One of the nice things about being a farrier is having the freedom to do the job without much interference about how to actually do the work. This freedom leads to many different shoe styles and innovations in tools and techniques.

Johm McNerney says when he starts thinking about tools, he always remembers a comment he heard from fellow farrier Jim Quick. "You can’t change a tire with a screw driver.”

It’s easy to overlook punches and fullers, tools that are beat on every day, often abused and replaced relatively often. But remember, Chip Hunt says, “The main thing holding a horseshoe on is a nail head that fits the shoe. It’s the nail head fitting tight and contacting with the shoe on all four sides of the nail.”

WHEN BOB SCHANTZ buys a new hammer, he doesn’t just head for the shop and start pounding away.