A simple yet highly effective product amongst our yards is the 270-degree gate/hinge system. Being honest, it’s nothing revolutionary, but in a practical sense, these gates refine the use of cattle yards in a number of ways. Designed to move stock safely between pens, this type of gate really is an essential part of any cattle yard.

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In this article, we’ll take an in-depth look at 270-degree gates and why/where we use them throughout our cattle yard designs.

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What is a 270-degree gate/hinge system?

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A ‘270-degree gate’ is more of a hinge system design than a ‘gate’. A gate is a gate. Really what we’re discussing here is a hinge system that allows gates to open right around to 270 degrees one way, rather than the typical 90 degree hinge system which you can open both ways.

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Why do I need a 270-degree gate?

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If we take things back one step further, the question is ‘how can this gate aid stock flow?’ and therefore ‘how do I need it to swing?’. The answer to this question in a number of cases will be ‘I need a gate to swing this way, and I need it to swing back at least 190 degrees (for eg) so that it latches back on this row of panels’ for example. 

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Our answer to this is our 270 degree gate/hinge system.

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This style of hinge means that we require both ‘left hand operated’ and ‘right hand operated’ variants of each gate type and length in order to optimise the use and flow of all parts of a cattle yard. 

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Benefits of 270-degree gates

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- The ability to have them latch against a fence line, or in our case, a row of steel yard panels.

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- As a result of being able to latch these gates back against something, there’s no risk of stock getting trapped behind gates and buggering up stock flow. As seasoned stockmen know, stock getting trapped behind gates is not only inefficient but rather dangerous. 

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- They make operating a yard on your own a lot easier. Our yard designs are optimised for single staff use, however it’s the little things like the 270 degree hinge system that offer safety and confidence that you can set a yards up for cattle to flow through and know that you’re not going to have issues with stock getting stuck.

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Do I need 270-degree hinges on all gates?

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Most gates within a set of yards, yes. Essentially all swing gates where stock move through are best to be 270 degree gates. They’re not always necessary, however you can almost bet that they should be in all cases, if you’re wanting to optimise safety and efficiency. One area where we use standard 90 degree gates are for all of our Man Gates/Personnel Gates where the operator often needs to get in and out of pens in both directions. If in doubt, contact a member of our team for more information.

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