Logging Bobsled

[Roxie]

I had a mule that liked to work so much, that he'd get excited when he saw the harness coming off the wall pegs.  Once he was hooked up, you better have a plan because he would go on without you.  He especially loved the rake because he could go fast.   

[Axe Handle Hound]

Nope, Why?

Never had done the stencil idea before so I thought I'd give it a try... It seems like I should put more silver (like a stripe) somewhere else on the sled but it's going to stay the way it is for now.

SwampDonkey, Last year (2011) we collected more sap then we could cook down ( had a HUGE metal tub we put the sap in to cook it down, couldn't get it to boil, too big a tub/not hot enough fire, (I would say we had over 50+gal sap)) and got nothing for syrup.

This spring (2012) ( With a HOT fire and a flatter/ smaller pan/tub) We cooked down as much sap as we got, and ended up with like 1-1/2 qt. Tasted great, although it tasted more like caramel when put with butter/pancakes, and it was, in my opinion, too thin... "Shrugs" looking forward to what next year's will be like!

I guess someone else said what time (late or early) of the flow you gather in also has a factor of what the syrup will taste like.

Emily- I love the sled, looks like it will work great!  What part of IA are you in?  Date of tapping, depth of sap in the pan, and age of sap can all affect your syrup. 

[beenthere]

See earlier post #61 in this thread. ;)

[EmilyJoy]

Here is a picture of the working sled...

[Stephen1]

That is great! I love the sleigh in the winter. I miss mine.
A candy thermometer works great to tell when the syrup is ready. 219.5F
A simple way is to dip the ladle in the syrup and let it drip off and when the last drip is stringing it is ready.

[POSTON WIDEHEAD]

Looks like next years Christmas card. Great pic and impressive job on the sled.

[thecfarm]

Riding through the snow,
on a one brown pony sled.  ;D

That looks great.

[beenthere]

Thanks for the pic. It puts a whole new perspective on the size of the sled and the pony. Looks like fun, and I assume you are at the reins?

[EmilyJoy]

 Yup I'm at the reins... Does the sled or pony look bigger/smaller then what you thought?

The sled goes great on snow or snow/grass, but not so great on ice/gravel. It kinda moves all around. So far I like it, and so far it hasn't "bottomed out" in the snow.

The only tweaking I think it needs, is to put a nail on the top of each runner so the shafts can't turn as far.

Stephen1-  Thanks for the advice, I've got this thread bookmarked for referring back to.

Happy New Year everyone!

[beenthere]

I don't follow on the "shafts" comment/question.

Size of sled and pony seem well matched.

I envision (if me) hauling a cargo of sap, that the buckets (tank?) would be riding in place of the driver and two passengers, and the driver might be standing on a small platform to the rear behind a second bulkead (or rail). Then driving from a standing position much like a dog sled to keep the sled upright while hauling sap over the snow. I envision the potential for a tip-over unless in a position to counter-balance the load.

[isawlogs]

 The shafts are the part that goes from the horse to the sleigh, if while turning, they go too far, they will pull the sleigh side ways and not into a turning radius, making it very hard to turn.

  Only comment I would make on the sleigh is you may want to bring your dash down some, and I would have some  bracing from the runners to the floor of the sleigh. I would be afraid of the runners folding under while doing a sharp turn...

  Thanks for the pic , sure is nice to see you out with it.  8)

[EmilyJoy]

 Yup we thought about the folding in, about the runners, just haven't done anything as of yet.

isawlogs is right about the shaft issue.

I'm not sure if we'll do all that, beenthere, we'll probably just stick all the pails in and ride on top, the pony won't be going to fast anyway so if something starts to happen we'd probably be on "top" of it.
Could you explain this part? "I envision the potential for a tip-over unless in a position to counter-balance the load. "?