The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1899-05-28
HORSE CLIPPING.
Done Nowadays In Far Quicker Time Than
Formerly and mt Much Less Cost.

In tie old days, with comb and shears. It
took q man eight hours to clip n horse. and he
had to b." an expert to do II in that time. With
the introduction OF the hand clipper. such as is
used for clipping mems hair. into this use. the
time required for clipping a horse was reduced
to half n day. Later these clippers came to be
operated with hand power. by u.s. Of a crank.
md then the time required for clipping a horse
was still further reduced.
In one of these hand power clippers the
clipper is attached to the end Of n flexible shaft.
which is made up Of short lengths OF steel wire
linked together like a chain. To keep this
flexible shaft from kinking and twisting when
II is turned it is incased and carried in a nex-
ib!e tubing. The shaft is made TO turn by at
taching one end Of it to the axle OF a wheel
which is turned by means of q belt from It to
another wheel, which Is turned by a crank.
These wheels are supported, the larger one. to
which the crank is attached. on a standard
resting on the floor; the smaller one, to which
the flexible shaft is attached. at the end OF an
arm supported by the standard. Turning the
wheel turns the flexible shaft within its
flexible tubing. The shaft is attached TO
the clipper with an eccentric. When the shaft
turns the eccentric works the clipper Just aS
an ordinary clipper with handles would be
worked by hand, only many times faster. The
operator simply holds the clipper and guides
j. over the surface to he clipped. Nowadays
lllN SpIN VI NllI'l'I IN pl"Tdlfu ulSb ny mlCUlne
power. Il. gas engine being used for this pur-
pose. and with now"rclirperS horses are clipped
in less time still.
In. a horse-cllpplng establishment where
machine power Is used the gas engine is belted
10 II shntting made fast to the ceiling from
which the power il transmitted by belts to
two pullcys, one on either side Of the room, at
tachrd tp tho ceiling by hangers in the usual
manner, Hanging from each Of these puilcys
T." a long. teNihle shaft within its flexible cas-
ing. with II clipper at the end. These flexible
shafts. the tubes that incIose them being an
inch OrtwO in diameter. and about as flexible
as rope or hose OF like size would he, are
each perhaps eight to ten feet or more in
length: long enough to enable the operator to
so all over one side of the horse with the
clipper hanging on that side without shifting
the animals position. The operator throws
the clipper, ON whichever side he starts. into
genr at its pulley and begins work with il.
When he. has finished ono side OF a horse he
til" power from tho clipper used on that
side and zoe, around on the other side, throws
that clipper into gear. and with that clipper
begins on that side of the horse.
How long il takes To- clip n horse now de-
Ponds very much on the horse. The majority
OF horses TAX" kindly to 81 pping, but some do
not. II II horse doesn't like to be Clipped il
may take hours to clip him, hut ordinarily in
thrS" days. with Power clippers and the horse
willing, the clipping il done in forty minutes
to IN hour. \. horse has been clipped in TWEEN
ty'f9ur minutes, but probably about an hour
would he the tan" usually required. In the
Old DAYS II cost $50 10 $50 to get a horse clip
ped; it - donc nowadays for s.. 80 to 80.