Burying radials with a meat cleaver?
 

Someone suggested this over the last few days.

As I'm having trouble with soil sticking to the spade
and creating a hole when the spade is pulled up
instead of just a slit, could someone redescribe the
meat cleaver technique?

On Thu, 13 Jan 2005 16:48:41 -0000, "Airy R.Bean"
wrote:

Someone suggested this over the last few days.

As I'm having trouble with soil sticking to the spade
and creating a hole when the spade is pulled up
instead of just a slit, could someone redescribe the
meat cleaver technique?


FYI, I found an alternative tool -- it's a 12-inch blade that is
foot-operated. See the picture at:

http://www.hound-dog.com/steppin_edger.htm

Officially, it's a lawn edger, but it will also cut a slit in the
lawn. If I bury it too deeply in wet soil, the dirt sticks to the
blade, but if I'm careful, and do it in reasonably dry soil, it works
nicely.

Bob
k5qwg

In article , says...
Someone suggested this over the last few days.

As I'm having trouble with soil sticking to the spade
and creating a hole when the spade is pulled up
instead of just a slit, could someone redescribe the
meat cleaver technique?




An alternative, if you know someone with a Partner cutter, or a 9" angle
grinder, is to just zip along the ground with an old diamond blade,
giving you nice neat slits to drop the wire into. Water it, stamp it back
down, and the XYL need never know!

If you're doing it in a lawn just "sew them in" a good straight line so the
radial is at ground level and then make some U shape pins out of whatever
you have and pin them down. Stretch the radial as tight as possible before
pinning. You'll be surprised how easy it is and how well it works and after
about 2 or 3 mowings you won't be able find them, that is if have a lawn.

--

73
Hank WD5JFR
"Airy R.Bean" wrote in message
...
Someone suggested this over the last few days.

As I'm having trouble with soil sticking to the spade
and creating a hole when the spade is pulled up
instead of just a slit, could someone redescribe the
meat cleaver technique?

Might be nasty if some metal U-pins loosened up and then the lawnmower finds
them.......


"Henry Kolesnik" wrote in message
. com...
If you're doing it in a lawn just "sew them in" a good straight line so
the
radial is at ground level and then make some U shape pins out of whatever
you have and pin them down. Stretch the radial as tight as possible
before
pinning. You'll be surprised how easy it is and how well it works and
after
about 2 or 3 mowings you won't be able find them, that is if have a lawn.

--

73
Hank WD5JFR
"Airy R.Bean" wrote in message
...
Someone suggested this over the last few days.

As I'm having trouble with soil sticking to the spade
and creating a hole when the spade is pulled up
instead of just a slit, could someone redescribe the
meat cleaver technique?

"-XC-" wrote in message
...
Might be nasty if some metal U-pins loosened up and then the
lawnmower finds
them.......


Never use a magnetic lawn mower!

Unfortunately SWMBO is the gardener!

"Henry Kolesnik" wrote in message
. com...
If you're doing it in a lawn just "sew them in" a good straight line so
the
radial is at ground level and then make some U shape pins out of whatever
you have and pin them down. Stretch the radial as tight as possible
before
pinning. You'll be surprised how easy it is and how well it works and
after
about 2 or 3 mowings you won't be able find them, that is if have a lawn.
"Airy R.Bean" wrote in message
...
Someone suggested this over the last few days.
As I'm having trouble with soil sticking to the spade
and creating a hole when the spade is pulled up
instead of just a slit, could someone redescribe the
meat cleaver technique?

Airy,
Know anyone with drums? Take cymbols, put in place of wheelbarrow
wheel, find amount of dirt to use for weight for proper depth, wheel
you a 'slit' across the lawn. Insert wire, stomp 'slit' closed. Repeat
till finsihed. Buy new cymbols for drum set.
'Doc

PS - Does it work? Yes. Is it worth the price of new cymbols?
Beats me, too lazy to find out...

I used a lawn edger....


"Airy R.Bean" wrote in message
...
Someone suggested this over the last few days.

As I'm having trouble with soil sticking to the spade
and creating a hole when the spade is pulled up
instead of just a slit, could someone redescribe the
meat cleaver technique?

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.

"Sarge" wrote in message
...
I used a lawn edger....
"Airy R.Bean" wrote in message
...
Someone suggested this over the last few days.
As I'm having trouble with soil sticking to the spade
and creating a hole when the spade is pulled up
instead of just a slit, could someone redescribe the
meat cleaver technique?

"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

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.

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.

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.

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.

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

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

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)

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

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

Bob wrote:

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.


I'm the nutter that bought and used a cheap electric chainsaw to bury
my radials. It was exceptionally easy to use. Simply start at the
antenna and drag the thing backwards. After that, I tucked in the
radials with my hands. I won't do that part again, I'll use some sort of
tool to push it in. Hundreds of feet of radial laying can wear the skin
off your hands.

The major effect on the chainsaw was to dull the chain, as you might
expect. THere was some mud in it also. The saw is out of commission
because I was an idiot and lost one of the parts when I cleaned it. But
under normal circumstances, no damage aside from the chain.

But when I get the thing back together, and in the spring, I will lay
some more radials as an experiment, and likely post pix of the operation
- along with the required warnings to never ever ever do that sort of
thing - on our website

- Mike KB3EIA -

Mike Coslo wrote:
I'm the nutter that bought and used a cheap electric chainsaw to
bury my radials.

There's an edger tool that looks like a hoe but the hoe is
in the same plane as the handle, like a conventional hoe had
been straightened out. It's in between a hoe and a shovel.
One stands on it, wiggles it side-to-side, and has a grove
to put a wire into.
--
73, Cecil http://www.qsl.net/w5dxp


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Hi Bob

I had made a stand up tool that would cut the groove, bury the wire,
and close the hole back up, just by pushing it across the ground.

The cutting blade looked like a giant sized pizza cutter, behind it
was like a very narrow pulley that rolled the wire from it's spool
into the ground, and behind that were two wheels spaced about 1/2 inch
apart. If your familiar with how a plow or corn planter looks, it
looked just about like that, only I used two wheelbarrow handles to
make the manhandled part of the unit.

But it didn't work!

The reasons it didn't work were simple.
Sod density and moisture in the ground dictated how many concrete
blocks had to be stacked on top of the unit to provide enough weight
to cut through to the required depth.
With that many concrete blocks stacked up, you were not going to move
it easily. No problem, add two more wheels for stability and a towbar
to hook it to the riding lawn mower.
Tree and bush roots were the next problem. It would jump over them,
leaving the wire way to shallow in those areas.
Pulling it by the lawn mower meant you couldn't get close to the
fences or obstructions at the end of the run.

Solution:
Back to the meat cleaver and mallet!
Cheap to buy, easy to rig, and very fast.
But mainly, with NO mess to clean up afterwards.

TTUL
Gary