Cattle Weigh Scales

I went with a pallet scales from Amazon for about €250. Although I fitted it to a mobile crush so more like your current setup. As for reliability, I've used if for 3 seasons now, 2 weighing per season with 12-15 cow calf pairs and no issues yet, but not too concerned about needing to replace a few weigh cells from time to time either. I think it still worked out good value for a small operator.

I also bought an EID reader last year but not used it yet.

Have used both for weighing cattle and it's a chalk and cheese situation. Crush always wins, quicker and better cattle flow. I'm lucky as I only have to work one yard. Another benefit is only having to move the clock.

Weighing is some important for beef farming, its the equivalent to dairying of seeing the litres in the tank. Cattle are weighed approx 4-6 times a year. At turnout, early summer, mid summer, late summer/early autumn, housing and mid winter. Gives great info and you can use it to make better decisions on the direction you want to take certain stock.

Getting back to the main point funkey. If the crush needs moving. Would it work if it could be moved with the tractor 3 point linkage or a set of loader brackets welded onto it some way. This would make it a 1 man job and take the labour out of it

I'd agree with this, and would love to weigh more often, but the disjointed nature of the farm make it more difficult, I try to weigh them whenever they are on home farm, I guess handling facilities of the out farms could do with some improvements, perhaps a couple of concrete pads for the scales should be considered.

On the colour side of things screw a strip of conveyer belt rubber (the one with the lugs) to it. Softer on the feet and cattle will stand easier on it.

There was a thread on here before where someone made a real nice platform.

I wouldn't worry particularly about weigh beams being too long, it's easy to shorten them or just make a complete platform and transfer weigh cells.

No issue with ICBF, as long as the clock has a serial number.

This is the one I got, seems to have gone up considerably in price, but be warned I've heard some of these shipped with no serial numbers on the clocks.................. lucky mine has one............ ;)

Edit: I was mistaken I paid around €400, I think there was a cheaper one with no battery available too.

Possibly...........

Search function of this site is shite, I had a look but nothing coming up.

Edit: Actually I think you are right, its possibly this thread https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058097664/weighing-scales/p1 but it seems most of the images did not survive the "Great" migration.

Very tidy. If you were able to make them at that price you would have made a nice few pound if you’d to stay making them and sell them on. 2 years ago a scales like that was costing around €1,500 to buy from any of the common manufacturers.

And the famous workbench, still looks the business, possibly even better with some signs of use.

Is there not a list of approved scales? i.e. if you were to get audited, you could possibly be in trouble?

I'm just assuming that btw. I do have a hazy recollection of registering the one here for SCEP and having to put the make down.

I wouldn't see the point in a requirement for a S/N if any old clock would do! You could buy something off aliexpress for a fiver with a S/N, a couple of load cells and cobble that together. You wouldn't be wanting to be trusting the readings though

Anybody know of this model which weighs the front of the animal?

https://www.producer.com/livestock/company-scales-up-automated-cattle-weighing/

Will it be only available to large operators?

Try and get something without the raised sides. They always lob a hind leg up on the verge, distorting the reading

No, that does not look great at all