Horseshoeing for the Rank Beginner
(Page 5 of 6)
September/October 1970
By the Mother Earth News editors
This puts a lot of tension on the shoe as the tapered nail shanks grip the nail holes, and holds the shoe solidly in the proper position. The other six nails can usually be driven into the centers of the nail holes. If you need to pull the shoe slightly outward at any one hole, put the point of the nail in the outside edge of the hole, and vice versa. If the first two nails are properly driven, it is common to want to shift the heels slightly outward in this manner. (Heels can also be spread with the jaws of your pullers.)
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Nails driven into the white line with the flat side out will naturally bend outward, and will never penetrate sensitive tissue. (Figure 8). They must emerge high enough to have a firm grip on the wall, but low enough to allow a good clinch. Usually this is one-half to three-quarters of an inch above the sole. The more uniform the depth of the clinches, the neater the job will look, but this is not a major concern. For uniformity, where the hoof slopes back sharply (as at the toe), incline the nail head forward somewhat as you start to drive. Where the hoof is nearly vertical (as near the heel), start the nail in a position perpendicular to the sole. Use rapid light taps with the hammer to drive the nail. This will allow you to "feel" what the nail is doing. As long as it is following the white line, it will slip in quite easily. When it enters the horny wall, you will feel greater resistance. This should happen soon after the point enters the hoof. If the nail is driven over half its length without entering the horny wall, it will emerge (if at all) too high to allow a good clinch. Pull the nail and bend the point slightly outward. Usually you can drive it back into the same hole and it will emerge properly.
As soon as a nail is fully driven, bend the point over. I prefer this to twisting the point off with the hammer claws, as I feel it is safer and makes for a straighter clinch. Dealer's choice, but don't leave those sharp points aiming at you for over a second or two. If you are using a clinching block, you are now done with the chore of tacking the shoe on. But if you have alligator clinchers, give each of your nail heads a couple of sharp raps with the hammer before letting the foot down.
Now all that remains is the clinching operation. Although it adds a ten dollar piece of equipment to your tool box, I strongly recommend the alligator-type clinchers for a beginner. Many a pony is gentle as a dog until you start hammering on the clinching block, and the alligator clinchers eliminate this operation. Moreover, you can conduct the entire process from the top of the foot, thus minimizing the danger from the unclenched points, should the horse suddenly take his foot from you.
Set the foot on your knee or a block, and nip the nail points as close to the hoof as possible (if you haven't already twisted them off). Use a pair of seven-inch end cutters, and pry the nail slightly away from the hoof as I cut. This makes it a little easier to start the clinch. Now, using an old rasp to avoid dulling your sharp one, rasp a shallow groove below each nail point so that the finished clinch will be flush with the wall. Also run the edge of your rasp around the juncture of the wall and the shoe. At this time you can do a little rasping to cover your mistakes at points where the wall may slightly override the edge of the shoe, but this should be kept to a minimum, because if you have properly shaped the foot, you will be thinning the wall excessively if you remove much horn.
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