[Does’ Leap]

Chris:

They expect a sound business plan supported by a history of good cash flow that can service a loan. They are similar to dealing with a bank, but they specialize in agricultural loans. I did not find them hard to deal with (although it was a slow process getting the loan).

George

[Does’ Leap]

Chris:

I have land financed through FSA and it has worked well for me. Best thing to do would be to contact FSA directly to see what options they might have available.

George

[Does’ Leap]

Here’s a link on how to measure horse height: http://www.cowboyway.com/HowTo/HorseHeight.htm

George

[Does’ Leap]

Carl:

The position of my bridle chains sound about right as I positioned based on your recommendation from the workshop in MA. The “intermittent flats” I wrote about are only about 20′, so I don’t bother to drop the chains for that small distance. I just need to be careful where I stop my horses (i.e. not on the flats), so they can start the load more easily. I think part of the problem is the ground is not frozen, just slick with snow. What do you think about engaging just one chain irregardless of turning?

George

[Does’ Leap]

Hey Tim, I thought about a bridle chain for the log but can’t get my mind around the logistics and transport of that gear when I am ground skidding. Have you seen this done? I will often leave a couple of branches on the logs which help, but it is the butt logs that are problematic – often no branches for 30 feet or so.

George

[Does’ Leap]

@mitchmaine 31633 wrote:

hey george, don’t want to beat a dead horse, but the harness should be snug, and from the photo yours looks good. also, low britchin will take a horse off his feet, but again, yours looks good from here.
a scoot is a different critter than a set of bob sleds. i think i know what you mean by herky-jerky, and it sounds like your scoot is walking on the bridal chains. you could try taking a twelve foot peice of chain and laying it in front of the runners, hooking each end into the front stake and pulling forward over the chain. it should come taught about a foot or so behind the front bunk. it is in a better position back there to keep the scoot steady. its under the load rather than in front of it. and connected to each other so it works on both runners the same. might work. its what i do here on what hills we can find. you can also hook that same chain, when you are on flat going, to the rear stakes the same way and tow it behind the scoot and it sweeps the snow back into the tracks and helps to pack your woods road. i also use the same chain under my stoneboat when i go in with the twitch horse and my gear, to help hold it from running up on her. worth a try. hope it works for you. mitch

Mitch, thanks for the reply. I believe I’m hitched in nice and tight and that my britchen is positioned correctly (just bellow the pin bone). I thought about one long bridle chain, but I am concerned about it catching a stump or other stuff. My bridle chains are positioned about a foot or two behind my front bunk, just forward of the middle of the sled. John (aka Longview Farm) was here yesterday and we chained up the scoot for a couple of loads of hemlock and it wasn’t “walking” so badly, but man do they dig in and increase the draft on the intermittent flats between the steep sections. He also mentioned that Carl sometimes will use one bridle chain on his sled. I tried that and it seemed to work well – not to much draft, but enough to help hold back the load. I also thought about a few sections of 5/16 chain that I could attach with a clevis to my bridle chain u-brackets that might not bight as hard. Lots of learning to be done, but I am enjoying it.

George

[Does’ Leap]

I hooked the bridle chains on my scoot yesterday for the first time with a big load of hemlock. With the uneven terrain, it was a little herky-jerky with the runners moving back and forth. Is this common? The chains were certainly digging in. My next load, I did without the chains and the horses dropped their rear ends right down and skied on all fours holding back the load. The horses seemed more comfortable with this than with the bridle chains. Any thoughts?

George

[Does’ Leap]

So what do folks do about ground skidding down steep, snowy slopes? These hovering-around-freezing temperatures create a luge run for my logs and I need to be careful about taking out my horses. My technique now is to “step” my horses down the slope to slow down the momentum on the log. I also lengthen my chain and think of escape routes on particularly bad areas so I can get my horses out of the way before they get slammed. Any ideas?

George

[Does’ Leap]

@mink 31561 wrote:

george i like your pics, could i ask how long your scoot is overall and bunk to bunk? i like the 2×6 ‘s you put on to stand on while you ride back empty. thats a good idea in my mind. thanks mink

The bunks are 7’4″ on center made to accommodate 8′ log (minimum) with some wiggle room. Runners are 12′. I ended fastening down a piece of 3/4 plywood on top of the 2x6s for extra strength and so I don’t get a foot caught in the spaces between. I broke a 2×6 when a pole I was using to deck logs levered inside the runner and the 2×6 took the full weight. If you make a deck like mine make sure you pin the center of the 2×6 so your runners can move back and forth. I used “timberlock” screws for this purpose.

George

[Does’ Leap]

Ed:

I have been bucking saw logs behind my horses for a while, but cutting firewood is new. I started feeling a little guilty. On the flip side, I am at least 10′ away from their ears and usually more as I cut toward the end of the log. I guess this helps some.

These hitches went about 2200′ on hilly (mostly down hill) land. I have one sustained hill coming up to the landing on the picture and my barefoot horses scramble on that hardpacked hill. Other than that, they do OK.

George

[Does’ Leap]

@Carl Russell 31515 wrote:

I believe the horses learn to use the D-ring harness to their advantage when moving weight, similarly to the way they learn to trust their footing when caulked up.

Carl

Interesting comment. I am enjoying watching the horses as they become more familiar moving wood with the scoot and learning to use it to their advantage. I find the scoot an elegant, dare I say beautiful, way of moving wood. It whispers through the snow and hard pack (and plows through the January mud:confused:).

[IMG]https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-V8gFt-YiVMY/TwjB1CLH-wI/AAAAAAAABFk/oWme5PCqqJ4/s800/P1030559.JPG[/IMG]

I have recently started blocking firewood off of my scoot. I block the top tier and throw the wood off the side of the scoot and then roll my bottom tier onto the “bed” of blocked wood and cut it up. No need to cut part way through the logs, roll with a peavey and finish up as you always have wood below to protect your saw. Anyone have deaf horses from years of running the saw around them?

[IMG]https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-lJS8KOb2ywk/TwjCE9njnEI/AAAAAAAABF0/fm3PeOVjnw8/s800/P1030563.JPG[/IMG]

George

[Does’ Leap]

@Countymouse 31485 wrote:

This is a very very tiny amount of wasted force though, amounting to a maximum of 3% more force than is required in a straight pull if the deflection is 6 inches off the theorectional “perfect” straight line through the d-ring. Of course, this a false comparison because attempting this types of pulls without a d-ring the pull would force the collar up or down so dramatically the horse probably wouldn’t be comfortably anyway. Every time I think about the system I am impressed with the design.

Interesting discussion and comments……..Andy, Just curious, at what theoretical point are you measuring the deflection? Mitch, what’s the final verdict on your moccasin scoot runners?

George

[Does’ Leap]

@Kyle 31444 wrote:

George, I like the design in your thread. It is beyond my fabrication skills at this point but I have read it and bookmarked it. Since the jockey yokes are fixed to the neck yoke do you make a separate set of jockey yokes for every implement? I have always been told to avoid the ring end style unless using a safety latch with it. Am I understand that this pins in the end and then is bolted in place also? as it seems like the pin would have a similar draw back of being able to slip out if used without bolting. Or is it just the metal receiver that is bolted to it with the neck yoke just pinning into this?
Thanks

Kyle:

I have one neck yoke/jockey yoke for all my implements. Every implement has a “receiver” that accepts the plug yoke. I simply remove the yoke and plug into my next pole. The plug is held in the pole my tension in the d-ring harness. When hitched tight, I can stand at my horses’ heads and pull on the yoke for all I’m worth and can barely get it to slip a half inch away from the pole. In other words, it’s not coming out – at least in a tight d-ring. Over the years I have made some modifications to the plug yoke: (1) I now use 1/2″ eye bolts as I wore through the 3/8 within 18 months of making the yoke; and (2) I welded on 1/2″ square stock to the front of the yoke to beef it up as it was starting to bow.

George

[Does’ Leap]

Kyle:

Glad you and your horses made it through that experience in one piece. I use a “plug yoke” developed by Les Barden in NH. Here is a link to one discussion: http://www.draftanimalpower.com/showthread.php?2646-Barden-style-neck-yoke&highlight=plug+yoke

George

[Does’ Leap]

Sean:

Nice horses! How old are they and where did you find them? I don’t have anything to add on the harnesses except I like to see the britchens a little higher on my horses (i.e right below the pin bone).

Best.

George

[Author]

Posts