Working with and Cutting Hardware Cloth

[ZooAtHome]

Would love to see both of these in action.....or at least a still pic of the cut they make.

I'll see what I can do when I cut the HC for the next part of the run.

 

[Folly's place]

Heavy duty gloves are a must!
Mary

 

[Ponte]

Would love to see both of these in action.....or at least a still pic of the cut they make.

Not sure if it’s possible to post video but will try tomorrow.

 

[aart]

Heavy duty gloves are a must!
Mary

I found heavy gloves to be to bulky to manipulate the tools.
Eye protection is a good idea, in case a roll end gets loose and goes flying.

Not sure if it’s possible to post video but will try tomorrow.

Upload to youtube or vimeo or FB, then link here.

 

[Mimi13]

There is nothing level anywhere on my property, no carport, garage, heck, my deck isn’t even what I would consider level. So when I was building my coop, after many trying hours of setting heavy objects on the ends of the tightly wound HC in order to measure and cut, I finally came up with a much better system. Using a leftover piece of OSB, I laid it across a pile of stacked wood and the big box my miter saw came in and turned it into a work table. Improvise, my friends, improvise. I’m short so that put it at a fairly low level that made it easy for me to work with. I put the roll of wire on top of the OSB (usually it was easier for me to lay the roll of wire down with the concave facing up) and then got a 2-3’ length of 2x4 and placed it over the loose end of the HC and then screwed it down to the OSB. With the loose end secured I was then able to roll the wire out the 8’ length of the OSB where I screwed that end down with another piece of 2x4. I let the roll of HC either lay on top of my makeshift table or roll off the end of it. (That placement just depended on whether I was at the beginning of the roll of wire or toward the tightly wound end of it.) HC can be a booger and a hazard.

Once the wire was stretched out flat and tight I was able to measure and mark it. I did go the tedious route of snipping the wire with a pair of wire cutters. I don’t use gloves simply because I have never found work gloves small enough to fit my hands.

I did not choose to use the grinder simply because I wanted to make sure there were no little pieces of the HC that were unaccounted for and laying around. Chickens will find that stuff and will eat it, quicker than you can blink your eyes.

After the wire was cut I removed the 2x4’s and laid them to the side ready for the next piece to be cut. I just left the screws in the board. Easy peasy, lemon squeezy!

When working with the HC for the run, I was able to screw down the loose end to my 4x4 post and roll it over to the next post, then the next, and so on, still using the wire cutters. I’m a tedious sort of person so I wasn’t really bothered much by the snipping of each wire, even though my hand did cramp up a little along the way.

Blood? Sweat? Tears? Did I mention any of these things? Maybe not, but my coop was definitely built with all three, coupled with a few choice words now and then. The scars on my hands, arms and legs are daily reminders of my time spent building the house that my sweet birds roost and lay in. I love it and so do they.

 

[Ponte]

Not sure if it’s possible to post video but will try tomorrow.

Sorry rough day, will post video tomorrow.

 

[AmyJane725]

I hate working with/around hardware cloth with a burning passion.
Wasn't even trying to cut the stuff and this still happened today:

 

[aart]

Yeah, some cuts and scratches are pretty inevitable.
Working with 14ga fencing is even worse, have some gnarly scars from that.
And the galvanization can add toxic irritation, wash well and apply AB ointment.

 

[Ghosty]

I don't use gloves with HC, it makes it impossible to work with. I roll it out as needed, and walk on it first. I use hand snips. HC is a breeze after hand snipping heavy gauge stuff. Cut your last wire BEFORE you cut the one or two in front of it. This way, your HC won't spring as badly when it comes free, and be so apt to cut your hand. I straighten the piece some more after it is cut, walking on it and bending the curling ends back toward me. I install with curl toward the frame.
I use fender washers from the farm store, sold by the pound, and a good patterned head (not philips) deck screw. I want to be able to remove, replace the hardware cloth easily down the road. I meshed one of my coop doors the other day. I need to add a lip board on the inside to help keep rain from coming in on the floor.

 

[Ponte]

Am trying to post a video of the drill snip cutting hc but can’t figure out how to do it.
If someone can guide me I will post it right away.