fence tips and tricks

[Bigfoot]

Where do you stand on nailing to a tree? I do it on my place. I don't like it, but I do it from time to time.

 

[M-5]

BF- here is my non professional way of tree attachment I stand a pt 2x4 with knobs on it against the tree. and put post on each side as close as the roots will allow. that way as the tree grows it willnot encapsulate the 2x4. I will wire the fence to the knobs to keep it in position.

 

[Bigfoot]

I make these up, when I want to run a fence up to a building. It's lug nuts, gorilla welded to schedule 40 black pipe. I usually weld 3 pieces of flat stock on them to anchor with. I believe this one only has two. Only draw back is, you gotta draw the wire away from it. You obviously ain't going to draw to it. Surely you gotta better apparatus than this.

 

[Rafter S]

I needed to put a gate in a cross fence at a rent pasture a few years ago. It was in the middle of a dry summer, and on a blackland hill, so drilling holes and setting pull posts was going to be difficult. I thought about it a while, then finally came up with an idea. Luckily there was a good sized tree near where I wanted to put the gate, so I hung the gate on the tree. Then I drove a steel post at the other end of the gate. Next I dropped an 8' piece of steel pipe over the steel post, tied a wire from the top of the pipe to the tree for a brace, then cut the fence wires and stretched them to the pipe. I know it's not an ideal method, but it got the job done.

 

[fenceman]

I don't mind using a tree at home. I won't do it on a customer s fence. In a small town you got to be careful. You can do every thing right for years, but you you do one thing a little shaky and that's what everyone will remember. Photos are on my place of braces built by my grandfather. You can see by the bend in that pipe how he felt about pulling the wire tight. Taking the photo brought back memories of being a teenager. Hot sweaty, bloody and exhausted, but proud of the work done. He'd pull up put his hand on the fence and give it a pull. Then he'd say I guess I should have gotten your grandma to stretch the wire. Make you want to sit down and ball

 

[Rafter S]

Fenceman,

About 30 years ago I learned that it is possible to get barbed wire too tight. I was helping a guy build fence that wasn't happy with stretching his wire with the commercial wire stretchers, but used a come-a-long instead. I was walking along stapling one of the top wires to the posts and hit one of the staples one too many times. It cut the wire, and before I could react one of the ends had ripped my shirt across the front from one side to the other. Just turned it into rags. I'm still astonished that it didn't even scratch me. That could have really been bad.

 

[fenceman]

Fenceman,

About 30 years ago I learned that it is possible to get barbed wire too tight. I was helping a guy build fence that wasn't happy with stretching his wire with the commercial wire stretchers, but used a come-a-long instead. I was walking along stapling one of the top wires to the posts and hit one of the staples one too many times. It cut the wire, and before I could react one of the ends had ripped my shirt across the front from one side to the other. Just turned it into rags. I'm still astonished that it didn't even scratch me. That could have really been bad.

Yes sir , when it breaks that was to tight. One click less that would be just right. ;-)
See alot of wire break at the staples. Gets damaged with the hammer and that's were it will break sometimes years later.

 

[talltimber]

I don't mind using a tree at home. I won't do it on a customer s fence. In a small town you got to be careful. You can do every thing right for years, but you you do one thing a little shaky and that's what everyone will remember. Photos are on my place of braces built by my grandfather. You can see by the bend in that pipe how he felt about pulling the wire tight. Taking the photo brought back memories of being a teenager. Hot sweaty, bloody and exhausted, but proud of the work done. He'd pull up put his hand on the fence and give it a pull. Then he'd say I guess I should have gotten your grandma to stretch the wire. Make you want to sit down and ball

:lol2: :lol2: :lol2:

 

[Bigfoot]

I just don't have access to pipe here (unless I get it at the welding shop, then its high as heck). Where do you guys land all this pipe at? Is it out of oilfields?

 

[Workinonit Farm]

and hit one of the staples one too many times. It cut the wire, and before I could react one of the ends had ripped

I've had this happen, and it wasn't my shirt that got ripped. After getting shredded 3 times, the guy who was helping me finally admitted that , yeah, the wire was too tight. He kept telling me that its impossible to get barbed wire too tight.

I've also seen, on older fences, where the wire has broken at the staple.

 

[Rafter S]

I didn't see it, but I heard of a net wire fence built in the summer, and built way too tight. Everything was fine until that winter when it got cold. Apparently whoever had decided to get it that tight was not familiar with the term "thermal expansion". You can guess what happened.

 

[fenceman]

I didn't see it, but I heard of a net wire fence built in the summer, and built way too tight. Everything was fine until that winter when it got cold. Apparently whoever had decided to get it that tight was not familiar with the term "thermal expansion". You can guess what happened.

Thermal contraction got em.. :cboy:

 

[fenceman]

From top best to worst. Low tensile
Red brand
Oklahoma
Sheffield

Hightensil
Stay tuff
Goucho

Notice the wires I consider the better have a tighter twist.=more steel= stronger and can be pulled tighter.

With net wire the solid vertical stay on the wire on the right will make a much stiffer and neater fence ,be easier to stretch and tie.
Oklahoma on left
Beakert on right

Sorry photos are out of order.

 

[James T]

I always pull a wire on the ground for a straight line to lay out fence. After post are In I move it top and tie all post. Then raised or lower post were needed for a nice fluid line. Then work down. Measuring of the top wire

thanks , Nice accent , sounds like your from Missouri

That's going hurt all day

That's the the same order I did my last one. Unspooling the wire in a speedy and safe way always seems to be a hurdle. This time around I located a 1 5/8 steel rod and cut it to 3" long to fit through the barbed wire spool. Then found some scrap plywood, cut it down to 2'x2" and drilled a hole in it to fit the steel rod. Set the plywood flat on the ground at the end of the new fence line project, set the spool of barbed wire on its end and over the hole. Then set the steel spike through the spool and the plywood and drove it into the ground about 1 3/4 '. Tied the end of the barbed wire to the ball hitch on back of the Mule and drove up the new fence line pulling the wire. It worked out pretty well and imagine I could do 2 lines at one time. Used the tractor FEL and a chain to pull the spike out of the ground when the job was done.

 

[TexasBred]

Fenceman have you used any of that King Ranch Field Fence wire?? I've never had any of it but use to know a guy that have nothing but that around his place.

 

[fenceman]

Yes, it's a net wire made entirely out of 9 gauge wire.You need a tractor to move a roll 4x4 to stretch it. Braces made out of 4" pipe planted deep as telephone poles.
Last time I priced it it was about a dollar a foot, not to bad really.
If you decide to go into the bull rhinoceros business, you'll be set.

 

[TexasBred]

Yes, it's a net wire made entirely out of 9 gauge wire.You need a tractor to move a roll 4x4 to stretch it. Braces made out of 4" pipe planted deep as telephone poles.
Last time I priced it it was about a dollar a foot, not to bad really.
If you decide to go into the bull rhinoceros business, you'll be set.

No wonder I don't have any of it. :shock: :shock: :lol2:

 

[cattle60]

are you calling net wire the same as we call woven wire?

 

[fenceman]

are you calling net wire the same as we call woven wire?

I'm calling net wire net wire. Your calling net wire woven wire. ;-) :cboy:

 

[skyhightree1]

Here its called hog wire