new pics of new Comfyfit harness - singletree now lowered

[studiowvw]

Just wondering how the adjustment looks now?

I changed to the new longer britchen strap and raised the breast collar as it seemed to be tipping and rubbing at the top. It is now tighter, but not rubbing.

I moved the singletree to the underside of the shafts which improves the line of draft. Also there is less harness bulk between the shafts and the horse. The harness is hanging better and not bunching up.

The space between the shafts is a bit narrow for my drafty girl.

Here are a couple of pics. Not the most flattering of Lacey. She's already wide and the winter hair does not show her true beauty

 

[studiowvw]

sorry, second pic here as it wouldn't load.

 

[shorthorsemom]

Hi..your breast collar looks a bit high to me. Top edge I think should line up with point of shoulder which will give you a straighter line on your traces. Is your baby appy? Very cute.

 

[studiowvw]

Thank you - she looks appy in the fall, but she is silver bay roan. In summer the roaning shows up and in the winter she looks like a palomino.

I am not quite sure what you mean - "top edge line up with point of shoulder"?

I will lower it and see what happens.

thanks!

Edit: I think you mean lower the back end so the highest point of the top rotates back a bit?

 

[happy appy]

I think I would drop the breast collar a hole all around and the breechin the same. They both look high to me.

 

[shorthorsemom]

Hi..my collar is v shaped and my trainer has me follow the line of the shoulder with the top edge of my collar. Sorry for rookies terms.. I am still learning. Your collar at the middle point looks to be a be a bit high so when your baby is pulling it will not be optimal as with a shoulder pull. One hole as described in other post should do it. I would also recommend you check your distance from swing tree to hock and tightness of britching. The britching doesn't look level from front buckle to back buckle and might need to come down a hole or possibly if you move it forward so it hangs more forward on the hip which should help balance and level it. . I would wait to hear input from the super drivers when they post .. they have helped me greatly with critique.

 

[studiowvw]

Ok, thanks and I will try again

The cart seems to be pulling better now, so hopefully we are improving.

 

[Matthijs]

Yess the lowered singletree is a nice step forward

Breast collar looks a tad high but not much, as long as it does not interfere with the windpipe you are good.

The britching could go down a tad, but be careful it does not get pulled up and get under the tail that way. lastly I think the girth could maybe go one hole looser, the bottom could sit a tad further back to give a little more freedom of movement for the legs.

You are way better hitched than before I think, so make your changes small and maybe only one at a time so you get a feel of what those changes do for You and Lacey.

Were you able to get the shafts floating freely in the tugs?

Matthijs

 

[studiowvw]

Yes, I can get the shafts to float in the tugs by sitting right at the back of the seat, leaning back. It only works that way when on the road or trail which are flat. Looks like it'll take more finesse to be able to do that on bumpy ground as in the riding ring and field. There is a lot more bumping and bouncing in the tugs and I feel it distresses her.

I looked at moving the axle on the base, but obviously that will require welding work. Maybe I can get my brother to change that some weekend.

We only had to drill two holes to move the singletree assembly. I should probably plug the previous holes, and the finish of the piece now facing up needs work. But I think the cart looks a lot slicker with the singletree underneath.

She was moving out the best yet with the configuration as above and the harness hung in place a lot better instead everything bouncing and slapping.

I did have the girth one hole looser, but I stopped and tightened it one hole, which seemed to work better. However, I will try to place it a bit further back at the bottom.

EDIT - actually the strap going from the breast collar to the girth probably pulls the girth forward a bit.

 

[studiowvw]

Ok, I lengthened the strap going from the breast collar to the girth - I think it is still a bit tight. I'm tempted to add a snap which would lengthen it by a couple of inches.

I lowered the breast collar by a hole on the rear straps.

Here is a short video - the weather was super today so I played hooky from my work and took Lacey to the fairgrounds track.

Excuse the camera work - I got my mother to video, but did not try to explain zoom to her

Also, best to turn down the sound - sometime I'll have to figure out how to put music on top of a video.

I see the breeching is still too high and uneven too - next time I'll lower that and see if I can get it to quit riding up on the right side.

 

[Matthijs]

You are getting there

looks good to me horse seems happy driver seems happy, your balance looks very nice.

A few things to work on but i think the big lines are there and it looks to me you are not hurting the horse in any way the way you are going now.

One thing to keep in mind is that no horse is perfect nor is any particular cart or harness. I agree the britching does look a bit odd, maybe you can wrap it in such a way that both sides of the holdback straps come from under the shaft, if you go through the footman loop from the horse side and then wrap down and around the shaft. It is not much but may just help a tad. And as you already mentioned the martingale is a bit tight, yes a clip may just do the trick or just get them to make you a longer one. i am sure they will replace it or the cost of an extra one can never be that bad.

 

[studiowvw]

Thanks for the helpful feedback!

She's been going better since I dropped the singletree and started sitting back more.

My feeling about the breeching is that the shafts are not quite wide apart enough for her build and there's not enough space for them to hang freely. I'm going to drop it down a hole and hope that helps.

As for the slightly short piece of martingale, I might get a longer one next time I get another contract job, also a slightly longer belly band. Can't hurt to have some extra pieces in case she changes weight, or for using on a slimmer horse in future. Investing in this harness for the long term I think is a good idea. Sure is built nice!

 

[Matthijs]

Yes, that is what we do, we keep adding to the harness, we just added collars and hames to it and have all the pieces to go single and pair. Interesting thing is we just ordered a shorter martingale for ours, goes to show you no two situations are the same.

I had the impression too that your cart is not the perfect match to your horse. Maybe one day you get the chance to upgrade...

I guess it is the same as riding saddle fit, a better made saddle will fit more horses. Better carts are IMHO mostly better because they have mane more ways to adjust them to your needs. Now more adjustment options come with a downside that is they cost money to make so therefore alone better carts cost more.

So far I have found the Pacific smart cart the most adjustable cart, we own one and I must say the amount of possible adjustments is very impressive.

Matthijs

 

[studiowvw]

Makes sense!

I'm doing this bit by bit, so maybe next year I'll be in a position to buy a Smart Cart, or the Aerocrown/Minicrown.

This cart would be perfect for a narrower mini of her height. However, she isn't claustrophobic so for now I think we are ok

Wilma

 

[happy appy]

I ended up going with the Foxlane cart. Very adjustable and easy to balance. The one I got didn't come with the extra C spring for the axel but I have ordered that so the ride for the mini is better. I tried one out at the National Drive that had a C spring on the seat and the axel and it was amazing.

 

[studiowvw]

Cool - I look forward to seeing it!

In my limited experience, I've decided that good springs are super important. Bumping and bouncing is a PITA - and in the back!

 

[MiLo Minis]

I like the way your breast collar is now that you lowered it a hole. The breeching needs to be lowered for sure. It should sit towards the bottom of the flat plane of her buttocks. It usually lines up with your traces if it is correctly adjusted. As it is now if you were going downhill there is a good chance the breeching would ride up under her tail which could be disastrous. Looking good though!.

 

[studiowvw]

Thanks, Lori

I've dropped the breeching a hole all the way around, so hopefully that works.

Getting it even with the traces is a good reminder.

Thanks again for your training foundation on her - even when things are not perfect, she handles it and doesn't fall apart.

We did some cantering on the track that day and that was fun! Cool horse!!!

Now I just have to improve my own skills, haha

 

[MiLo Minis]

Lacey is a lovely little mare! And you are a good owner to be so considerate of her comfort!