Before & After Gallery - Ironworks Gate Co.

Gate Repair Before & After in Kennedale, TX

Talk is cheap in gate repair, and in Kennedale the weather doesn’t forgive weak work. A gate that drags on the ground or sags off its hinges tells a story before you even walk up to it. Below are real project narratives from the kind of jobs we take on every week around Kennedale, Arlington, Mansfield, and the rest of the south Tarrant County area. The names are left off for privacy, but the work is described exactly as it went down. Victor Salinas, our owner, has been doing this for over 42 years, and he’d rather show you a fixed gate than tell you about one.

Call (817) 286-7391

Recent Transformations

Sagging Double-Driveway Gate with Bent Hinges

The problem was familiar on this older Kennedale property: the gate had drifted enough over the years that the two leaves met an inch out of alignment, and one hinge barrel had actually bent under the weight. We cut out the old hinges, welded in heavier replacements, and added a mid-rail brace so the frame wouldn’t flex in the wind again. The before photo shows a gate that needed a lift to close; the after shows it swinging with two fingers. Done right, and backed in writing.

Bent Gate Leaf from a Backed-In Trailer

A trailer hitch caught the center of this single-leaf gate and pushed it hard enough to bend the top rail and snap three picket welds. We pulled the leaf off, straightened the rail cold so the tube didn’t lose strength, and re-welded every picket that had torn loose before re-hanging it on the same posts. The after photo doesn’t look like a repair at all, just a gate that closes flush and latches again. That’s the point.

Fallen Cantilever Gate with Worn Roller Assembly

This one came to us dragging on the back roller, its front roller assembly ground down to bare metal. In Kennedale’s dry summers and flash-wet springs, roller bearings wear fast when a gate isn’t leveled. We replaced the roller assembly, set the gate back to true level, and adjusted the catch so it no longer slammed into the receiver post. The before shows a gate half-open and riding the ground; the after shows it gliding on its rollers with clearance to spare.

Rust-Through Repair at the Bottom Rail

Gate frames rust from the inside out, and by the time the rust shows, there’s usually a hole. This customer’s bottom rail had rotted through in two spots from standing water inside the tube. We cut the bad sections out, welded in fresh steel, drilled drain holes so it wouldn’t hold water again, and gave the repair a coat of cold-galvanizing before the finish went on. The before shows jagged holes; the after shows clean steel with no patch lines.

Latch and Post Repair After a Storm

A spring storm in this part of Texas puts real lateral force on a gate, and this one’s post had loosened in its footing enough that the latch wouldn’t catch by late afternoon. We dug out the old concrete, re-set the post deeper with new anchors, and installed a heavy-duty latch that holds even when the wind pushes the gate. The before shows a post leaning and a latch hanging loose; the after shows a plumb post and a gate you can pull against without budging it.

Welded Frame Crack at the Hinge Mount

We see this often on heavier gates in Kennedale: the hinge mount was welded to the frame years ago with a bead that finally cracked from metal fatigue. The gate never fell, but every open and close was working the crack wider. We ground the old weld out, re-welded the mount with full penetration, and added a gusset so the stress spreads instead of concentrating at one point. The after photo shows a hinge area that looks factory, not patched.

Want Results Like These?

Every job above is the kind of thing we do in a single visit, with the price settled before we turn a single bolt. If your gate sags, drags, won’t latch, or has a weld that’s failing, call (817) 286-7391. You’ll get a live person on the phone, a straight answer, and a written quote for the work. That’s how we’ve done it for 42 years.

Written by Victor Salinas, Owner at Ironworks Gate Co., serving Kennedale and south Tarrant County since 1984.