Even though he grew up around ranching, Cody Archie considers himself and his wife, Erika, first-generation ranchers. The couple have been running Bar 7 Ranch for nearly 20 years on property they bought in 2006 just outside of Gatesville, Texas.
“My family was involved in ranching — working for other people but not having ownership — and that’s why I think of us as first generation,” Cody explained. “My dad worked in a feedlot, and my mom was keeping books there. We lived on the ranch for the first few years of my life. Some of my earliest memories are watching guys process cattle at the squeeze chute, riding in feed trucks and bottling calves. My aunt and uncle were heavily involved in agriculture, and I spent my summers and weekends helping at their place, which is where I kept my first show animals.”
Cody has developed a passion for wanting to maintain his roots in the agriculture industry. After graduating from Texas A&M University with a degree in animal science, he returned home and took a job in a preconditioning yard feeding and doctoring cattle.
“By the grace of the good Lord, I was able to find a place that we could purchase, and after I bought it, Erika and I got married, and Bar 7 became our home,” shared Cody. “We started out running a cow-calf operation raising and selling calves. It didn’t take long to realize that it was not very profitable for us. We sold off what we had and started buying cut bulls, backgrounding them for 60 to 90 days, and then sending them to a feed yard. After a couple of years, the company we contracted with went out of business, so we changed again.”
Now, the Archies have been focused mainly on buying and selling replacement heifers and calving them out. They tend to buy heavily in the spring and summer when there is abundant grass to graze, keep them for about six months, then sell before winter.
“We’re more of a trader,” said Cody. “We’ve done that consistently for the past seven or eight years. About three years ago, we added Dorper sheep to the mix of things just because they’re a good income producer. They do well in this part of the country. We’re raising those and selling off the lambs. In addition, we added a feedlot about a year ago where we feed about 20 head at a time.”
Brand becomes a viral sensation
Cody didn’t originally start out with the Bar 7 name. The first few cattle he branded were with his initials.
“I used the lower half of the C as the crossbar for the A, but the problem was as the brand got hot, it caused the crossbar to fall out, which created a blotch,” Cody described. “That didn’t look good, and your brand is what people remember you by. I thought back to when I worked in the preconditioning yard, which had a running iron or just a straight piece of metal. Seven is my favorite number, so I fashioned a seven out of a piece of iron for the brand — easy to recreate, and it looks nice. That’s how Bar 7 was born.”
The Archies have kept operations relatively small, with Cody, Erika and their two children doing the hard work necessary to keep the ranch operating — while also working full time and running other business ventures such as dry cleaners, a laundry mat and building spec homes. As they do, they have documented their life through social media and gained more than 2 million followers. Their website has additional content and a shop with Bar 7 Ranch merchandise.
“It’s a family vlog that documents our day-to-day life,” noted Cody of the Bar 7 Ranch’s social media content. “It’s also a way for us to be advocates and a voice for agriculture and show what a great life it can be. We started putting out content, and it became a hit. As they say, things blew up, and we have developed a wide audience of people in and out of the industry.”
Gets more with Takeuchi and KSM
Takeuchi was one of the followers that found Bar 7 Ranch through social media.
“I did some content about how I was looking for something a little more maneuverable than my tractor, and they asked if I had ever looked at a Takeuchi track loader,” Cody recalled. “I started looking for the local dealer, which is Kirby-Smith in Waco. I set up a meeting with Sales & Operations Manager Richard Graves, and he got me in one to try it out. I fell in love with it, but I didn’t buy it right away. I did some more research, and the more I learned, the more I realized that Takeuchi was someone I wanted to hitch my wagon to.”
With the assistance of Richard and Kirby-Smith Machinery Inc. (KSM) Territory Manager Chaz Riddle, Bar 7 Ranch purchased a 10,270-pound TL10V2 compact track loader, as well as Takeuchi and Blue Diamond attachments that are used for a variety of tasks such as moving hay bales, leveling and loading dirt, brush cutting, driving posts, mulching, and more. Bar 7 Ranch had the TL10V2 equipped with a quick coupler to easily switch between attachments from the cab.
“My original intent was to use it as a basic loader to put hay in my feed mixture without having to unhook my tractor every time we mixed feed, as well as to clean out stalls and push a bit of brush,” explained Cody. “I wanted something that’s able to reach a little over 9 feet to drop a bale of hay into my feed mix. I also needed good lift capacity to move some shades in the feedlot that weigh about 3,500 pounds. I didn’t want a machine that needed DEF either, and at the time I bought the TL10V2, it was the largest machine you could get that didn’t require it.”
Cody continued, “I got all that and more. I didn’t realize you could put so many attachments on it. Richard and Chaz convinced me that a high-flow machine was the best option as it would allow me to run everything and increase its versatility. Knowing your machinery and putting your customer in the right one really sets you apart as a dealer. Kirby-Smith’s service after the sale has been top notch too. When our first service came due, they sent a tech out to go over it with us and walk us through it step by step. If we need anything, they are a phone call away.”
Richard and Chaz also helped Bar 7 Ranch add a Takeuchi TB350R compact excavator equipped with a hydraulic thumb that it uses to dig water line and move various items.
“At first, I was sure we didn’t need it, but we use it quite a lot,” commented Cody. “We have confidence in its ability to handle anything we need to do with it, including dropping a bale of hay in the mixer if the loader isn’t available.”
Looking at expansion opportunities
Like he did with the Takeuchi loader, Cody is researching options for Bar 7 Ranch’s future. Confinement barns have piqued his interest.
“You really don’t see them in Central Texas, but I think they’re something that could work,” reflected Cody. “I’ll keep looking into it. In the meantime, we’re looking at continuing what we do, including direct-to-consumer beef, which has been successful for us. We’re in our second year and have exceeded our goals. We’re looking at possibly growing that side and being able to feed a larger number of cattle. If we do, then expansion is a real possibility, and we would be using those machines even more, because we build everything ourselves.”
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