Easier Horseshoe Than St. Croix Forge Ultralight

[nu2grip]

I know many consider the St. Croix Forge Ultralight #2 to be about the easiest shoe around for beginners. But I still can't bend one without using the "short piece of pipe on the ends of the legs" method of progression. So I've been looking for a steel horseshoe that I could bend unassisted. I thought I'd share the name of this shoe for others who may be looking for a progression toward the well-known entry-level SCF shoe. It's a Kerckhaert Standardbred Full Swedge size 3. I just bent one to 180 degrees, my first unassisted horseshoe!

There's considerably less steel in this shoe than in the SCF UL. I couldn't find dimensions for this shoe online, but my rough measurements are something like: 5 3/8" long, 4 7/8" wide, 9/16" deep, 9/32" thick.

For anyone who may be using similar progressions, I think this shoe is comparable to an extra 1.5" of leverage on a SCF Ultralight #2. There's probably some effect there from being able to grip a piece of pipe vs. just the shoe leg.

Here's a picture comparing the St. Croix Forge Ultralight to the Kerckhaert Standardbred Full Swedge shoe:

Hope this helps someone out. Thanks to everyone who has shared bending techniques and encouragement on this board.

Scott

[Mike Rinderle]

There are quite a few aluminum shoes out there that are easier than the SCF UL #2. But that's a great find. First I've heard of a steel shoe being easier.

By the way, Jedd Johnson and I are coming out with a DVD on how to bend shoes that will have you toying with UL #2s pretty quickly.

http://www.dieselcrew.com/new-dvd-coming-soon-horse-shoe-bending

Edited July 30, 2011 by Mike Rinderle

[nu2grip]

Thanks, Mike. I've got Jedd's nail bending and card tearing ebooks, and they helped me a lot. I've been looking forward to getting your and his horseshoe DVD.

Scott