fence stretching question

[Rick Kr]

Pardon the dumb question, this is the first fence I have actually built. Watched as a kid.

I'm stretching my woven fence tonight.
I've wrapped and tied off the fence at the beginning H post.

Question:
How to I end the fence as far as securing it to the last post? Do I stretch the fence just before the final end post, then wrap and tie it the same as I did on the starting post?

Thanks in advance,
Rick

 

[Allan in NE]

Yep, you got it.

Allan

 

[Rick Kr]

Thanks Allan,

I still need to get you pictures of the "suspended" loft I built in my barn. I am sure it was you that sent me pix of your loft probably 3 years ago or so.

BTW, did you ever buy the Landpride rear blade or did you scrap that idea?

see ya,
Rick

 

[Ken Macfarlane]

Heres something I've seen and wondered about, those page wire fences here pull themselves down over about 10 years even if there are no animals. How do ya account for the temperature swings?

If I tension the fence in the summer to 250 lbs or so, and she is a hot hot day, in the start of winter before the posts are frozen in really well that fence is cold enough to shrink something like 6" in every 100 ft.

Thats gonna pull the posts out a bit each time it happens. A high tension electric used springs every so often to relieve that.

What do ya do for mesh?

 

[msb]

That is why you don't pull the kinks out of the wire. They are in there to absorb the change in tension caused from the heat and cold.

 

[Rick Kr]

Good question.

I was thinking about that. Suppose to be 96 today. That wire will be like a bango string when it hits -5 F this January.

I thought about stretching it a little "loose" being so hot.

I know some woven wire has stretch crimps in it. So you have a little extra wire that is not stretched completely straight.

I am running 2x4x48" which doesn't appear to have those crimps in the horizontal wires.

Rick

 

[Anonymous-0]

We used to attach the two by four clamp just past the final end post and then stretch. We then stapled the woven wires to the final end post, relieved the tension on the stretcher, and then removed the stretcher. Then we wrapped the wire around the final end post and tied each wire to the stretched wires. That's it.

 

[Ken Macfarlane]

Heres something I've seen and wondered about, those page wire fences here pull themselves down over about 10 years even if there are no animals. How do ya account for the temperature swings?

If I tension the fence in the summer to 250 lbs or so, and she is a hot hot day, in the start of winter before the posts are frozen in really well that fence is cold enough to shrink something like 6" in every 100 ft.

Thats gonna pull the posts out a bit each time it happens. A high tension electric used springs every so often to relieve that.

What do ya do for mesh?

 

[Walt Davies]

The crimps are in the wire so it can go evenly over small rises and dips. with out them you couldn't get a straight fence unless you put it on perfectly flat land.
I always stretch the bottom wire first them the top wire. leave the others to find their own tension or use a claw hammer to slightly tighten them. If you have a large dip or sharp hill you may have to put small twists in the wire from top to bottom or bottom to top to take up the slack. After a year or two you will need to retighten the fence. Put a Barb wire strand about 2 in. above the woven fence to keep animals from sticking their head though and pulling it down. I also put a wire in about every 6 or 8 ft. tying the two together.
At the end of each 330 ft. section of wire i put in two wood post about 4 ft. a part with a wooden X frame between them. Tie one roll to the far post and the next roll to the other side of the post and tie to the first post set your staple on the other post so that the wire can move. This creates a point where the fence can flex back and forth to keep it tight. Put at least one of these in the center of every run or every 330 ft. I have fences that look good after 4 or 5 years with no extra work on them. where I didn't do this the cows make a mess of the fence.
Also remove any fruit trees that are on the other side of the fence the cows will tear down a very good fence to get to them. Don't ask how I know this.
Walt

 

[Jon (IN)]

Dad used to have a tool he made to put the kinks back in the fence to stretch it back out a bit. It was 3 pieces of 3/4 or 1" galv pipe, using a "Tee" he made the pipe into a T shape that was about 6" wide by 6" long. Then a slot was cut in the end. By putting the slot on the fence and giving a twist, you could rekink the fence.

I really didn"t know why you would use the kinks instead of restretching it, but the heat/cool cycles make sense.

Jon

 

[souNdguy]

I do mine like Dean mentions.. with woven, welded or barb wire.

Stretch past the last post.. staple in place.. then give a wrap and staple some more.

They make many types of fence stretchers.. and even things like com-along's and farm jacks can be used.. as well as ho-made contraptios with 2x4 that clamp on the fence.. etc..

Soundguy

Soundguy

 

[Clint Youse MO]

We stretch it past the last post then steeple it to the post a couple of times then unhook and tie off and finish steepling put plenty of post and a good wooden post at top and bottom of each hill. we use a small tractor to stretch woven wire fence go until it spins out or dies and then kill tractor and leave in gear we don't build much woven wire any more ussualy high tensile or barbed wire.

 

[Anonymous-0]

Rick, You are right so far by tieing off on the far left post if you are pullin right or the far right post if you are pullin left.
I use a pull pipe, mounted verticaly of of the draw bar at 1 ft above the bottom of the pipe, and a D clivis mounted 1 ft below the top of the pipe, It is chained off of the centerlink bracket or use a longer chain and go around the axlw housings.
Have the pipe as near perpendicular as possoble.
Bsck the tractor w/ the pull pipe up too the corner you are going to tie off on to.
Now tie off onto the pull pipe on the tractor that is right next to the corner post.
Put you tractor in Low/Low gear, start easing forward al little at a time. Get 1 or 2 fellows to help you by shaking loose the wire, and watching to see it doesn't get hung up on some large rock, tree/sapling stump, etc, and ruin a section of wire. As you do this a few times the wire will start to stand up by the tention of the wire.
Now depending on how long a run you pull as to how much slack will be streached out.
I was taught to streach till half or better of the crimps were taken out by the streaching process.
A good length to pull with a tractor os 2 to 3 rolls.
Anyway once you have the desired tension. Staple off the entire corner post all wires, brace post too. Now get rid of all vertical stay wires for about 4 ft backl
Start on the middle wire hold tention on it with a pair of wire plyers cut it, quickly wrap twice and tie off. Next rotate from top to bottom working yourself outward till all yiu have left are the two big wires. Now go to the bottom and staple and tie off then do the top. that is the way to do a wood post.
On a pipe corner, streach the same way to desired tension now couple off on the tractor or the corner pipe post with a Come-a-long and wire clamp start on center and alternate top to bottom. pull just enough tension to get a little slack. now cut loose, wrap twice and tie off. rotating top and bottom till the big top anf bottom wire is left. Do them and there yoiu are ....done.
Hope this helps.
Later,
John A.
Sorry for the misspells, long day and jut too tired to go back and proof.