Essential Fencing Tools Every Property Owner Needs

You don't need a truck full of specialised equipment to build and maintain rural fences, but you do need the right basics. Here's the essential toolkit that every property owner should have in the shed for fencing work.

THE MUST-HAVES

1. FENCING PLIERS (MULTI-TOOL)

These are the Swiss Army knife of fencing. A good pair of fencing pliers combines:

  • Wire cutters (for cutting HT and MT wire)
  • Pliers/grippers (for twisting wire, bending clips)
  • Hammer face (for driving staples into timber posts)
  • Staple puller (for removing old staples)

Buy a quality pair and look after them. Cheap fencing pliers with soft jaws will frustrate you on HT wire — the cutters dull quickly and the grip slips. A good pair costs $30-50 but lasts years.

2. POST DRIVER (MANUAL)

The traditional star picket driver — a heavy steel tube with handles that slides over the top of the picket. You lift and drop it repeatedly until the picket is at the right depth.

Look for one that's heavy enough to do the work (at least 12kg) but not so heavy you can't use it for an hour straight. Handles should be comfortable and securely welded. Some drivers have shock-absorbing grips, which your hands will appreciate on a long day.

For big jobs, a powered post driver (petrol, hydraulic, or tractor-mounted) is worth hiring. But for small jobs and maintenance, a manual driver is all you need.

3. CHAIN STRAINER (FENCE STRAINER)

Essential for tensioning wire and mesh. A chain strainer consists of a chain with a ratchet mechanism and wire grips at each end. You attach one end to the wire and the other to the post, then ratchet the chain to pull the wire tight.

These are simple tools but they need to be strong — you're pulling wire to 100-120kg of tension. Don't buy the cheapest one you can find.

4. WIRE SPINNER

A wire spinner holds a roll of wire and lets it unroll smoothly as you walk the fence line. Without one, the roll bounces around, tangles, and kinks. A kink in HT wire is a weak point that can fail under tension.

The simplest version is just a bar through the centre of the roll, held on a stand. Fancier versions have bearings and brakes. Either works — the key is controlled, smooth unrolling.

5. CROWBAR

For pre-making holes in rocky ground before driving pickets, for levering out old pickets, for digging around strainer post holes, and for about a hundred other jobs. A 1.5m steel crowbar is endlessly useful on a fencing job.

6. TAPE MEASURE AND STRING LINE

A 30m tape measure for spacing, plus a roll of string line for keeping pickets in a straight row. Basic but essential.

7. SPIRIT LEVEL

For checking strainer posts are plumb (vertical). A small torpedo level in your pocket is fine.

THE NICE-TO-HAVES

8. CLIP GUN

We've written a whole separate post about the OCG-1 Brushless Cordless Clip Gun, but in short: if you're clipping mesh to pickets in any volume, a clip gun saves enormous time and effort. It's the upgrade from "must-have" to "won't-go-back-once-you've-used-one."

9. WIRE CUTTERS (HEAVY DUTY)

While fencing pliers can cut wire, a dedicated pair of heavy-duty wire cutters makes cutting HT wire much easier, especially for multiple cuts at strainer posts.

10. STEEL POST PULLER

If you're removing old fencing, a star picket puller saves your back. It uses leverage to lift pickets straight out of the ground instead of you trying to wiggle and wrestle them out by hand.

11. POST HOLE BORER

For strainer post holes, a manual or powered post hole borer cuts clean, round holes to the right depth. Manual borers are hard work in clay soil — if you have access to a tractor, a PTO-driven auger is worth its weight in gold.

12. GRIPPLE TENSIONERS

Gripples are inline wire joiners and tensioners that make re-straining wire easy without having to go back to the end assemblies. Keep a bag of the appropriate size in your toolbox.

MAINTAINING YOUR TOOLS

Fencing tools cop a hard life — they're used outdoors in dust, rain, and mud, often by tired people who aren't being gentle.

  • Clean and dry tools after use
  • Oil moving parts (plier joints, strainer ratchets)
  • Sharpen wire cutter edges periodically
  • Check post driver handles for cracks
  • Replace worn strainer grips before they fail under load

A few minutes of tool maintenance saves money on replacements and, more importantly, prevents tool failure when you're mid-job in the back paddock.

We stock a range of fencing tools at Outback Fencing Supplies. Come check them out at 76 Astill Drive, Orange, or call us on 0434 093 077 if you need advice on what to buy for your particular fencing needs.

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