How to Make: a Traditional Wooden Ox Yoke

Oxen are one of the most economical and historic forms of power on a farm or homestead, and making a useful yoke out of wood is the key to a nearly limitless source of animal power. Ox yokes are much easier and simpler to make than horse harnesses, and come in a wide variety of shapes and styles from many different cultures, climates, and parts of the world. There is an incredible wealth of knowledge behind what is today almost a lost art. Ox yokes are some of the oldest pieces of technology in existence, so whatever problem you may encounter, someone's been there before!

I've worked with oxen for over a decade, mostly in New England, USA, and this yoke is in classic New England style.

You will need:

• a large log of well-seasoned, straight grained hardwood, or a large log of seasoned softwood
• Two logs of well- seasoned, straight grained ash or hickory wood
• pencil
• paper or cardboard
• large joinery tools, such as brace and bit, adze, axe or chainsaw
• small woodworking tools such as a variety of draw knives, wood files and rasps, sandpaper
• metal sheet stock, bar stock and forge, or access to a blacksmith
• misc. items as needed: water, straw, shovel and bucket, winch, large threaded bolts and nuts

The first step in creating a wooden neck yoke for a team of oxen is determining 1) the width of the animals' necks, and 2) the best distance between the animals, and 3) the required width and depth of the curved wooden ox bows that fit around the animals' necks. These measurements are custom to your team of animals, as well as the age, size, and build of each individual animal. If you have two Texas longhorn cattle as your oxen, for example, you need to leave more distance between the neck cradles to accommodate the animals' extensive horn spread. A team of oxen with short horns can stand closer together in the yoke. The general rule of thumb is to keep the beam length (the distance between the animals) around 2.5-3x the neck width. Young cattle require a smaller yoke, and regular replacement as they get older and bigger.

Measure neck width at the center of the neck, where the animal will wear the yoke. Using two wooden sticks held on either side, or a large set of calipers, makes the measuring process easy. Add two finger-widths to the neck measurement, to ensure the bows are not too tight, nor the neck seats two narrow. After taking down the width, measure the depth using the same caliper/ measuring stick method. Leave some space at the bottom if the animal has a pendulous dewlap.

The best woods for ox yokes are hardwoods that are hard to split. Wood types that fit these criteria include black birch, yellow birch, hard maple, white oak, and cherry wood. In a pinch, some softwoods (such as cottonwood) can be used, but the resulting yoke will not be as strong or as durable as a hardwood one.

The ideal log is 2-3x the diameter needed for the yoke, so the yoke beam can be quarter-sawn from it while avoiding the heartwood. The log should be free of knots and scars, and the grain should run straight. The wood for a good ox yoke can be difficult to find and often isn't carried by retailers. The long way around this is to cut your own tree for your log, but this comes with its own difficulties. The wood must be well seasoned and dried without cracking.

The best wood for the neck bows is ash or hickory, and the bow lengths split from straight- grained logs.

Tracing a pattern of the beam outline is a critical step to ensure all the proportions and sizing is correct. The main dimension upon which everything else is based is the neck width of each individual animal. Use the measurements taken in the first step to sketch out an outline of the yoke beam, taking care to preserve the integrity of the wood grain as much as possible, since this allows for the great strength of the finished yoke. Don't cut the middle part between the animals too deep. However, what should not be compromised is the depth and shape of the neck seats (the rounded parts that sit over the animals' necks). Some cattle require a deeper-cut neck seat for the yoke and bows to sit straight and even. If you need a deeper neck seat, draw that in. Animal comfort is more important than the woodgrain.

The first step in working the beam wood is to drill four big holes to fit the ends of the bows. This is much easier to do with a square beam, than to wait until all the curves and corners are cut and refined. Unless you have access to a very large drill press with 1.5-2'' wide drill bits, the best way to cut the holes is with a manual hand crank brace and bit. it is important that the holes are in a straight line and drilled straight through the beam wood. larger brace and bit sets allow for mounting so the bit is straight vertical. Operating it this way is basically turns it into a manual drill press and is very effective.

Once the holes are drilled, the beam can be cut and shaped using a variety of tools. Axe, adz, and hammer and chisel are all popular, and are easy to keep and maintain on the homestead. More modern tools such as chainsaws and band saws are also popular, given the right infrastructure. The most important part of the yoke beam is the neck seat- the rounded part that sits atop the animal's neck. Special care should be taken that each neck seat is cut and carved to the specifications of each ox. Once roughed out, the yoke should be smoothed and finished This is primarily done using draw-knives and wood files to plane and riffle away rough edges, again paying particular attention to the neck seats. Overall, you should look at the integrity of the wood grain, symmetry of shape, accuracy of the neck seats as you carve, aiming to maximize yoke strength and animal comfort.

The next step involves making the bows from a good, well-seasoned log of ash or hickory wood. The wood should be split with an axe, or mallet and wedge, until a straight and solid section of sapwood can be obtained. The crucial part of this process is to ensure the wood is thin enough to fit through the holes in the yoke. The wood should be measured out according to the measurements you took in step 1, cut to size, and the ends shaped using a draw knife. It's important not to overwork or over-thin the bow wood at this point, since they need to have the structural integrity to withstand being bent. In hickory bows, the bark is often left on the stave.

Next, you will have to bend the bows into their characteristic U-shape. This is nearly always accomplished by the use of steam, either in a steam box, by pouring boiling water onto the wood or immersing it into hot water, or by burying it in a trench in which a fire is lit and then damped out with wet straw. In this method, a trench long enough to fit the bow wood is dug and a fire (or several small fires) is lit. Once the fire gets going, enough wet straw is thrown in to damp out the flames and create steam. The pre-soaked wood is added and very quickly the trench is filled in with dirt. This is left for some time- several hours at least. When dug back up, the wood should be suitable for bending.

Bending can be accomplished in a variety of ways, from manually pulling around a post or tree of sufficient width, or by use of a metal jig. In the jig method, a winch is hooked up to a metal form, into which the bow wood staves can be locked. The winch is turned and the ends of the wood are gradually brought together, bending it around a wooden form pre-cut to the appropriate dimensions.

After this, the bent bow stave is fitted with a spacer, the ends tied together, and left to dry.

There's lots of options for connecting wagon or chain to the yoke, and most of them require the work of a blacksmith. The most simple option is a metal ring suspended from a plate bolted into the underside of the yoke at the mid-point. Other, more elaborate options include a ring with the bolts and plates going around the outside of the yoke. This allows the ring to be moved, removed, or replaced if necessary. Sometimes more rings are added, including a keyhole-shaped "calabash ring", with a wide end and a narrow end. The chain is fed through the wide end, and the ring flipped around so the chain catches in the narrow end. Care must be taken to account for the distance beneath the yoke beam the load will ride (this depends on the diameter of the ring). A logging chain and load at ground-level will ride differently than a cart up on wheels.

• It's very important you know your individual animals, handle and work with them, and train them before attempting any draft work.

• Improperly made yokes can cause damage or be inhumane. Proper fit is essential. Consult with professionals if you have any doubts or questions

• Oxen are big, strong animals, yokes are heavy, the work is hard, and loads are immense. Take care, use proper PPE and establish safe procedures

• if you are a beginner, a good way to get your bearings is to make small yokes for calf teams. Oxen trained from young calves often start very small, and their first yokes can be made from PVC pipe or lower quality wood. The loads they pull are small, and there is much less required from the team and yoke.

• Make sure tools are well maintained and safety measures are in place around heat and fire.

• It is not recommended that you do enter woodlots or do any logging work by yourself or without a safety system.