Fence stretchers

[Scrounger]

Ok, I have four different fence stretchers for barb wire.

(1) The "one arm" ratcheting kind (hook one arm around the post)
(2) The "two arm" ratcheting kind (same, with additional arm)
(3) The "clamp" type that you use with a Come-A-Long
(4) The old fashioned "Rope and Pulley" kind that will kill you as soon as look at you.

I've used all of them and keep coming back to just using the Come-A-Long and tieing a loop in the wire.
I have never been in a spot where I could not either pull off of my tractor loader, or pickup, or gate post, or tree, etc....

What do you use?

[Up North Louie]

I have a rope and pulley, as you say, it's mean-spirited, but it works best for me, as I have to do a lot of our fence on foot.

We have one that ratchets, with a dog for the wire and a hook you set to a loop of wire on the post. It works well enough, and if I don't have to carry it, I like it okay.

Don

[DaleK]

I use a $20, 2-ton cable puller. Use it for pulling calves too.

[Ramblin Wreck]

Use a come along/cable puller.

[Rowdy]

I use this now:
I have used it for barbed wire once, but it was not great.

I also have one of those one arm stretchers and a comealong.

[Scrounger]

Rowdy -
Yup! That would be handy on woven, fer sure!

[Up North Louie]

That's very cool. Nice tractor, as well.

Don

[Up North]

http://www.bestnest.com/bestnest/RTP...ag&kw=FIS-A-53
I use the Goldenrod steel stretcher with the ratchet. Easy to carry. Can hook to wire on both ends to fix a broken wire out in the open, or hook one end over a post. I have pulled calves with it, but not enough travel in it so you have to use up the ratchet length, reset, and pull again to get calf out. Come along with cable works better for pulling calves.

[Rowdy]

Originally Posted by Up North Louie

That's very cool. Nice tractor, as well.

Don

Thanks. The tractor is not much, just a 15hp Yanmar (japanese) tractor. However, it was cheap, and has 4x4, which I need in my sand. I spent $3000 for the tractor, and after alot of searching, it was the only decent tractor in the price range that had 4x4 around here. I've had it for over a year now, and have been able to do so much with it. I've got a shredder, boxblade, landscape rake, post hole auger, tiller, middlebuster, the fence stretcher showen, and an old toolbar for it. While small, it is strong for the size, and 5 gallons of diesel will go a LONG time.

Anyway,

[/derail]

[Wags]

Originally Posted by Rowdy

I use this now:
I have used it for barbed wire once, but it was not great.

I also have one of those one arm stretchers and a comealong.

I've never seen anything like that before - but we could so use one! Is it something you made up yourself, or can you tell me where I might look for one.

[Rowdy]

A decent welder should be able to throw one together pretty easy. However, I'm not a decent welder, so I bought my at Tractor supply. They can be found on their website and in the blue book.

[watcher]

I made a discovery when I was putting up fence the last time. If you put the fencing in the front bucket where when it unrolls it rolls toward the back of the bucket (i.e. the end coming under the roll) and set the bucket just right it will spool out nice as you please.

Then when you are ready to stretch it you tilt the bucket forward, hook a chain to the bucket and to the fence and roll the bucket back. But don't get too carried away if you are doing barbed wire, you can break it

[Wags]

Originally Posted by Rowdy

A decent welder should be able to throw one together pretty easy. However, I'm not a decent welder, so I bought my at Tractor supply. They can be found on their website and in the blue book.

Thanks - I'll have to see if I can find one like it around here or welder that can make me one, since we don't have a Tractor Supply around here.

ETA - found a "Amercian Farmland" brand one made by Tartergate that looks the same and there is a dealer within 25 miles of me.

[Farmerwilly2]

The one I like is a single arm with a 4-5 inch piece of chain then a dog to hold the wire. The base of the arm has a ridged plate you lever against the wood post to stretch the wire.

[THETOOLMAN]

I Use the winch on my 4 wheeler ., Works like a charm!