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Amgueddfa Cymru – Museum Wales
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Rasp
Double-ended horse rasp used for filing and smoothing the hoof in preparation for new shoe. It could also be used for filing the shoe from the forge - hot-rasping. One side has two sections of rough protruding teeth facing opposite directions, divided by a flat strip in the middle. The other side has a section of rough teeth and a section of much smoother teeth, like those on a file.
Country blacksmiths spent half their time shoeing horses. Farmers depended on horses to pull tools and vehicles, like carts and ploughs. Making a shoe needed great skill. The blacksmith would shape it from one piece of iron based on the width of the horse’s hoof. The iron was heated, bent into a V shape, then rounded into a horseshoe. The heel was turned down, and clips and nails made for attaching it.
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