How to on H Braces?

[CowpokeJ]

What are some ideas for twisting wire on h braces? Smooth wire? Leave tool to twist with in? What kind of gadget works the best to twist with?

 

[jkwilson]

High tensile wire with a strainer. Nothing to come untwisted.

 

[backhoeboogie]

Spud wrench. It is tapered and comes out easiliy. Best thing since sliced bread for doing that. Let about 4 inches in the wire before you twist. Once taught you can retract it with a quick jerk. Some folks use a piece of rebar and leave it.

I have several old large spud wrenches in the shed. Keep a huge Crescent end spud in the truck at all times. It is great for patches and I can use it in lieu of a 15 inch crescent. Got to watch it tho. People see you use that spud to align equipment eyes for pins and such, they want it. "Never seen one with an adjustable end" is the common statement. It is amazing how many people see a spud for the first time when they see mine. Don't know what I'd do with out one. Probably bang things up aligning things with a hammer or something. But they are the perfect tool for twisting wire and retracting them.

 

[HOSS]

I use a piece of 3/4" schedule 40 pvc about a foot long. I cut the end off at an angle, tighten the wire and attach the angled end to the cross brace using a small dry-wall screw. Keeps everthing in place and when I need to tension I just back the screw out, tension and replace. The pvc is very durable and does not rust or rot.

 

[cmjust0]

High tensile wire with a strainer. Nothing to come untwisted.

I'll second that..

Typically, I take a piece of hi-t around the bottom of the end post, pass it through strap-end of the strainer, connect it back to itself with a square knot, and jerk it tight.. Then I take another piece of wire around the top of the 2nd post and put both tag ends through the cog of the strainer.. Crank it down tight. That way, you basically end up with two loops connected by the strainer.. No crimps to fail, no wire-twisting to waste time on.. Just a single square knot, and square knots don't fail..

One thing worth mentioning is that I've had strainers where the cog didn't want to accomodate two wires, but the cogs are generally aluminum, so they're drilled out easily enough..

Once you do a few braces, it only takes a minute or two to get one done.. A couple of other advantages are that hi-tensile doesn't stretch like 9ga wire, and the use of a strainer makes it really easy to re-tension the brace if ever the need arises..

The only other tip I'd offer is that you might consider dropping a fence staple or two over the back end of the strainer, between the wire and the bend in the strap.. Just for reinforcement.. I've had a couple rip through when the fence was tensioned, causing the brace to fail. It won't rip through a fence staple, though.

 

[alabama]

Cut you some oak limbs about 16 inches long and an inch around. Then just leave them.
For the wire just use barbwire.

 

[Outrigger2]

i just use a hammer to tighten the wire, but the wire tightner is a good idea as well

 

[denoginnizer]

I use a big flat head screwdriver.

 

[novatech]

Closest stick I can put my hands on.

 

[branDcalf]

Closest stick I can put my hands on.

Yeppers!

 

[CowpokeJ]

Spud wrench. It is tapered and comes out easiliy. Best thing since sliced bread for doing that. Let about 4 inches in the wire before you twist. Once taught you can retract it with a quick jerk. Some folks use a piece of rebar and leave it.

I have several old large spud wrenches in the shed. Keep a huge Crescent end spud in the truck at all times. It is great for patches and I can use it in lieu of a 15 inch crescent. Got to watch it tho. People see you use that spud to align equipment eyes for pins and such, they want it. "Never seen one with an adjustable end" is the common statement. It is amazing how many people see a spud for the first time when they see mine. Don't know what I'd do with out one. Probably bang things up aligning things with a hammer or something. But they are the perfect tool for twisting wire and retracting them.

Ok, I give, I don't know what a spud wrench is...

 

[novatech]

Spud wrench. It is tapered and comes out easiliy. Best thing since sliced bread for doing that. Let about 4 inches in the wire before you twist. Once taught you can retract it with a quick jerk. Some folks use a piece of rebar and leave it.

I have several old large spud wrenches in the shed. Keep a huge Crescent end spud in the truck at all times. It is great for patches and I can use it in lieu of a 15 inch crescent. Got to watch it tho. People see you use that spud to align equipment eyes for pins and such, they want it. "Never seen one with an adjustable end" is the common statement. It is amazing how many people see a spud for the first time when they see mine. Don't know what I'd do with out one. Probably bang things up aligning things with a hammer or something. But they are the perfect tool for twisting wire and retracting them.

Ok, I give, I don't know what a spud wrench is...

The handle is shaped like a ice cream cone only has a longer taper. It is used to line up two or more holes, usually in metal, on top of each other. After the holes are lined up a bolt can be inserted. The other end of the wrench is used to tighten up the nut that is placed on the bolt. These spud wrenches are used by metal building erectors for the steel frameing. Or any other place where one needs to line up bolt holes.

 

[backhoeboogie]

Spud wrench. It is tapered and comes out easiliy. Best thing since sliced bread for doing that. Let about 4 inches in the wire before you twist. Once taught you can retract it with a quick jerk. Some folks use a piece of rebar and leave it.

I have several old large spud wrenches in the shed. Keep a huge Crescent end spud in the truck at all times. It is great for patches and I can use it in lieu of a 15 inch crescent. Got to watch it tho. People see you use that spud to align equipment eyes for pins and such, they want it. "Never seen one with an adjustable end" is the common statement. It is amazing how many people see a spud for the first time when they see mine. Don't know what I'd do with out one. Probably bang things up aligning things with a hammer or something. But they are the perfect tool for twisting wire and retracting them.

Ok, I give, I don't know what a spud wrench is...

The handle is shaped like a ice cream cone only has a longer taper. It is used to line up two or more holes, usually in metal, on top of each other. After the holes are lined up a bolt can be inserted. The other end of the wrench is used to tighten up the nut that is placed on the bolt. These spud wrenches are used by metal building erectors for the steel frameing. Or any other place where one needs to line up bolt holes.

My originals came from when I was hanging iron right after HS. I had to buy them. They are about 16 to 18 inches long, just as Nova described.

I now also have Dad's and Grandad's. They came out of the oilfield. So oilfield workers use them as well.

 

[backhoeboogie]

Ok, I give, I don't know what a spud wrench is...

Scroll down 1/2 page from this klein tool link and you'll see them. They are great for aligning implements to your three point etc.

http://www.bluecollarsupply.com/klein_p ... s.htm#SPUD

 

[Hippie Rancher]

smooth wire would be nice but I never have any so I just use regular barbed wire (doubled) and then I use whatever is handy to twist - inch diameter oak or mesquite sticks, scrap of pipe, whathaveyou.

 

[CowpokeJ]

I use 18" pieces of rebar and leave them in place (new wire will always stretch a little as time goes by). Tried wood but it would break eventually.

Well, I ended up using this idea. Good idea, the rebar was 3/8, costs 2.80 for 20' joint. Cut it with a big set of bolt cutters. Twisted and left in place. Thanks...

 

[Aaron]

We use two crowbars, with about 2 foot long round shafts, twisting in opposite directions of each other at two points, each 1/2 way between post and mid-point of entire length of wire. We get the wires as tight as possible by really pulling on them and taking up the slack. Twist each bar alternately for about 15-20 turns and take the bars out. The wire is twisted in the opposite direction from the mid-point out, which keeps the wire from getting slack, a problem with people who use and leave wood stakes in their corners, which eventually rot. Only thing I could see that might otherwise work, longterm, is 1-inch rebar left in place. 1/2 inch won't be strong enough to get the wire tight enough.

 

[backhoeboogie]

I use 18" pieces of rebar and leave them in place (new wire will always stretch a little as time goes by). Tried wood but it would break eventually.

Well, I ended up using this idea. Good idea, the rebar was 3/8, costs 2.80 for 20' joint. Cut it with a big set of bolt cutters. Twisted and left in place. Thanks...

Good choice. Now for my next question. How are you going to tighten an existing brace when you do repairs?

 

[CowpokeJ]

I use 18" pieces of rebar and leave them in place (new wire will always stretch a little as time goes by). Tried wood but it would break eventually.

Well, I ended up using this idea. Good idea, the rebar was 3/8, costs 2.80 for 20' joint. Cut it with a big set of bolt cutters. Twisted and left in place. Thanks...

Good choice. Now for my next question. How are you going to tighten an existing brace when you do repairs?

My h brace is built with a t-post in the middle inset with crosses cut into the wood posts. The rebar is twisted and then held by the t-post. The rebar is pretty short, so I think I can twist them without hitting the fence wire. If not, I'll go with game plan B.

 

[backhoeboogie]

I use 18" pieces of rebar and leave them in place (new wire will always stretch a little as time goes by). Tried wood but it would break eventually.

Well, I ended up using this idea. Good idea, the rebar was 3/8, costs 2.80 for 20' joint. Cut it with a big set of bolt cutters. Twisted and left in place. Thanks...

Good choice. Now for my next question. How are you going to tighten an existing brace when you do repairs?

My h brace is built with a t-post in the middle inset with crosses cut into the wood posts. The rebar is twisted and then held by the t-post. The rebar is pretty short, so I think I can twist them without hitting the fence wire. If not, I'll go with game plan B.

There are a lot of them out there that we didn't build. :lol: Probably better than 100 of them on a piece of ground I have leased. It seems that practically everyone is a bit different and I have tightened about half of them while doing repairs (so far). Hence, it is your "plan B" most of the time for me.