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Jeff Beecher
01-03-2008, 8:57 PM
I have a Granddaughter about to turn Two, and want to make her a nice rocking horse. I was thinking two tone, walnut and maple. I am a CAD drafter, and could draw out the plans, but am very busy and was wondering if anyone out there might have plans for such an item. Jeff

Bob Rufener
01-10-2008, 11:51 PM
I suggest you do a Google search for rocking horse plan. You should easily find what you are looking for.

Frank Bierline
01-20-2008, 8:55 PM
I got a plan from U-bild.com several years ago, and have built five horses for my grandchildren. I made templates while making the first horse, so the next who-knows-how-many will be easier. I made a few changes to the plans, but they are good as is too. My youngest (and first) granddaughter has ridden my grandson's horse and she is only 14 months old. The plans I use are shown on the home page.

Keith Outten
01-20-2008, 9:43 PM
Jeff,

IMO these are the best rocking animal plans available. I own most of their plans and have built many animals and their hay wagon. I am working on one of their Clydesdale horses now, it is a bit more advanced a project than most of their animals but it is worth the extra effort. What I need to do now is to convert their plans to vector drawings so I can cut them with my CNC router. The ability to cut the parts out perfectly would save a lot of sanding time on the major parts that have multiple pieces that are glued up to get the proper thickness. Check out their web site, you won't be sorry.

http://www.woodenmemories.com/
.

Mike McCann
01-23-2008, 5:08 PM
Here are some plans for rocking horses

http://www.armorplans.com/

Sandra Force
01-23-2008, 6:39 PM
Keith,

If you decide to do horsehair manes or tails let me know and I will ship you enough to do the rocking horse. Please post a picture when done.

Keith Outten
01-23-2008, 8:09 PM
Sandra,

I am looking for a source now for real horse hair for my Clydesdale. I need enough hair for his mane, tail and all four of his lower legs. I believe the mane and tail should be black and the legs will be white hair.

Send me a Private Message if you can provide the horse hair, I would appreciate your help and would be glad to pay for your services.

I recently acquired enough leather to make the bridle and other rigging, these will be laser engraved. I have been taking pictures of every step in the Clydesdale project and can provide them on CD to anyone who is interested in building their own. I am sure they would be very helpful, particularly when it comes time to sand the cheek pieces and nostrils which took me nine hours to complete. I still have a lot of work to do but the end result will be worth the effort on this horse, he is a real beauty.

Thanks,
Keith

Eddie Howard
01-24-2008, 5:41 PM
Keith,

Based upon your recommendation, I am going to get one of the plans. I would greatly appreciate one of your CDs.

thanks,

Eddie

Louis Bois
01-27-2008, 5:59 PM
Jeff, I'm not sure how complex you want to make your horse, but if you have a small amount of carving skill, you could easily attempt one of the projects from Anthony Dew's book, "The Rocking Horse Maker". It has plans for about a dozen different horses, from the simple hobby horse to a highly carved Victorian rocking horse as well as a carousel horse.

I've built a few different models from the book and have had great success...and I was only a beginning carver when I began. Here's a link to the thread I posted in the neanderthal forum in the latter part of December, 2006:

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=45926

Otherwise, the plans Keith mentioned are quite good as well. Whichever way you choose to go, I wish you the best of luck and hope you enjoy the entire process. I know your creation will be enjoyed by your Grandaughter for many years to come!

Cheers!

Quesne Ouaques
02-02-2008, 6:40 AM
Hi Jeff:

I made a matching pair of rocking horses a few years ago, one for my daughter and one for my niece. I used some plans I got from Grizzly Machine Tools (G7570) when I bought my bandsaw.

I really love the plans. Grizzly does not appear to have them any more, but I do have an extra, original copy that you are welcome to buy or borrow. The horses I built with these plans are so much more curvy and natural looking than many of the others I have seen.

I know I have some digital photos around somewhere, and when I locate them I'll be happy to post them.

FYI - I used rock maple for the body and stretchers, purpleheart for the rockers and eyes, lacewood for the saddle, mane and tail, and oak for the handle.