Danuser Hammer- Any tips?

[sstterry]

Pipe is hard to come by here as well in East Tennessee. We are a long way from Texas and Pennsylvania.

 

[SmokinM]

Well I have messed with this thing a good bit now. A couple of things I have found. Without the extra weight kit it is pretty much useless around here for wood posts. It just doesn't have the umph to drive them. The grapple does work really well and that part works slick as a whistle. Trying to get them straight is what slows you down when working alone especially in pretty hilly ground like we have here. I can't think trying to run it on a tractor would be much fun or very productive. It can be pretty hard on post tops especially if you are trying to straighten one or get in hard ground.

Truth is I ended up getting a guy to come help out with a breaker style driver and there is no comparison. It will drive at least 5-6 posts in the time it takes for me to drive one. Much easier to straighten with that style also and it doesn't bust the tops up. Downside is you have to have 2 people to do it. Not sure why someone hasn't fashioned up a grapple like on the Hammer for one. It doesn't look like it would be that difficult to do. It is impressive the amount and speed that it will drive one.

Kicking myself a little for buying it now other than finding help is impossible for me other than hiring another crew like I did. I will work with it for awhile to do what I need to but it is for sale when I find the right deal to get rid of it on.

 

[JMJ Farms]

I just recently bought a Worksaver HPD 22Q driver. Good for up to 8 3/4" posts. Wish it had hydraulic adjustments but it didn't. Brand new. Been sitting under mans shelter but he never used. We are building a 3 rail fence for a customer with 6x6 and a few 8x8 square posts on 8' centers. What is working for us is this

1) We place a 2x4 90 1/4" long, horizontally on the ground between the post we just finished and the post we are starting.
2) We dig a 6" deep "pilot hole" with hole diggers.
3) Helper sets post in hole, levels manually with a 2' handheld level, and makes sure it's on the string.
4) I back the tractor up to the post.
5) My oldest son levels the driver with a magnetic torpedo level bc the little bubble on the machine sucks.
6) Helper then hits the post with the driver. Checks post with 2' level. Makes any adjustments and then hits again. During the first foot, adjustments are pretty simple. Then pound it on down.

Tips from limited experience:
1) Start straight, finish straight.
2) Learn to adjust driver and tractor. Don't fight it.
3) Be real observant and be safe.

We started the job with a 3 point PTO auger and tamping. We were averaging 3 posts per hour. After the first day learning curve, we've been averaging 10 posts per hour and nothing has been more than 3/4" off in any direction. I'm fairly impressed. I will say that we have good moisture and good soil to work with in this particular location. Hope my experience helps someone.

 

[callmefence]

I just recently bought a Worksaver HPD 22Q driver. Good for up to 8 3/4" posts. Wish it had hydraulic adjustments but it didn't. Brand new. Been sitting under mans shelter but he never used. We are building a 3 rail fence for a customer with 6x6 and a few 8x8 square posts on 8' centers. What is working for us is this

1) We place a 2x4 90 1/4" long, horizontally on the ground between the post we just finished and the post we are starting.
2) We dig a 6" deep "pilot hole" with hole diggers.
3) Helper sets post in hole, levels manually with a 2' handheld level, and makes sure it's on the string.
4) I back the tractor up to the post.
5) My oldest son levels the driver with a magnetic torpedo level bc the little bubble on the machine sucks.
6) Helper then hits the post with the driver. Checks post with 2' level. Makes any adjustments and then hits again. During the first foot, adjustments are pretty simple. Then pound it on down.

Tips from limited experience:
1) Start straight, finish straight.
2) Learn to adjust driver and tractor. Don't fight it.
3) Be real observant and be safe.

We started the job with a 3 point PTO auger and tamping. We were averaging 3 posts per hour. After the first day learning curve, we've been averaging 10 posts per hour and nothing has been more than 3/4" off in any direction. I'm fairly impressed. I will say that we have good moisture and good soil to work with in this particular location. Hope my experience helps someone.

Good stuff from a smart man right there.
JmJ the worksaver is a good driver. Imo it's the best made ibeam driver on the market.

 

[SmokinM]

JmJ that is not bad.when I build board fence I auger and set everything by hand and probably average 6 posts an hour but try to keep everything within a 1/4. Board fence is my bread and butter and what I have a reputation for. I drill with a skid steer though which makes a huge difference in drill time. I would say in good ground with extra weight you might get 10 an hour with the Hammer. They are averaging about 35 an hour with the Montana driver. Some straight stretches in softer ground they have done 50. That's a 5-6x7' posts driven 30" with a few 8' driven to 42" for braces thrown in. I wouldn't have/ didn't believe it til I saw it. Your not going to drive a sq. post straight here with anything. They spiral as they go down and break usually after about 18". With the big driver I had before I drove a few really solid railroad ties to about 3' but it had a 750# weight and a 16' mast so you could put a lot of stroke on it.

 

[JMJ Farms]

JmJ that is not bad.when I build board fence I auger and set everything by hand and probably average 6 posts an hour but try to keep everything within a 1/4. Board fence is my bread and butter and what I have a reputation for. I drill with a skid steer though which makes a huge difference in drill time. I would say in good ground with extra weight you might get 10 an hour with the Hammer. They are averaging about 35 an hour with the Montana driver. Some straight stretches in softer ground they have done 50. That's a 5-6x7' posts driven 30" with a few 8' driven to 42" for braces thrown in. I wouldn't have/ didn't believe it til I saw it. Your not going to drive a sq. post straight here with anything. They spiral as they go down and break usually after about 18". With the big driver I had before I drove a few really solid railroad ties to about 3' but it had a 750# weight and a 16' mast so you could put a lot of stroke on it.

We try to keep as tight of a tolerance as we can as well. I'm dang near a perfectionist. Most of ours have been within perfect to 1/2". Anything over 3/4" ain't gonna stay, and so far we haven't had many of those. If I built fence for a living I'd probably look for a different driver. Only reason I'm doing this job is bc it's for a real good customer of mine.
I think the main reason it's working as good as it is probably pertains to good soil conditions at this time. Couldn't ask for better conditions. Pounding posts then attaching rails with screws. When we get through, we've got to through bolt it with 1/2 x 8" carriage head bolts. But we are gonna paint it black first.

 

[SmokinM]

Nice looking fence JMJ. It should be there awhile. Why put the carriage bolts thru it? Is he putting mini donkeys in it? Don't laugh those things are hard on some fence. Are you going to let it cure before you paint it? Also instead of paint I highly recommend a quality opaque stain. Paint will actually make a wood fence rot by trapping moisture against the wood and is hard to recoat. A stain seals the wood by soaking in and can be redone without as much prep work when the time comes. JMO.

 

[JMJ Farms]

Nice looking fence JMJ. It should be there awhile. Why put the carriage bolts thru it? Is he putting mini donkeys in it? Don't laugh those things are hard on some fence. Are you going to let it cure before you paint it? Also instead of paint I highly recommend a quality opaque stain. Paint will actually make a wood fence rot by trapping moisture against the wood and is hard to recoat. A stain seals the wood by soaking in and can be redone without as much prep work when the time comes. JMO.

Carriage head bolts are just for aesthetics. Lot for a little if you ask me, but that's what he wants. And it does look nice. But pretty costs.

We are planning to let it cure before painting. I am using CCA treated lumber. Way better than this new salt cured stuff so I hope it lasts for a long time. I'm not opposed to an opaque stain. I will mention it to him. Was previously planning on using Lexington Paints black fence paint. The company's recommendation to combat moisture issues was to paint the top of the posts and the top of the rails from both sides of the fence, (essentially putting two coats on everything facing upwards), one coat on the sides of the rails, and no paint on the bottoms of the rails, which supposedly allows the moisture an exit. Makes sense but, I'm no expert by any stretch of the imagination, this is my first wood fence project.

Attaching pic of sample fence with bolts to illustrate the look he's after....And he wanted it to look "beefier", so we elected to use 2x8s instead of 2x6s, and 6x6 posts. I will ask him about the stain.