Making a Percheron - part 3

Part 1 | Part 2

We decided that horsehair was too coarse for the tail, mane and forelock and we used mohair after rejecting dog hair, human hair or its synthetic equivalent. This learning curve is to us, one of the joys of creative modelmaking. Tails of most working horses are usually short or tied into a small loop. We combed out the material, bound a thread around the stub end for about 1Ê2 an inch and lightly glued it. We drilled a number of trial holes in a block of scrap wood before we found its size and then decided its correct position on the model by trial and error before fixing down the felt, and later opened up the hole and glued in the tail.

The mane and forelock were much easier. We combed out the required material for the mane, lined up the "flesh" end and glued the required length onto a strip of thin cloth. The mane assembly was then inserted in a slot in the felt along the centre line of the neck tucked down on the mane side and trimmed to our liking. The forelock we glued similarly, but directly to the poll. Eyelashes were more difficult to fix but worth the effort. Again the doll makers' suppliers were able to help and we fitted the eyes and eye lashes at the same time, using our clay to secure them. For the feather on the legs, we combed out and glued the mohair into position over the finished leg shapes.

The Percheron breed has little feather, so a few strands were all that was required and they were trimmed to our liking. At this stage we drilled a small hole at the mouth position to take the bit, part drilling from both sides.

We now had the model taking shape and looking like the finished article. So we put on the finishing touches and the final coats of paint. The felt we used was the same light grey as the undercoat colour of our champion stallion, and we applied the dapples using acrylic paint, thinned down with water as necessary. We found this operation was helped by spraying a little water onto the spots, which caused the paint to merge with the felt, giving a realistic dappled effect. We painted in all the final touches to the face and hooves and so completed the model.

Conclusions

We liked the model for its appearance and life-like feel, and both attributes have been enjoyed by members of the public, at a number of The Guild of Model Wheelwright shows. However, we still had to build that second model to complete the tandem pair, and the harness and the driver and the plough and the tipping cart. But then, we do enjoy modelmaking, and as you can see, we finally made them all.

Remember - "The end of one project is always the best time to start the next."

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