Avarage cart shaft size?

[Margaret]

My neighbor and I are looking to buy a used easy entry cart to drive our A sized mini's in..

We've found one that seems to fit all of our requirements, but we are not sure about the length that the shafts should be.

This one measures 48" from the back to the tip of the shafts.

We are thinking that we can always have extentions welded on the tips, if these are not long enough to allow the mini the distance required to extend in a trot.

This cart seems to allow only about a foot of space when the mini is properly fitted in.

Also the foot rest does not angle in, and drops vertically down parallel to the back of the horse.

I guess my question is, " how much space do you like to see from the rear of your mini,- to the cart", when yours is properly hitched up, to allow good movement, and stride?

 

[MiLo Minis]

Sounds like your shafts are the perfect length for your Mini - 8 to 12" of space between him and the singletree is fine.

 

[Margaret]

Thanks Milo Mini's!

I guess we were just used to having more distance between the cart and the mini in our past carts, and thats why we thought we needed to add some length to give more distance..

Our main concern was while driving,- what if the horses back legs accidently clipped the back of the cart, (since its so close)- but after looking at your site it looks like yours have that kind of distance too, and I guess thats not been a problem for you.

 

[KayJay Farm]

Completely agree with Milo Minis advice. 48" shafts are good for any A size mini and 12 inches between horse and cart is perfect.

 

[hobbyhorse23]

I third that!

You're right that it's dangerous to have the horse too close to the cart as it can cause a major accident if they clip themselves but 12" is usually more than enough. Feel free to put your horse to the cart and walk and jog them around with someone watching to see how much clearance there is. Every horse is different and you might have that one horse who needs more space!

It's good to have the horse pretty close-in to the cart as the longer the shafts are, the harder it is to balance the cart properly and the wider your turn radius.

Leia

 

[Margaret]

Thanks for the replies. Its good to know that 8 to 12" is the norm..

My neighbor is now wondering just where the shafts are suppose to line up at the shoulder of the mini..

A little before, or a little after?

She thinks she can make more room by dropping them back a little, but I'm not so sure.

Her mare has a slightly longer body

A side angle picture of a hitched mini would be helpful if anyone has one.

If things seem too tight we can always have a little extention added to the tips of the shafts

 

[MiLo Minis]

Here's one that is seasonally appropriate

The point of the shafts should always be at or slightly behind but never in front of the point of the horse's shoulder. Willie has actually backed a bit into the shafts as you can see by his tightened breeching and slack traces so the point of the shaft is further back than it shows. He likes his fairly far back.

 

[hobbyhorse23]

Hey Milo, now I feel like Kody and Willie really are out to be twins! We decked them out the same way with brown fuzzy antlers and a red bulb on their cavessons....

Leia

 

[Margaret]

Thanks Lori, that picture helps alot.. Such a cute photo too..

Its good to know that the shafts can be set back just a bit, I guess thats what we'll do..

thanks again.

 

[MiLo Minis]

Hey Milo, now I feel like Kody and Willie really are out to be twins! We decked them out the same way with brown fuzzy antlers and a red bulb on their cavessons....

Leia

I had to laugh because we tried to do the same with Tonto and he was not pleased with either his red nose or his antlers - kept shaking his head and backing away - whereas Willie seemed quite proud to be sporting them. He makes an awesome Rudolph I think! I bet Kody does too

One of these days Willie and Kody are just going to have to meet! What CDE's are you entering this coming season?

Sorry Margaret - not trying to steal your post!

 

[Carriage]

General shaft length for us is 48 inches. However we also go 50 and 52 inches depending on the individual horse. Clearance for the pleasure cart is "average" . Clearance for the "thing" is also average but quite different dontchaknow..............

Bb

 

[hobbyhorse23]

MiLo, you've got a PM.

Leia