Help: 3/4 round posts on fence not lined up correctly

[pokie]

My husband and I hired a contractor to build a barn and fencing for us. He put in 4 board fencing all around the farm, rounding the corners and using 3/4 round posts. Many of the posts are not lined up properly for the fence line, making the fence boards not able to be mounted properly to the posts. He told us, “No problem, when I’m done I’ll just rotate them.”

Well, we had many problems with him and recently fired him. Needless to say he had not yet fixed the fencing. Now we have to do it.

Dos anyone have experience with fixing fence posts like this after the fact? They are straight vertically, just not lined up properly for the fence boards to work. How would be twist them into place and it’s what equipment?

Thanks!

[Bluey]

Don’t really know what you have there.
To rotate a post that is already in the ground, you can try securely wrapping, as low as you can, a bigger chain on it and leaving the tail at 2/3 of the angle you will be pulling from.
Then pull very carefully with a tractor or pickup, low down.
As you pull the chain should start unraveling and twist the post around for you.

That only works well on post that have not been set hard yet and those that don’t have an uneven bottom, like real cedar tree posts can have.

A straight milled post, a railroad tie, a pipe, those are the ones that will turn around for you pulling them around very carefully with a properly placed chain.

I built some pens out of railroad ties by myself.
Some ties ended up a bit twisted, the straight edge not even with the others.
That is how I twisted them back to get them all even.
Since most were not already tamped hard, I could do it pulling on the chain by hand and with a big tamping bar for leverage if needed.
The two that were too tight in the hole, the pickup pulled them around into facing the right direction.

[clanter]

I am assuming these posts are full face 3/4 round?.. if so it is very unlikely you can rotate the post any as the flat face will act as lock just as a key stock is used to hold a pulley in place

How far out of line is this? can you shim the post to aligned the boards to the posts that are set back too far and notch cut the face of the posts that are too far forward?

Otherwise it would be pull the posts then reset. I guess.

[wsmoak]

Without at least partially digging them back out and re-setting them, I can’t imagine.

How bad is it really, can you post some pictures?

If the ‘edges’ of the flat parts are slightly in the wrong place on some of the posts, I would probably be considering cutting/shaving that bit off the posts. (Bonus, now there is a little shelf for the board to sit on, it’ll make attaching them easier.)

Or if you haven’t bought all the materials already, possibly considering different options for the ‘boards’ now, such as Centaur 5" rail. Since it’s flexible, you’ll have some leeway on where you can attach the guides and still have it all work out. You may have to re-do the posts for the corners though.

[Bluey]

@wsmoak

Without at least partially digging them back out and re-setting them, I can’t imagine.

How bad is it really, can you post some pictures?

If the ‘edges’ of the flat parts are slightly in the wrong place on some of the posts, I would probably be considering cutting/shaving that bit off the posts. (Bonus, now there is a little shelf for the board to sit on, it’ll make attaching them easier.)

Or if you haven’t bought all the materials already, possibly considering different options for the ‘boards’ now, such as Centaur 5" rail. Since it’s flexible, you’ll have some leeway on where you can attach the guides and still have it all work out. You may have to re-do the posts for the corners though.

With the new battery powered saws, cutting appropriate notches would work fine.
Consider if that may give water a place to get into the post and rot it sooner?
Don’t know what kinds of post you have and how they were treated.

I wonder, how many posts are you needing to move around?

[TMares]

Pictures or we’re just guessing.

[TCA_Arabians]

Do take photos of the problem posts and any other problems you find. You may not go there, but you’ll need photos if you decide to sue the guy. Make notes now, while it’s fresh in your mind, of all the problems. If he didn’t complete his job - you may have a cause of action. And, if you did not pay him his final fee - he could sue you. Document it all.
good luck.