Seemingly elementary question I can't find a useful answer t

Mon Jan 18, 2010 1:16 am   

In article <hivai9$ufg$1_at_news.eternal-september.org>,
"Bob Eld" <nsmontassoc_at_yahoo.com> wrote:


We're looking into that general idea. Meanwhile, it's "pull-start or
nothing" for the forseeable future.

Heh... While I'm qualified to drive singles, doubles, 4, 6, and 8 horse
teams (Including having driven one of the Budwieser Clydesdale hitches,
and the Coor's Belgian hitch, both in full regalia), the horses here are
all the "prissy" types - they jump and do dressage, they (turn on the
most scandalized "Bonnie Blueblood" inflection you can) DON'T pull
wagons, perish the thought! That's just plain beneath their dignity! Or
so they'd tell you, anyway. None of them are harness-broke, so it would
be a pretty good rodeo for the first few weeks, I'd imagine. Never mind
getting the harness and rolling stock to hook 'em to.

You'd be AMAZED at the price of horse-related leather work... Hell, I'm
in the biz, and *I'M* frequently left speechless when I see the prices
horse-folk pay for horse-related leather goods! As an example, one of
the boarders here just recently bought a headstall - Not a full bridle,
with bit and reins, JUST the part of the bridle that the bit and reins
attach to. If you were *EXTREMELY* generous (and rather creative,
besides) with the measurements, you *MIGHT* be able to figure out a way
to call it 50 square inches of leather. Throw in half a dozen "Chicago
screws" (Basically tiny nuts and bolts, but chrome-plated, and made with
no sharp edges, so that no matter what happens, they can't damage the
horse), four buckles, a few inches of stainless steel wire, and a few
dozen yards of thread, and you've got the whole thing. The price she
paid for it could have easily kept me AND my two horses fed - and fed
WELL - for a month, with money left over for a couple trips to the
movies. A decent harness can run into the price of a car. And that's
just the harness - never mind the bits, bridles, lines, and hookup
hardware that doesn't come as part of the basic "harness" package. You
don't even want to know about how much the price jumps when you move
from the plain-jane "working grade" gear into the "show grade" stuff
with all the silver and spots and crystals and crap... Just thinking
about those prices is enough to give a guy nosebleeds and altitude
sickness!

On the other hand, there IS the entertainment value to be considered - I
can imagine the scene... Jane Boarder drives up to see her precious
high-points jumper hitched to a cart full of shit. She immediately goes
into full freak-out mode, causing her blood pressure to jump so high
that her head explodes like a cantaloupe in a microwave oven...

Of course, the downside of that is me being the one who would have to
sweep/scrape/shovel up and dispose of the mess... <bleah>

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Thu Jan 21, 2010 1:17 pm   

On 18 Jan, 00:16, Don Bruder <dak...@sonic.net> wrote:

temporary get-outs from having to replace the whole shebang. Both
involve DISCONNECTING the faulty alternator or dynamo. First, spend
maybe 50 bucks or so on an old banger (ObUSA : junker) from a
scrapyard. Something with maybe a knackered chassis or bodywork
falling to bits, but with an engine that still starts and runs
reliably. Tow it home and park it up next to your ATV. Couple of
jump leads, connect the two batteries together and start the ATV off
the junker's engine. Or get a 12v charger and charge up the ATV's
battery overnight, and start it up off the battery alone in the
morning.

Cheers,
Pete.