An old guy at the Montana fair told me my toe clips were too short.

He said, 'Son, you're leaving too much leverage on the table with those nubs.' I was working on a quarter horse and had been using the same 1.5-inch clips for years. I switched to 2-inch clips on my next shoeing job and the difference in holding the shoe was night and day. Has anyone else had a simple piece of advice totally change a basic part of your routine?

3 comments

3 Comments

piperf403mo ago

Absolutely. Had a similar thing with wire nuts on a big lighting job. An old-timer watched me twist one on and just said "You're not filling the skirt, kid." Started using the next size up for the ground wires and suddenly my connections weren't coming loose in the ceiling anymore.

jadep4125d ago

Funny how that "filling the skirt" advice applies to so much more than just wire nuts. It's the same reason you don't put a tiny bead of caulk on a big gap or use a little dab of glue when you really need a full layer. People always try to save time by using less material and then wonder why things fall apart later. The old guys figured out that the extra little bit of effort upfront saves you twice the headache down the road. It's like the difference between a tight seal and a leak that shows up six months later. Paying attention to the small details now keeps you from fixing the same problem twice.

mason_barnes3mo ago

Honestly, "not filling the skirt" sounds like overkill. I've seen guys use undersized wire nuts for years with zero callbacks.