2 bob sleigh rebuild

Thought I would post some pictures of my sleigh showing the bobs that I recently rebuilt. I used green white oak that I got from a local mill as I had not planned ahead for the project. Notice that this is not a cross chain type set up, the rear bob is fixed laterally. These bobs appear to be factory made & I would guess they are 80ish years old. John Rhicard found them for me in Quebec several years ago.

I rebuilt them because the wood had had it but also because I wanted to increase the distance between the runners. It had been about 36″. I noticed that on my fairly narrow trails the horses were often crowding each other. My side hill stability also left something to be desired. I added about 6″ so that the inside face of the runner is now close to the center line of my singletrees. The horses definitely crowd each other less on the trails and the stability is improved.

The rolls were too long for my lathe so I tapered them to octagonal with a circular saw. The ends are capped with a collar with a notch in it for the strut to run through up to the pole or reach. The strut has an eye on the end that the “axle” goes through. The round end for the collars and the round recess for the strut eye I did with various size hole saws and a chisel. The collars are a drive on fit now, we’ll see what they are like when the oak dries. I had someone who welds better than I do lengthen the struts & the “axles”. Because of the strut eyes the “axle” needed to run right through the center of the roll, so I did not want to cut a groove from the bottom. I drilled through from each end on the bench with a 1/2 drill and a 3/8 bit, adding a bit extension when I needed to. The 3/8 was small enough that I could then repeat with a 7/8 spade bit. The holes did not match exactly, but close enough.

Note:The reach is just a shade long so that with the play in the eyes that secure the rear bob to the bunk, if you back the sleigh the last time you move it before you unhitch, when the horses start it next the front bob can start just before the back, reducing the starting draft. This can be particularly helpfu when you are leaving the sleigh in wet ground conditions & may have to start it when it is frozen. I also often run the front runners up on a 3″ stick of cordwood when I park it.

Hope folks find this interesting and or useful. Happy new Year All.
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