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  Discussion on Hitching rail
Author Message
Member:
stek

Posted on Thursday, Apr 22, 2010 - 6:10 pm:

Thinking of building a hitching rail this weekend, 6-7" posts set in 4' deep concrete with a 6-7" cross rail lag screwed in. Just wondered if anyone can offer any 'how to' or 'how NOT to' tips.

Thanks!
Member:
scooter

Posted on Thursday, Apr 22, 2010 - 10:55 pm:

Shannon there was a hitching rail here when we bought the place and I don't think you could knock it down with a tractor.

I have never really examined the way it is put together, I do know there isn't any cement holding it there. I'll look tomorrow and see how it is put together. One of the sturdiest hitching rails I have ever come across.

Member:
stek

Posted on Friday, Apr 23, 2010 - 10:39 am:

Great pic Diane, thanks!
Member:
mrose

Posted on Friday, Apr 23, 2010 - 11:07 am:

Our hitching rail was made of railroad ties with holes drilled in large enough for 4" pipe which was run through the ties and bolted in place. The ties were set 3' in the ground and set in concrete. I'm not sure what kind of animal my husband thought we'd be tying there! But, it was impossible to pull down.

I think an important factor is how deep the post are set in the ground and to be sure and compact the dirt around the posts really good, even if they are set in concrete. How you do that will depend on the type of soil you have and how wet your soil gets during the year.
Member:
cometrdr

Posted on Friday, Apr 23, 2010 - 4:44 pm:

man - I hate that just lost my update... but what I said was make sure of two things (i've done a few hitchin posts in our horse lifetime and learned from them) Lots of concrete in the ground to hold it in place. More than you think you will need. At least 3 feet high, and if its long. make places at least 6 feet apart to tie the horses up to - that don;t move. our first one we did out of pipe - and the horse rope slides back and forth across the length of the pipe with an antsy horse. so I have get out there and weld on a horse shoe or somehting to hold the ropes in place.
other wise - have fun!! hitchen posts are easy....
Member:
stek

Posted on Sunday, Apr 25, 2010 - 3:24 pm:

Well got it done .. thanks for the tips guys. Came out pretty darn nice I think. 8" diameter x 8' long posts set 4' deep in concrete in our extremely hard rocky soil (holes dug by hand UGH) with an 8" x 10' cross beam 'let in' with a chainsaw and bolted on with 1/2" lag screws. A pic of the builder and our 16.1h mare standing next to it for scale...

Member:
mrose

Posted on Sunday, Apr 25, 2010 - 4:55 pm:

Good Job! Looks great! Like your mare, too. Actually, the builder's not bad either! Hope you get enough good weather to enjoy it now!
Member:
ajudson1

Posted on Monday, Apr 26, 2010 - 7:27 am:

Ditto to what Sara says! Looks very sturdy and well done.
Member:
scooter

Posted on Monday, Apr 26, 2010 - 8:00 am:

Looks like that would hold an elephant. It does seem kind of tall tho, but maybe that's the pic. I don't think ours is quite that tall, but I have smaller horses, Flash can almost walk under ours. I've often wanted to add a removable board that is lower so the smaller ones couldn't go under it.
Member:
stek

Posted on Monday, Apr 26, 2010 - 10:57 am:

Thanks guys! Sara I shared your comment and 'the builder' blushed

Diane it is pretty tall, but our horses are mostly tall. I took measurements and tried to aim for top of the chest on the average of our horses. Of course we have one short horse in the bunch, and for her I think I'm going to add an additional smaller beam about half way down. Will also serve as an additional tack rack.

I have heard horror stories of horses panicking and trying to go over the rail and wanted to make that as unlikely as possible. We are also going to be building up that area either with gravel or a concrete pad so the finished ground surface will be a little higher.

My mare who is a puller/pawer seems to really like being tied to the hitching rail. Left her there for a half hour last night which would normally result in a small hole in the ground. But she stood with her chest pressed up against it and her head hanging over just as calm as you please.
Member:
mleeb

Posted on Sunday, May 2, 2010 - 3:09 pm:

Nothing wrong with a tall hitching. The higher they are tied, the less leverage they can get to pull back, if so inclined. Our hitching rail is not as tall as I would like, as we were limited by the materials available, and were using drill stem pipe. It's 3+ feet in the ground, 4+ feet tall, and is solid steel. It wraps around the corner of the barn, approx 10' on each side, and serves a secondary function as keeping the horses from being able to reach the windows there.
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