Material choice: iron steel aluminium plastic and artificial horn

When we say horseshoe, most people think of iron. But the modern farrier works with a whole materials catalog: steel, aluminum, plastic, composite materials, and artificial horn. The program's competency targets explicitly mention that the apprentice must be able to make correct material choices between iron, steel, aluminum, plastic, and artificial horn—both for regular shoes and therapeutic shoes. Material isn't a detail; it changes the shoe's weight, wear resistance, shock absorption, and the way the hoof lands and rolls over.

§Steel — the trade's workhorse

Most horseshoes today are made of soft structural steel. Steel is strong, wear-resistant and — most important for the blacksmith — easy to shape in the hot state. It can be stretched, bent, punched and welded in the forge so the shoe can be precisely fitted to the hoof's shape. Steel shoes come as factory shoes in many sizes and profiles, or they are forged from rod iron as hand-forged parallel shoes. The disadvantage is weight: a steel shoe is heavier than alternatives, and in horses with weak or sick structures, the weight can be a burden.

§Aluminum – when weight counts

Aluminum weighs approximately one-third of steel and is therefore used where low weight is critical: racing shoes, certain sports shoes, and some therapeutic horseshoes. The practice objectives for the training mention aluminum horseshoes as one of the shoes the apprentice should be able to make. Aluminum wears faster than steel and cannot be forge-welded in the same way, but it is easy to work cold and spares horses that need to be relieved. Many therapeutic specialty shoes used in collaboration with veterinarians are made of aluminum precisely because of the weight.

§Plastic and composite shoes

The plastic melt becomes hotter than the nozzle

§Synthetic horn — repair rather than replacement

Synthetic horn is not a shoe but a two-component repair material that hardens and can be worked like the horse's own horn. It is used to rebuild missing hoof wall after cracks, cuts or abscesses, to give nails something to hold onto, and when correcting foals, where the target pins describe corrective trimming performed in synthetic horn and as a glue shoe. Synthetic horn requires careful preparation: the horn surface must be clean, dry and free of infected tissue, otherwise you lock problems in under the material.

§How the choice is made

• 01The horse's use: racing, riding, driving or breeding places different demands on weight and grip.
• 02Hoof condition: weak or damaged hoof wall points toward glue, plastic, or artificial horn rather than nails.
• 03Weight-bearing, roll-over and landing: the regulation's benchmark requires adjustment to be made with careful consideration of precisely these three factors.
• 04Wear pattern: the old shoe's wear tells where the horse is loading — and thus which material and which profile fits.
• 05Economy and interval: special materials cost more and often last shorter, which should be part of advising the owner.

The good material choice arises when the smith's metal knowledge meets the horse knowledge. The one who only knows the steel always chooses steel; the one who knows the whole catalogue can choose the material that gives this particular horse the best function. And because materials evolve — new composites, better adhesives, stronger artificial horn — material choice is an area where the farrier never finishes training.

“The shoe must fit the horse — not the horse to the shoe. The same applies to the material.”

— Basic principle in blacksmithing