2-Way Tailgate Hinges At Top And Bottom

2-Way Tailgate Hinges At Top And Bottom PICKUPS Accessories 17-6-8 "When I bought an F-250 Ford pickup several years ago and installed a dump hoist on the box, I became aware of the flimsiness of the tailgate. I decided to make a better one," says T.L. Williams, Winston-Salem, N.C. "While thinking about the idea, I thought about how convenient it would be to have one that hinged at the bottom like a normal dump truck. The problem with that was that I also needed it to open like a normal pickup tailgate. That's when I got the idea of building a 2-way tailgate with a hinge at top and bottom. "Being a volunteer fireman, I was familiar with the twist latches on fire truck compartment doors. I decided to put twist latches at top and bottom of my tailgate with rods and socket hinges that would let me open the gate either way. "I first built a steel tube frame for the tailgate and then installed the outside steel plating with the twist latches in place. The conventional hinge plates were removed from the truck and re-placed with plates with pipe sockets. Lengths of flatstock with rod ends were attached to the twist latches and aligned with the sockets top and bottom. Then the inside plating was mounted in place. "When we first tested it, we found that the sides of the pickup box spread out just enough so the pivot rods slipped out of the sockets, so we had to make a bracket to stabilize the bed side. It slips into the rear stake pockets on the sides and can be lifted out when not needed. We also added two ramp slots to top of the tailgate to make it easier to load lawnmowers and other equipment into the truck." Contact FARM SHOW Followup,T.L. Williams, 901 Petree Rd., Winston-Salem, N.C. 27106 (ph 919 924-8016).

To read the rest of this story, download this issue below or click here to register with your account number.