Hand nailing vs. machine nails for keg shoes

I used to swear by machine nails for speed, but after a bad quarter crack on a mare two months ago that blew out from a crooked nail, I'm back to hand driving everything. Am I just being paranoid or do you guys trust the pneumatic drivers for front feet too?

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2 Comments

kelly9683mo ago

Get it completely. I hand nail everything now after a similar issue. Had a horse throw a shoe at the track and the machine nail was bent so bad it split the hoof wall clean up to the coronet band. Took months to grow out and the owner was pissed. I don't trust the nail gun for front feet at all anymore. The angle is never perfect and you lose that feel for when the nail is drifting. Plus the crooked ones are impossible to catch until it's too late. Hand driving takes longer but I haven't had a nail split since I switched back.

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phoenix_adams603mo ago

@kelly968 same here, hand nailing is the only way to avoid splits.

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