Help!Team harness used for single?

[BiologyBrain]

I've driven a Quarter Horse (bred, raised, & trained by me) and a Haflinger, but only one at a time and only for informal trail/road/pleasure. The minis I handle have team harnesses that look different in the saddle/backband area than the harnesses I've used in the past. I'm familiar with the collar & hames. The breeching is a bit different, but I think I've got it figured out. the problem is the saddle/backband. There isn't really an obvious saddle, just a slightly wider piece across the back. The belly band doesn't have an obvious place to attach to the saddle/backband. I also don't see anything really resembling shaft tugs. I've uploaded photos into an album named "Four minis/ponies and a Belgian" that includes three photos of one of the ponies harnessed as I think it should be.

Two questions:

1) Can this harness be used for driving a single horse with a forecart with shafts?

2) Do I have everything basically where it goes?

I don't know where the owner got the harness, when, or anything except he knows its been used for team driving. The collar, bridle, and reins are leather. The traces are permanently attached to the hames and are made of chain. The rest of the harness is composed of varying widths and thicknesses of nylon. I haven't seen any brand/names on the harness. I haven't really been able to find photos of a similar harness. Please help me!

 

[paintponylvr]

I'll take a "try"... Can you get some better pics? These were extremely difficult to see...

It looks like someone tried to make a fairly simple work harness. It doesn't look like it would work (as a pair) with the way that the trace chains, back pad and belly strap are hooked together - BECAUSE the back pad is HOOKED into the traces making the pull go directly to the back pad NOT the collar. You are right, there seems to be a piece or two missing. It CAN work - if the trace chains are changed so that it feeds thru an attachment on the back pad or the back pad and belly band are joined and the traces are fed thru a strap on them that allows the chains to move forward and back & up and down somewhat - with all the pull coming straight from the hames/collar.

AS a single, it wouldn't work either. 1 - the pull is going to break/ruin your back pad since it's not going to the hames/collar and 2 - the backpad is too narrow and unpadded. The padding can be fixed to pull with shafts but the correct line of traces needs to be adjusted first.

This harness will work - with some tweaking...

********

Here is a close up of "no chain harness" (trace chains at the heels) work harness. I can see if I have better close ups or make more from the original pics that I have... The back pad has a strap that goes thru a "stop" on the traces. I wish that "stop" wasn't there as it's not adjustable and doesn't work perfectly with each of our ponies/minis - thereby exerting pull on the back pad sometimes when the traces are pulled tight. The main weight, however, IS taken directly to the collar and hames.

See the little ring near the bottom of the back pad? I purchased the shaft carriers that snap to that ring and have tried them once with a single application. None of the ponies that it was tried with, appreciated the weight of the shafts in that too small (short down the side of the body), non-padded back pad - though if I can pad it properly I think IT WILL WORK as it's plenty wide... Let me go thru pics... I might have a couple of that with my friends' driving pony.

And here are two pics that I adjusted so that you can see them better. This is a simple work harness used over the last several years by President of the North Carolina Work Horse and Mule Association (I started going to different events mid-2010, don't know for sure how long previous to that he'd used this...). He is using a pair to pull and there is NO POLE between these two horses (no need for breeching & quarter straps & pole straps). The really detailed close up, yes the belly band IS attached to the traces - after they are set into place to see where the pull is on that day. To me, it looks like the back pad needs to be longer - the downward pull by the traces on the back pad is causing it to dig into the horses' backs, though they don't seem to be in any discomfort AND they willingly work!!!

NO, this harness could not be used single with shafts w/o adding a lot of pieces. It is meant only for working in a field pulling a non-wheeled piece of farm equipment - no shafts or pole. It can be used single as well as with the pair shown.

 

[paintponylvr]

To make your harness work for single, you'd also need shaft carriers (shaft tugs, I think) and hold back straps at the breeching (brakes). Also, on a work/field harness - the belly band is not meant to be snug or tight - where as when you are working with a set of shafts, the belly band does need to be snug... That has an affect too...

***Edited to add: Maybe someone else that is also on this forum can give you a better answer of how to work the traces, back pad and belly band. Many have much more experience than I do.

BETTER YET - if you can find someone near you that works with field harness, maybe they can help you in person.. ***

 

[paintponylvr]

here is a picture of my girlfriends' forecart working with a pleasure harness...

You can see how even with a padded saddle that the forecart (w/o farm equipment attached) is pulling heavily on it. I don't think Vicki has ever used her forecart this way again - she finds the single implement seat uncomfortable and now that the pair is trained and working together, she drives it with the pair in work harness and a team pole with a bench seat on the forecart.

and here are two more pics... This shows the work harness with the shaft carriers attached. You can see in the close up how it has a separate belly strap to hold it in position - it shouldn't be tighter than the belly band (& ideally, like in a show harness would be attached directly to the belly band). We were discussing the line of draft (how the traces angle from collar to the single tree) while tweaking this hook up with Vicki's ez entry cart. The trace chains could not be adjusted shorter to pull properly. To be effective, the single tree should be dropped down by the axle - making the draft the way it should be and taking up the length of the traces... This pony was VERY unhappy with this harnessing arrangement - we were probably lucky she didn't do her year before shenanigans and explode. As before, I don't think Vicki has used this set up again (I know that I haven't on my guys).

Also, with a single horse in shafts, the pole strap and quarter straps could be removed. They aren't in use in a single horse application with shafts with hold back straps properly adjusted. For draft show harness, they may still be used - but need to be adjusted shorter (These are the straps between the front legs and under the body) .





I hope this helps somewhat!!

 

[BiologyBrain]

I have an assortment of extra nylon straps & maybe even a fake fleece back pad that came with this harness.

The forecart I plan on using is similar to the one in the photo except it has a bench seat.

I'll try to get better photos and maybe pull out all the extra pieces I have.

My goal is to eventually have a team, but the ponies and I both need a refresher on a one-on-one basis I think. I tried to ground drive the two best matched ( by size) ponies a couple times and they bounced into and off of each other like pin balls. One charged ahead while the other hung back. It was terrible. I'm going to need lots of advice when it comes to refreshing and driving a pair.

As I mentioned before, I'm fairly experience in single horse driving and even in towing a disabled golf cart, and logging. However, the harness I used for these applications was meant for a single horse with a traditional saddle and breeching. My traces were bio thank (the whole harness was except the collar) and I extended them with chain for logging. I never did change the line of draught on my easy entry cart, but I did manipulate the shafts and seat to provide better balance. My mare was content to drive many miles without stress.

I'm going to go back and start digging around the barn. I did find a photo similar to the harnesses I have at Stitch 'n Hitch. Try have optional accessories there that are what you're talking about. I'll just have to check the barn to see if I already have these pieces or not.

Thank you so much!

 

[paintponylvr]

Yep, Ping Pong balls. What a great way to describe a pair of greenies when you are starting them!!

I've got a couple of those right now, myself!! Sometimes it helps to drive them in an open bridle so that they can see each other and sometimes it does take refreshers single first! Then it takes work to get them working together well, without bouncing off of each other.

One of the things I did to help me and my ponies, was "quick and dirty" when I had very little time, and got them/me some drive time. I often slipped a simple open headstall on each (I made mine in 09) - attached their heads together via a strap between the bits or their halters, and had a set of lines that I used one on the outside of each pony's outside bit ring. I ran a long lead around the neck of one, along her side around their rumps and tied off around the neck of the 2nd. While the rest of the ponies were eating their dinners, I'd "drive" them like that from the feed area, out the barn door make a couple of circles out in front, back into the barn, past their feeding spots and out the back door. I don't have a huge barn, but it's long enough that this is a fair amount of "driving". Do that every night for a while and I had a great pair when I went back to my next lesson with them a week later.

Too funny, I was just out at the Stitch N' Hitch website tonight (along with some other wagon building websites)...

Let us know how it goes. Can't wait to see more pics of your "fix" to the harness.

 

[BiologyBrain]

I uploaded another photo of my harness with some adjustments made. I know know if they're the right thing or not, but maybe it'll suffice for some practice runs. I've got to get the other guy of the team sound before I can think of working him. He's also very obese...

Thanks for the reply!!