All I can find are the plastic ones and they eventually break. So any one know where I could get a metal one?
They sell wire tine ones, but I didn’t find them real useful in stall cleaning. Head it almost like the plastic ones, but the ends of tines are rounded loops, if I remember. They just didn’t work well to pick up stuff for me. Did a nice job moving mulch! Just not dirty bedding.
This one has just pointed tines, not sure they would stay straight and even, doing heavy bedding. Listed as a Pet fork. You can enlarge the picture to get a better view.
http://www.valleyvet.com/ct_detail.html?pgguid=30e073de-7b6a-11d5-a192-00b0d0204ae5&gas=fork
I used to see them at the feed store but don’t recall seeing them recently. One thing that makes the metal head not that appealing is the weight. I’ve had one before, and it lasted a long time, mostly because no one would use it. Too heavy!
I think the OP wants the ki.d with a back and sides on the head. I’ve never seen one like that. I think that it would be to heavy to be practical.
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[QUOTE=fourmares;7505816]
I think the OP wants the ki.d with a back and sides on the head. I’ve never seen one like that. I think that it would be to heavy to be practical.[/QUOTE]
Oh, missed the basket part…was thinking of the one like the valley vet link shows. Think you are right about it being way too heavy to work well.
Well if they can send a man to the moon, can’t they make a strong light weight poop fork? Perhaps carbon fiber or titanium?
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[QUOTE=Mukluk;7508257]
Well if they can send a man to the moon, can’t they make a strong light weight poop fork? Perhaps carbon fiber or titanium?[/QUOTE]
Titanium manure fork?! I am almost laughing, who is going to pay $300 for a manure fork. Titanium is expensive.
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[QUOTE=DancingArabian;7508313]
I hear about these on Horse Radio all the time: http://www.shakenfork.com/[/QUOTE]
Wow!!! I am afraid I am just too cheap for that. Maybe they could be my sponsor and send me lots of fancy poop forks. I promise to talk them up where ever I go!!!
[QUOTE=Mukluk;7508257]
Well if they can send a man to the moon, can’t they make a strong light weight poop fork? Perhaps carbon fiber or titanium?[/QUOTE]
Carbon fiber additive to the plastic blend wouldn’t be that much more expensive and would definitely increase the life span especially over the ABS junk they are usually made out of
[QUOTE=Calamber;7508299]
Titanium manure fork?! I am almost laughing, who is going to pay $300 for a manure fork. Titanium is expensive.[/QUOTE]
I’ve thought the same exact thing, and chuckled more considering I’d have to get the titanium welded, and that means a welder has to put down a $3000 bicycle frame or fighter jet part to make my muck fork. 
In all seriousness, a cast aluminum fork would be nice to try.
Don’t know the problem you are having with breakage, but I’ve been very impressed with the plastic one I got at TSC about 6 years ago. Replaced a metal one that the tines kept bending making it a real pain. Have not broken one of the plastic tines, and it has been abused often. The tines always return to position even when overloaded or using it as a rake.
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[QUOTE=Pdgx;7514012]
Don’t know the problem you are having with breakage, but I’ve been very impressed with the plastic one I got at TSC about 6 years ago. Replaced a metal one that the tines kept bending making it a real pain. Have not broken one of the plastic tines, and it has been abused often. The tines always return to position even when overloaded or using it as a rake.[/QUOTE]
Mine is a red plastic one from TSC. I think the old one lasted about a year but then it started breaking. It was “borrowed” fairly frequently in a boarding situation. I just bought the same one and now we have our own place so maybe it will last longer. When I walked through the door with it, Mr. Mukluk said “Why do you keep getting plastic ones? They always break.” Hence the reason for this post. It doesn’t look like there are many other options! Perhaps I will contact NASA to see if they can engineer something that is both strong and light weight.
[QUOTE=Mukluk;7508257]
Well if they can send a man to the moon, can’t they make a strong light weight poop fork? Perhaps carbon fiber or titanium?[/QUOTE]
You need to take smaller “bites”!! We used to muck 30-40 stalls every morning and unless a horse stepped on the fork or you hit frozen poop, we rarely broke a tooth out!! Just saying.
[QUOTE=Mukluk;7508257]
Well if they can send a man to the moon, can’t they make a strong light weight poop fork? Perhaps carbon fiber or titanium?[/QUOTE]
You need to take smaller “bites”!! We used to muck 30-40 stalls every morning and unless a horse stepped on the fork or you hit frozen poop, we rarely broke a tooth out!! Just saying.
I have decided that HOW the fork is used, will determine the life span. Husband uses the plastic tine one, has had good luck not breaking it over a couple years.
Me? I use the plastic forks too hard, break them fairly quickly. Couldn’t afford to keep replacing the heads and you just can’t use it with a broken tine! I changed over to a metal, 10-tine straw fork with a head and heavy handle. Can’t break that one.
I looked at those expensive new type plastic forks. They SAY they are unbreakable, demo them with bendy tines not snapping if you walk on them, stab things. HOWEVER, the maker does include extra tines when you buy one!!
A friend bought a cast aluminum fork head, made like the plastic, but said it cracked the first use. Called the maker who said they would send another head, but never did. She didn’t call a second time, so no follow-up could have been her loss. Cost some $30+.
Well it’s three years later and I STILL wish I could find a metal basket fork. I want something that is nearly indestructible Seeing as no one manufactures one, I may have to try to devise my own. I need to pick up lots of poop in one scoop and be able to rake poop into piles for pick up too. Why oh why can’t I just have the poop fork of my dreams? It’s nearly devastating.
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I’m a mechanical engineer myself and have spent some hours mucking and contemplating the question.
Plastic really is a good material for this. The long thin tines are prone to being “stabbed” into things, which can easily break or bend most any material. Higher grades of plastic certainly will last longer but nothing will handle abuse.
Titanium or aluminum alloy (think tent poles) could be as light as plastic but are very expensive to fabricate. If you know a skilled light-alloy TIG welder who needs practice other than welding together beer cans, you might have this option.
Any true mass production method (casting or stamping) will cost tens of thousands of dollars for tooling. Considering that these tools and accessories just seem to be getting cheaper every year, it’s hard to argue for anything other than plastic.
Sidebar: I very nearly bought the shaking muck fork with the carbon fiber handle. We ended up buying a stall sifter instead, but for that price I could have bought 8 carbon fiber delux-o fancy shaking forks. I don’t regret that choice but given the time and money we collectively spend mucking, it is silly not to seriously explore such ideas and spend a little money on them.
I have decided that the plastic basket for will only be used for raking poo if low resistance (across dry sand) and sifting- so probably fine on its own in the summer. For raking poo against any resistance such as muck or frozen peaks and valleys, I will use a straight metal fork (this is the winter). I hope this new system will work out just swell even if I sometimes need to take two forks when I go a’muckin.’ But still wish I could use one tool for both.
