1 1/4 may be a bit much for a first timer. Even seasoned horses can do better with less width. If they scare their selves they will quit stopping in the beginning.
John, 1st pair of sliders says to me that this may be the 1st time this discipline has been asked of this horse! that said, I would be reluctant to suggest a section of steel. As a little info, some riders start with 1/4 x 3/4 or 1/4 x 7/8 to begin with as Justin suggested ,then go into the 1 inch width and some go 1.25 tapers etc. But if this is a large animal ,like an Irish draft cross then 1/4 '' may not hold him so you will need to adjust. Too much weight can make him act like he is working with logs, quickly. The shoe you made ,in my opinion could use to have the branches straightened some, so as to not hold dirt thereby facilitating forward motion. If like many horses , when he begins to spread ,you ll be asked to adjust the shoes to make 11 s. Hope this helps ray Ray
John, I always raise the toe a bit, think of them like a snow ski. this way it helps ease the hoof through the ground. When punching holes, I never use more than three per side.
no secret , just no BS setting the horse up crap , i just shoe the bloody things as i see correct at that given time
Ya it's pretty much shoeing a horse, no traction on the back and light in the front. Until you get one that doesn't do 11's like Ray pointed out, or you need one to plus his circles, or improve his spins. I think most have pointed out to keep it simple since it's a first timer, I haven't seen much BS.
it must the terminology , setting up ? beats me , i just trim to what i believe is a balanced foot and fit what is the appropriate shoe at that given time whatever i work on
ok so does the section not matter if your using 3/4," 1", 1 1/4 if your heels are not straight enough if your heel lenth is not to the bulbs if you don't role the toe if you don't fit them wide enough is this all bull or does it mean anything I don't want to put my engry in to this horse if all these things don't matter
Smitty like everything it depends on the horse and how they move. The problem with putting to much width on the back of a beginner is they don't generally know how to pedal there front feet so they lock there knees and stick them stiff legged in the dirt and there hind end is sliding and will pass the fronts if they don't figure it out quick, I have seen a few get flipped over, mainly because of rider error or not training the horse to move his front legs. The rolled toe keeps the foot tipped up so it doesn't dig in and stick. The length to the bulbs is to hold the back of the foot up and keep the arena surface from burning the heel bulbs. If you were to put a hunter fit on them they would probably be bleeding in no time. Some people think the length is what makes them slide but it doesn't the toe does. Without knowing the experience of the horse or the rider I would keep it simple to start off with, then adjust accordingly based on rider feedback.
All you are doing is helping the horse do its job better. A 1x3/4 on aged horses works well. As Chris says, put a correct trim on them first as with all shoeing..it is more difficult with young horses until they build confidence in the slide..
Putting a very slight spoon on the heels and a mild roll in the toe helps keep them from toe digging in the slide. The spooned heels create a very slight downward drag to help keep the foot rocked back slightly as it slides (yea I know it seems counterintuitive).
