Buying pipe fencing isn’t easy these days. Any Internet search for fencing returns tens of thousands of hits – most of them claim they have the strongest, longest-lasting and cheapest pipe in the nation. The big question, though, is which kind of fence will get the job done?
New Pipe Versus Used
Used pipe is a bit cheaper, freely available and sometimes looks almost as good as new pipe – at first glance. But with closer inspection you may find rust, holes, pitting, flaking and plenty of wear.
Pick it up and compare the weight to the same length of new pipe. Why is it lighter? Because almost all of it comes from oilfields where it is no longer considered fit for use. Sucker rods are forced up and down the pipe, constantly wearing them away from the inside. Even if they look good, used piping often has poor wall thickness
Justin McKee, a well-known announcer for the Professional Bull Riders television circuit and owner of the McKee Ranch in Oklahoma, fenced his property with used pipe a decade ago. After a few years, however, it began to disintegrate.
“Cattle would find a weak spot, and tear into it,” said McKee. “By trying to save a dollar, I ended up having to put in a whole new fence.”
“We needed something that would last a lifetime, so we approached GoBob Pipe,” said McKee.
Matt Bales, owner of Superior Steel said, “Used pipe is cheaper, but with that it’s like buying a used car.” He explained that “you don’t know what’s been in it,” and that there can be very thin spots that aren’t seen. “Look for blows and scales – if you see that, beware.”
New or Not so New
Unfortunately, not all new pipe is created equal. Vendors vary widely in their definitions. Within the new category, there can be:
Good: Good pipe is normally a dead length (vs. random lengths), has no holes, no un-welded seams and is straight.
Secondary or Seconds: Secondary pipe is like good pipe but is of random length or has some minor cosmetic flaw.
Reject: Reject pipe is where the pipe could have one or more defects such as un-welded seams, bows and varying wall thicknesses. Since every mill has their own criteria for what they reject, the quality will vary from mill to mill.
“Seconds and reject are usually a good buy for fencing pipe but it is the hardest to find,” explains Bob Studebaker, owner of GoBob Pipe and Steel. Those seeking to profit from the secondary market, therefore, are advised to not be too attached to the popular pipe sizes as they are always in high demand. Most ranchers, for instance, use a lot of 2 1/2” inch pipe. What you are more likely to find in the seconds category is 2 3/8 inch or 2 1/4” which will probably do the job just as well.
Wall thickness is another crucial factor in the fence selection process. It determines the price per foot, as well as what kind of function the pipe can perform.
Todd Wells of Wheeler Metals says his business offers a new reject pipe that is for structure only, which is popular with customers. “Wheeler also has continuous fence panels that covers 20 feet at a time.”
“Wall thickness has to be correct in any job,” explained Doug Diebold of Sooner Steel. He said for a perimeter fence, a SCH 40 or 35 should be used for post and top rails. For corrals, “go heavier than a SCH 40, and he suggested to continue looking for what’s needed to fulfill the job correctly, without skimping on price.
