Oversize 4-Wheeler Built Out Of Wrecked Toyota Pickup

Oversize 4-Wheeler Built Out Of Wrecked Toyota Pickup PICKUPS Modifications 19-1-10 When O.J. Hanson, Kaycee, Wyo., went out to buy a 4-wheel ATV, his local dealer was sold out of them and didn't want to restock them for winter. Instead, the dealer offered him a 4-WD 4-wheeler that was built out of a wrecked Toyota 4-WD pickup. "It cost less than a new conventional 4-wheeler and it's fitted with 16-in. lugged pickup tires so it'll go just about anywhere. I like it so well that I'm gathering parts to make one myself," says Hanson, who bought the unusual "ATV" three years ago. "It was built by a retired engineer. My dealer got it on a trade-in. I traded a few junked-out motorcycles and $2,000 cash for it. I made some modifications so I can use it year around on my farm." The 4-wheeler came with a 4-cyl. gas engine and 4-speed transmission equipped with a high-low transfer case. Most of the original pickup frame had been replaced with a frame built from square steel tubing that left the top and sides of the engine open. A rollover cage welds onto the frame and a fiberglass floorboard supports two custom-made seats in front. Hanson mounted a wooden box behind the cage and added a back seat (out of an old IH Scout) behind the box, then bolted a big toolbox onto each side the seat. He installed a plexiglass window on both the front and rear of the cage and added removeable sections of canvas on the top and sides of the cage as well as around the engine. "I use it to drive cattle, check fences, haul calves, and even to guide mountain lion hunters. It goes fast and can out-maneuver a cow on fairly rough ground. It's the best vehicle, including motorcycles, that I've ever used for ranch work. The big tires let me go on softer ground than I could ride a horse on. They have deep lugs on the sidewalls and can go through an amazing amount of mud and snow. "By adding tire chains I can go right through waist deep snow without ever having to back up. It floats through some snow and plows through the rest. I welded hard surfacing rods onto the chains so they won't wear out as fast. Other hunting guides in our area use track-type snow machines. I can't go as fast as they can, but I always get there and I can haul bigger loads. It has a lot of clearance and a short wheelbase so I can climb right over a 3-ft. high rock ledge without getting hung up." Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, O.J. Hanson, 1145 Mayoworth R't., Kaycee, Wyo. 82634 (ph 307 738-2215).

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