[BeverlyAStrauss]

Does anyone know? Does it vary?

[Janet]

It can vary. I have seen oak and chestnut.

[tangledweb]

Sure, it can be anything, but usually pine, and if they specify more detail, often lodgepole pine

[Robin@DHH]

What we get is pine, the trunks of smaller trees. These are cut (usually in winter) and limbs are removed. The processing facility removes the bark and puts them into a pressure vessel to install anti-rot chemicals (what they mean when they say pressure treated wood). The rails we purchase are not the very fancy ones which are milled and perfectly smooth; they often have a slight taper from one end to the other.

[kaluha2]

I am considering trying to make a bamboo jump and lashing it together with all this bailing twine I have here. LOL. Anyone ever tried this? Does the bamboo hold up? I just want to try something different.

[BeastieSlave]

We use pressure treated pine...

A nearby saddle club had a bamboo jump some years ago. It wasn't a bunch of small bamboo pieces, but rather one large (aprox. 4" diameter) bamboo pole, decorated sandards and a kind of bamboo brush box. I don't remember how long it lasted, but I thought it was cool!

[equineartworks]

We use PVC poles filled with some sand for our ground poles and cross rails. They have to be easy to handle and keep clean and be super visible.

We have always use treated pine otherwise...but we don't do much jumping.

[secretariat]

I use 4x4x12' treated lumber, so it's pine. I knock the corners off with a circular saw set at 45 degrees, ending up with a total of 8 approximately equal faces.

[BeverlyAStrauss]

Thanks for the input- guess it depends on where you are as well?

[Adelita]

Bamboo shatters into sharp pieces, so be careful with that!

[SuperSTB]

Pine.

Here are some of the various 'poles' I have.

1. Rough cedar fence railing- not treated, just natural- 8' and 10' lengths. These are my cheapo crap rails that I use for games and whatnot.
2. The usual 12' long round jumping poles- painted with the barn colors.
3. 2"x6"x12' flat panels. These are notched and routered on the ends to sit in the jump cups. Painted of course but not PT.
4. 4"x4"x10', and 12'. All PT so not painted and the corners routered off so they are octogonal. I love these for gymnastics.
5. And one 2' "panel" with a lattice insert. It's basically a 2'x8' piece of lattice that is framed out with the top part of the frame a 2"x4"x10' to sit in the jump cups. I plan on making one that is 12' long.

Also- there are these fake building brick blocks that you see in daycare and preschool. Anyway I saw an idea where someone stacked and glued them together (lightly weighted of course) for an interesting twist on jump design. So I bought some- just haven't put it together and tried them out yet

And yet another tip... dollar store for fake flowers and flower boxes

[DMK]

I use 4x4x12' treated lumber, so it's pine. I knock the corners off with a circular saw set at 45 degrees, ending up with a total of 8 approximately equal faces.

That's my approach as well except I save some $$ with 10' poles. Some of my poles are 16 years old and going strong ... and half the price of buying rounded poles!

I also leave more than a few as 4x4s with sanded edges (quick and easy with the palm sanderand 60 grit paper). They are great for ground poles (they don't roll when a horse toes them) and great to set on an angle in jump cups for less careful horses.

[Chall]

Lashing together poles to make a jump is not a good idea. One shouldn't do it with cavaletti nor bamboo. If the lash breaks the poles scatter and the horse invariable steps and slips on them. They roll under the hoof, are very unstable and likely to turn a small refusal into something truly dangerous.

[kaluha2]

Thanks, hadn't thought about any of that.

[Ravencrest_Camp]

I use 4x4x12' treated lumber, so it's pine. I knock the corners off with a circular saw set at 45 degrees, ending up with a total of 8 approximately equal faces.

Pressure treated lumber is usually spruce. A soft wodd like pine, just cheaper.

[Ravencrest_Camp]

It can vary. I have seen oak and chestnut.

Holy expensive poles batman.