Those big bucks hit it hard in morning to mid morning?

I would say the timed feeders are good 1) if the deer feed regularly/daily
2) BUT if deer/animals are not hitting the protein, its going to throw feed, its going to mold quickly and the waste will increase $$$$$

You mentioned your 350# feeders are going empty in 3-4 weeks. Are they penned or in the open? Do you know if it is deer that is exclusively eating protein or do you have hogs bumping protein to the ground and/or raccoons? I am guessing your protein feeders are Boss Buck?

SO there's the good and bad (like most everything in this world)

I would say the timed feeders are good 1) if the deer feed regularly/daily
2) BUT if deer/animals are not hitting the protein, its going to throw feed, its going to mold quickly and the waste will increase $$$$$

You mentioned your 350# feeders are going empty in 3-4 weeks. Are they penned or in the open? Do you know if it is deer that is exclusively eating protein or do you have hogs bumping protein to the ground and/or raccoons? I am guessing your protein feeders are Boss Buck?

SO there's the good and bad (like most everything in this world)

I have fed protein free choice or in timed feeders since 1990. Feeding deer free choice can get expensive but it does not make them nocturnal. They are nocturnal due them not living on your place. They are having to travel to far to get to you feeder in the daylight mainly. Timed trough style feeders have their place and you can feed to your budget. I feed year round no matter what style feeder I use. Right now I have 4-600# All Season timed trough feeders in pens. From mid Jan. till late August I feed from 2-4 times per day and only feed at night. Deer, bucks especially, are much more comfortable feeding at night. This time of the year they have been pressured and will readily feed at night. In the heat of the summer it makes no sense to try to get a mature buck in a feed pen when it is still 100° at sundown. IME I have found that bucks feed most (free choice) from 11pm till 4am. I feed with my timed feeders from right at or just after dark. Then again after midnight and finally about 30 minutes to 45 minutes before daylight. By doing this I have found I mainly feed bucks and they are who I am targeting. Does still come in but not as often...some pens I never see a doe at a protein feeder. When Sept 1st hits I change my times for protein to 15 minutes after daylight in the mornings and then sundown in the evenings. I have no trouble seeing bucks when doing this. The longer you do the same routine the more bucks you raise on the feeder routine...the better your hunting gets. Especially in archery season. I still corn feed year round just not very much from late Feb till late August and mainly at dark or daylight. I then spin corn 4 times per day in hunting season and lots of it. So I have a feeder going off 3 times in the mornings and 3 times in the evenings all at different times at all locations. Protein is great for growing bucks but also great as an attractant. I do hunt my feeders but never shoot a deer inside a feeder pen. That is what a road feeder is for.

I set a ranch up in South Texas that had just added 3700 acres. They had 10 free choice 2000# feeders on the original 1400 acres. I decided to go with 25 timed 2000# trough feeders and basically set each one to feed according to what the deer would eat from Feb till Aug. Some fed as much as 60# per day while others fed 10# per day. It was PITA but I kept up with the times and adjusted weekly. We had a timer from Austin the was a Geotimer IIRC...I set them to go off 15 minutes after sundown and 30 minutes before sunrise then 2-3 more set times at night. The timer self-adjusted to day length so it was never adjusted after that first setting. From Sept till Feb I fed only in the daylight hours and fed 4 times per day. I mixed corn and 20% protein and fed at that time. We also had a corn feeder in each pen feeding twice per day. But I road fed everyday.

Who makes that #2000 lb timed feeder? I have several ASF #1000, but that #2000 looks interesting.....

Who makes that #2000 lb timed feeder? I have several ASF #1000, but that #2000 looks interesting.....

I have thought hard about taking my 600 lb ASF to a sheet metal shop for an increase to the hopper.

Interesting idea.

Does anyone know of a timed protein mechanism that retrofits onto a vertical (round) chute type feeder? I see the challenges presented in making one work right, faithfully, and have an idea on how to accomplish the task. Just wondering to make sure I'm not trying to reinvent the wheel?

Thanks,

I've searched timed protein mech's online and came up with a few. Nothing specifically designed that would readily retrofit onto a simple 55gal setup with vertical tube and feed head like I (and so many others have) built, but at least one I think I could adapt. Honestly, I think I could build the 4 we need for a third of the price as I could by those that I'd still have to spend time modifying. And, understandably, nobody gives up the secret of their internal mechanics without buying one so I'm not 100% confident that any of them would work like I have it figured in my alleged brain.

We are free choice now, just need a way to control feed amounts and timing so I can do some experimenting.