10 Products To Make Building Horse Jumps Easier

Building Your Own Horse Jumps

If you have thought about buying a set of horse jumps, you might have changed your mind when you saw the actual price for a set of jumps. Let’s face it, horse jumps are expensive. But you don’t have to spend thousands of dollars on pre-built jumps. You can build your own, if you have the tools to do it. But there are things you can buy to make building horse jumps easier.

It may seem like a daunting task to know everything you will need to build a horse jump or two, but let me show you the tools you will really need.

Circular Saw

This doesn’t have to cost a lot of money. My favorite circular saw cost around $50.00 and it has lasted me for years.

Orbital Sander

The orbital sander will make your jumps look professional and finished. And again, it isn’t very expensive. The brand doesn’t matter that I have found. If you are building a lot of jumps, a better sander will last longer. The sand paper is what matters. I prefer to use 60 to 80 grit paper to make fast work of the sanding process

18 Volt Drill

I have several of these, but the corded drill model has lasted the longest for me. The rechargeable drills are great, but the batteries seem to fade away. For the heavy duty drilling you will need to do for drilling the holes for jump cups, you want a drill that will last.

A Tape Measure

Tape measures are not expensive. This is one item it is better to buy a quality tape measure because you will be using it, a lot. I have 5, because I always seem to misplace them.

Speed Bit Spade Bit

This drill bit is the best I have found. I use a ½” bit for drilling holes. And when you have 10 holes to drill for every standard you build, you want to have a great bit. These bits really last a long time and will chew through wood quickly. Your arms will thank you for buying this bit, trust me.

Frog Tape

This is the best tape you will ever use when it comes to painting jumps. Regular masking tape and even painters tape rips, and there is bleed through between the colors. And my biggest pet peeve with the so-called painters tape is that it rips off the paint. Save yourself a lot of headache and only use the green (or yellow) frog tape when painting stripes on rails.

Decking Screws

These are the best screws when it comes to constructing your jumps. True a nail gun is easier but your jumps won’t last, trust me, I have tried. I use the 3” decking screws with the star head because they are strong, never strip out, and don’t split the wood when I am attaching piece together.

Painter’s Caulk

The latex painter’s caulk will fix so many problems. I use this for filling gaps, and large cracks in landscaping timbers for both standards and rails. It is also an affordable filler for filling the bases of the standards to make them weather resistant. This will make your jumps last if they are going to live outside.

Kilz 2 Primer

This is “the best of the best with honors sir” primer. It is affordable, and can be used on exterior projects. It is also water based, so you will be able to wash out your paint brushes.

By using a primer on your wood before the paint, you will use less paint, the colors will be beautiful and your jumps will be protected. And if you are only painting your jumps white anyway, you could just use a couple of coats of Kilz 2, and you wouldn’t need to add any other paint.

Rustoleum Paint

If you want your paint job to last a long time, use Rustoleum paint. It is an oil based paint that is affordable. You are limited in your color selection to the basics. But you can do a lot with the colors.

Oil based paint is better because it doesn’t peel, and if a horse knocks a rail the paint is less likely to scratch. Latex paint is less expensive, but every little knock or rub will show. This means you will end up painting more frequently to keep your jumps looking their best. Oil based paint also doesn’t fade as quickly. So your jumps will look new longer.

Hopefully this list will guide you in the right direction if you are considering building your own horse jumps. I have been building horse jumps for over 10 years now, and these are my favorite items that make the process a lot easier. I hope this list will save you some time, and tears when you get started making your very own horse jumps!

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