By Dan Miller, Senior Editor

Ryan Kettler, Brenham, Texas, assembled a 5-foot-long light bar with six 100-watt truck lights. The light bar is welded to a post that slides into a standard receiver hitch on the front of his truck. Each set of two lights is controlled with a toggle switch in the cab. This lets him control varying configurations of lights to best illuminate his work. The light sets have quick connects for easy attaching and detaching. The light bar works great, Kettler says, for spotlighting varmints or hogs, or searching for cattle in the dark.

CARGO SHUTTLE:

Tired of climbing into the bed of his pickup to place or retrieve objects, Mickey Arnold, Valley Station, Kentucky, built a moving platform so he can pull cargo from near the cab all the way to the tailgate. The platform rests on 2-inch rollers that fit between the ribs of the truck bed. A T-handle folds down and out of the way when the platform is at the tailgate. With the handle extended and the tailgate closed, the whole structure is as long and wide as the pickup bed, and it does not move when the vehicle is in motion. The system is especially handy if you have a hard cover over your pickup bed, he says.

TRANSFER DOLLY:

John E. Campbell, Savannah, Georgia, built a transfer system to move seed and feed sacks from storage areas to the back of his pickup. He used a 3/4-inch piece of plywood as the base for the dolly. The base was attached to a frame made from 2 x 2s. Then, he attached four swivel casters to the bottom of the dolly's four corners. Campbell's dolly is 18 inches long and 14 inches wide. The slide for the dolly is 8 feet long and 15 inches wide. It is framed with 2 x 4s on the long sides and 1 x 4s on the ends. The bottom of the slide is made from a 3/4-inch-thick piece of plywood.

> WINNING IDEAS: Win $400 if your idea is chosen as the month's "Editor's Choice" Handy Device. Win $200 for other ideas used on this page. To submit a Handy Device, please send clear photographs, detailed drawings and a complete explanation of your idea. With each entry, include your name, address and telephone number. Send Handy Device entries to Progressive Farmer, 2204 Lakeshore Dr., Suite 415, Birmingham, AL 35209. Sorry, but we cannot acknowledge submissions or return photographs, drawings or documentation.

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