Board Fence Build - pictures and a question

[DT86]

I got a call from a man right down the road from me who wanted some board fence built. He had no way of doing it himself and went to the Kubota dealer to ask around who could do such work. They gave him my number.

He knew exactly what he wanted as it needed to match some existing fence. 4x6 posts DRIVEN into the ground (never did get an explanation as to why) on 8 foot centers and 5/4x6 boards. I went and looked it over with him, wheeled it off, made a few calls to price lumber and called him back to price it. With in 5 minutes he'd already left a message saying to write out a proposal and get to work ASAP!

I've got the posts in the ground and ready for the boards in the morning on the first of three sections. I have one question for you all. How would you guys angle the tops of the posts in one pass (not half way from one side and the the remaining from the other) once they are in the ground? A reciprocating saw or chain saw will be too messy and my little 18v Dewalt circular saw isn't big enough. Will a full sized circular saw do the trick?

Here is a picture of what I need to duplicate.

[DT86]

Out with the old.



The morning after we signed the agreement a woman ran through part of the old fence that was to be left alone.




The first delivery of lumber.



Eight footers driven to just below my chin.

[CBW1999]

I'll try not to be confusing whilst I describe what I'm thinking.....

Full size circular saw, set blade depth for deepest cut, then bevel the blade for the angle you want. Use the edge of the top horizontal board as a rail to guide the edge of the base plate while you cut. Likely you will still have to make the second cut- then sand down any ridge you leave behind.

You might also clamp a short board on the other side to guide the edge of the base plate but you would have to make sure the bevel is going the right way to match. May end up having to adjust the saw multiple times for each post.

[DT86]

Not confusing at all. Thanks.

[Willl]

No better reason to buy a new tool.

I'm thinking the Milwaukee circular with a 10 1/4" blade.

[CurlyDave]

Actually, there are several reputable makers of 10" hand held circular saws. Makita also has one, and possibly Bosch.

Possibly you can get one at a rental yard.

[DT86]

Actually, there are several reputable makers of 10" hand held circular saws. Makita also has one, and possibly Bosch.

Possibly you can get one at a rental yard.

I'm just wondering if anything will make the cut in one pass. Hand held band saw is the only thing I can think of. But even then you'd have to cut the posts to the correct height and then the angle.

[smstonypoint]

Not confusing at all. Thanks.

Well, I'm confused.

The OP mentioned beveling the posts in place. So a generator is available to power a circular saw?

If so, I would make a jig to guide the saw. It would consist of a "sleeve" of 1Xs or 2Xs that would fit over the post with the top sides of the sleeve mitered & beveled to produce the desired bevel for the posts. The bottom of the sleeve would be supported by blocks clamped to the posts at the appropriate height. This would allow the circular saw's blade to be set at a 90 degree angle to its base when sawing along the mitered sides of the jig.

Steve

Edit -- The important parts of the jig are the mitered sides. Upon reflection, the narrow sides could be lowered (to avoid beveling) and offset (to allow the jig to be clamped directly to the post).

[forgeblast]

Self-aligning post cutting jig - Smith Jr., Joel C.
This shows a jig for cutting the posts, I remember seeing how someone made one for cutting the 30degree angle before but I cant find it.

[Verticaltrx]

What kind of post driver did you use? I've always had trouble with driving square posts and having them turn when they go in.

As for cutting the posts, most of the big tool mfg's make a 10-12" circular saw. I've used a Milwaukee before and it was a really nice saw, cuts through 4x4 and 4x6 posts in one pass and 6x6 in two.