Post knockers…. Thoughts and opinions

[Bob the beef]

I bought a protect in April, iv only used it a couple of time but seems good value at £5700 with a rock spike and hydraulic leg. Got my mate who is a machinery dealer to get it for me because I heard they where hard work to deal with, he said he had to ring 20 time to get it delivered!

Interesting. Haven’t tried protech yet, but have spoken to wrag and Tim the bossman couldn’t be more helpful or accommodating

 

[unlacedgecko]

@Bob the beef get one bought. You'll be more inclined to keep up with the fencing/maintenance

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Only downsides are you'll end up spending a lot more on fencing supplies (because you're much more inclined to get ontop of the fencing/maintenance)...
And you'll become a fencing bitch

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Love the handling system

 

[unlacedgecko]

Protect here. Spent about 7.5K 12 years ago and the only this that has ever needed doing is the rope.

Be careful on your own though. I dropped the 180kg weight on my fingers in February this year, thinking about my divorce rather than what I was doing, should know by Christmas if my finger nails are going to grow back!

You were lucky not to lose them. I knew someone who's wife dropped a frozen 8 pint milk bottle on her foot. Cost her 3 toes.

 

[seedman stains]

Looks interesting. How big a post will it drive?

I like the idea of impact hammer drivers instead of falling weight ones.

The one @cows sh#t me to tears uses is impressive.

you just trim the top to suit the cup holder on the knocker head 10 inch dia approx

 

[Wombat]

Yes,
I'll just repeat that so I make sure you heard me.
YES

If you can ever get hold of them maybe, and as I couldn’t I bought a wrag

 

[Bald n Grumpy]

You need a steel ring on a 5 foot handle with a T at the end stick it over the post and direct the post as it goes in nobody needs lose any fingers

Ours came with one with different size ring on each end, only an idiot would hold a stake without it

 

[dave mountain]

I have been pondering buying a post knocker for a couple of years. Working on my own on an all grass livestock unit I have plenty fencing to do. Looked at telehandler mounted models and was put off by the possible long term damage to the handler, and lack of weight. Have looked at basic tractor mounted models £2/3k (Malone multec etc) and just think they have severe limitations on my type of terrain. So that leaves mid range tractor mounted models in the £5/6k price bracket. Don’t really want to spend that kind of money but have come round to thinking for working on my own it may be necessary . Have looked for months for something decent 2nd hand and found nothing. Looking for other’s thoughts?

Unless you are going for a contractor spec machine and have a big tractor to put it on, I would always go for an excavator or handler mounted machine instead. Far more useful than a basic tractor mounted machine. Contractor spec ones need a heavy tractor to be comfortable on anything but flat ground.

 

[upnortheast]

Bought this Protec last year. Great machine Best output with 2 men,one on the seat one on the levers So for a one man operation maybe better with a rear mounted one.
Don`t even think about the magic wand (David Thomas type ) bloody dangerous tool

 

[Nithsdale]

Love the handling system

Cheers, I impressed myself when I built it.
It's the site where the old wooden pens were. Once I got the mobile yard I decided I still needed an enclosure at the steading for winter when the sheds are full. Could do with a concrete floor to keep it cleaner, but just drop the yard in and away you go. Holds about 500 ewes at scanning.

Very handy at shearing too - shed the lambs off and they get put in there out of the way for the day

 

[Willie adie]

I used to hire a wrag and she was a grand thing, all the movements, was nice and light if on sidelings the only issue wastge 200k hammer, if it had the 300 hammer and rock spike it would be spot on,
I use a protech now and iv a major bugbear with the position the rock spike sits in when not in use, its can be awkward when doing posts stretching round it

 

[Munkul]

If you're going from doing it by hand, basically any post knocker is better than before. Apart from the big long old fashioned execution hammers.

We got an old Parmiter a couple of years back, wouldn't be without it now. 2 man job to get some output, but 1 man could work it. We got ours with a hydraulic top link with controls at the back so you can control distance left/right, tilt left/right, tilt front/back, and all the tractor driver has to do is position distance front/back.

Bit of a nail of a thing, but for our sporadic use, it's fine.

It depends how deep your pockets are I guess!

 

[TechWise]

Interesting. Haven’t tried protech yet, but have spoken to wrag and Tim the bossman couldn’t be more helpful or accommodating

Our contractor speaks highly of Wrag.

 

[neilo]

I used to hire a wrag and she was a grand thing, all the movements, was nice and light if on sidelings the only issue wastge 200k hammer, if it had the 300 hammer and rock spike it would be spot on,
I use a protech now and iv a major bugbear with the position the rock spike sits in when not in use, its can be awkward when doing posts stretching round it

I seem to remember somebody on here getting their rock spike mounted on the other side of the mast, which is probably where it should have been in the first place.

 

[Y Fan Wen]

My local contractor has a knocker mounted on the boom of a small 360. I doubt if there are many places he can't get it to.

 

[Skintagain]

'work' is a debatable term

Utter shite. People that bought them must have been mental

 

[Tubbylew]

I used to hire a wrag and she was a grand thing, all the movements, was nice and light if on sidelings the only issue wastge 200k hammer, if it had the 300 hammer and rock spike it would be spot on,
I use a protech now and iv a major bugbear with the position the rock spike sits in when not in use, its can be awkward when doing posts stretching round it

I find I'm constantly lifting mine out on my p200s. Biggest fault of the machine, which isn't so bad as it's only an irritation more than a problem.

 

[Henarar]

bought one of these for 600 quid about 18 years ago, will bash in gate posts ok, two of us drove in 100 stakes in an hour once with it.

 

[Jameshenry]

how about one a these 'babies' View attachment 982097

The ultimate machine

 

[puppet]

We have a basic Malone and it works well. You reverse to each post but for £2k worth the money and copes with most slopes as can adjust the arms to get a bit more tilt. 2 man job but most fencing jobs are anyway.

 

[Longlowdog]

15 years ago I priced a contractor to basically re-fence all of the fields we bought and came to the conclusion that I'd be better off buying a post chapper, doing the job myself and still having the chapper left when I was done.
I bought a Wrag Commander multi way adjustable one without the stone point with the 200kg weight and it performed very well for me. It has also made almost its own cost back in being hired out since then. It a wee bit tiresome climbing in and out of a tractor cab on my own but with two of us it fairly covers ground with the diversity of positions it can accommodate meaning perfect tractor positioning isn't necessary, but once you get your head round where you need to stop you don't really need all the adjustments for straight lines.