RadioBanter

RadioBanter (https://www.radiobanter.com/)
-   Antenna (https://www.radiobanter.com/antenna/)
-   -   Burying radials with a meat cleaver? (https://www.radiobanter.com/antenna/25055-burying-radials-meat-cleaver.html)

Gary V. Deutschmann, Sr. January 15th 05 02:59 PM

"Sarge" verbositized:

I used a lawn edger....


Then you had dirt sprayed everywhere!

Using the meat cleaver I stretched the wires above ground first, slid
the wire through an eyehook and cut along the edge of the wire. The
eyehook did the burying of the wire as I moved along the ground.
When I was done, I was done! And the yard suffered no damage!
And it probably went a whole lot quicker than wrestling with a lawn
edger, getting the wire into the slot and holding it in place while
you covered the hole, and got rid of the dirt that sprayed all over
the place.

TTUL
Gary


Airy R.Bean January 15th 05 03:24 PM

But surely the eye-hook is on the top of the blade,
and not underneath the ground where it would need to
be to draw the wire into the slit?

(One radial installed using the bread-knife, many more
to go)

"Gary V. Deutschmann, Sr." wrote in message
...
Using the meat cleaver I stretched the wires above ground first, slid
the wire through an eyehook and cut along the edge of the wire. The
eyehook did the burying of the wire as I moved along the ground.





Sarge January 16th 05 05:09 PM

OH ok.. see its top soil here so it was easy. Clay is a bummer..


"Airy R.Bean" wrote in message
...
Problem solved by using the bread knife. (New
replacement purchased for SWMBO)

The problem with a lawn edger is the heavy clay that
adheres to it, resulting in an unsightly hole rather than
a neat slit.




W3JXP January 16th 05 05:48 PM

One of the locals here used a chainsaw to cut the groves for his ground
radials.


--
John Passaneau
Physics Electronics/Lab Prep

"Sarge" wrote in message
...
OH ok.. see its top soil here so it was easy. Clay is a bummer..


"Airy R.Bean" wrote in message
...
Problem solved by using the bread knife. (New
replacement purchased for SWMBO)

The problem with a lawn edger is the heavy clay that
adheres to it, resulting in an unsightly hole rather than
a neat slit.






Airy R.Bean January 16th 05 05:59 PM

I did come across a local plumber using a handsaw
to ensure that the edges of his trench were clean.

"W3JXP" wrote in message
...
One of the locals here used a chainsaw to cut the groves for his ground
radials.
"Sarge" wrote in message
...
OH ok.. see its top soil here so it was easy. Clay is a bummer..
"Airy R.Bean" wrote in message
...
Problem solved by using the bread knife. (New
replacement purchased for SWMBO)
The problem with a lawn edger is the heavy clay that
adheres to it, resulting in an unsightly hole rather than
a neat slit.




Gary V. Deutschmann, Sr. January 16th 05 07:58 PM

Hi Airy

In my particular case I used the eyehook to hold a split tube.
But the eyehook can be bolted in, bent downward toward the blade and
manage to keep the wire at least 2 inches underground.

Also, if you hold the cleaver at a 45 degree angle, with the eyehook
at the top, you are still setting the wire about 2 inches below the
surface.

In practice, I lay the cleaver across the uncut grass, whack it with a
rubber mallet, tip it up 45 degrees and tap it with the mallet through
the cut. Before tilting it back down for the next grass cutting whack
I tamp the sod behind the head of the blade to hold the wire in place
so it don't pop back out.

I buried 3,500 feet of radials in one afternoon using the rubber
mallet and cleaver with eyehook. I only added the split tube because
I kept getting the eyehook caught in the sod which required an extra
whack with the mallet. After sticking the tube through the eyehook,
not only did I not get stuck in the sod, but the wire would stay in
place without jumping out occasionally also.

TTUL
Gary


John January 18th 05 10:37 PM

Can you post a photo of the cleaver with the eyehook etc?
Tnx
John

Gary V. Deutschmann, Sr. wrote:
Hi Airy

In my particular case I used the eyehook to hold a split tube.
But the eyehook can be bolted in, bent downward toward the blade and
manage to keep the wire at least 2 inches underground.

Also, if you hold the cleaver at a 45 degree angle, with the eyehook
at the top, you are still setting the wire about 2 inches below the
surface.

In practice, I lay the cleaver across the uncut grass, whack it with a
rubber mallet, tip it up 45 degrees and tap it with the mallet through
the cut. Before tilting it back down for the next grass cutting whack
I tamp the sod behind the head of the blade to hold the wire in place
so it don't pop back out.

I buried 3,500 feet of radials in one afternoon using the rubber
mallet and cleaver with eyehook. I only added the split tube because
I kept getting the eyehook caught in the sod which required an extra
whack with the mallet. After sticking the tube through the eyehook,
not only did I not get stuck in the sod, but the wire would stay in
place without jumping out occasionally also.

TTUL
Gary


Airy R.Bean January 19th 05 12:56 PM

Swapped them around!

SWMBO of the opinion that brand-new "Kitchen Devil"
("Lifetime's Guarantee") bread/carving knife is blunter and
of less use than 20-year-old version!

(And yet we have never attempted to sharpen the old one
due to mechanically-difficult serrated edges!)

"Airy R.Bean" wrote in message
...
Problem solved by using the bread knife. (New
replacement purchased for SWMBO)




Gary V. Deutschmann, Sr. January 19th 05 05:31 PM

Hi John

No, because my late wife made me take the eyehook back out, resharpen
HER meat cleaver and sterilize it in boiling water.

Next time I'll buy my own meat cleaver and have a stainless steel tube
welded to the side of it, hi hi....

FWIW: It was the 10 inch long 5 inch deep cleaver, not counting the
handle. I think I would also have a flat steel plate welded to the
top so it doesn't tear up the rubber mallet so bad too.

TTUL
Gary


Bob January 19th 05 07:56 PM

The best thing to use to bury radials is a sidewalk edger, a gas or an
electric one.

"Gary V. Deutschmann, Sr." wrote in message
...
Hi John

No, because my late wife made me take the eyehook back out, resharpen
HER meat cleaver and sterilize it in boiling water.

Next time I'll buy my own meat cleaver and have a stainless steel tube
welded to the side of it, hi hi....

FWIW: It was the 10 inch long 5 inch deep cleaver, not counting the
handle. I think I would also have a flat steel plate welded to the
top so it doesn't tear up the rubber mallet so bad too.

TTUL
Gary





All times are GMT +1. The time now is 11:09 AM.

Powered by vBulletin® Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
RadioBanter.com