I was looking at the pictures of harnessed and yoked oxen on http://www.draftanimalpower.com/showthread.php?t=386 and had a question.

How much does the average full size yoke weigh? How much does a single yoke weigh? How much would a collar weigh?

I was wondering if a yoke would be impossible for a small person to manage. I was at a Museum when Bill Speiden was giving demonstrations, and I think his wife mentioned that she never tried to put a yoke on the oxen. I can't remember if that was just because oxen were too tall, or if the yoke was prohibitively heavy. How do the 4H's manage?

A full size single yoke will weigh about 15 pounds.
A full size double will weigh just about what ever you want it to weigh, depending an what you make it out of and what you want to use it for.
I was born during the great depression, so I am no kid.I will say the effort to yoke my 3800 pound steers is nothing as compared to putting the harnesses on the 3800 pound horses that I grew up with.

small yokes can be veary light from 4" to 9 or 10". or at least to me. im also 6,4" and 300 lbs. so its easy for me. it all depends on the type of wood and how strong you are. you can put the steers oput and put it on their back and slide it down to the neck. or i have heard some people have the steers put there heads down put it over. then have the steers pick there head up and slide the bows threw. mt uncle makes are yokes with laminit. its reely small pieces of wood glued togeather. veary tight bond. but more of a show yoke not a pullers yoke.

O yea. the yoke is extremely light!!!!

We have a maple yoke that weights close to 30 pounds, and my father can no longer manage you wrestle it onto the oxen alone (he has parkinsons, and has lost a lot of strength over the last year). His trick was to install a small ring on either end of the yoke, and uses a rope and pully at either end to lift it up, then walks the bulls under it and hitches them. works well for him. I have a poplar yoke that is strong enough for anything I do on the farm, that weighs in around 15 pounds, and a small cherry yoke that weights about 12 pounds that I use for show.

I've never been much for horses, but have watched people hitch up a team, then annoyed them that I could be ready to got in 3 minutes compared to their 10-15 minutes to hook up. because of the time factor, I'd never even consider using harnesses with oxen.

for pat shea
For show and for light work a yoke can be EXTREMELY light.

Howie;
Is that 3800 lbs for a team? So each horse or ox would weigh around 1900 lbs? Since you have used both collars and yokes for large animals, did you find it easier to pick up a double yoke and place it on the oxen's necks than to pick up the horse collar and place it on the horse?
I've seen pictures of sliding yokes in Drew Conroy's book. Were those still in use when you were young?

They are 1900 pounds each.
The collar is not the problem. When you have the full harness on your shoulder it is a job to set the hames up on the collar.
You simply set the yoke beside the off ox and put the end on the ox then lift the other end and tell the near ox to put his head under. Very easy.
I have a few sliders but I don't use them much. They are great if it is slippery or if the cattle want to haul out or to crowd.

i know thats why i said for show

I have a team of full grown (13 yr old) Brown Swiss.
There are over 5' at the neck. I am 5'7", female, and I yoke them myself. The animals are well trained. We do light work, pull logs, stoneboat, wagon,etc. I do not compete with them.
Howie made my yokes so they are not too heavy for me.
If you can't yoke your animals, you will not enjoy them. Have fun.

My 9" yoke weighs about 66 lbs. For my 4800 lb team this translates to a woman having a 3lb purse.
Any estimate of what your wife's purse weighs?

My team like most teams simpeley stand as I hoist it up and then insert each bow and pin it in place. Total time/hich 2 minets or less.