OO - Long time since I talked to you. My advice is USA Barns out of Oklahoma. My neighbor built one and is very happy, and he is picky when it comes to quality. They have trusses on 4' centers versus many other that build on 8' centers. Cost is not much more and actually was really close to a quote I got from Cleary. They let you customize and I also asked for raised trusses which adds to inside clear height since hay lofts are a thing of the past. I also wanted them to build an extra 4 foot eave for some added shade and have them engineer it without support posts. Again, not much more of a cost. They were very accomodating and had an engineer to help advise what would work. USAbarns.com Melanie

NO ARLENE, I DID NOT STEAL YOUR BARN, LOL but that does bring back a lot of memories for sure... I have built a barn on most every place I have owned and indoor arenas on some.. had a big one in oregon..arlene will remember that.. this barn i built here is the last one i will build, and its 20 feet from the house, no up hill or down hill for me any more.. hauled some horses from virginia one time, pulled into the fellas place asked where the horses were, they were half mile down hill, HE lead them up with a pickup.. lol and the sooner it has but one horse in it, the better, lol.. IF i were building a small barn in Missouri, I would build a MORTON barn.. lots of them here in oklahoma.. well insulated for the cold.. and with stand the wind... all the barns are good, you just need to find the right contractor.. tell them how you want it, walk away and write the check.. then its done.. good to see ya arlene.. Bob

Shoot my old tree gives them shade in the summer and protects them from the snow in the winter. If I build a fancy space for a shoer will he drop his price from the 120 for sliders or should I just charge him back for space to off set my costs

It always seems like the ONE person you should ask about your "dream" barn, never gets to offer any insight: Your HORSESHOER! Where is he supposed to set up, so he can get his rig out of the wind and the weather? Does he have a safe, prepared space, with a dry level floor and more-than enough lighting? Is there a cross-tie space, with a backstop behind, so you don't have pullback accidents? It never ceases to amaze me, how few barns I see, many that are a hundred years old, with NO place for the blacksmith to do his job.

OO: The only time I ever had a barn built was when I lived in Ohio. I know you live in MO, so you may run into this same problem. I lived on a hilly area, and didn't realize there was a lot of rock under the ground. The barn company brought out the materials, then subcontracted the excavation and structure work to a local crew. When the crew hit rock, they stopped, because they had a "rock clause" in their contract with the barn co. It basically said they would do the work under normal ground conditions, BUT, if they hit rock, it was the company's problem to deal with it. This created a HUGE problem, since the company didn't want to honor their contract with me. Months later, with an atty. involved, the barn company finally had to refund some money. Since sinking the main poles into the ground wasn't an option (we tried backhoes, a hoe-ram, etc...) I opted to set the support frame poles in concrete footers, and then built it like that. I thought of this because you live in a very rocky state and could also run into the same problem. Check your contract carefully if this applies to ground conditions in your area. Jacquie

ok so had a Morton barn as in my post page back.... it was great!!! On this farm I had a cowboy builder come in and build a simpler one with stalls leading out to pasture so horses can go in and out anytime and less work for me so more riding time!! its simple, safe and have the tack, feed and wash area cemented but rest is wood and is very cool in summer.. this one is lots less work and that means more time in the saddle.bumped this up to help out ..

Justhalter, I am sorry to hear about losing your mare hotel. Currently, until I get a barn, I am using a portable horse shelter and when it was delivered, I chained and padlocked it to a tree until I could put it together. Double

Sutton, That's just the type of company I like to work with for my barn. I want to design it myself and have them confirm the plans, just like you did. I have looked at their website and they appear to built barns in IL so maybe they will built one here in MO. Thanks for sharing the information, Double

00 here's the Co that built my indoor and I have been pleased with it. Not sure if they work out your way or not, but worth asking them. They just did the structure only, no stalls in this barn. 5 days from start to finish on 140x66 They allowed me to design my own building, sent plans for confirmation N built exactly the way I wanted it. AND was by far cheaper then the other barn Co that wouldnt allow me to make my own changes or wanted major premium to modify thiers. Good luck! http://www.fbibuildings.com/index.shtml

We all know that you can have a lot of things happen when you are spending your hard earned money on a barn.the one i will never forget is when i was building a stallion station in OR.The mare motel,round pen, and most of the show barn was completed,i would go out and check on progress every other day as i was my own contractor,when i went out to check one day my complet mare motel was GONE and the round pen was taken down,when i could stop crying enought to call the police,they just did not understand this woman cry that someone had taken her mare motel!But the did come out and asked for the seiral# what,i did not even know barns come with one,and to this day have not found one.So if you ever buy a portable barn they just might be more portable than you think!!!Oh the reason i did go with portable barns is that in OR.they could not tax you on the improvements! my barn now has its post way down in th ground...Arlene