How to Rig a Fake Bull

Rigging a fake bull is a relatively easy task if the bull is made from a 55-gallon drum. The only disadvantage of bucking barrels is that two to four people are needed to pull on the ropes to make them buck. A mechanical bull is operated by an electric motor and only one assistant is needed to turn on the switch once the rider is well-mounted. Most bull riders learn and practice on bucking barrels and feel they buck in a truer fashion to real bulls than the mechanical ones. A barrel rolls as it pitches -- much like bulls, especially those with Brahman blood.

Things You'll Need

  • Post-hole digger or auger
  • Four 4-inch-by-4-inch-by-10-foot long timbers
  • Carpenter's level
  • Bags of concrete mix
  • Water supply
  • 2-inch-by-2-inch-by-7-foot board
  • Electric or battery-operated drill
  • 55-gallon metal drum
  • Eight large eye-hooks
  • Arc or acetylene welder
  • Two sawhorses
  • Roll of 11/2-inch steel cable
  • 16 cable clamps
  • Bolt-cutters
  • Four porch-swing springs
  • Two to four assistants
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Instructions

    • 1

      Dig four post holes 3 feet deep and 15 feet apart with either a post-hole digger or an auger. Position the holes so that they are an equal distance from each other and they make a symmetrical square.

    • 2

      Set a 4-inch-by-4-inch, 10-foot-long timber in each hole. Using a carpenter's level, align each timber in a true vertical position. While holding a timber in position, have an assistant pour concrete mix from a bag into the holes.

    • 3

      Add water to the concrete mix while agitating it, moving a 2-inch-by-2-inch-by-7-foot board up and down in the hole. This action removes air pockets and ensures that the water reaches the bottom of the hole. Allow two to three days for the concrete to cure before doing any further rigging.

    • 4

      Drill a hole in both sides and on both ends of a 55-gallon metal drum. Stick the straight ends of large eye-hooks through the holes and weld them to the barrel.

    • 5

      Place the barrel on two sawhorses an equal distance between the four timbers. Thread a piece of 11/2-inch diameter steel cable through one of the eyes. Bend the end back to the cable and secure with a cable clamp. Cut the cable with bolt-cutters to a length of 3 feet. Repeat this procedure on the other three eyes.

    • 6

      Fasten porch-swing springs to each cable end using cable clamps. Fasten additional cable to the free end of one of the springs. Measure the length of cable needed to reach the nearest timber with the cable at about a 30-degree angle from the barrel. Cut the cable at the measured length.

    • 7

      Screw an eye-hook into the timber at the point where the cable needs to be attached. Repeat this procedure with the other three springs. Thread the cable ends through the eye-hooks on the timbers and secure with cable clamps.

    • 8

      Remove the sawhorses from underneath the barrel. Place a bull rope around the barrel by threading the loose end through the eye. Climb onto the barrel, place your hand through the loop on the bull rope and bring the loose end across the loop and palm of your hand. Take the loose end of the rope around the back of your hand and then across your palm. Close your fist and have your assistants pull on the four cables simultaneously for your bull ride.