DAPNET Forums Archive › Forums › Draft Animal Power › Oxen › Neck yoke fit
- This topic has 29 replies, 10 voices, and was last updated 15 years, 7 months ago by
Tim Harrigan.
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- April 8, 2009 at 8:49 pm #40434
Rod
ParticipantI have a question on fit for a neck yoke. The 8″ yoke I have for my team fits fine by width but seems to choke my off ox under sustained load (he holds his head higher than the nigh ox when pulling ). I have tried both the low and hi positions on the bows which are the only ones I have at present (can drill more if needed). The pictures I have seen of properly yoked oxen show the bottom of the bow fairly snug up to the neck when the oxen are just standing unhitched to a load, mine are lower than that at rest. Can someone explain to me the dynamics here and what I should be looking for in the way of proper fit? Thanks.
April 8, 2009 at 10:22 pm #51579fabian
Participant@Rod 7825 wrote:
I have tried both the low and hi positions on the bows which are the only ones I have at present (can drill more if needed). QUOTE]
Hallo Rod. Don’t you use spacers for fixing the yoke in the best position ?
Then you would need only one or at best two holes.
Also the spacers protect the yoke.Wolfgang
A new pic is in the gallery (with wooden spacers on the yoke)
April 8, 2009 at 10:26 pm #51560ParticipantHi Fabian
I do use spacers but wonder if my lowest bow position is too high? Where are the photos located? I don’t see any new ones yet.
April 8, 2009 at 10:50 pm #51555Carl Russell
ModeratorRod, yoke ’em, take a picture, and post it, so we can get a better idea of what you are looking at.
Carl
April 8, 2009 at 11:12 pm #51561ParticipantWill do tomorrow.
April 8, 2009 at 11:23 pm #51574Vicki
ParticipantYes, show us a pic as Carl suggested. Howie will be a great help.
Glad you are out there using them!April 9, 2009 at 12:19 am #51559ParticipantGlad you are using them.
Yes we did some good work today including picking up all the sap buckets and spouts in the sugar bush, and hauling a couple of down trees from the pasture to the firewood pile. I tried to skid a round bale out to the calving pasture but they could not pull it so I didn’t fight it but went to another job with them.
One nice thing about using the oxen is they go places where I could not or would not want to take my tractor especially now that the ground is so wet and fragile. These boys are so good at following me where ever I go, through the wet spots, over the stumps and rough ground. And no ruts and broken turf left behind, just a few hoof prints. Not to mention the value of a good walk for the teamster (me).April 9, 2009 at 12:47 am #51556ModeratorBoy Rod, it is so good to read such satisfaction in your words. I’m very happy for you. You’ve learned a lot in the last year:).
Carl
April 9, 2009 at 11:30 am #51562ParticipantThank you, I am really enjoying this team of oxen, I guess it shows. It certainly helps enormously to have well trained responsive animals and the good advice I get from the helpful folks on this forum.
April 9, 2009 at 4:18 pm #51563ParticipantHere are some photos of the neck yoke fit.
April 9, 2009 at 8:16 pm #51580sanhestar
ParticipantRod,
I can’t say anything about the yoke fit. Is it the picture or is the ox in the front in less good shape than the one behind him (judging from the bit of coat that can be seen from the nigh ox – more glossy)?
April 9, 2009 at 8:39 pm #51564ParticipantThe off ox is a bit smaller and lighter than the nigh ox. It’s hard to keep the coats glossy this time of year even with grain and I just wormed them last week. They are not in good pulling condition as I just got them a couple of weeks ago and they were not used all winter.
I don’t know which photo you were looking at but some of the closeups do not show the hair gloss accurately. I just reviewed them again and they are a little deceiving.April 10, 2009 at 12:00 am #51571Howie
ParticipantRod
First things first. You have a Howie NO NO.:o The rope halters are all right but you should NEVER have a collar or strap type halter on with the yoke.:(
When you stop or try to back a load the yoke has to come up again their horns, if the strap gets between the yoke and his ear, you have a problem.
I would like to wait to see what Carl tells you about the yoke fit, but the bow is to low. When the bow is too low it lets the yoke go back to far and it starts to climb up on the shoulder then the bottom of the bow pulls up on his neck and shuts of the air.
Have someone video them from each side with you working them. Then by watching the video you can see what is going on and make adjustments.
If after a month you like them well enough I will tell you how to make them the same size.:D:DApril 10, 2009 at 1:28 am #51575ParticipantI believe I remember Howie advising me to snug up the bows, then let them down only until they don’t cough. Most newbies leave the bows too low. I did at first. I got barked at too for having collars on while yoked the first time Howie saw my calves.
The steers look good on your cart.
April 10, 2009 at 1:42 am #51583Tim Harrigan
ParticipantHowie is correct, the bows are too low. It looks to me like they need to come up at least 2 inches or so but is hard to tell from the pictures. Try a couple of inches and send another picture. And send one with just standing with the yoke on, no load or pole hanging on the yoke.
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