gbiddlec
Member
So I've wanted to build a nice, insulated deer blind for awhile. I've got three kids that I intend to introduce to hunting and think keeping them warm is going to be key to keeping them interested. An insulated box blind should also help negate the movement and noise young kids make non-stop. In the meantime, until they start going out, I'll get to benefit from being warm and comfortable.
Given the investment of time and money necessary to build what I want, I wanted something mobile that I could move around my 20 acres or to other nearby properties if I wanted. So, based on an article in an old farm magazine I saw somewhere, I decided to build it on a gravity wagon. Through a friend of a friend deal, I found a smaller wagon for $200. It's old and ugly, bust in pretty decent shape. Not sure who made the box, but it may be a Deere, since JD green looks like the oldest of many coats of paint. The running gear is a Cobey, probably from the 60's or 70's. Not sure when this rig last saw farm service, but the newest of the mismatched tires is early 80's.
I've had the wagon for about 2 years, waiting for the right time to start this. I've got a friend from Nebraska, that's wanting to bring his boys out to try deer hunting in November, so that was the inspiration to finally get going on it.
The plan is to replace the runners and all the hardware that get an insulated floor in the box. Right now I'm planning on a shed roof with a 9' wall on one side and 7' on the the other. Door out the back, windows on the other three walls.
I started by pulling the box off the running gear. When I brought it home, I noticed the box runners weren't bolted to the gear, which made removal pretty easy. There weren't any great lifting points on the box. I ended up running chains under the box and over the top, then pulled it with my tractor and forks. I ended up kinking the box slightly, which became a pain in the ass later.
Once on the ground, I was able to flip the box on its side pretty easily by hand. Had some help from the pup.
The old runners were sawmill oak. They weren't awful, but were starting to dry rot pretty good on the ends. Replaced with PT 4x6s. Ended culling the old bolts off and replacing with new. They were an interesting mix of different sizes and lengths. A couple looked like carriage bolts they'd ground flats on and sent it. Guess they held this long.
While I had the box tipped, I cutoff the stake pockets and anything else inside the box, that would interfere with the floor framing. I also replaced the gear hardware while I was at it.
For the floor,I went with 2x8s for the joists. I want to insulate it as well. Since the bottom will be open to any bugs or critters that might get in the open box below, I used PT 1/2 ply glued and screwed to the bottom of the joists. To make this work, I decided to build the frame on the ground and then set it into the box. Once in the plan is to add foam board, sealed in in with expanding foam, then rock wool before the subfloor. While thermal insulation is a part of the concern here, my bigger concern is noise. I'm worried that giant open cavity in the box will amplify movement/noise from the blind above.
Here's the original kink I put in the box side, followed by the kink I put in the opposing side trying to fix that mistake. I ended up getting them straightish with the tractor forks. But this made fitment of the platform a pain in the ass.
I had a hell of time getting the platform lined up without dropping one corner/side in and getting cockeyed. I ended up hole sawing a couple joists to run slings through, so I could lower it evenly with the tractor. It was at this point, and in this position I ran out of diesel like a dipshit.
The gauge on the tractor doesn't work. Reads full all the time, I don't burn that much usually and it just didn't cross my mind why the engine sputtered and died. After about 10 minutes of trying to figure out what was wrong, it finally dawned on me to check the tank. Luckily the fine folks at Deere, apparently planned for this kind of stupidity. There's a primer lever on the pump and a bleed screw on the filter housing, so I was back in business pretty quickly.
Took some persuading with pry bars and a sledge but I eventually got the floor in place where I wanted it. There was a piece of angle welded in the box on the flat side for side boards to rest on. I used that as by baseline and set the bottom of the floor to that reference on all floor sides. Once it was set where I wanted it, I started bolting through the sheet metal and rim joists to hold everything together.
I wanted tie down locations on the corners. I'm somewhat concerned that this thing will be at risk of blowing over on bad wind days. Particularly out in the middle of a field on uneven ground. My solution is going to be ratchet straps and screw in ground anchors.
I ordered some Ching Chong fancy clevis mounts on amazon. One for each corner, and they double as lift points.
Given the investment of time and money necessary to build what I want, I wanted something mobile that I could move around my 20 acres or to other nearby properties if I wanted. So, based on an article in an old farm magazine I saw somewhere, I decided to build it on a gravity wagon. Through a friend of a friend deal, I found a smaller wagon for $200. It's old and ugly, bust in pretty decent shape. Not sure who made the box, but it may be a Deere, since JD green looks like the oldest of many coats of paint. The running gear is a Cobey, probably from the 60's or 70's. Not sure when this rig last saw farm service, but the newest of the mismatched tires is early 80's.
I've had the wagon for about 2 years, waiting for the right time to start this. I've got a friend from Nebraska, that's wanting to bring his boys out to try deer hunting in November, so that was the inspiration to finally get going on it.
The plan is to replace the runners and all the hardware that get an insulated floor in the box. Right now I'm planning on a shed roof with a 9' wall on one side and 7' on the the other. Door out the back, windows on the other three walls.
I started by pulling the box off the running gear. When I brought it home, I noticed the box runners weren't bolted to the gear, which made removal pretty easy. There weren't any great lifting points on the box. I ended up running chains under the box and over the top, then pulled it with my tractor and forks. I ended up kinking the box slightly, which became a pain in the ass later.
Once on the ground, I was able to flip the box on its side pretty easily by hand. Had some help from the pup.
The old runners were sawmill oak. They weren't awful, but were starting to dry rot pretty good on the ends. Replaced with PT 4x6s. Ended culling the old bolts off and replacing with new. They were an interesting mix of different sizes and lengths. A couple looked like carriage bolts they'd ground flats on and sent it. Guess they held this long.
While I had the box tipped, I cutoff the stake pockets and anything else inside the box, that would interfere with the floor framing. I also replaced the gear hardware while I was at it.
For the floor,I went with 2x8s for the joists. I want to insulate it as well. Since the bottom will be open to any bugs or critters that might get in the open box below, I used PT 1/2 ply glued and screwed to the bottom of the joists. To make this work, I decided to build the frame on the ground and then set it into the box. Once in the plan is to add foam board, sealed in in with expanding foam, then rock wool before the subfloor. While thermal insulation is a part of the concern here, my bigger concern is noise. I'm worried that giant open cavity in the box will amplify movement/noise from the blind above.
Here's the original kink I put in the box side, followed by the kink I put in the opposing side trying to fix that mistake. I ended up getting them straightish with the tractor forks. But this made fitment of the platform a pain in the ass.
I had a hell of time getting the platform lined up without dropping one corner/side in and getting cockeyed. I ended up hole sawing a couple joists to run slings through, so I could lower it evenly with the tractor. It was at this point, and in this position I ran out of diesel like a dipshit.
The gauge on the tractor doesn't work. Reads full all the time, I don't burn that much usually and it just didn't cross my mind why the engine sputtered and died. After about 10 minutes of trying to figure out what was wrong, it finally dawned on me to check the tank. Luckily the fine folks at Deere, apparently planned for this kind of stupidity. There's a primer lever on the pump and a bleed screw on the filter housing, so I was back in business pretty quickly.
Took some persuading with pry bars and a sledge but I eventually got the floor in place where I wanted it. There was a piece of angle welded in the box on the flat side for side boards to rest on. I used that as by baseline and set the bottom of the floor to that reference on all floor sides. Once it was set where I wanted it, I started bolting through the sheet metal and rim joists to hold everything together.
I wanted tie down locations on the corners. I'm somewhat concerned that this thing will be at risk of blowing over on bad wind days. Particularly out in the middle of a field on uneven ground. My solution is going to be ratchet straps and screw in ground anchors.
I ordered some Ching Chong fancy clevis mounts on amazon. One for each corner, and they double as lift points.
Last edited:
