Driving 2x4's?
 

What's the best way to drive 2x4's when anchoring a blind in the marsh? I've always used a sledge but it splinters the end of the board, it's dangerous, etc. Just wondering if anyone had a secret to share. Thanks

Have you tried a "man killer", "brother in law", post driver?

Do they make to fit a 2x4?

It's made out of pipe. But I don't know if you could buy one big enough.

Mutha in law will do it but I prefer a telephone pole anchor but you'll need to rent a mule to screw it down. Ask Casey where to get one and the anchors.

That's what I was thinking. How long of a piece of pipe?

They're normally like 3 ft long or so. With a plate welded on the top and handles on the sides.

Thanks. Gone to a welding shop Monday morning.

Key is to have the top plate thick enough to sink a post, but not so thick it kills you to drive the first one.

Check at a local welding shop if they have a piece of 4x4 tubing or maybe even a piece of 6x6. Cut it about 2'-3' and weld a piece of 1/2" plate on the end. The thicker the better for weight. Then make 2 handles and have some fun!

the 'mother-in law' we use will drive 4x4's and 2x4's and whatever else will fit in there. any longer than a couple feet is a mofo to put on top the post, so don't make it too long.

u want it heavy, but not a man killer.

http://www.drivall.com/images/fencin...ostknocker.jpg

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Get a welding shop to make you a metal cap to put over the 2x4 while driving it. It will keep the top of the 2 by from splitting. Have them weld a short handle on it, so one can hold it to keep it from jumping off when you hit it. Nothing better to drive a 2x4 than a sledge hammer. Hint, drive them in on an angle and they will hold a lot better.

You need a 18" piece of 6"x6"x1/4" square tubing with a plate welded on top.

You don't want to have to be picking it up over your head to get it on top the 2x4 and the longer your guide pipe (6x6 tubing in this case) the higher you will have to pick it up. When you get it down to where you can swing the hammer leave the man killer on top and hit the top of it if it's getting to tough to drive into the mud.

Y'all must hunt some hard marsh. Most marshes i have hunted and worked in, you have to bolt sleepers to your posts to stop them from going down. You can normally just push them in by hand. It might take a little work to get them through the surface roots, but after that it should go right in.

If u use a sledge n it splinters the end of the 2x4 just cut it with a cordless saw or even a hand saw

http://youtu.be/xYuQGprdoi4
call these guys

Gotten my azz kicked by a man killer many a time in the marsh lol. If your posts are too long it's a "b" getting that sucker over the top. I've driven 4x4s with the one my buddy has

I may be the world record holder for most 2x4's and 4x4's driven with a man killer. LOL. Used to guide where 2 of us was responsible for 11 blinds and about 15 wharfs. We actually had 2. One for 2x4's and a larger one for 4x4's. Yes we could use the larger on for 2x4's, but it was a mother so we would use the smaller one if we had the choice. One person could use the smaller one for 2x4's, but the big one was supposed to be a 2 man job. I think ours was about 2' long with 2 handles and the cap welded on it. Our marsh was soft with a large water fluctuation so it would love to try to pop blinds up. I retired from the man killer, but I think we used to use 12-14' 2x4's and had to drive them in at an angle like an X on each side. Many times we had to stand on top of a cabin boat to get it started. We would drive them in as far as we could - sometimes they would go the entire 10-12'. If we hit 'bottom' with too much sticking out, we would just use a chainsaw or handsaw to cut it to preferred height. You would never use a sledge again.

When you do the sledge method they splinter to a point where you don't have enough surface to hit with the hammer anymore. At least when I'm swinging the sledge.