Drive-Through Gate For ATV's

Drive-Through Gate For ATV's ATV'S ATV'S 31-4-4 James Middleton of England got tired of having to get on and off his ATV to open gates, so he had a local machine shop build a simple drive-through gate that he designed. Livestock won't touch it, yet his ATV can pass through without stopping. "I wanted a gate that I could drive through without getting off the ATV and that would close automatically behind me. I can drive through from either side," says Middleton. The gate consists of a metal frame with an open top and a gate that hinges at the bottom. The gate has vertical rails on it. A rope attached to one end of the gate goes up to a pulley at the top of the metal frame and then down to a concrete weight. Middleton drives up to the gate and pushes it over with the ATV. As the gate goes down, the rope and pulley lift the weight up. The gate is tall enough that it's held down by first the front wheels and then the rear wheels. Once the ATV has passed through, the weight pulls the gate back into full upright position. He spent a lot of time getting the balance right between the weight of the gate and the concrete weight. Getting the balance right means the gate rises quickly, but not too quickly. A latch can be used to lock the gate upright if he's not going to use it for a while. Middleton has made eight different gates on his farm, some wide enough to drive a tractor through.

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