I recently found a weymouth/curb bit made of BRASS. Has anyone used a bit of this material before? Is this an acceptable bitting material? Is there anything about brass that might be bad for the horse? The reason I ask is because this bit I found just happens to be exactly what I am looking for (size & type of bit), but I don’t want to use it if there is anything I should be concerned about. Thanks!
Brass is fine…as a matter of fact, Sprenger is making a fortune charging $200 for “brass” bits they have branded as “Aurigian” metal…this is just another name for brass…However, for the powers of marketing, people are paying 10x of what used to be a simple brass bit…if you paid $20 for your bit, you’re good to go.
99% of half breeds I’ve seen are made of brass, then again I don’t think I’ve ever seen a Dressage rider use one. :lol:
[QUOTE=rosinante;3081293]
Brass is fine…as a matter of fact, Sprenger is making a fortune charging $200 for “brass” bits they have branded as “Aurigian” metal…this is just another name for brass…However, for the powers of marketing, people are paying 10x of what used to be a simple brass bit…if you paid $20 for your bit, you’re good to go.[/QUOTE]
Aurigian" metal has some brass and also has some “German silver” in it. But concept is the same: has a nice taste and promotes salivation in horse’s mouth.
[QUOTE=Dressage Art;3081663]
Aurigian" metal has some brass and also has some “German silver” in it. But concept is the same: has a nice taste and promotes salivation in horse’s mouth.[/QUOTE]
-Brass is copper and zinc.
-German silver is copper, nickel, and often times zinc as well.
-‘Aurigan’ is copper, silicon, and zinc. It is advertised as ‘nickle-free’.
So they’re all quite similar. 
:yes: :yes:
[QUOTE=sublimequine;3081693]
-‘Aurigan’ is copper, silicon, and zinc. It is advertised as ‘nickle-free’. [/QUOTE]
what are the benefits of “‘nickle-free’”?
[QUOTE=Dressage Art;3081958]
what are the benefits of “‘nickle-free’”?[/QUOTE]
Apparently some horses are sensitive/allergic to nickle.
[QUOTE=sublimequine;3082067]
Apparently some horses are sensitive/allergic to nickle.[/QUOTE]
The definition of brass is an alloy of copper and zinc, so technically, Aurigian IS a type of brass. The alloying proportions of copper-zinc and any other additives can be varied to “technical” reasons…eg., strength or corrosion resistance.
As far as taste, try sticking a brass piece of metal in your mouth…it tastes terrible…not that I do this often, but when a silver-plated spoon lost its plating I had the opportunity to sample the “taste of brass.”
“Stainless steel” contains 8-10% nickel…so if your horse can use a stainless bit, it isn’t “allergic” to nickel.
This whole “aurigian” thing is marketing schtick to charge $200 for a $20 bit…that simple, it’s the profit motive.
And the amazing thing people actually pay that kind of money for a mass -roduced bit…Would not be the same if itwere a hand-made specialty bit.
Hey now, the bit my horse goes in is only $120 :lol:. If I knew where I could buy my bit for $20, I’d get it there. Sprenger makes it, they charge $120 for it, and I’ll pay what it costs to keep my horse happy. (Granted, I haven’t actually purchased my bit… I borrow one of my trainer’s, and I’ve informed her I’m never giving it back, lol.)
I agree.
“German Silver” is referred to as Nickel Silver in the jewelry/metalsmithing industry. It is approx. 60% Cu, 20% Ni and 20% Zn.
So if a horse truly has an allergy to nickel then your best bet would be to buy a plain COPPER bit IMO.
I can’t see any harm in using a brass bit if it suits your needs.
I agree.
“German Silver” is referred to as Nickel Silver in the jewelry/metalsmithing industry. It is approx. 60% Cu, 20% Ni and 20% Zn.
So if a horse truly has an allergy to nickel then your best bet would be to buy a plain COPPER bit IMO.
I can’t see any harm in using a brass bit if it suits your needs.
I’d wondered about brass, too - got a funky Hungarian bridle which has all brass buckles and parts, including the bit. Haven’t tried it on my horse yet - in fact I was going to replace the bit with my regular one, so it would be familiar. And I must say, I think most metal tastes weird (at least remembering chewing on coins as a kid!) 
I doubt that a “copper” bit is pure copper, it would be too soft. It is probably some alloy, either brass (copper and zinc) or bronze (copper and tin)
[QUOTE=amastrike;3082513]
Hey now, the bit my horse goes in is only $120 :lol:. If I knew where I could buy my bit for $20, I’d get it there. Sprenger makes it, they charge $120 for it, and I’ll pay what it costs to keep my horse happy. (Granted, I haven’t actually purchased my bit… I borrow one of my trainer’s, and I’ve informed her I’m never giving it back, lol.)[/QUOTE]
Well, in my book Sprenger royally screwed up the market with this Aurigian brass.
Why would anyone sell a “brass” bit for $20, when Sprenger is getting $200…try looking at today’s prices with the Euro vs $ at all time low.
Since I have a bridle with heavy brass accents, I got all the accouterments for a double bridle…in BRASS…for $15 per bit as the catalog was doing a close-out…I bought every brass curb that I could find since I saw the writing on the wall.
What we need is a Korean/Chinese to knock off the Sprenger stuff at a price point about 95% less than theirs (that $10 wholesale)…actually, since I prefer to “buy American”, with the EU vs $ at the current state, a US-made bit from a US-foundry, made by US workers would be price competitive at that price point…I would be interested in where the Sprenger bits are made anyways…anyone know what country they source from???
[QUOTE=rosinante;3082421]
The definition of brass is an alloy of copper and zinc, so technically, Aurigian IS a type of brass. The alloying proportions of copper-zinc and any other additives can be varied to “technical” reasons…eg., strength or corrosion resistance.
As far as taste, try sticking a brass piece of metal in your mouth…it tastes terrible…not that I do this often, but when a silver-plated spoon lost its plating I had the opportunity to sample the “taste of brass.”
“Stainless steel” contains 8-10% nickel…so if your horse can use a stainless bit, it isn’t “allergic” to nickel.
This whole “aurigian” thing is marketing schtick to charge $200 for a $20 bit…that simple, it’s the profit motive.
And the amazing thing people actually pay that kind of money for a mass -roduced bit…Would not be the same if itwere a hand-made specialty bit.[/QUOTE]
As for the bold part… I already said that. That was my first bullet point. :lol:
As for Aurigan being brass, if it has silicon in it, I wonder if it would technically be considered brass or not? It’s not just copper and zinc. 
FYI—Be careful with the copper only bits—copper is treated with arsenic during the production phase and that is part of why it needs to be coated. They also turn green! 
As for Aurigan being brass, if it has silicon in it, I wonder if it would technically be considered brass or not? It’s not just copper and zinc.
Most brass is copper plus zinc plus a little bit of something else, depending on the intended us. In this case the “something else” is silicon. Still “brass”.
[QUOTE=Blkarab;3083475]
FYI—Be careful with the copper only bits—copper is treated with arsenic during the production phase and that is part of why it needs to be coated. They also turn green! :p[/QUOTE]
The green color in copper comes from the copper oxides. Depending on copper’s oxidation state, copper oxide can be green, black or red. Just look at where there is flux residue in your copper pipe.
The black copper oxide is called tenorite (CuO), the deep red is called cuprite (Cu2O), bright green malachite—as in the green stone that is used in jewelry…it is also a copper ore also called hydrated copper carbonate…(CuCO3Cu(OH)2), and bright blue is called azurite (2CuCO3Cu(OH)2).
Arsenic is an impurity in copper ores. It exists in nature with the copper in the naturally occuring mineral. The arsenic is refined out during the separation of copper from the rest of the periodic table that comes with the mineral.
One of the copper refining processes is called electrowinning. The arsenic is removed from the copper in this process and goes into the “trash” sludge…this sludge is further refined to produce gold and silver.
There is actually a type of brass called “arsenical brass” where aresenic is added back on purpose for corrosion resistance.
And yes, brasses are any alloy of copper and zinc in proportions of about 60-80% copper and 20-40% zinc with other additions, such as aresenic, tin, aluminum, iron, lead added to impart specific properties.
