In addition to sharpening the metal spikes on O'Brien posts I suggest taking a pocket knife and trimming off any excess plastic flaps on the clips the occur during the molding process when you have time. The excess plastic flaps can screw you up when you are in a hurry trying to put the polybraid in the clips or taking in out .
Yeah, those crappy posts are a pain. I've had those same kinds of issues. We haven't gotten any O'Brien posts yet, but we will soon, hopefully. Love the tip about sharpening the point! I had someone tell me once, that on really frozen ground they'd carry a battery drill to pilot a hole if needed.
ty for the idea of sharpening the blunt end. you may have taught me years ago; if not for my stroke. well will rebuild a herd as getting back to be on my feet to be seeing you in face soon
So, we bought a box of 50 of these. Imported to Canada, because 1) we can't find a dealer / distributor here in Canada. Good posts. But the plastic was a bit softer than I was expecting. Great for running strait lines. Another great product from NZ! In the past three weeks we've been using these, our application has been rotational sheep grazing, moved once every 2-3 days, using powerflex polybraid, running three strands. These work great for going strait. If you try to pull tension on a curve or a corner, these posts will bend. So we use our old (non O'Brien) posts for anywhere we need to pull tension. Cheers!
I'm late to this, but Greg has videos where it shows how they do corners. I believe they use pig tails for the corners and then they use a step in post at an angle to brace up the pigtail against the pull of the polybraid.
Thank you for sharing. Finally got some acres and going to get a few goats and a few sheep to start. Got your book to read next, comback farms. Take care.
I still remember a steer that had never been in an electric fence paddock...he got the fence stuck in his ear tag and proceeded to snap 20 of those crappy posts all in 5 minutes! I was not happy, lol
Wow thanks this is the first video I watched before putting up my cheap plastic posts! lol 😂 So glad I did I can fox it back up and take it back to the store
On the posts, you have to push them into the ground in a circular motion. It makes the hole larger and to take the wire out, I loop the wire back into the slot and it will cone out sideways. They are garbage, make no mistake but they can do the job
I use the cheap ones still, buy them on sale for $1.25. The trick to getting the wire out is to loop it back in from the top instead of trying to fish it out. I use 3 strands and I pull the post, unhook the wires and carry them over my shoulder. I will definitely be looking into these though, look like a much better design.
Can't find the o'Briens anywhere, but I see the white Power Tredin posts are available from powerflex. $2.75/each. Has anyone tried them? How do they compare? Same design as the o'Brien's..
This. Getting the polywire out is as simple as looping it back through the top of the clip. Takes all of 2 seconds. I bet I could unstring those O'Brians without getting off the ATV, though, and I like the thinner spike if it doesn't sacrifice durability or strength.
If you already have the crappy posts, to remove the polywire, make a loop and pop it down through the clip and the polywire comes out. Don't try to lift it up through the clip. It is an intelligence test! ;-)
I know this is a year old, but is there a reason nobody uses rebar? I can buy 20 ft for $5.00 cut it into 4-5 posts and put 2-3 insulators on and for $1.25 I have an almost indestructible post ( and when it isn't indestructible I can bend it back ;) I have some 20 + years old from when I started rotational grazing quarter sections, but I'm sure there's a very legitimate reason for spending $5-7 on a plastic step in? It's just I (43 year old mom so not a muscle bound youngster :) and my 9,11 and 13 year old daughter's moving fences on 90 acres now, and maybe it's the weight that's biggest advantage as you guys move and carry them way more? I know when we move fences 3-4 x day it does get heavy.
Happy 4th of July Greg and all the subbers in the comments! Those O'Briens are pricey, I'll use the crappy posts and buy a box of the expensive ones a few at a time as I can afford them. If they last that long then eventually I'll build up a stockpile of the good ones and the junk one's will fade away as the break.
Greg, when you do use pigtails, what brand/post do you feel lasts longest and is easiest to use? We run just cow/calf pairs currently in NW North Dakota, most of our pastures are pretty hilly. I've used Gallagher G64219 and G72315, as well as having bought some Woodstream/Zareba PTP39. The PTP39, which I thought I saw in your video, the white pigtail behind you, has a good step design, but it is an overpriced chinese product in my opinion. And I have had some trouble with posts, where after only two or three times of stringing the wire up, the pigtail has worn a groove down to the metal! I haven't seen much of that with the Gallaghers, but have it on many of the PTP39s. I won't purchase those ever again. The G72315 is a very sturdy post, much higher quality, in my opinion, and a dollar less a post than the PTP39, and made in New Zealand, and it seems to have a much harder head that should resist wear. Trying to remedy the problem of wearing through the heads, I have gone to walking the reel out, rather than hanging the reel and walking the wire handle out, pulling it through every post; I wonder if this was my problem, causing something of a sawing action as the wire was pulled out through the posts? In terms of repair, I have wrapped the affected rings with electric tape. Do you know of a more study, permanent repair?
I have not been able to find anyone who has these in stock. Kencove, Powerflex have been saying it might be a month before they get more. Is there someone else who might have these?
That’s what I’ve run into also. I bought a box of 50 about two weeks ago from American grazing lands and checked back the next day and they were out of stock.
I was able to get a box of 50, 3 years ago from Kencove and have been trying to buy another box of 50 since then, but they have not had them in stock. Greg should be getting a commission on referrals.
Have you tried painting the plastic with standard exterior house paint to slow down the UV degeneration? Latex paint might dry pretty quick & extend the life span of your plastic items.
as a painter I second this suggestion except that a lot of paints don't stick to plastic that's freshly moulded so save some hassle and paint them a couple years down the line and you can probably skip the primer. The paint is going to flake eventually though so consider that impact against replacement costs. $250 for a new set of 50 you are going to pay 50 for a gallon of decent paint. also white will last longer by 3-4 years - albedo being what it is.
Did Greg discuss the pig tail posts there? Those are my favourite and I am yet to hear an argument convincing me the plastic ones are better. Anyone care to change my opinion? I am interested.
@AryanEgg thank you. All those points are valid from my point of view. The pigtails last 20 x longer (especially in the heat/ hot sun/snow/ice cycle), are so much stronger, are so much easier to put the rope/wire through on the fly and dont bend like the plastic ones. Truth be told, I never saw a pigtail that wasnt serviceable. When a tractor ran over it by mistake, get it in the vice and straighten it. All good.
@AryanEgg intrigued, I checked those out. I still consider pigtails superior because they will not break down after a decade through UV exposure like all plastic does. With respect to Greg Judy of course, who learned from my fellow countrymen, good old South Africans (whom I'm very proud of)
