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Bundling slabs

Started by kderby, April 02, 2011, 07:46:55 PM

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kderby

I have an steel frame that will hold a cord of slabwood.  When it gets full I tie the bundle.  I sell the bundles in two groups.  Fancy "selected" slabs for $100 and "mill run" slabs for $50.

I have been using telephone wire and just got a bunch more.  This is the hardened steel wire.  I need a better way to clamp and tie it.  It is pretty darn stiff wire but the price was right.

I think Tom and few others were phone company crew.  How do I tension and secure this wire when wrapped around a bundle of slabs?  Is it a bad idea to use this wire?

For an added detail, most all the fancy slabs are sold to horse trainers for vertical fence boards inside the arena fence.  Modern cuting and reining horse arenas are often built from panels made of steel pipe.  The vertical wood gives strength and adds a visual barrier that western folk like.  I am milling juniper (like ERC).  All my slabs are eight foot.

Thanks

Kderby
 

Larry

If I remember right the wire was 109 HSS.  We tensioned with wire blocks (blocks with wire grips).  Fasten sleeves using a sleeve roller and later times a Nicropress tool.  The sleeve roller made a better connection but there probably antiques and impossible to find.  You can probably find a Nicropress crimper on eBay or modify a standard crimper.  Correct sleeves may be another hard item to find.

I might ship you a few hundred slab bundles...your selling bout 10 times higher than what our charcoal plant pays...whoops they don't take ERC.  Have to haul them to the chipping place.
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smwwoody

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TS end trim
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kderby

SMW,

I made the choice go go with Poly for banding.  I don't have the steel tools at all.  Might get the tools, steel banding does have its uses.   

The wire was in trade for firewood and I have a couple of miles worth to use up!

Larry,

The Niccopress I have used on hi-tensile fence.  I'll have to look into the proper size for this wire. Still not sure about how to tighten around a bundle.

Thanks Gentlemen

KD

Brucer

I tried steel banding but it wouldn't stand up to a poke with a loader fork. Drop a bundle once or twice and it would blow apart. So I switched to the heavy duty poly (2900 lb) that Bailey's sells. I haven't blown open a bundle since.

I also used to bundle up slabs in half-cord bundles in a rectangular frame. Then I switched to 2' diameter bundles in an octagonal frame. That works out to 1/5 cord for 8' bundles and 1/4 cord for 10' bundles.

My slab sales have gone up since I came up with the new system. Folks like the smaller bundles because they can get a chainsaw all the way through a bundle. They like the hexagonal shape because the strapping stays tight. They like the poly strapping because it won't mess up the chainsaw if they hit it.

Folks will often return the straps and buckles. I get about 2/3 of them back and I recycle them.
Bruce    LT40HDG28 bandsaw
"Complex problems have simple, easy to understand wrong answers."

weisyboy

we use these for fixing broken fence wires, they sound like just the thing your after, you can get a tentionar for then that just grips the wire on a cam, it will break an 8 gauge high tensile wire no trouble if your not carefull.

http://www.gripple.com/products/catalogue/agricultural/products/gripplepluswirejoinerstensioners.html

there called gripples, duno if you can get them over there but worth a try.
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thecfarm

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smwwoody

put a ratchet strap around the bundle first and tighten it up.  then wrap the wire and secure it.

Woody
Full time Mill Manager
Cleereman head rig
Cooper Scragg
McDonugh gang saw
McDonugh edger
McDonugh resaw
TS end trim
Pendu slab recovery system
KJ4WXC

nas

I use the polycord from Uline.  It is the same as what Brucer uses.  I have dropped a half cord bundle of Oak slabs and it has not broken.  I have only broken one when I pushed a bundle along the ground and it wore through.  It cheaper, stronger, and safer than steel.
http://www.uline.com/BL_2804/Heavy-Duty-Poly-Cord

Nick
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PC-Urban-Sawyer

Nick,

Just wondering how you get something cheaper than free?  :D

Herb

Bandmill Bandit

A real simple tool for tightening that type of wire AND barb wire fencing is a T made out of 1/2 or 3/4 in cold roll steal. 3/4 works best I find. Make 2 pieces at least 10 inches long and drill a 1/4 hole (on 1/2 cold roll) or 5/16 hole (on 3/4 cold roll) at about 1.5 to 2 inches from one end of the tensioner piece. This piece can be longer if you like but more then 12 inches will make it harder to use on fencing. Weld the handle on so that the handle is at 90* to the hole in the tip of the tensioner rod piece. The length of the pieces is not too critical but the size of your hands and the intended use are factors to consider for ease of use in both pieces.

My handle is 11 inches and the twist rod is 13 inches with the hole drilled 2 inches from the tip. I also rounded all the ends to keep them from rasping out my gloves/skin. ALSO make sure you round the edges of the drilled hole very well too or it will cut the wire.  

To tighten the bundle you make a loop in one end of the telephone wire and wrap about 4 to 5 good turns back onto the wire to make sure it holds good. Thread the other end of the wire through loop and pull as tight as possible by hand so that you have at least 6 to 10 inches of the other end of the wire through the loop and then into the hole in the "tool" you made and then bend it tight for a half ish turn,pointing the wire off the end of the tool so that it will not slide back through the hole. This is my way and is a bit more difficult to master but it is quicker wastes less wire. My dad prefers to leave a bit more wire length and pull it up to the handle to make a couple of wraps around the handle right close in to the centre as you can get. This works well but does waste a bit more wire. I find that the best pliers to use is what we call a fencing pliers in these parts.

Turn toward the  first loop side of the wire until the wire is as tight as you need it. Then reverse the turn so that you get a 180* bend back over the top of the first loop to make the second loop to tie off. As soon as you have about an inch or so bent back grab the second loop with a pliers or vise grip so that it doesn't slip and finish unwrapping the wire from the tool. this part can be a bit tricky to master but it is not that dificult once you figure YOUR way of doing it. Finish the loop by wrapping at least 3 or 4 good tight turns back around the wire and trim of excess wire.

I made the first version of this tool when I was 14 out of 3/4 inch pipe , but it was too hard to get the wire through both holes using the pipe so it went back in the scrap pile after the first morning of use and I made a new one out of solid stock over lunch time.

That evening dad had me make 3 more and his was different then mine, my uncles and brothers. By the end of the first week they had all been modified to the preferences of the user. i think i made a dozen or so in that proto type stage and have probably made a couple of hundred of them since.

On Fencing you can actually use the tool to do the wrap back of the second loop. I have used a lot of telephone wire to repair broken barbed wire fences as it slides very well using this tool.

On bundles you have to use a pliers to finish the tie off.  

The way I do it the tightening turn ends up being counter clock wise as I always tie the loop to my left. BE CAREFUL! you can apply enough force to break the wire very easily and when it is that tight it snaps hard.

The larger the diameter of the tightening rod the greater the force applied in tightening. I had one that I lent to "someone" that I had used 1 inch material to make. You could break barbed wire like spaghetti with that one. It hasn't come back yet and I don't think its going too. My brother told me that I can make a new one. He needs that one. He is a good carpenter but he doesn't weld.

I will have to look for my smaller one and see if i can get a picture up. If I could draw I would do that but you really don't want to see a drawing that I made.

There are a few things that you can do to it if you are going to be using it for fencing that make it a very versatile tool. I should probably have patented the darn thing years ago.

If you need more info email me.

I have tried a few of the systems that are posted above and I always come back to my old T handle standby. It has never let me down and it is just about as cheap as free especially for those of us that have a scrap rack of steal to dig through.

One other way to do it for bundles is a double wire with the first loop being the bend on the double back and then pulling both wires through the loop and then the tool. The 5/16 hole size is better to work with if you do a double wire wrap.



 
Skilled Master Sawyer. "Skilled labour don't come cheap. Cheap labour dont come skilled!
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kderby

Bandit, I think you are on to something there.

Thanks for the ideas.  Keep them coming!

kderby

Warren

Quote from: nas on April 03, 2011, 10:35:01 AM
I use the polycord from Uline.  It is the same as what Brucer uses.  I have dropped a half cord bundle of Oak slabs and it has not broken.  I have only broken one when I pushed a bundle along the ground and it wore through.  It cheaper, stronger, and safer than steel.
http://www.uline.com/BL_2804/Heavy-Duty-Poly-Cord

Nick

I use the same stuff on both lumber and slabs.   I bundle slabs in a square steel frame with 40" x 30" cross section.  Works out to 1/2 cord for 8 ft length.  The only time I break a band is when I "fork it" with the skid steer.

I sell the 1/2 cord bundles of slabs/edgings for $10 per bundle for hardwoods.   $7 per bundle for cedar.   I do not change price for longer lengths.   However, I do tend to sort to the extent that I will hold longer bundles for customers who show up with trailers and shorter bundles in the back of pickup trucks.

-w-

LT40SHD42, Case 1845C,  Baker Edger ...  And still not near enough time in the day ...

Bandmill Bandit

Quote from: kderby on April 03, 2011, 01:54:49 PM
Bandit, I think you are on to something there.

Thanks for the ideas.  Keep them coming!

kderby

Well I am gona be 55 in a month and the first one i built was the spring I turned 14 so this idea has been around for over 40 years already.

I have used this tool on high tensile fence with great sucess and one heck of a lot cheaper and better results, especially for repairs.

Thats the reason my brother wont give me back the one I lent him. HE says it take about a 1/4 the time to fix the fence wit hmy tool and it a lot cheaper too.

I know it works for bundles to but it does cut into the wood a bit more the steel or nylon strap.

You can still find used telephone/telegraph wire around here for about 10 bucks for a 80 lb roll if you know who to call to get it. I still have about 10 rolls of the stuff at dads place.
Skilled Master Sawyer. "Skilled labour don't come cheap. Cheap labour dont come skilled!
2018 F150 FX4, Husqvarna 340, 2 Logright 36 inch cant hooks and a bunch of stuff I built myself

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