So, I have 4 horses right now and 2 are extremely “rough” with their sheets & blankets. I used to spend a lot of money on blankets, but after the 3rd one in one season… let’s just say, I will not spend $300+ on a blanket for them that I am lucky if it makes it through a season.
Any suggestions for affordable, durable sheets and heavy duty blankets? Thanks!
I went with SSTack and was happy with them last year. 
SSTack and SmartPak brand blankets are the nicest for the money that I’ve found. I have 3 SS sheets, 2 winter blankets and 3 turnouts, plus 2 Smartpak lightweight turnouts and 2 medium weight turnouts and I’m impressed with all of them. If I had to buy more, I’d buy the SmartPak ones only because they fit my horse better.
Ditto the SSTack blankets. I have 5 of them and love them. Ours are out 24-7 and in groups so they are hard on them. I have been very impressed.
What about one of the SmartPak blankets that has the 10 year guarantee?
10 Year Indestructible Guarantee- the fine print:
We are so confident in the toughness and durability of the SmartPak Ultimate Nylon Turnout Blanket, that if anything happens to this blanket within 10 years of your purchase, we’ll replace or refund it—no matter what! It’s that easy. However, the guarantee does not cover blankets that have embroidery stitched on the barrel as it compromises the integrity of the blanket.
Another vote for SSTack, I usually end up selling mine years later to get newer styles because they just. don’t. break.
I have one Smartpak sheet right now (the “deluxe” which is the same as the “ultimate” but without the 10 year guarantee)…I don’t like it. In a few months a front buckle broke in half So now it’s a 1 buckle front blanket, and the piping on the butt is falling straight off. No tears to the body yet though, but this horse is not a blanket destroyer.
I typically go with Weatherbeeta but am slowly switching all my blankets to Rambos. Completely love them now, stylish and strong.
I own one Smartpak medium-weight turn-out, and one Schneider’s medium-weight turn-out. I think the Smartpaks weigh less for the same fill than the Schneider’s blankets. I also enjoy the 10 year guarantee (have already had it replaced once for a tear from some sort of adolescent football game going on in the pasture). It’s less expensive if you figure the price over 10 years rather than over 2 (as the SS blankets are guaranteed).
I’ve had hit or miss waterproofing, quality control, and customer service problems with the Schneider’s/SSTack blankets.
Although if your horses are destroying up to three $300 blankets in a single season, shoot, I’d be leaving them naked or picking the brand with the best warranty!
I absolutely HATE Schneiders blankets and will never waste money on one again. I bought two and both leaked in no time at all (less than one season) and started tearing in odd places. I’ve never seen a blanket tear at the withers but one of mine did. That along with the liners tearing too. Now I have numerous Weatherbeetas and Rambos that have lasted me YEARS with NO issues. My old (now deceased) and current TB are/weren’t hard on blankets at all.
Some me people buy less durable blankets and put a Kensington fly sheet on top since the material on those is super tough.
I stick with Horseware: Rambo, Rhino, and Amigo. I tried Smartpak for a fly sheet this year and it was shredded on the second wear. All of my Amigo fly sheets are going on their third year. SSTack never seem to fit right, and my Weatherbeetas seem to have a large number of broken buckles.
I have a horse with an unreasonably thick neck for his size, so I’m thinking about trying a Hug from Dover for him. He’s not hard on his clothes, so I’m hopeful.
I’ve had my Turtleneck Premium Horse clothing blankets for well over 5+ years now-not only are they durable …they have elastic around the neckline as well as stretchy elastic surcingles
http://www.turtleneck.biz
Horsewears Rambo/Rhino are also very good as well
[QUOTE=ryansgirl;8363865]
I absolutely HATE Schneiders blankets and will never waste money on one again. I bought two and both leaked in no time at all (less than one season) and started tearing in odd places. I’ve never seen a blanket tear at the withers but one of mine did. That along with the liners tearing too.[/QUOTE]
There was a season back, oh five or six years now I can’t remember exactly, when their blankets SUCKED. It was only for one season. I don’t know if they changed mfrs or what happened but lots and lots of people were complaining. They’ve fixed the issues, I’m happy to report. Some of mine are REALLY old (10+ years) while I have a few that are fairly new (1-2 years) and they are all excellent. If you have one from that one bad season, yea, it wasn’t good.
I just bought an SS light blanket (80 gm fill). I noticed how heavy it was. Am wondering if the extra weight of the top layer will make the blanket warmer that it would be in another brand that is lighter with comparable fill?
I have had terrible luck with SStack, good luck with SmartPak, and the best luck with Weatherbeeta.
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