Old timer told me to notch posts deeper. He was right.

Set 12 posts for a horse fence near Bozeman last spring. Kept the notches shallow like I always do. Dude named Rick who's been building fences 40 years walked by and said I'd regret it by winter. Sure enough, three posts pulled loose with the frost heave last month. Has anyone else had a veteran call them out on something that saved their work?

2 comments

2 Comments

charlesanderson19h ago

Saw an old barn framer do that once with a mallet and a chisel.

the_alice17h ago

Can't wrap my head around doing that kind of precise joinery with just a mallet and chisel in the middle of a muddy barnyard. Like, I've seen guys use jigs and power planers and still end up with gaps wide enough to stick a finger through. That's just raw skill you don't see much anymore. Bet he didn't even use a square, just eyeballed it.