A better way to wrap/unwrap t-post clips

[plevans]

Any of you ranchers who wrap t-post clips with pliers might be interested in a new tool my husband invented. He developed this tool because the arthritis in his hands made wrapping t-post clips with pliers very painful.

He wanted to buy a tool that would make the job easier but he found that the tools on the market were either flimsy, only partially wrapped the clips or only worked with specially made fence clips. So he developed his own tool that makes wrapping standard t-post clips so easy that even *I* can wrap them! Both ends of clips can be wrapped tightly with the tool and clips can be easily unwrapped with it.

He has been so pleased with the results he's gotten with his tool that he decided to make it available to other ranchers.

I won't include a link to our website because I'm not sure if it is a violation of forum policy. If you'd like to learn more and view a slideshow demonstration of the tool in use, you can email me at [email protected] for a link.

Patti

 

[Wewild]

Um i use a nail nothing works better. I just put it in there and twist the ends of the clips on and it takes less time than pliers. Thats about as cost effective as you can get.

How do you do the other end?

 

[plevans]

cowboy, you're right about using a nail, and a screwdriver could be used as well. But neither will give you a very tight wrap on the long end of the clip or allow you to tighten the short end at all. Leaving the short end loose is the cause of many clips springing off the fence when cows lean on the fence and stretch the wire or a tree limb falls on the wire.

The Fence Pro T-Post Clip Tool differs from a nail or screwdriver because it is a hollow tube so it is used in 2 ways. First the tool is inserted in the 'v' in the long end of the clip and wrapped around the wire, probably just as you are doing with a nail. But the clip can only make one rotation around the wire because the 'v' becomes too small to accomodate the nail. The clip ends are wrapped by inserting the tool over the end of the clip and wrapping around the wire which achieves a tight, complete wrap that prevent clips from springing off fences.

We actually learned how well the clips will hold when our bull and our neighbor's bull spent a day leaning on a shared fence line. You can read the "bull test" on our website.

Since then clips have been tested by a large tree falling on the fence. The barb wire broke, but the t-post clips held tight.

Another benefit of the tool is that t-post clips can be unwrapped amazingly easily, and are reuseable after unwrapping.

I have posted 2 photos to the Photo Gallery if you'd like to see a clip fully wrapped and one that has been unwrapped.

Does anyone know if I can post the URL to our website in a forum post, or add it to my signature line?

Patti

 

[Cowdirt]

Um i use a nail nothing works better. I just put it in there and twist the ends of the clips on and it takes less time than pliers. Thats about as cost effective as you can get.

cowboyup, I've used pliers, nails and what works best for me is a piece of rod stock dia. of about 3/8"- 7/16" and long enough for your hand. Drill a hole thru the diameter just large enough for what you're twisting. Hole needs to be about 3/8" or so from the end. Can have a different size hole on the other end for different wire. Also works great for making a nice twist on brace wires. I'm not making them for sale. ;-)

 

[Beefy]

i use fencing pliars with a blue handle. and i think i'm too dumb to figure out how to do it using a nail.

 

[fit2btied]

A t-handled punch from a conveyor belt splicing kit will do the trick also. Slide the tool over the end of the clip, twist it up as tight as you want it and then do the other side. To remove, just kick it in reverse - twist it the other way. We still have to use the fence pliers to hold the wire at the level we want - not much flat land around here. Do you have a patent on this invention? From the pics on your website, it looks like I can go to the local hardware store and buy a 1/8 inch pipe nipple 5 or 6 inches long and have the same thing.

 

[ga. prime]

Blue handles, yeah I use those for the clips too.

 

[plevans]

I'll take over from my wife and respond to the ideas that have been shared thus far. I admire the resourcefulness of farmers and ranchers and appreciate how many ideas people have come up with to make t-post clip wrapping easier.

I spent the better part of a year testing lots of different tools, configurations and materials, some that were simple and readily available as have been mentioned here. The end result I was looking for was a wrapping tool that would not cause any hand fatigue or aggravate my arthritis, no matter how many clips I wrapped. That eliminated anything that required gripping, twisting or turning, such as a t-handled punch or anything with a handle. Additionally, anything with a handle, especially if it is t-shaped, is really cumbersome in tight spots, such as fence netting, welded wire and cattle panels. With no handle and it's slim design, the Fence Pro T-Post Clip Tool is easily maneuverable in places where pliers and hands aren't.

Although I never tested an 1/8 inch pipe nipple, there are 2 problems that come immediately to mind based on my experience with tubing material. One is that the threads would catch on the wire, making it necessary to reposition the tool, which I would find frustrating after wrapping several t-posts. The other is the diameter, both inside and out. While testing hollow tubes I discovered that as little as .005 of an inch inside diameter made a world of difference in how smoothly the tool wrapped around the wire, how little grip and force were needed, and how tightly the clips could be wrapped. If you'll take a look at the photos my wife posted in the Photo Gallery (click on the thumbnails for nice close-up views of the wrapped clips) you can see how tightly a clip can be wrapped with the Fence Pro and how small a space it can fit into. Believe me, clips wrapped that tightly have saved me alot of fence rebuilding because they don't spring off the fence when cows lean on the fence.

If you go to the website and view the video slideshow of the tool in use you can see how smoothly a clip can be wrapped with the Fence Pro.

As regards the rod stock: I purchased a tool that was designed similar to this idea. It was an improvement over pliers, but wouldn't wrap the clip completely around the wire, and the short end couldn't be wrapped with it at all.

Additionally none of these other tools/devices were useful for unwrapping clips. The Fence Pro Tool unwraps clips as easily as it wraps them, and leaves the clips in a condition that can be reused. In the Photo Gallery you can view a photo of a clip that has been unwrapped with the Fence Pro.

I have been amazed at how much easier this tool has made wrapping t-post clips for me. As my wife mentioned, even she can wrap clips with it.

Wylie

 

[plevans]

Beefy, I just noticed your signature line and I love it!

Patti

 

[Beefy]

thanks pl. next time yall are inventing, how about inventing a pack of t-post clips that all actually work. i must thrown out 2/3 of a bag today trying to find a good one. thanks, beefy

 

[backhoeboogie]

inventing a pack of t-post clips that all actually work. i must thrown out 2/3 of a bag today trying to find a good one. thanks, beefy

Just turn the open end of the V towards the post beefy. They didn't come backwards, all you have to do is turn them around.

 

[Cowdirt]

thanks pl. next time yall are inventing, how about inventing a pack of t-post clips that all actually work. i must thrown out 2/3 of a bag today trying to find a good one. thanks, beefy

Have you compared the wire ga. of new vs. old clips? They have re-engineered them I guess. When I see that on a product, I say do you want me to translate that for you. Lookout they've made them cheaper not better. Also in our area it's hard to find clips with the old style form. Seems that each supplier forms them differently.

 

[plevans]

Have you compared the wire ga. of new vs. old clips? They have re-engineered them I guess. When I see that on a product, I say do you want me to translate that for you. Lookout they've made them cheaper not better.

Cowdirt: The Fence Pro T-Post Clip Tool works beautifully on the smaller guage clips that are sold today. The clips don't spring off the fence because *both* sides of the clips are wrapped completely around the wire, making wraps that are as strong as, or stronger than, wraps that could be made with the older, heavier guage clips.

Have a look at the photos in the Photo Gallery (click on the thumbnails for nice close-up views of the wrapped clips) you can see how tightly a clip can be wrapped with the Fence Pro.

You can visit our website to learn more about the Fence Pro tool and see a video slideshow of the tool in use by clicking the www button at the bottom of this post.

Patti

 

[Beefy]

my problem was there was no short twist.

 

[backhoeboogie]

Well there are a couple of those tools coming. The price isn't much and I'll see how they work. I am more interested in taking wire off and reattaching than initial wrapping. Perhaps I will wind up using it for both. Maybe even no more lost nails or broken screw drivers.

Nothing is more irritating than seeing someone take my good cresent wrenches and use them as a hammer. Using a screw driver for a fencing tool myself is probably no worse and I have lost or damage tools using them as makeshift utensils.

It they don't work for me, I can toss them and it is no big loss.

 

[cmjust0]

I use a hi-tensile twist tool (Click here) on t-post clips..

Insert the tool itself through the 'V' and twist just like the screwdriver/nail method, then slip wire through the smallest hole in the tool and twist it around.. Move to the short side, slip the tool over the tag end of the wire, and give it one twist.

Piece of cake.

 

[marimus]

We use a tool pretty similar to that one, you can see it at http://www.whiteswires.com.au/products/accessories.htm

My uncle also made some in his stainless steel fabrication business, with longer handles to get more leverage, and an offset head to get in close to the posts, and at a comfortable angle.

Not for sale, just for his own use, and anyone who saw it who wanted one

 

[3MR]

inventing a pack of t-post clips that all actually work. i must thrown out 2/3 of a bag today trying to find a good one. thanks, beefy

Just turn the open end of the V towards the post beefy. They didn't come backwards, all you have to do is turn them around.

:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

 

[3MR]

Have you compared the wire ga. of new vs. old clips? They have re-engineered them I guess. When I see that on a product, I say do you want me to translate that for you. Lookout they've made them cheaper not better.

Cowdirt: The Fence Pro T-Post Clip Tool works beautifully on the smaller guage clips that are sold today. The clips don't spring off the fence because *both* sides of the clips are wrapped completely around the wire, making wraps that are as strong as, or stronger than, wraps that could be made with the older, heavier guage clips.

Have a look at the photos in the Photo Gallery (click on the thumbnails for nice close-up views of the wrapped clips) you can see how tightly a clip can be wrapped with the Fence Pro.

You can visit our website to learn more about the Fence Pro tool and see a video slideshow of the tool in use by clicking the www button at the bottom of this post.

Patti

I looked at the pictures and sight. Looks like a crack pipe to me. :lol:

Seriously though, I use pliers, but a nipple works as well. The threads dont catch as suggested, but if they did you could by an unthreaded nipple.

I guessing you could sell those things at Tractor Supply though. I certainly dont buy anything I can make. A piece of strap iron with a hole in it, similar to the tool cmjust posted works very well as well.

 

[novatech]

Is this it?

http://fenceprotool.com/details.html