Aerocrown/Minicrown folks - what height are your horses?

[ironbessflint]

I'm considering a Bellcrown, but based on the listed heights I'm thinking I might be better off with the Shetland Star. The Aerocrown and Minicrown both state a height of up to 36" and the Shetland Star says 9-10.2 hands. Both of our minis are large Bs at 37"+ (and if measured as shetlands at the withers come in at closer to 10 hands). I know there are many here with the Aerocrowns, but I'm curious how big are the horses everyone is using with them?

Beyond that, I'm looking for sturdy and well built, room for a passenger perferred. Solid wheels preferred. Pacific Smart Cart is on my short list as well. Of course if there are any similar but less expensive options, I'd love to know about those! I'm looking for solid enough to school in daily and ultimately do some trails and speed work with, but nice enough to do some local level pleasure shows.

 

[shorthorsemom]

34 inches high on my driving boy. They tweeked the shaft curve on my aerocrown for my boy so I know the shafts can be adjusted for different height preferences to keep everything balanced and level.. If you measure from the ground to your tugs on height when your 37 inch horse is tacked up, you can call driving essentials and talk to Jack or call steven stoltzfus of Carriage machine and you will get so much information. They want you to be happy, they will be more than glad to discuss height and carts and suitability. best wishes. I totally LOVE my aerocrown. Adair

 

[drivin*me*buggy]

My mare is 35.5 inches and my gelding is 34.5. My shaft have a bend for a 35 inch horse. My daughter has used my Aero with her 36" gelding with no problems. I agree with Adair's suggestion of contacting Jack at Driving Essentials or Carriage Machine shop. I went through Jack and he was great to work with and I am more than pleased with my purchase. Aerocrown = money well spent.

Angie

 

[shorthorsemom]

PS, if you go with the aerocrown, I highly recommend the higher back seat with the padded arms rather than the low back seat. It really hugs you in and you don't budge at all in turns. It is very comfortable.:yesThe aerocrown is very light and very stable and pulls like a dream, but then as Leia says... what you want to do with it and how it fits your horse is very important in cart choice. No passenger room in the aerocrown though, but since I rarely would take a passenger other than an occasional pony ride, I choose the single seat for stability and comfort. If you can at all go sit in each of the carts you are thinking of, I highly advise. I felt like goldilocks trying out chairs and it kept coming back to the aerocrown and I was willing to sacrifice second passenger ride along for the cart that felt best to me. There are days where I wish I had a second seat when my kids are jogging along side my cart, but then when I take a turn and do a hill with my usually fairly out of shape mini and he pulls it like it isn't even there, I know I made the right choice. When my boy is fit enough to consider a passenger, then I might be shopping for a second cart for pony rides... until then... Whoo hoo, love my expensive little dream cart.

 

[DrivinTime]

My sister-in-law has both the shetland star and the minicrown. The shetland star she uses for her 39+" overgrown mini, and he pulls it fine, looks good doing it. The minicrown is pulled by her 33-34" mini and again, he pulls it fine. They both seem like comfortable carts for the horses. For passengers, the minicrown is a squeeze for one skinny and one heftyish adult. The shetland star has a bit more passenger room. I think my 36" guy would do okay with the minicrown; I think the shetland star might be a bit big for him.

 

[hobbyhorse23]

To answer your original question, my horses are both 33.5" and that's one of the reasons I chose the Minicrown back before the Aerocrown was available. I'm a petite driver, Kody is refined and when shopping for him I wanted something with an equally refined look to it that wouldn't seem "heavy" behind my horse either in looks or actual weight. The Minicrown was a better fit for us visually than the Smart Cart and the Aerocrown is even better. The only reason I've held onto my Minicrown this long instead of selling it for an Aerocrown is because I'm interested in doing tandem and thought I might need space for a passenger in my nicer vehicle. I may just sell it anyway and get an Aerocrown for Turbo as the turn radius is amazing and I want to get marathon shafts.

I'm considering a Bellcrown, but based on the listed heights I'm thinking I might be better off with the Shetland Star. The Aerocrown and Minicrown both state a height of up to 36" and the Shetland Star says 9-10.2 hands. Both of our minis are large Bs at 37"+ (and if measured as shetlands at the withers come in at closer to 10 hands). ...
Beyond that, I'm looking for sturdy and well built, room for a passenger perferred. Solid wheels preferred. Pacific Smart Cart is on my short list as well.

Ya know, for what you're looking for I'd really recommend you consider the Smart Cart. I've seen Minicrowns put to small Shetlands and with the right shaft bend it can be done, but the light framework that is such a boon for the smaller guys looks too light with a larger horse IMO. The Smart Cart is a lovely, well-engineered vehicle that has some great pleasure show options like the patent dash with rein rail and I LOVE it for anything except the smaller refined minis with small drivers.

Leia

 

[ironbessflint]

Thanks so much for all the input, very appreciated!! So much to consider...

I'll definitely be talking to the appropriate dealers a GREAT deal before ordering anything. And Leia, thanks very much for your thoughts on the overall appearance with the bigger guys too!

I never realized when I bought my first mini that 38" is almost a "no man's land" for these guys. Too big for mini stuff, too small for pony. Then I bought a second one to match him, thinking of a driving pair down the road. Now I have TWO ponies that don't fit into anything

 

[susanne]

I never realized when I bought my first mini that 38" is almost a "no man's land" for these guys. Too big for mini stuff, too small for pony.

I can so relate! I adore the "borderlines" (Mingus is 38" with his hooves trimmed), but in addition to cart issues, you also have harness, and blanket issues, not to mention holding your breath when measuring into shows!

One bit of great news -- Mingus and I test drove the beta version of Graham Carriage Works' new C-size shafts for the HyperBike. Bob is still tweaking them, but they are great!

As soon as Leia and Daryl get a chance to plow through the masses of photos they each took at our August beach drive, I'll post some shots of Mingus and the HyperBike flying through the incoming tide.

 

[RhineStone]

I never realized when I bought my first mini that 38" is almost a "no man's land" for these guys. Too big for mini stuff, too small for pony.

I have not had this problem, but then again, I don't buy off the rack harneses. Everything I have ordered is from suppliers who only do custom orders. Very little of their businesses is off-the-rack stuff. Even bigger horses and ponies need custom fitting. We are borrowing a Cob show harness for our 12.3 Welsh, but found that the traces were WAY too long. So she has pony traces.

Myrna

 

[ironbessflint]

Agreed with that Myrna. I've got customized harnesses for my minis, as I've always done for the big guys. I've driven one horse who fit into a straight off the rack horse size harness - a Hackney mare who was a blast to drive. My Haflingers have always required quite the hodge podge of pieces too, mostly just to get the bridle to fit! So harness hasn't been an issue, but little things like halters and blankets have been an absolute pain!

Susanne - I can't WAIT for that update!! I'm anxiously awaiting the day I feel my older gelding is schooled enough to order him a hyperbike. He'll be a blast! Have to keep telling myself we're really not there yet.

 

[georgiegirl]

I'm considering a Bellcrown, but based on the listed heights I'm thinking I might be better off with the Shetland Star. The Aerocrown and Minicrown both state a height of up to 36" and the Shetland Star says 9-10.2 hands. Both of our minis are large Bs at 37"+ (and if measured as shetlands at the withers come in at closer to 10 hands). I know there are many here with the Aerocrowns, but I'm curious how big are the horses everyone is using with them?

Beyond that, I'm looking for sturdy and well built, room for a passenger perferred. Solid wheels preferred. Pacific Smart Cart is on my short list as well. Of course if there are any similar but less expensive options, I'd love to know about those! I'm looking for solid enough to school in daily and ultimately do some trails and speed work with, but nice enough to do some local level pleasure shows.

I absolutely love my MiniCrown. My driving mini is 32 3/4", and it fits him to a tee.

The only thing I would caution about is getting the shafts set properly and tightening them properly so they dont slip. I found out the hard way on that one.

Other than that I certainly have NO complaints and what a great ride.

 

[ShadyGrovePonies]

Have a question about the Bellcrown Shetland Star - what are the advantages or disadvantages to having the shafts coming from the bottom of the cart rather than higher up? Do the ponies ever get their leg over it? Is the point of draft harder with a regular pleasure harness - not a collar type harness?

 

[RhineStone]

It is easier for the horse to pull a cart where the point of attachment is closer to the axle. But, then a neck collar is more appropriate because pull is more even across the horse's shoulders, and the neck strap on a breastcollar can dig into the neck of the horse with the low draft. Some breastcollars are being made that have a ring that gives the breastcollar the "equivalent" of the "short tugs" on hames, which will "adjust" for a low draft or a straight draft, making it more comfortable for a low draft.

I know most of that could be said better, but I don't have a lot of time lately.

Get the book, Understanding Harness by Barb Lee, and it will make a whole lot more sense. It is not an expensive purchase and well worth it to comprehend what we put our horses through with ill-thought out harness purchases, fit, and situations.

Myrna

 

[KellyAlaska]

I totally understand your issue. I looked at both the Smart Cart and the Mini Crown before I decided to purchase the Smart Cart. My pony is 36" so he also falls right at the cut off for the Mini Crown. I like the idea of the lighter weight of the Mini Crown but in the end the adjustability and the airbag suspension made the Smart Cart the right choice for my pony. The Smart Cart can fit a Pony up to 44" inches and since I also tend to like the larger ponies/minis I knew that if we got another pony I would be adjusting up and not down. I also like to occasionally take a passenger with me for a short drive and I love that you can adjust the suspension within minutes to accommodate the added weight. My pony does not have an issue pulling the Smart Cart and he can turn it on a dime. It is a little heavier in your hand when you are hooking your pony to the cart but once you have the seat adjusted properly there is really no weight in the shafts. Attached is a photo of Jack our 36" Mini/Shetland pulling the Smart Cart.

 

[ShadyGrovePonies]

I totally understand your issue. I looked at both the Smart Cart and the Mini Crown before I decided to purchase the Smart Cart. My pony is 36" so he also falls right at the cut off for the Mini Crown. I like the idea of the lighter weight of the Mini Crown but in the end the adjustability and the airbag suspension made the Smart Cart the right choice for my pony. The Smart Cart can fit a Pony up to 44" inches and since I also tend to like the larger ponies/minis I knew that if we got another pony I would be adjusting up and not down. I also like to occasionally take a passenger with me for a short drive and I love that you can adjust the suspension within minutes to accommodate the added weight. My pony does not have an issue pulling the Smart Cart and he can turn it on a dime. It is a little heavier in your hand when you are hooking your pony to the cart but once you have the seat adjusted properly there is really no weight in the shafts. Attached is a photo of Jack our 36" Mini/Shetland pulling the Smart Cart.

Thanks! The more information I have the better to make a decision!

I have the Bellcrown Badger cart for my larger pony, but am now looking for the best one for my 41 inch shetland. I really love the torsion suspension on my Bellcrown.