squidpop":2qmyx62q said:
To "What is a nestbox called in Winter?" I was going to say Popplecycles!
ancake:
:lol: :lol: I've had a few of those, that's for sure. :lol: :lol:
TerriG":2qmyx62q said:
Thank you grumpy. I appreciate that
Here we go: First of all.....this is all "Scraps" that I picked up here and there.
7/16" OSB can be found on any construction site and will gladly be given away.
You just have to ask for the scrap sheeting and it's an easy pick-up.
5/32" Luan underlayment is a little harder to find. But, it's not that expensive
to buy a sheet. I usually have the yard cut the panel in half giving me two 4X4 foot pieces.
If you can locate a cabinet shop in your area, they'll have lots of small scraps for the taking.
Cut the OSB into strips that will "slip-fit" into the feeder edges.
The height is up to you.....the taller they are, the more feed you can hold.
I usually figure the height that I want and add 2 inches to slip down into the feeder.
Set your saw for each step. Cut all pieces at the same time before
changing your set-up for the next step. You'll have stacks of each piece
cut exactly the same as the one before. It's like assembly-line work, boring
but precise.
I use a quarter inch crown air-stapler and "glue" to put all of my rabbit
stuff together. You can change the lengths of the staples to suit the project
you're doing. Most importantly though is make sure you use a good grade
of carpenter's wood-glue. I've banged these things around quite a bit and
have never had one come apart.
Here's the profile on the size feeders I use on most of my doe pens.
I bought some cages that had the 11 1/2" feeders come with them.
I DON'T LIKE THEM!!! They're too big and weaken the front in my opinion.
For my doe pens, I use a 7 1/2" feeder on all of them w/an extender when
the kits begin coming out of the box.
Here's a pic of one in use on the cage itself. It holds about 30 hours worth of feed.
A doe, and a litter of eight will have feed in front of them at all times.
Larger litters should have the feeder filled each day.
The next one is a "flare" top feeder that goes on my grow-out pens.
I bought all of these cages and the 5 1/2" feeders came with them.
So.........that's what I used. I'm tight and didn't want to buy new feeders.
You'll have to build a "jig" to hold the OSB sides while you put the fronts and backs on.
On these, I made sure they were a "snug" fit sliding into place.
On some, I have to "tap" them to get the extender down against the top.
You can see that the Luan paneling rests on the top of the feeder.
They work really nice and the rabbits will not run out of feed from one
day to the next.
Those fryers need feed in front of them at all times. NO EXCUSES!!
You can give them a good ration of hay about every other day. They'll darned
sure let you know when they want some. Mine get spoiled and beg all the time.
One thing to remember: Don't get frustrated!!! I've done this type of woodworking
for nearly 50 years. All of these little projects are just "dummied-down"
cabinet and furniture making. You'll mess up every so often. Hell's Bell's
I still make mistakes. But that's part of the game. Just keep trying to do
better with each project.
AND WATCH OUT FOR YOUR FINGERS!!!!
These power tools are very unforgiving and will eat a portion of you if you offer it.
Hope this helps, thanks for looking.
Grumpy.