Fitting the top rail is a lot easier if you gather a few tools first: a method of holding the rails stable and level, a little below your knee height; a spreader bar that fits between the posts and a stable platform tall enough to be able to make a down cut on the top of the rail.

We built a scaffold that sits on a snow mobile trailer, the plank is long enough to work on both ends of the rail and has chocks to hold the rail for trimming while standing on the trailer. The trailer also carries the rails along with you. Very simple and effective. Ideally the spreader bar should be adjustable but can be as simple as a 2x4 cut to the proper length. It's purpose is to spread the top of the posts in the space you are working so they will spring back against the top rail you are fitting.

Starting at the end post choose a rail and put it in the chocks rotating it so any arch will be up when the rail is set. The top of the rail will be pointing to the outside when it is in the chock. If you are right handed, it is easiest to work from right to left facing the fence. Mark the end of the rail with a vertical line that will leave 3 to3 ½ inches above the notch. Mark the length of the required notch on the side of the rail. For the end post this will be the diameter of the post. O.K. reread the disclaimer and if you are sure you can do this safely, stand to the side of the rail with the saw bar vertical and back cut along the vertical line parallel to the rail, stopping at the mark for length, at this mark make a vertical back cut to complete the notch.

Set the rail in place and check for fit, if the fit is not satisfactory, with the rail in place and your partner holding it, make a cut through the joint between the top of the post and the rail, just like you were making the trim cut on the post. The fit will then be perfect, drill two pilot holes in the rail and spike it to the post. Hardened Pole Barn nails are the easiest to work with. Install the spreader bar pushing the top of the end post away from the next post, then cut the other end of the rail off at the center of the post and make a short up cut alongside the post. Make a horizontal mark 3 to 3 ½ inches down from the top of the rail and re-reading the same disclaimer make this cut sighting the bar parallel to the top of the post, again if this is not a perfect fit, run the saw through the joint. Pull the spreader, drill a single pilot hole, spike in place and move the spreader to the next space. Select the next rail trying to match the butt diameter to the end you just finished and lay it in the chocks again with the natural arch away from the notches. The required length of this notch will be the distance of the installed butt to the edge of the post. Measure from the top of the previous rail to the post, this is the measurement we want to match when we cut the new rail so the tops will be even. So make your vertical line at this distance and cut the notch. Set the rail in place and fit probably will not be perfect. Without moving the rail make a down cut between the two rails and an up cut along side the post to the notch and slide the rails together again, if the fit is still not perfect, repeat. Trim this rail as before and keep repeating the process.

The easiest way to stretch the wire is using tarp straps "bungee cords". The best we have found for this purpose are made in Sri Lanka, purchased from Fleet Safety Systems, Portland, Oregon. http://www.fleetsafetysystems.com/ 31 inch Natural Rubber Tarp Strap 40430 @ 10 for $5.00 and 41 inch Natural Rubber Tarp Strap 40440 @ 10 for $6.50. Be sure to ask for Sri Lanka products because they also have Chinese. It depends on long your stretches will be, but you will probably want at least 30 ea 31" and 20 ea 41". We use them for everything and have to gather them all back up when hanging wire.

We started by rolling the wire out on the ground but made a roller to fit the 3 point hitch on a tractor. It's a lot easier to roll out the wire and to splice at waist level, however rolling on the ground works just fine.

Prep the end of the wire by cutting the horizontal wires leaving ¾ of an inch sticking out from your first vertical or "stay wire" and wrap these ends back over the stay wire. Bring this end ½ way around the post, set the bottom wire where you want it and staple every horizontal wire over these bent back ends tight to the knot, keeping the stay wire plumb. After you start the stretch and the wire is wrapped tight around the post, come back and staple the opposite side diagonal over a knot. This will keep the post from rotating in its hole under heavy strain. Join the number of rolls you need by using crimp sleeves or manufacture suggested splice knot, we prefer the knot. If your run is over 600 feet it is best to stand the wire up and take out the slack about here. To stand the wire, take a bungee, hook it under the second wire and over the top rail, angled toward the direction you are stretching. Lift the wire to the top rail and hook the bungee down the wire far enough to hold it up. You are going to do this at every other post. On the alternate posts we use 2 stretch bungees. Most will be needed around the middle of the wire but you want to have some all the way up and down the wire, your goal is to keep the vertical wires vertical. To stretch, hook around a stay wire about 2 feet upstream from the post, bring the bungee between the post and the wire and put a good stretch on it, holding that stretch, wrap around the post and stretch some more, hooking the other end on a stay wire. Never place 2 hooks on any stay wire within 5 or 6 horizontal wires or they may cause the wire knots to slip. Keep alternating between stand up and stretch as you take out the slack until you reach the end, or run out of bungees. If you need to continue splicing keeping going but if you are at the end of a run and need to terminate it's time to go back and start recycling bungees. The wire should already be getting tight near the start so these bungees can be removed and brought downstream. Where the wire is relatively tight you can also staple the top wire where it belongs and remove those bungees also. Always staple just upstream from a knot to leave room for the wire to continue stretching. As you continue taking up slack, the bungees you leave will need to be retightened. Keep working your way downstream until you have enough bungees to put one on every horizontal wire at the next to last post. Still take care not to have 2 hooks on any one stay within 5 or 6 horizontal wires. Work to keep the stay wire plumb by placing the bungees on the wires that are lagging. If you have enough bungees and you are putting enough oomph..... on them, the wire should be getting nice and tight. The heavy bottom wire can be challenging and using a come-along on it is helpful. Continue stapling the top wire where you want it and start freeing up bungees to place one on each wire at the last post. We want to use the 41 inchers here. We can now determine where to cut the wire, leaving enough to wrap half way around the post, just like we started, and one extra foot. Cut the wire against the knot on the remaining piece this will give us about a 2inch end that we will wrap over the stay and back along itself. Hook the bungee over this double piece of wire and not the stay, stretch it back down the fence. Continue doing this putting a bungee on every horizontal wire. Remember the two-hook rule. Grab the wire on each side of the post, pulling with one hand and pushing with the other to help it around the post, do this up & down the post. Now go back, pull bungees and staple to within 80 to 100 feet of the end. Do the push-pull one more time at the post and staple each horizontal wire to the end post with a diagonal staple over each knot. Before removing any bungees determine how much wire you need to staple on the opposite side of the post, cut one wire at a time, bend ¾" back over, just like we started, and staple to the post, then remove that bungee. Continue this, one wire at a time so the remaining bungees keep the stretch until each horizontal wire is stapled for the second time. Go back and remove all the bungees and everything should stay tight to finish stapling. Always staple upstream next to a knot and don't staple tight, except on the end posts. Llamas do love to rub on these fences and along with contraction and expansion they will stay uniformly tight much longer if allowed to move. I like to staple the top wire close to the joint of the rails on both sides (this helps hold the rail down) plus about every 2 feet. You also want a staple at every post on the bottom wire and about every third wire in the field. If you rotate this pattern every horizontal wire will have a staple every third post.

They call it no climb wire, but llamas haven't read the book and think it is just the right size for toe holds, gaining extra elevation for checking neighboring pastures. We haven't notice any problems on their foot pads from doing this, but in heavy use areas the wire might need re-stretching in a few years. Now that you have a beautiful high security fence you need GATES !!. Another EASY set of instructions will follow later............

Download the Illustrations in PDF Format HERE

© 2005 Highline Trail Llamas