In a message dated 98-01-18 11:04:24 EST, [log in to unmask] (Frank
Humphrey) writes:
 
<< I have often thought abut having a "Tommy Gate" lift installed on
 my pickup.  these lifts can lift as much as 1500 lbs. from ground
 level to bed level.  These can be removed an installed on a
 different vehicle when you trade.  I was wondering if anyone had
 tried this option. >>
 
   I have a hydraulic tailgate on my one ton truck. I bought it for honey
drums, but am now using it more and more for moving bees, even supers. It does
not speed up the work, but sure saves the strain on one's back. I hated to
admit that I can no longer sling around hundred pound objects, but it is true.
My bottom boards are made up to be a pallet for the hand truck.
 
   I've always done a lot of the lighter work with a pickup and a 4x9 flatbed
trailer. A pickup is a lousy vehicle for hauling bees, but great for tools. If
I had only the pickup, I'd take off the box and put a flatbed on it.  The
trailer will easily haul 30 single hives (45 if they are not too heavy), and
it makes a great workbench too. Bees and equipment are strapped on the trailer
with a smaller version of the nylon ratchet straps that the big truckers use.
It is a great tool, available at WalMart or Lowes lumber yards. I've never had
one break, though I've run over the ratchet and ruined them.
 
   The hyraulic tailgate is a great addition, though expensive. We have no
loading dock, and I had to load and unload drums with ingenuity (dangerously)
or with borrowed equipment.  When I first got the tailgate, I put a honey drum
on it and played with it for an hour or so. It was more fun than I've had
since I saw my first flush toilet!
 
[log in to unmask]     Dave Green  Hemingway, SC  USA
The Pollination Scene:  http://users.aol.com/pollinator/polpage1.html
 
Jan's Sweetness and Light Shop    (Varietal Honeys and Beeswax Candles)
http://users.aol.com/SweetnessL/sweetlit.htm