Several years ago, Nathan Stephens realized his business suffered from inefficiency. The Richmond, Ky., farrier works on young horses, mares and stallions on Thoroughbred farms around Lexington. After some analysis, he found lack of organization in his shoeing rig as one factor slowing down his days.

Stephens’ rig at the time was a ½-ton pickup with a modified cap on the bed. He realized that this set-up needed replacement.

“Everything became a catchall in the bed,” he recalls. “It was an absolute mess — I couldn’t find things when I needed them. I have a hard time staying organized, so I had to find a solution that would force me to stay organized.”

Focusing on Organization

Stephens’ solution came in a Chevy Silverado 2500 with a Stonewell body. He worked closely with the manufacturer over the phone and email to design the truck body. Stonewell added extrasprings to accommodate the 1,700 lbs. empty body. He traveled to the New York shop for the final installation to ensure the final placement of the body elements, adding that seeing the unfinished layout is a crucial step when working with a fabricator so that you can see specifically where you want things before everything is mounted. 

Stephens says some farriers will view the rig as ordinary…