Wagon Wheel Fence

Most commercial and industrial sites are fenced - but are still subject to people easily hopping over the fences to conduct some opportunistic thieving. The usual response is to want to build higher fences and top them with barbwire, razorwire, sharp spikes or perhaps even electrify them.

Unfortunately, many local governments have decided (in their wisdom) to legislate against fences going above a certain height or permitting the use of razorwire, spikes or electric fences. The stringing of 3 strands of barbwire is usually allowed but doesn't prove to be much of a deterrent to a nimble clamberer.

My fence post (fence 'post' get it?) is to have the fence topped with a tightly-packed series of free-spinning metal 'wagon wheels' along a common axis. If each of these wheels was 40cm (18in) or bigger, closely packed together and free-wheeling enough they would prove to be very difficult to climb over, at least for the casual thief walking by. It is not going to deter the serious professional armed with bolt cutters, etc. but will certainly slow down the casual scumbag more than would a piddly 3 strands of barbwire. The wagon wheel fence would perform this function without giving the local council conniptions about having high-voltage electrics or spools of razorwire which could hurt the dears.

The 'wagon wheels' don't really even need the rims on them as the tapered spokes alone should be enough. This would make the corners easier to build where you would have to use a gentle radius rather than right angles. The advantage of rims though is that they'd be harder to jam from spinning and don't provide any handhold. Then I'd optionally slather the whole thing with thick, gooey axle grease.