On Aug 11, 9:08*am, Ecnerwal
wrote:
In article , Wood Guy wrote:
A friend wants to build a fence using round, 6" diam cedar posts and 1"
x 6" pine or spruce boards.

He wants to cut slots through the center of the posts (3 slots) that are
just large enough to slide the boards through. *There are going to be
lots of posts - maybe 100 or more.

How would you go about forming these slots? *What sort of tool?

Well, you could get all tooled up with a hollow chisel mortiser, or all
burly with a mallet and a mortising chisel, but if you are more into
getting the job done fisrly fast and not buying fancy tools, a good
sized router with a carbide bit and a jig should get the job done,
albeit with rounded ends on the holes. Have to go in from both sides.

Pay attention to drainage or you'll have rotted boards in short order.

--
Cats, coffee, chocolate...vices to live by

This router approach is kinda what I had in mind when I asked my
question. I suspected it was a rail-type of fence. You probably
wouldn't have to go all the way through...just a couple of inches to
allow the boards to be inserted and fastened. At 10' lengths, you
should have some flexibility in the rails. You might try a couple of
lengths, even in the shop, before you commit to the entire job.

With hand-mortising 100 posts, the horses would be dead before I
finished the fence.

BTW: On 10' centers, are 1x 6 boards rigid enough to hold horses?
Might be with the ends fastened.

RonB