Top Rail Radius. How Do You Do It??

Dollabill

I have been involved in the family fencing business for some time. Just recently my uncle decided to offer the business to my cousin and I, so we are in the process of working into that capacity. Given this opportunity and after finding this forum I have have started to come up with all kinds of questions.
The other day we were installing top rail on a black vinyl chain link job around a retention pond. Part of the fence follows the curve of a culdesac. Now my uncle usually runs the show as to how he wants the fences built and I have no problems doing it his way, but sometimes I have questions. In this case we bent the top rail smoothly to follow the curve of the sidewalk, but after hanging the fabric, one can see that it just doesn't hang right. The fabric tends to bow out at the top due to the fact that the top rail curves but the fabric wants to be in a straight line between posts. This is how we always build radius's and it works, but I was thinking that it may look better to make a positive bend at each line post so that when the fabric is stretched it hangs properly. Let me know what you all think.

woodmagman

It sounds like a round hole, square peg problem.....you need a round peg or a curved bottom rail....

nywoodwizard

More post and bottom rail

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Dollabill

What do you mean by "more post"? The posts are spaced the usual 10 feet give or take. More posts in the ground would produce a smother curve but I think that bottom rail would produce the same results. Does anyone positively bend the rail at each eye cap? What kind of results have you seen?

nywoodwizard

Chain link is just not the ideal fence for small radius's, more post will produce a smother curve . They can be at any center you want, as long as its under 10'. I have done radius jobs before and the best looking one's were when we used vinyl coated pipes to match the chain link color, it made the additional pipe and closer centers look less obvious. It will never produce a perfect radius,but it will look better. Rails are sometimes bent to accommodate slight turns, to an extent before it kinks. The preferred method would be to terminate at multiple intersections.

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Bone Saw

not quite sure if I'm understanding this correctly, but heres my take on it
take a straight piece of stiff wire (straight bottom section of coat hanger) and prop it at both ends with tubes of ky jelly to form a bridge


take another piece of coat hanger (same piece, different hanger) and bend it to form an arc, repeat above procedure, what happened????

more posts

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nywoodwizard

With thoughts like that ,you should not be left alone for long periods of time.

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Dollabill

We have been doing it as described above for something like fifteen years and the customers have always been pleased with the finish. You know, we are always trying to be better, right?
On another note, how much time does one have to spend on CT to rack up 1,000 posts? That a bunch! I guess my hats just not that white yet. He he.

Dollabill

Only eight posts!!! So many posts to make, so little time.

scannon

im in oakpark illnios can someone give me idea on labor for moving a 20' high chain link fence along a narrow street and move it over 10'. it about 110' long and it going threw concrete.

genecarp

o brother

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Danno6102

$10,536.68 When do I start?

BuiltByMAC

Here's an idea - hire a contractor. But it better be a burly guy 'cause if that fence is strong enough to throw concrete, it might not want to move!

Mac

DecksEtc

Thanks Mac! Reading your post just made Diet Coke come out my nose!

Absolutely classic!!!

john5mt

i'll do it for $10,500.68

hire me!

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