Fencing Driving Tool

A fencing driving tool is one of those bits of kit that seems almost too simple to bother with — right up until you’ve split the top of a post trying to hammer a spike in without one. This tool fits over the top of the fence post section and absorbs the impact from your hammer or maul, protecting the timber from damage as you drive the spike into the ground. Available in 75mm and 100mm sizes to suit the most common post dimensions used on UK fencing jobs.

The tool is made from hardened plastic, which sounds counterintuitive for something that’s going to take repeated hammer blows, but it does the job well. It’s designed to transfer the driving force down into the spike without letting the hammer face chew up the end grain of the post. End grain splits easily under direct impact, and a damaged post top doesn’t just look rough — it lets water in, which speeds up rot even on treated timber.

Where a Fencing Driving Tool Actually Earns Its Keep

This tool is most commonly used when installing fence post spikes, also known as fence post holders or Metpost-style anchors. These are the steel ground anchors that accept a fence post without any concrete, making them popular for garden fencing, boundary panels, agricultural fencing, and anywhere you want a cleaner install or need to avoid digging.

Driving a spike in without a tool like this usually means a scrap piece of timber balanced awkwardly on top, which moves around, wastes time, and still damages the post if your aim is off. Having the correct driving tool on site is the sort of small detail that separates a tidy, efficient installation from one that takes twice as long and looks worse at the end of it.

At this price, it makes sense to keep one in the van for both sizes. Jobs turn up with different post sections, and being caught without the right one is an easily avoided nuisance.