This new 2-wheeled “fencing trailer” makes it easy for one person to lift a roll of woven wire fence upright and unroll it for attachment to posts.

“It’s inexpensive, lightweight and easy to use. There are no hydraulics or mechanical devices, which helps keep the cost down,” says Tim Turner, inventor of the Fence Pal.

It consists of a 28 by 36-in. metal platform with a 34-in. long pole on top and a foot plate underneath. The tongue is hinged in the middle and can be set to run either horizontally or at a slight angle by changing the position of a locking pin.

To load the wire roll you raise the tongue until the pole is horizontal to the ground and push the pole into the roll. Then step on the foot plate, grab a pair of handles at one end of the tongue with both hands, and pull the tongue back toward the ground until the roll is in the vertical position.

“As you pull the tongue back down to the ground, it automatically straightens itself back out and then you move the locking pin into position to keep it straight,” says Turner. “The leverage created by changing the angle of the tongue and shortening it up really helps. A 330-ft. roll of Redbrand woven wire weighs 263 lbs., but when the tongue is at an angle it feels like you’re applying only 60 lbs. of force. If the tongue was straight the handles would be located too high to provide enough leverage. Also, the pole is located slightly forward of the trailer’s fulcrum point which also helps.

“The plate is equipped with a 1/4-in. thick polyethyelene plate that’s slick enough for the roll to rotate on it yet generates enough friction to keep it from spinning too fast.

“I came up with the idea because my wife was helping me put up fence but had trouble keeping the roll upright as I unrolled it. She urged me to build something to make the job easier.”