Treated, 12 ft long, but straight grain? Horse teeter totter

Brad_bb · May 10, 2023, 04:48:12 PM

So I've built several "bridges" that we use for horse training. They are 4'x8' and I use 2x6 treated No.2 yellawood. I build them like a deck. 4 8' joists 12" apart. with blocking. I connect them to two end plates with Kreg XL pocket hole screws.

These work just fine even with a 1200lb horse walking across them. There's 2x6 decking and three rows of blocking in between the joists. But now we want to build a horse teeter totter that Is 12 feet long. The pivot point is in the center so it's a 6ft span on either side. This is Mark Bolender's design, who designs a lot of horse obstacles.

His design below allows several options including 2x6 joists or 4x6 timbers. 2x6 No2 treated Yellawood is easy for me to get, but I'm concerned about the knots and strength of the treated SYP? I'm Probably overthinking it. I can use 4 joists like I do the bridge, or I could add one more and make them closer together? Here is his design with the joist options. He just doesn't specify the material or grade. Also I don't know if it's even possible to get a higher grade Yellawood than No.2? Or maybe if I just go to the lumber supplier and see if I can select the joists? They might not allow this. They usually just deliver to us when we order(we've been building out place since 2016).

Southside · May 10, 2023, 07:01:20 PM

Is that your Spotted Draft? What bloodline?

Brad_bb · May 10, 2023, 10:37:59 PM

Yes, gypsy vanner (Cobb) mare. The coloration is called piebald. She's fairly old and needs the bridge to stretch and loosen her up. Very easy-going and docile breed when trained properly, and all of ours are.

Southside · May 10, 2023, 10:50:15 PM

Pretty mare. I had a registered Spotted Draft who was similarly marked, have a pair of his daughters who are half sisters and work as a team in harness. Nowhere near as much feathering.