PROBLEM HORSE OR PROBLEM FLOAT?

by

John O'Leary
Horseman
© 2003

2008

Congratulations to those Manufacturers who have made some important changes to Horse Floats in Australia. Flush Door handles, filled in tow bars and especially those who have accepted that every Float in the Country prior to this Website was too Low. Some have lifted their roof height to 2200mm and even 2250mm.

However, none of them have worked it out or gone the next step, other than Mustang Floats in WA. Lets see who are the smart operators who want to blow the others away financially!!!

20/5/07

Some things have changed a little but most has not. So a re-visit to some of the Float Companies.

Surfcoast Floats

Just a brief look but I notice that there are other archaic features including the bum bar set up which sticks straight out the back whilst loading the horse and does not fold around the side out of dangers way.

and Mustang Floats, WA on a refurbishment. Before and after shot.

Ranger.

Rowville

FROM A MANUFACTURER

Hi John,

We don't use ... & I DON'T recommend using box section for the chassis. We use 65x65x5 Duragal angle with the cross members spaced @300mm. Draw bar needs to be minimum 100x50x3 RHS Duragal. Have repaired MANY floats that have either angle (like wooden Taylor floats) or only 75x50 RHS draw bars ... and without exception they ALL bend & flex at the front of the float. Did a refurbishment of an old float after Christmas .... and this had 75x50 draw bar ... and it was bent up 25mm higher at the front ???
Rusted Metal: All of our float chassis' are constructed from "Duragal" angle (65x65x5mm) and not from square or rectangular box section. The reason we use angle and not square box section is that angle cannot hold any liquid inside and cause rust to form. It is common practice amongst a lot of other manufacturers to use box section for the chassis, then simply lay plywood on top (for the flooring) and attach with "Tek" screws through into the box section, then lay rubber mats over the top. The inherent problem that this system produces is that over time moisture, liquid (especially corrosive urine) works its way under the mats, down the "Tek" screws and end up inside the sealed box section causing it to rust from the inside out. Unfortunately you cant see the box sections from the inside, so you don't know to what extent the damage is, usually until it is too late and the floor has given way.

We do how ever use "Duragal" box section for the upper framing of the float, and where the uprights meet the angle chassis, drain holes are drilled through to allow any moisture to escape, preventing rusting.

The sheet metal we use is all 1.5mm Galvanised finish, which compared to some other manufacturers products is almost double the thickness and protected from corrosion with the galvanised coating. Compare pushing the front of our floats and the sheet metal will not deform like some others. The floats strength is achieved by using decent thickness sheet metal that is welded onto the frame, and not riveted like so many others. Prior to fitting the sheet metal to the frame, a bead of polyurethane sealer is applied to the frame, which provides an insulating bed between the two, helping to prevent rust from forming in between.

After all the sheet metal is fitted and the floats metal fabrication is completed, all the seams are sealed and coved with polyurethane sealer, including bonding the fibre glass roof onto the roof frames. This completely prevents water etc. from getting between the frame and the sheet metal and causing rust.

Have been enjoying the video's on you site .... you don't realise how important it is for all us "amateurs" to see how it's done properly !!! The amount of people I come across HERE that use your site as a reference ... is truly staggering !!!

HORSE FLOAT DESIGN

Injury of the week

Removable Chest Rails, pull my leg why don't you? There are none in Australians Horse Floats, yet. They think they have them but they do no. Read my lips. Oh but I hear the Manufacturers say, "But we have them. Here is a photo."

Haha I say. That is not a removable chest bar. Well, it may be when there is no horse hung over the top of it but when one is, IT IS NOT A REMOVABLE CHEST BAR!!!!!!!!!!! Read my lips Boys. If anyone tried they would likely get killed and when a horse is on top of it, you cannot move a thing. I have tried, several times. So, here is the

INJURY OF THE WEEK (FLOAT)

and another poor horse pays the price for bad design in Horse Floats. They just don't get it and they just don't think. Caused by being hung by the flanks, over a chest bar.

10/4/07

These photos show are self explanatory.

 4/10/05

I am happy to report that there does seem to be a slight change in attitude by some of Australia's Horse Float Manufacturers', some looking for better ways to do things for horses. They are still to wake up to the most important required changes, the ones that can and do influence the stress levels of horses the most. I know by extensive testing myself. After all, I see huge numbers of problem floaters and that is a wonderful opportunity to examine.

2003

When I put this site up in May 2003, I wrote a piece which talked about the relationship between horse float design and injuries to horses.

I get many enquiries as to which brand I recommend. At this time I do not recommend any but note that one South Australian Company is trying.

I am taking legal advice on using a complete list of photographs of every brand in order to point out the dangers to horses on most of them.

25/10/06

UNICORN

Coachman

A good idea for fumes

Rowville open tow bar.

Vextra. Hoof trap

CLICK ON THE PHOTO'S TO ENLARGE THEM

2003

Any float manufacturer who uses this fitting is in my opinion...incompetent. These latches can and do let the back ramp fall down during travel!	Here are two major potential horse killers. The spare wheel waiting to trap the lead rope and the highly dangerous back ramp latch	Here is a highly dangerous back ramp locking device. Ready to lacerate a horse and to trap the lead rope to hang the horse up short. This float has tie up points that are also dangerously low imho	Here is another top brand with highly dangerous ramp hitching. These severely injure horses.	Here is another disaster waiting to happen. Any float which has mudguards like this is dangerous
Note the personnel door handle sticking out. Imagine a horse hooked on that with a rope halter?	horsy, put yur hoof through here and have a pull back.	Would you believe that there are floats made like this all over Australia? You wouldn't want to know how many horses have died  in them. The hoof drops to the ground and the bone sticks out the bottom of the leg of the horse.	Another potential killer. Open tow bar ready to rip a hoof off a horse or break it's leg.	The centre division has a back leg ready to catch horses legs and to take away all confidence in loading.
Low tie up points like this are dangerous. Horses regularly get trapped with their lead ropes beneath the rear and pull back violently.	Low tie up point, spare wheel and dangerous back ramp fixing, all waiting to trap a horse wearing a rope halter.	Here we have the centre division to the floor. I have never seen one that does not look like this	28/10/04 A bad injury caused by the fact that Almost all Australian Horse Float Manufacturers insist upon using square tube instead of round for the inside roof support.	See the danger here?
Put your leg through here horsie!	or in this one	A Bum Bar as far as it will open if you are not quick enough. Ouch!!!
Low Centre division which causes climbers	Fixed head division	Rear doors handle ready to catch any horse	Two handles that worry me greatly.	Close up of them

• Any horse float that has a centre division that goes all the way to the floor will cause scramblers'
   

• The back ramp fixtures as shown on some of these floats are dangerous and do severely injure
   horses.
   

• Horses get killed in open tow bars. Horses have their hooves ripped off totally by open tow bars on horse floats.
   

• Horses hurt themselves and lose floating confidence by centre divisions that have back legs to the floor.
   

• Horse floats that have spare wheels bolted to the side do cause serious tying up dangers and injuries.
   

• Exposed sharp edges of mud guards cause injuries to horses.
   

• Low tie up points on floats cause horse accidents, injuries and other training problems.
   

• Chest bars, centre divisions, head divisions and bum bars should all be re-movable.
   

• Fixed centre head divisions are dangerous
   

• Chains as bum bars are dangerous. Narrow bum bars are dangerous.
   

• Square roof braces instead of round ones represent a high danger to horse. (See photo above)
   

• Cables of any description, used to hold up or let down the back ramp are highly dangerous
   

Many more to come and this will be updated regularly with a full list of brand names with dangerous design faults.

14TH NOVEMBER, 2005

How have they progressed? There has been some improvement, some, in a few floats in Australia during the last two years. No where near enough however. The Companies obviously don't want to try too hard. The best performer has been Unicorn Floats in South Australia. Still a way to go but he has been thinking. Well done.

I still stand by my offer. If any of you want the best design ever seen, contact me and be serious about it.

Good Mudguard ARV Floats	Ramp and storm door handles. Could a horse get hung up on these?	Back Ramp latch. Could this catch and lacerate a horse?
Unicorn Back Ramp latch. Good	Stallion tie up point. Good	Stallion back latch? Could a horse get hooked on this?
Unicorn. Good	Runner. Could a horse get it's leg hooked through this hole?

NEW FLOATS LAUNCHED AT EQUITANA

Europe's leading Horse Float was launched onto the Australian market at Equitana. Here is my review of it:

Lovely looking unit, good paint, looks, and use of the materials used in the Manufacture of the body. Plastic/fibreglass, not sure what. Wind resistance obviously taken into account. Great art work.

Vision for horses is highly restricted and horses do not like that. Having said that, the windows that are there, are at least at the right height, being the only float now in this Country that has woken up to that rather than horses having to get on their knees to peek out.

Horsemanship and Safety is the problem with this float imho. I can see a number of worries. They are commented upon below.

Great look. Spare wheel located to make it possible for a horse to get trapped with the lead rope around it. A common cause of injury these days.

I do not know where the tie up point. I would worry about tying a horse to the side of this float. Mudguards an improvement over many other floats. Way to go in that area however.

Open tow bar. I don't believe that. Always the potential for a horse to trap the leg or hoof and die as a result.	The most worrying design aspect for me. I shouldn't have to explain it. Surely you can see it.	The centre division leg that extends to the floor is not necessary in good design and can and does trap the legs of horses that are un-loading, causing future floating worries of many types.
You have a horse trapped over the top of the chest rail. Can you remove the chest rail? I don't think so.	Adjustable chest rail. This design is similar to JR Easy Traveller. Go to http://www.horseproblems.com.au/video_pages_of_problem_horses.htm and take a ride in a similar design. Would the noise levels concern your horse?	Good idea to have two levels of chest bar. The bar will drop down from the other end.....if you could undo it?????

SUMMARY

Nice quality float that looks good but has not taken into account the safety of the horse in terms of potential for injury in a number of ways. The side supports must be viewed with much concern. They could be fixed with ease and in fact make the float look much better but I will leave that to their Engineers :)

REPLY FROM THE COMPANY

Hello,

Thanks for your advice re the web site. I had never before visited it or known about it. Very interesting, if sometimes controversial.

I read with interest your comments on the Boeckmann floats. Obviously you did not get the chance to talk to me or to one of the Boeckmann people.

So, may I please correct some of the statements made and indicate the areas of change for the Australian market that will be evident with the first shipment, due in early January.

1 The chest bar is part of a patented safety design. It allows the horseman/woman to drop the whole chest bar assembly by simply unscrewing the tie up ring from the outside !

2 The tailgate rubber is another innovation. By far the best non-slip design with additional side lugs.

3 Aluminum floor with the special German rubber bonded to it. Can not deteriorate. The rubber is grooved, not slick as in most floats and will not slip even if it is wet.

4 The mudguards will be soft ABS rubber/plastic. Hard to damage and almost impossible to cause damage to a horse.

5 Two dedicated tie up rings on the outside, part of the wall structure.

6 Draw bar covered with gal mesh, jockey wheel on the outside.

7 Breakaway system as a standard item.

8 Great ventilation via the 5-way adjustable windows and the side ‘heat extractors’.

9 Rear cover can be fixed fully closed or with 2” gap or 4” gap as desired. Flap retracts so will not flap around horses ears when loading. When retracted, acts as a head bumper.

10 The centre partition can be fixed at an angle left or right as well. Full width rump bar available as an option.

11 Standard internal height 2.3 m – additional comfort space and air volume.

I could go on about durability and operator convenience and will gladly do so if invited. I would also be very happy to mail you a complete catalogue.
I’ll now take the time to view the whole site. Might take me some time. But should be fun.

Regards,
Manfred Dobrow
Australian & NZ agent for Boeckmann Trailers

ERV (Equestrian Recreational vehicle)

This is an Australian made unit, built with the holiday with your horse or luxury at a show in mind. This vehicle had many good safety aspects to it and they had certainly done their homework. The Director commented that he had researched this web site prior to design.

I noted that they had come up with a new design of shutting the back ramp and that it was electrically controlled too. The mudguards were the safest that I have seen and there was little for a horse to get hung up on. Well done.

www.erv.com.au

answer to lady re Chris Float. http://www.crisfloat.com/

I like the look, I like the style, the idea, the construction, paint, water storage in mudguard, tail lights, height.

The most puzzling I have seen.

I don't like the dangers to horses as shown in the photograph. It is a shame that they have stayed 'old fashioned' by leaving the centre division leg there to possibly trip horses up as they unload. This happens frequently with this design and has a knock on effect of causing rushers and other floating problems.

The proof of the dangers of low tie ups. Tie horses low and you put them in danger. The horse can get it's leg in the hay bag and if it were a hay net, with the stretch and lengthening that is caused as the net empties, there would be an even greater danger. Hay nets can cut to the bone just like wire.

Almost every horse float in Australia has tie up points that are too low. What are the anklets for??????

I wonder about the idea of having 75kilo of water on the roof of a float in terms of the point of balance during swerving? Only an Engineer could definitively answer that however.

Overall, lovely float and unfortunately another example of Engineers not fully comprehending the thing called 'Horsemanship'

Dangerous	Caprice	Centurion
Dangerous	Cruise	Dryden

A lead rope can get caught on poorly designed and exposed fittings on horse floats. When that happens, most horses go 'bunta' When that happens, they throw their legs around with incredible force. If that happens, there are traps built into lots of Horse Floats, ready to catch them. Hellloooooooo

I reader has highlighted the danger of lending a float and having the float come off the tow ball which was too small for the float coupling. Watch that one.

27/10/06

Hi Mr HP,

I just wanted to say thanks for all the tips on your site about float safety. I have just ordered my first float and the company were only too happy to oblige with these alterations. It has the spare wheel on the front, filled in draw bar, no back leg on the centre divider, no nasty gaps where horses can stick a leg through, the handle of the door and the ramp latches don't stick out and the ramp itself is wider than the entrance to the float so when unloading it is harder for them to accidently step off the side.

Without all the advice on your site I would not have realised there were so many possible dangers. So thanks from me and my horses who will hopefully be happier and safer travelling now.

Merry
 

Kind Regards
 

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Mail: horseproblems@horseproblems.com.au