I need plans for horse drawn vehicles

I guess you missed the part in my original posting. I ALREADY OWN SEVERAL HORSES. So, I am already paying for all this stuff, and yet the horses are just standing around most of the time, other than some weekend riding. Yes, they are costly, but they are wonderful animals and pets, and I will always have horses because I love being around them.

I just need to make them do a little more work now.

I am not the youngest, and although I can ride a horse pretty well, the last time I jumped on a bicycle, all I wanted to do was get it out of the barn and into the other shed. Well, I managed to wipe out on the gravel driveway and was hurting. Just dont have the balance I did when I was younger !!! Maybe if I welded two of them together, so I had 4 wheels, I would do better.

PS. My horses are not bothered at all by cars, trucks, tractors, mowers, farm equipment, power tools, etc. But if a bicycle goes past them, they all scatter !!! The time I wiped out on the gravel, I was right by the horses. I thought they were all going to jump the fence from fear. I was hurting, but I got a good laugh from them horses !!!

Mark

Reply to
maradcliff
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THANK YOU For the Links

Reply to
maradcliff

My town has a few regulars that RIDE their horse into town, and there is a hitching post by the feed mill, which is a few blocks from the downtown. I know most of the cops, and they would not be bothered if I used that same hitching post. This is just a small rural town.

Reply to
maradcliff

I agree.

Based on 1970, I believe I paid around 40 cents a gallon. and the minimum wage was around $3.00 an hour (rounded figure). Now the price of gas is $3.00 a gallon, and the minimum wage is around $6.00 an hour. (also rounded). BIG DIFFERENCE !!!!

By those figures, in 1970, I could buy around 7 gallons of gas from one hours of wages. Now, I get 2 gallons from one hours of wages. (Using the "minimum wage" for wage figures). Once again, BIG DIFFERENCE !!!!

Mark

Reply to
maradcliff

Could have been $1.15, but I thought it was $1.37 based on a couple of fact that I am sure of. That was in PA. I don't recall if is was the state or Federal minimum.

Reply to
Edwin Pawlowski

Yes, I am very serious about this.

As I already said, I already have the horses.

You must know about horses, since you are right on the money as far as what you say. At the same time, I have two horses that were used for driving in the past. They were used in parades and events for public carriage rides. They have not been driven in 3 years, so I will have to work with them some before I use them. However, they are trained for harness, either as a team, or individually. By the way, they are both from Welsh Cob mares bred to the same stallion, who is a Paint and Shire cross, They resemble the Irish Tinker horses. One of them is a galding, the other a stallion, and the stallion is the better driver of the two.

I also have the harnessing for both a team, (with driving collars), and an individual breast collar harness. I got them at an auction when a horse facility shut down, and they are in good condition, in fact the single harness is nearly new. I will have to get a new collar for the team harness though, damn mice chewed it up.

I also have a shed for storing all the stuff too.

I do a little horse driving now. I drive our Shetland stallion pony on a small cart that has bicycle tires, and he is an excellent pony. I have lots of fun driving him. I just want to "upgrade" and in the process get some practical use out of my "fun". I know it takes time to go anywhere, but we all need time to relax and ponder life. I have the advantage of mostly all gravel back roads to drive to town too. The asphalted road is a little shorter distance, but I'd prefer staying out of heavy traffic.

I just want to build my own carriage, because I like to build things, and the ones I have seen at sales are far too costly for my wallet. I am not all that interested in "fancy", I more want something that is practical and useful. I probably have darn near everything to build it already. I got a whole shed full of lumber, lots of useful scrap metal, several old hay wagons with tires, carpentry tools and a welder.

Mark

Reply to
maradcliff

*sigh* I was wondering when this tired old idea was going to come around again.

Horse drawn transportation is much more expensive than gasoline. Many trees died to publish all the research on this topic the LAST time gasoline got relatively expensive. Feeding and maintaining a work horse is vastly different than the pleasure horse(s) you apparently have now. I suggest doing some research before you go off making plans.

If you're interested in low cost local transportation, why don't you buy or build an electric vehicle conversion? Ignoring the econazi rants about zero emissions (it isn't, EVs simply shift the point of emissions to the power plant stack), an EV is probably the cheapest practical transportation out there that will keep you out of the weather.

A well designed amateur conversion will achieve an energy efficiency of from 500 to 600 watt-hours per mile. Electricity around here is

5.2 cents per kwh so the cost per mile would be about 3 cents, allowing for charging losses. You can do a conversion for less than it would cost to build a wagon. Maybe $4k for all new parts. Half that for used/carefully purchased parts. An even better deal is to buy an already-converted vehicle, as they have little resale value.

A small pickup (chevy S10 for example) is probably the easiest and most practical vehicle to convert because there is lots of room under and in the bed for batteries plus the bed can be used for actual work.

With the present state of the battery art, affordable EVs will go from

60 to 100 miles on a charge. Practical for most around-town driving.

I drive a small EV around town (see my web site) because I'm a cheap b*stard and because I don't like to drive my gas car on short trips. I have about $1500 in the car including motor and controller upgrades. I have a power meter on my charger and can verify the cheapness of this car's operation. Supercheap transportation. And no horse sh*t to shovel!

John

Reply to
Neon John

You dont need a "work horse" to pull a small buggy or carraige. The Amish use Standardbred horses almost exclusively, and they are the same sizr as the average pleasure horse (like a Quarter horse). I presrently drive a shetland pony on a small cart and he does fine, excrpt I would not go no 10 miles with him, and being small, would not drive him where there is traffic.

Mark

Reply to
maradcliff

I do believe they could.

There have been numerous humerous types of stories on both sides of the border where people riding things like riding lawnmowers have been charged with D.U.I. type offences.

In this case because it is not a motorized vehicle they would probably have charged him with public intoxication.

Reply to
Shiver

Wooooo Hooooo...... Sounds like you have it made in the shade.

Take pictures as the project develops and post to a website.

Please and thank you.

I'm sure that many in this group would be interested in following your project right up to the first trip to town and that hitching post.

Reply to
Shiver

Use the best pneumatic tire trailer running gear you can get.

Be kind to your horse and your spine.

Welded steel tube makes for a lightweight frame for a small horsedrawn vehicle.

....Brock.

Reply to
Brock Ulfsen

If your local library has no suitable books, the Smithsonian Instn. (Washiington DC) can probably help.

Reply to
Don Phillipson

Oh, the !.37 was a typo. I thought it was a misplaced mark of emphasis.

Reply to
Elmo

I've heard of several (several being a number larger than three but probably smaller than ten) cases of OUIL - Operating Under the Influence of Liquor - tickets being issued to persons on horseback, and the conviction stuck.

One was to a buddy of mine on Mackinac Island. You can also get an OUIL while riding a bicycle on the Island, though it usually takes being literally falling-down drunk to accomplish this feat.

I've never personally seen it, but local anecdotes suggest that if there were such a thing as a drinking amishman (wink wink, nudge nudge) and he were to hitch up his buggy and go out while schnockered, he could be dealt with exactly as a drunk driver.

And in our "leave 'em laughing" department:

What goes "Clip-clop clip-clop, bang-bang, clip-clop clip-clop, bang-bang, clip-clop clip-clop, bang-bang, clip-clop clip-clop?

Wait for it... . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . Here it comes... . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. . .. A drive-by shooting in Amish country. (Or, as the tour drivers on the Island tell it, "on Mackinac Island")

Reply to
Don Bruder

I like your style, Mark - good luck with your project.

Reply to
Ranieri

Garbage. The Federal minimum wage in 1970 was a dollar-sixty. It didn't go over three dollars until 1980.

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Reply to
Doug Miller

marad,

I agree with Mr. Hipson. Your pets are likely saddle ponies not draft horses. Saddle horses are not bred or trained in this work. I suspect that you lack much experience as a wagoneer and will lose interest as you look into the expense involved in this project. If not you may wish to get some mules. Why are horses terrified of bikes? Last time I was ahorse when bikes came by I thought I was a dead man.

Dave M.

Reply to
David Martel

Must have been terrifying. Last time I was on a horse there were a lot of people making noise, but the horse was not bothered at all. It just kept going round and round.

Reply to
Edwin Pawlowski

Actually that is from childhood experiences. My grandfather farmed using horses until about 1962. I used to tag along. I even got to ride "Nell" to the barn most nights. :))

Timely topic. There was an article in this morning's newspaper about carriages and the "carriage association" relocating to the Ky Horse park. They may have some information for you and here is a link to the article:

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Have fun.

Colbyt

Reply to
Colbyt

OK, I was wrong. I can hardly remember what I did yesterday, much less 35 years ago. :)

However, even at the wage, gas is still much more costly today, based on minimum wage and price per gallon.

Reply to
maradcliff

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