Air Powered T-Post Driver

[Anonymous Poster]

Spring is here and time to start on this new fence....

Though, that means lots of tractor time with the post hole digger!!! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

But also means lots of back breaking corner post work
and hand T-post pounding ick.

Were doing 5 acres for horses with 5ft high non-climb horse fence and 7 ft t-posts with electric tape along the top.

My sincere thanks to the man who made the post hole digger!
Got 15 - of the 8 inch oak corner posts in with my 12 inch auger, (man those oak posts are heavy, must be 200 lbs each?, my FEL did most of the lift work with a chain, whew)

Another 30 of the 5 inch brace posts dug with my 9 inch auger, and every 6 ft another 5 inch post for sturdiness. All held in with Sac-crete concrete argh argh argh. /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif
1600 lbs of sacrete (80lb bags).... though made easy with the FEL transporting it, just turn tractor around, pull up to the hole and cut the bag, pour 1/2 bag, pour water, dump the rest. Tamp and pack concrete with tamper, check level... Onto next wood post.... etc etc.

Now time for T-posts ick I had drove 25 of them sunday.... this got old quick especially when it was rocky, there must be a better way. Searched the rental places for attachments drivers for the rear of our tractors, no luck... No rental places had a Bobcat post driver either.

Called a fencing company, they'll drive the tposts with there Bobcat post driver, but its $80 and hr. with 400 more posts to go, he said it'll take 5 hours. $400 ouch.

Searched the internet, found hydraulic ones for $2500, ah not.... but I did found this place! Pretty Cool, and air powered T-post driver.

Rohrer - Air T-post driver

I figure for about the same $, I can have something to show for it, and I can use it later on for my other fencing projects.
I ordered it yesterday, will be here next week, just in time for the 400 t-posts arriving this thursday.

I thought I'd share this product with everyone, I'll get more photos of the fence later as I go, how this product works and some tractor time. /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

It seems like a worth while investment in time and money,
and not to mention all that hand pounding, blister making t-post manual driving stuff. /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif

Btw: I luv my tractor, FEL, and PHD /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
John

 

[Bird]

John, if you have many posts to drive, that looks like a pretty neat tool as long as you have a portable compressor to take along with it.

 

[Anonymous Poster]

I'll have to rent a gas air compressor, its rated at 9 cfm.
The driver is 2.2 cfm. The rental is $35 per day at Nuway.

Btw: For those experience Horse fence builders, am I doing everything ok? Anything to change, now is the time....
The t-posts are 6 ft spans, with every 6th post is a 5inch wood post... Is this ok? I'm thinking the electric 1 1/2 tape along the top will keep them out of the fence.

John

 

[tim_s]

My Fatherinlaw and I put in about a 100 t-posts in one day using the FEL on the tractor. About 90% of the time the FEL just shoved them right in. The rest took a little persuasion with the t-post driver. A 100 of them may not seem like much to old hands at fence building, but it was a banner day for us. We did a few with the driver and then stood back and said there has got to be a better way. We cut a measuring stick to get the height and used that up against the post while shoving it in. It was wonderful compared to the driver.

 

[Anonymous Poster]

Driving them in with the FEL.... did you have the bucket tilted back all the way? that would seem a little dangerous if they slid on the bucket to a side. If the bucket was level, placing it underneath the bucket wouldn't seem like a good idea either.

How heavy was your tractor?
Mine 4300 is only 2900lbs, with loader I think its another 900lbs. I'm working by myself to, so I don't think I could line one up correctly and get it started right. I'm afraid my light tractor would lift the front end off the ground.

If a person had some type of post "catch" or hitch setup where they could catch the post in a secure position from moving side to side or front to back on the FEL, it sounds like a easy way to get the job done using what a person already has.

J

 

[Bird]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( using the FEL on the tractor )</font>

I've seen that done with a bigger tractor; worked great. So I tried it with my little Kubota and with my hard clay ground, just picked up the front wheels on the tractor and the post hardly make a dimple in the ground. /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

 

[wroughtn_harv]

I drive t posts all the time with my tractor. I put some material (dead weight) in the front end loader. Usually I can just push down and that's all it takes. If that doesn't get it then I drop the bucket about six inches at a time. I use the part of the bucket that has a reinforcing strap so I don't dent the bucket.

A thousand pounds dropped six inches can so some damage. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[Boone]

Went over to a friends place to put in a couple hundred yards of chain link fencing. He decided to use his FEL to push the posts in and in they went, with just down action of the loader. Made me a little ill to not drill a hole and set the posts in concrete but it was his fence and my day off work. /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

 

[Darren]

Were the oak posts treated or untreated?

 

[Anonymous Poster]

I got them from MFA, they appeared to be untreated (maybe).
The kid that sold them to me didn't know. Orshelens had some creasoaked ones, but they were out of stock on the 8" and didn't know when they would get more in.

Would treated Oak have a certain color?
Whats the life of treated vs. non treated?
Can I spray something on them to make them last?

John