Fence post peeler/debarker

[CDN Farm Boy]

I just came home with 56 fresh cut cedar fence posts now I need to get the bark off. Back when I was a kid, we'd wait for the moisture to form under the bark and use a spud to peel them but I don't have 6 months or so to wait, I want to use them next weekend.

I'm looking to build a peeler/debarker as I'd rather spend the time to build an attachment than to do it by hand anyways. Except for one lowly thread, searching, including Google and YouTube only seems to get me ones with planer knives and are rather elaborate for limited use.

I have an old gearbox I saved off a junk crop chopper that I was thinking of mounting a car rim to with some short chains bolted to the rim and then feed the post past. Kind of like a weed whacker will take the bark off if you get too close.

Thoughts?

 

[ENC]

I have had good luck using a high pressure pressure washer

 

[forgeblast]

I have used a draw knife on hemlock. Once you get it started you can pull it right off. The trick is do it when its green (wet).

 

[Brad_Blazer]

My goats would eat the bark right off them. It's incredible how they love that stuff.

 

[BHD]

this most likely will not help you this time, but balies make a chain saw attachment, Log Wizard Debarker | Log Debarkers | Log Handling, Power | www.baileysonline.com

 

[SPYDERLK]

I have had good luck using a high pressure pressure washer

:thumbsup: Works best when you dry the posts for awhile first.

 

[Taylortractornut]

Back when dad wad a young man he worked for a businessman that had several things goin. Dad was an operator for his house building outfit and also on rainy days worked in the feed store. One job he hated was posts. People would bring in straight pine trunks 2 to4 inches.six feet long for store credit. Dad's job was to take a draw knife and peel them and let the dry a few days then soak them a few more in a treatment.

He paid dad by the piece on that job. I think it was 5 cents. Dad wanted more production so he took his old Pontiac and found 2 spare rims. He cut the center from one and welded it to another. Then welded chains that hung down and some that had both ends welded to the rims. He'd drive to work get set up then block his car up and take the wheel off the back. He'd bolt on the debarker and put it in gear.at days he had weeks worth of soakers. Dad did this a couple weeks then the boss dropped his pay to 2cents each. Dad took his invention home and just ran the man's equipment no more peeling posts for him.


If they are bigger a friend built a large draw knife by adding another cutting edge to his box blade just offset it so it hung off one side. He peeled all the logs for his cabin that way.

 

[Steve_Miller]

I just made a homemade draw knife at work out a piece of hard plate we use for wear liners in our concrete mixers and started peeling them by hand. Got about a dozen done so far (2 or 3 hrs into it so far). Just put the Peavey's out back and blasted some music while I was peeling. Can only do that while the wifey is at work, she thinks I'm going to deafen myself playing it that loud.

Steve

 

[roadhunter]

There is an attachemtn for a 7" grinder that woulddo the job. It's a bit spendy but I would imagine you could make someting yourself that would work for small quantity jobs like this.

Error

The pressure washer sounds like the best idea I have heard so far. Seems like it would be easy and simple.

Some folks a couple of miles form my house have a sawmill as well as a post peeling setup. It is one heck of a contraption. Originally had 1 40-50 HP engine but they run it off of a couple of briggs 24hp like they run on thier sawmill. It was originally used for making telephone poles by the local electic provider many many years ago but now they use it on fence posts. Only take a few seconds to run an 8 ft long log 6-8" in diameter log.

 

[Renze]

My neighbour have had a Woodmizer LT70 sawmill for over 15 years, but last spring bought one of these:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vXgwJgInMwM

 

[Tor Arne]

Should not be too much problem to make something like this

http://youtu.be/xatQFtADeXo

 

[CDN Farm Boy]

Some neat ideas brought forward, and sounds like the chains on a rim idea would work. At this point, my contraption is on hold and I've got my posts peeled.

I'd walked by the pile with a shovel on my hand and gave one of the posts a poke and a chunk of bark came right off. Poked away at it for another few seconds and more came off easily. Went to the shop, grabbed a spare shovel handle and a chunk of scrap steel and built a spud and started peeling. I was peeling strips several inches wide by half or 3/4 of the post on one shot.

It was working well but seemed almost easier to just pull by hand. Back to the shop, 2 saw horses and a 3/4" chisel (no idea where my draw knives are) and I was back in business. With the exception of 4 that the bark was too dry, I was comfortably peeling 10 an hr. By that math, I couldn't build what I had in mind in that time.

 

[CDN Farm Boy]

On a similar note, I spent some time building fence the last 2 weekends. I don't have an auger and didn't want to rent for only 20 or so posts so I started digging with the backhoe. With my soil type - soft and wet with no stones at all, I found I could drive them with my post maul faster and better than I could dig them with the backhoe. A lot more work physically but worth it for the better fit.

 

[roadhunter]

My neighbour have had a Woodmizer LT70 sawmill for over 15 years, but last spring bought one of these:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vXgwJgInMwM

Impressive piece of equipment. If you don't mind me asking what kind of price ranges is a machine like that in?

 

[Renze]

Impressive piece of equipment. If you don't mind me asking what kind of price ranges is a machine like that in?

I have no clue. Havent asked my neighbour. But if you search youtube there are other manufacturers that also are represented in North America. Perhaps you better ask them instead of the Austrians.

 

[Brad_Blazer]

In the realm of implements that might cost more than the tractor that's pretty cool Renze. For some reason I kept hoping a Vampire would show up in the video.

Tor, nice video of the same implement with a little age on it.

 

[oosik]

Steve_Miller,
I see your pics of the fence posts. Why go to all the extra work of peeling them? Does it have something to do with longevity? I use 100% T-posts because Ponderosa pine just doesn't last long at all. And about 35% to 40% of all my T-posts are in holes bored in solid bedrock.

 

[CDN Farm Boy]

Yes, longevity is a part of it, the other is aesthetic.

The bark traps moisture around the post helping it rot faster, particularly at ground level which is already the worst spot for a post rotting.

If you don't peel them, the bark will fall off on it's own anyway in a year or two. By the time the fence is built, there will be sections of bark held on by either staples and wire or rails and the post start looking shagy and unkempt.

A good cedar post will last 20 years or so around here. T posts mixed with wood posts are used sometimes by the roads crews but in most soil types around here you need the wood post to give enough strength to keep the fence from falling over when the ground is soft

 

[oosik]

Hmmm - - thanks CDN Farm Boy. Wooden posts are almost always only used around here for aesthetics. This means they are usually seen only around a yard or close to a house. I have 80 acres fenced which means around 535 or so T-posts. Some were installed in the 1880's and are still in good order. I have a damp/moat area, between two of my lakes, where T-posts will last 5-6 years if I'm lucky. I've tried #1 railroad ties and they last 12-15 years - not worth the effort or cost.