HORSESHOEING. 105 



The hardy, fullering-liammer, and cold chisel should be 

 flawless on the edge. 



The punch (Fig. 102), used to make the nail-holes in the 

 shoe, has a dull point, which should corresj^ond in size with 

 the head of the horseshoe-nail and have slightly rounded 

 corners. 



The pritchel (Fig. 103) should not taper to a point, but 

 should end in a rectangular surface whose length is twice its 

 width, in order to punch iron through the shoe under the 

 blow of the hammer. 



Making the Shoe. 



To make a flat shoe, take the len^h of the hoof from the point of 

 the toe to the buttress and the gi-eatest ^vidth of the hoof; these two 

 measurement.s, when added together, give the length of the bar for the 

 shoe. The bar shoitld be of such width and thickness as will require 

 the least amount of working. For a bar-shoe or a shoe with heel-calks 

 the bar must be coiTespondinglj'^ long-er. 



Should we wish to presen-e the exact outline of the plantar border 

 of the wall, we may advantageously use such a podometer as is shown 

 in Fig. 104. This consists of a perforated sheet-iron plate one-sixteenth 

 to one-twelfth of an inch thick. This is laid upon the hoof, and the 

 outline of the wall marked upon it \A4tli chalk. 



If necessary, the hoof may be set on a piece of smooth, stiff 

 wrapping paper or card-board, and the outline of the wall closely 

 traced with a lead pencil. 



To make a front shoe (Figs. 107 and 108), heat the bar 

 white-hot just beyond its middle, place the head of the sledge 

 hammer across one end of the face of the anvil, hold the un- 

 heated end of the bar on the head of the sledge, — the heated 

 end resting on the face of the anvil, and bend the bar into a 

 half-circle with the round head of the turning-hammer. (The 

 outer branch of all shoes is made first ; in making pairs the 

 right shoe is made first.) The extreme end of the heated bar 

 is d^a^vn out to the desired width and thickness with the 

 sledge. The bent branch is then placed obliquely across the 

 heel of the horn of the anvil, is turned over toward the right 



