Guillotine Tail Gate Manure Spreaders

Guillotine Tail Gate Manure Spreaders

We will discuss guillotine tail gates on manure spreaders in this 3rd sales blog in the manure spreader series. In the first sales blog of the series we talked about how to determine what size manure spreader to buy, how to determine cubic feet, and how to compare manure spreader sizes. In the second blog in the series, Dan explained the differences between vertical and horizontal spreaders, the horse power & spread patterns, and manure spreader maintenance.

Finally, we have been asked many questions – and had much discussion with our customers about guillotine tail gates. There have been quite a few manure spreaders coming for sale with the guillotine tail gate. So here is the information that we share with our customers:

What is the difference between the guillotine tail gate and the regular tail gate?

• The guillotine tail gate goes straight up and down versus the regular tail gate which swings more up toward the front of the spreader at an angle.
• It is easier to regulate the tons per acre with the guillotine tailgate. We have some customers putting on 5 ton to the acre with the guillotine vs. the regular gate that can handle much less. With the regular tailgate you can not regulate the tons per acre with the tailgate; you can only use the web speed.

Does the guillotine tail gate freeze?

• No. You can haul sloppy manure and not store the manure spreader in a heated shop, and it still will not freeze.
• Here is the process that we have heard from our customers on how to prevent the guillotine from freezing: Run the slop gate up and down a couple of times to clean the track out when you are finished hauling manure. This cleans the track out. Be sure to leave the slop gate up half way when parking the manure spreader. Follow this process and you will not have any issues with the tail gate freezing.

Does the guillotine tail gate pop out?

• No. We have some customers spreading 5 ton to the acre and leaving the tail gate half way up and they have not had any issues with the tail gate coming out.

What are some visual differences between a guillotine gate and a regular gate?

• The guillotine gate sticks higher up in the air and has longer cylinders. The cylinders may cost more to replace, but the guillotine tailgate should be less maintenance because it has less moving parts and fewer pivot points.
• A regular tailgate swings up. Depending on the design, it can break easier.
• A regular tailgate may hold slop better because the tailgate is at an angle instead of straight up and down.

Please contact us at Post Equipment if you have any questions on guillotine gates on manure spreaders. See the large inventory of manure spreaders on our lot in Northwest Iowa and on the web at www.postequip.com.