How to Build a Schooling Standard Horse Jump: 9 Steps
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Mark 9 lines at 3 in (7.6 cm) intervals up one of the posts. Make sure that the 2 posts are standing on a level, flat surface. Then, use a tape measure to measure up the post 18 in from the ground.
I prefer at least 18” and the taller the standards, the longer my feet will be. When making your own jumps, always make safety the first priority. Care should always be taken when working with wood to ensure all nails are removed and there are no screws sticking out that could cause injury. Measure every 20 in down 2 treated 1 in × 4 in (2.5 cm × 10.2 cm) planks.
Measure & drill holes in the 4×4 standards
While we would all love a course of professional showjumps, not everyone can afford a beautiful set to rival to the top show centres. You also may find yourself hours away from you nearest cross-country course. Why not have some fun, rope in some volunteers and get creative. Looking at these steps, you can see that making a horse jump is really not that hard at all.
Carrying a ground rail, walk straight away from the first vertical, taking the four, even three-foot steps you practiced in Step 1. Repeat the sequence one more time for two strides, or 24 feet. Next using your tape measure, mark off every 3, 4, or 5” again, this is up to your personal preference. But keep in mind, for every mark you mark, you will need to drill a hole. If your marks are every 3” on a 48” standard, then you will be drilling 12 holes, PER standard. Yes, you are going to be drilling 24 holes into the wood.
Building Your Own Jumps
Then cut the nylon rope in half and thread one piece through two of the wooden blocks. Use your exterior screws to attach the feet to your upright. That was five holes total on each standard to drill with the 3/8 in. I started 12 inches up from what will rest on the ground and put a hole every six inches up to 3 feet. You don’t want any sharp edges so I marked one corner with the angle cut I wanted and let my husband cut. If you train your horse to jump higher, you naturally want to do this in a responsible way.
Now that you’ve got your standards, you’ll need to take some time to sand them down and make them look professional grade. Sanding will not only make them look clean cut and impressive, but this will also make your standards last longer against outdoor conditions. After this step is done, you’ll have yourself some homemade schooling standards ready to get you started on your jumping journey. Once they’re all in the correct position, you’ll want to make doubly sure that the standard is secure.
How To Build Your Own Horse Jumps
As an equine lover, you already know how much of a joy it is to have your own horses. Just being around horses can be such a passion for us, and riding, grooming and training our horses brings us so much happiness. The average length of the jumping poles range from 70cm to 3m. But shorter ones should NOT be used for jumping, only walking over. Make sure to be consistent and mark your “X” markings on the same 2 sides of the post. Do this for each of the 9 lines you've drawn on both posts.
All you need is 2 2×4’s, a couple of 1 x 3” or 1×4” wood and some 1 ½” wood screws. Wooden pallets are a firm favourite with equestrians for their versatility. Just make sure there are no protruding nails or wooden shards that might cause an injury. Tyres can have multiple uses — from raising poles, to being cut in half and used as makeshift fillers. Contact local garages and scrap yards and keep your eyes peeled on social media selling sites where you can often pick up tyres that are being given away.
Then you will attach each piece of wood in a pinwheel fashion. Only attach one screw, and for these screws I use 3” decking screws. You can use bolts if you want to, but I have had very good success with these screws. So using our pair of standards, we will need 8 20” pieces of wood, basically 8 pieces per pair of standards.
These aren't very reliable, as the vibration of the drill creates too much disturbance. Even if you have a drill with a build-in level, measure around your poles and mark the level lines in pencil. Only do this when you're planning to jump your horse. Set the jump cups to the height you want, and set the PVC pipe in position so that 1 end of the PVC pipe is in each of the 2 jump cups.
I like to use the red landscaping timbers you can find at Home Depot for around $4.00 each. They are 8’ long, so if you cut one in half, you will have a pair of 4 ft tall standards. This is a good starting point, in my opinion for jumping. And with that many jumps built, I think I have figured out the good, the bad, and the indifferent when it comes to building horse jumps. And I wanted to give you some take away from my experience.
Do this slowly so the hole can be as accurate as possible. Drill a total of nine holes, each through the center of each line. Then, repeat the process on the second post, making sure the holes align with the ones on the first pole. To create the vertical side of the jump, you will be using the two 4 in. These poles will be supported at the base by the 12 in. Placing a series of wooden or metal barrels side by side is an extremely easy way to create a makeshift DIY horse jump.
You will need two of them, one for each vertical pole. The cups are usually placed shallow enough so that in the event the horse hits the rail, the rail will fall without harming the horse. Next, measure up the pole 18 inches from the ground. Mark one of the faces of the post with your pencil or erase marker.
You’ll then want to cut the 2 x 4 into pieces of 6 inches long, and pre-drill 2 holes through them. Therefore, you’re going to need four pieces of 2 x 4 cut at 20 inches long for each and every standard. So, for a pair of standards, you’ll need eight 20 inch pieces of wood, so eight pieces per pair of standards. Like we mentioned before, you’ll want to have the standards cut to the height that you want them, and then you can start cutting the holes for your jump cups. Some power drills have a small level built into them.
You want the blocks to be slightly tipped in so they make a stable support for the pole while also letting it roll off easily if the horse catches it with his hoof. I used two screws per foot and made sure they were flush with the bottom of the 4×4. I’m not an accomplished woodworker by any stretch but I was able to make this basic horse show jump in an afternoon with minimal help. There are lots of questions when it comes to how much water to give horses. Whether you are new to looking after horses or you have done it for a while and want to make sure you are doing things... You’ll also have to remember to use exterior paint that is designed for the outdoor conditions!
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