Wire FENCING problem/question?
Question:father in-law got some thick wire fencing,its about 6ft high/long ,cant remember the length or gauge it is but its heavy duty stuff? the problem is when weve cut it to the desired length for what we need,its like wrestling a anaconda..we just cant get it flat? tried hitting it with a rubber mallet and all-sorts? how do you get it straight? do contractors use something like a giant mangle or something similar that it feeds through and straightens it that way? cheers for any info...oh and no ive not wrestled a anaconda ,just guessing on that one?
Answers:
if you're using it for fencing (not putting it in concrete) then you need to use a fence stretcher. they make fence stretchers, or you can thread a piece of something (pipe/steel/whatever) through the end of the piece and attach that to a com a long/car/etc. and pull it till it's tight. you should not have cut it until it's stretched and attached to the post-then you cut it.
its normally fitted at each end to a series of bolts with holes in the end to secure the threaded wire going through the fence and when tightened up the wire fencing gets taunt and straightens up.
You want to start by attaching one end firmly to a fence post, then move the other end to the next post and and one person pushes the bowed part until the fence is straight while the other person attaches the fence to the post. Farmers use a tractor and chain to "stretch" fence to align with the posts. Another tool is the "come along" or ratcheting cable puller anchored to a tree, corner post, tractor, truck or immovable object.
whenyou unroll the mesh , roll it out so that it tends tocurl down towards the ground thenroll up in reverse to take out the tendancy to roll in original position , fence stretchers are generally used on chain link and probably won't be much help with the type of mesh you are using sounds like you are using concrete reinforcing wire or what used to be called hog wire used for penning hogs or sheep.
It needs to be stretched.
Us a crow bar at one of the cross over joins, pull the wire around the posts, get someone else to hammer in the staples.
You will need stretcher posts at each corner to stop the end posts pulling in.
do lots of this on our farm, ideally you'd use a tractor to pull it tight but i guess you don't have one - also the posts would need to be rock solid to pull it that tight.
fix one end to a solid object such as a bolt in a wall, fix other end to a thick hook and place hook in a drill , pull tight and start drill for a few seconds , that will straighten the wire , cut to required length
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