c/farriers

That moment I realized my clinch tool was making my life harder

For about 3 years I used the same old clinch tool my mentor handed down, never thought twice about it. Then last month I picked up a new one at a trade show in Kentucky on a whim. First horse I did with it, the clinches laid down so smooth I almost laughed. Has anyone else switched tools and felt like you wasted time with the old one?

Old farrier told me I was wasting time with my toe clip placement

Honestly, I was doing toe clips on front shoes for years the way the guy who taught me showed me. One day this old timer I respect, Gene from over in Lexington, watches me nail one on and says 'you're setting them too deep, they're gonna pop out before the reset.' I thought he was just being picky. But I tried what he said on my next horse, a big paint gelding who runs through shoes. I moved the clip back just a hair, closer to the white line, and angled the punch a little less upright. That shoe stayed on a full 6 weeks, no issues. Gene told me you get better hold and less nail damage to the wall that way. Has anyone else had to unlearn something they were taught first thing? I'm curious if it's common to pick up bad habits early on.

Hot shoe vs. cold shoe on a heavy horse, which do you lean into?

I had a draft cross last spring that was testing me on every back foot. Old school farrier told me to go with a hot shoe, get that perfect fit, let it cool on the hoof. Another guy I respect said no way, cold shoe it and just be extra careful with the nail placement. So I tried hot for the first two trims. Burn marks, horse got nervous, took forever. Switched to cold for the third trim, used a diamond saw to shape it quick, horse stood better, I finished in 45 minutes flat. But the cold shoe didn't sit as flush on the heel. Now I'm wondering if I just need more practice with hot work or if cold is the right call for these big guys with tricky conformation. Anyone else go back and forth on this?

Old timer at the Montgomery County fair set me straight on hoof angles

I had a guy who's been shoeing since before I was born watch me work at the fairgrounds last spring. He said I was setting my front shoes way too flat, like I was treating them all as draft horses. I changed my angle to match each horse's natural stance and now I'm getting way fewer quarter cracks. Has anyone else had an old farrier give them a tip that rewired how they think?

Guy at the shop tried telling me a rasp is fine after 50 horses

I was at a clinic in Kentucky last spring and some kid showed up with a rasp that looked like butter knife. He swore it still cuts fine. I let him borrow one of mine for a trim and he couldn't believe the difference. A worn out rasp slips more and you end up filing your knuckles off trying to get a clean foot. I go through about 8 rasps a month on a busy schedule. Anyone else run into folks who hold onto tools way too long?

Overheard a younger farrier at a clinic in Ohio last month bragging about using his rasp way past its life.

He said he gets three times the use out of a rasp by just grinding the teeth down instead of buying a new one, but I've seen the damage a worn-down tool can do to a hoof wall and I wonder how many horses he's sent home with thin walls and cracks.

Tried a different forging technique on a front foot yesterday and learned something the hard way

I've been shoeing for about 12 years now and I usually stick with the same hammer technique for shaping the toe on a front foot. Yesterday I had a big draft cross with a nasty quarter crack and I decided to try a different method I saw online where you punch the toe down before you even touch the heels. Figured it would save me some time on the anvil. Well I got the shape roughed in and went to fit it hot and the shoe was twisted sideways at the heels. Never had that happen before. Took me three tries to get it close to straight again. Learned that the order you strike the steel matters way more than I thought. Has anyone else botched a shoe bad trying a new method and had to start over?

Remember when forge work meant a coal fire and a hand crank? Not that long ago for me.

Three years ago I was still using a hand-cranked blower on my coal forge over in Lebanon, Ohio. Last week I fired up my new propane forge and had a shoe forged, shaped, and nailed in under 20 minutes. Don't get me wrong, I miss the old rhythm, but man does my back feel better at the end of the day. Any of you old timers ever make the switch and regret it?

A client told me my hoof trimming was too slow, so I timed myself for a week

My favorite anvil block cracked open mid-shoe last Tuesday

I've been using the same 100-pound cast iron block for 8 years, and last Tuesday I was shaping a size 2 keg shoe and it just split clean in half. Had to finish the shoe hanging the hoof between my knees like some kind of amateur. Anyone else ever had a block fail on them mid-job and what did you switch to?

I finally got a hoof knife sharpening jig and it changed my trimming

After 6 months of fighting with dull edges on my favorite Mustad knife, I picked up a simple jig from a supplier in Lexington last week. The first trim I did afterwards cut cleaner and I barely had to touch up the sole. Has anyone else tried one of these for their everyday knives?

Back in 2019 I watched an old-timer at the Kentucky State Fair show me a trick that changed my whole approach

I was at the Kentucky State Fair in 2019, watching this farrier who had to be in his 70s. He was using a simple wooden block to brace the horse's hoof while he shaped the shoe, and I'd never seen that before. I asked him about it and he said he'd been doing it that way for 40 years, never saw the need for fancy stands. I tried his method on a draft horse last week and it worked way better than my expensive stand. Has anyone else picked up old-school tricks from someone at a fair or clinic?

Noticed something wild at a barn in Kentucky last week

The farrier there was using a simple angle grinder with a flap disk to clean old shoes instead of doing it by hand, and his prep time dropped by about 15 minutes per horse. Has anyone else tried that trick or is it a bad idea long term?

Finally gave in and tried a hand-forged shoe after years of saying it didnt matter

I spent 10 years swearing factory shoes were just as good until I had a client with a nasty quarter crack on a horse that kept barreling through every keg shoe I put on. The old farrier down the road let me watch him forge one and I could see the steel flowing different, filling the clip slots way cleaner than any pre-made. Has anyone else noticed a real difference in how a hand-forged shoe holds up on problem feet?

Switched to a fullered shoe and the horse stopped stumbling altogether

I been using plain stamps for 10 years but tried a fullered shoe on this old gelding last week and he quit tripping in the back. Anyone else notice better traction with fullers on older horses?

Vent: A client told me my shoes were too thick and she was right

I had a client last month who competes in dressage. She looked at my work and said the hind shoes were raising her horse's heel too much. I measured and she was right, I was putting on a size 3 shoe when a size 1 would have worked. I switched to a lighter shoe and trimmed the toe back a bit more now. Has anyone else had a rider call out something small that made a big difference?

Shoutout to the farrier at a clinic in Denver who showed me how to balance a hind shoe in under 2 minutes flat

He used a simple cross-peen hammer and a stump anvil, no fancy jig, and now I'm wondering if anyone else has tried that method or if it's just a regional thing?

Warning: wasted $300 on cheap rasps from an online bargain site

I figured I would save some money and bought a 6-pack of rasps for $300 from some discount website. They looked fine in the pictures but after one hoof they were dull as a butter knife. I tried to sharpen them myself and they just chipped and flaked. By the end of the week I had to toss 4 of them because they were completely useless. I ended up buying my usual Nicholson rasps and finishing the job in half the time. Anyone else get burned by those cheap bulk deals online?

Been hot shoeing for 20 years and just realized I was burning the sole the whole time

An old timer watched me one afternoon and asked why my nails kept backing out, then pointed to the smoke coming off the sole. Does everyone learn that at some point or was I just slow on the uptake?

Used to hate aluminum shoes until I tried them on a wet track

I was always a steel shoe guy for like 15 years. But last spring I had a client with a thoroughbred who kept slipping on the grass track at Churchill Downs. An old timer named Pete finally convinced me to try aluminum event shoes on her and I swear she stopped slipping completely by the next week. Anybody else stubbornly stick with one metal and then regret not switching sooner?

That one client who told me his horse was 'just fine' then got mad when I pointed out the abscess

Had a guy in Lexington last fall swear up and down his mare was walking normal. I watched her from 20 feet away and saw she was dead lame on the right front. He argued with me for five minutes before I showed him the heat coming off her hoof. Anybody else deal with owners who think they know better than what their horse is clearly showing?

Wasted $400 on those fancy resin hoof casts last spring

I fell for the hype from that big equine supply catalog and bought a whole kit of those pre-formed resin hoof casts for laminitis cases. First horse I tried them on, the cast cracked within 48 hours because I didn't prep the hoof wall right. I should have just stuck with my regular 2-part acrylic and fiberglass mesh that cost me $60 total. Has anyone else had better luck with those resin casts or am I not the only one who got burned?

I remember when a set of keg shoes cost $35 and lasted two trims

Stopped by an old supplier's yard last week and saw the price list. $85 for a basic set of keg shoes now. Back in 2005 I could get the same pair for $35 and they'd hold up for two full resets on a heavy draft. What changed besides the obvious inflation? I figure it's the overseas competition and fewer folks learning the forge trade. You guys still using keg shoes or did you switch to something else for the heavy horses?

Tried a wider toe clip on a tricky horse last Thursday and got weird results

I had this one horse that kept losing shoes on the left front, no matter what I did. So I decided to try a wider toe clip to give it more stability, thinking that was the obvious fix. Well, the shoe held on great but the horse started tripping like crazy on that foot for about 3 days. Turns out the extra clip changed how the hoof broke over at the toe, and it threw off his whole stride. I ended up going back to a standard clip but set it a little farther back from the toe, and that solved both problems. Has anyone else had a clip placement backfire like that on a specific gait issue?

Tried forge welding with a gas forge instead of coal and got a clean weld first try

Always thought gas forges ran too hot and washed out the steel, but I borrowed a buddy's Forgemaster 200 down in Oklahoma and tacked a broken hoof rasp back together. The weld took clean with no cold shuts and saved me 40 minutes of fiddling with the coke fire. Has anyone else switched and just kept going back to the gas setup?