Introducing my favourite yard gadget, the magnetic nail sweeper.
We shoe several horses each week in the forge here at the riding centre. That makes for dozens of removed old nails, and dozens too of the little sharp nail t
ips that the farrier makes when he twists off the end of each driven nail. Each could cause a puncture to either our car or our truck. Even though I parked both vehicles on the opposite side of the yard to the forge, there used to be a steady and annoying stream of punctures.
This handy and inexpensive (50 euro / $75 aproximately) gadget is swept across the area where a horse has been shod, after each shoeing, where it picks up a whole collection of sharp little pieces of steel. A minute's methodical work may save a puncture, or several.
There is an audible click each time the sweeper picks up a metal shard, which smacks into the alumnium lower casing at quite a speed. It clicks a lot after a horse has been shod.
I do like this gadget. Simple, effective, and a great time-saver. Every place that shoes horses will, very likely, find one useful.
No, I don't sell magnetic sweepers. But I do like them.
"Julian Ross....coming soon to a Shopping channel near you" :p
Posted by: Sarah Levene | October 02, 2007 at 06:56 AM
Cool. I need one of those things.
Kimberly
Posted by: I Gallop On | October 04, 2007 at 06:17 PM
Kimberly, probably you can buy one via a farriery supply shop. I found mine by putting "magnet" into google. There are specialist suppliers selling every sort of magnetic device, and most likely they sell over the internet. You might be amazed how much metal you pick up with one.
Posted by: transylvanianhorseman | October 05, 2007 at 10:54 AM