Bridle Leather Quality Issues

[BalancingAct]

I don’t know what is going on or if trends have just changed entirely…but why are bridles so stiff now?

I bought a Butet bridle with reins in “Gold” around a year ago. It is the softest of the bunch and very easy to use.

I bought another Butet bridle with reins in “Cachou” about a month ago and it is awful. Stiff, squeaky, and impossible to use. I can hardly use the fasteners and the nosebands bulge out. What is going on??

CWD rep was out for a fitting so I ordered their bridle/reins. The leather is softer than the Butet but still not dramatically different. Am I missing something?

I’m considering ordering a JB Wiebe III, LLC Bridle, Hadfields, or an Edgewood. Are they any better?

[NaturallyHappy]

Edgewood is very nice, in my opinion. Some brands of bridles seem to have sort of a “painted” finish and they don’t oil well. My Hadfields, oddly enough, is like that. I oil the Edgewood w olive oil.

[Against_All_Odds2]

I didn’t like the hadfields at my local tack store

Loved the antares but they are hard to deal with. Wont sell replacement parts etc.

Ended up with a schockemohle. Hoping I can show C rated in it

[c0608524]

I love my Antares as well. Such soft leather.

But then again I’ve heard horror stories about others Antares bridles. Interesting to hear others opinions on bridles. Makes you wonder if quality control isn’t there, and sub-par bridles make it through, or if people just have different opinions of what feels nice.

[Scribbler]

Most horse gear is manufactured overseas. That makes quality control very difficult.

More and more gear has color corrected finishes which I despise.

The last year of COVID lockdown has messed with supply chains everywhere and we may see a big drop in quality in a lot of goods because of that.

But also, it’s fewer and fewer of us that know what good old school leather is meant to feel like. The selling points today are “anantomic” crown pieces, padded nose bands, and bling browbands.

I grew up with entry level flat strap goods that were so raw and stiff you had to oil and massage thrm for 2 days before you could use them. 30 years later I rescued them from the basement and they are still in use. They are super soft and super durable but they are also that dull dark brown of old leather and I don’t know that anyone would pick them for showing.

Once you pick bridles that have lining, padding, etc they are going to be stiffer because thicker.

[Renn_aissance]

I have an Edgewood, raised/padded/fancy stitched. Most of the pieces are 15 years old. I had to replace the noseband- first three years in when my horse’s neighbor ate it, and then again this year because the replacement noseband came from a period of time where Edgewood had switched leather types and it did not wear well. I have been assured via other COTHers that current Edgewood leather is comparable to the quality that Edgewood was known for at the time I bought the thing, and I have been happy with how it’s worn so far. However, I do find the new piece to run larger than the old pieces did- so it’s possible that their definition of “cob size” has changed over time. It used to be that they were notorious for stretching and it was a good idea to size down, and my original pieces did stretch- this was great because my horse is midway between cob and horse size. The new noseband hasn’t really stretched significantly.

[Moneypitt]

I thought they stopped making Hadfields and Edgewood’s? I know years ago, Edgewood had two lines, one being less $$ and less quality.

[Tha_Ridge]

@Moneypitt

I thought they stopped making Hadfields and Edgewood’s? I know years ago, Edgewood had two lines, one being less $$ and less quality.

No, both are still in production. https://hadfields.com/
https://marystack.com/edgewood-leather/

[Moneypitt]

Thanks!!

[HJdaydream]

I stopped by Dover the other day, and checked out the bridles. My mom had requested I pick one up for her old man, and all she wanted was “padded and soft”. Everything in the store was junk IMO. $350 for bridles looked liked plastic and were hard as rock. I agree, leather goods just don’t seem to be the same these days.

I have an Edgewood that I absolutely love, and an Ovation that is is about 5 years old and is almost as soft as the Edgewood. I don’t know if the new Ovations are nice, but I am THRILLED with how mine broke in. I ended up purchasing a used Nunn Finer online for my mom’s horse. Still waiting for it to arrive, but hoping it’s the quality I’m looking for.

[AmmyHunter]

The softest, high quality leather I’ve found is a Richard’s Custom bridle, from Richard Castelow. He’s in Wellington. 561-460-0285 richardmastersaddler@gmail.com

His bridles are beautiful, he has hunter and jumper styles and the oil up so so soft! Pricing is similar to Hadfield’s.

[NaturallyHappy]

Do you know if he has a website? Thank you.

[AmmyHunter]

@NaturallyHappy

Do you know if he has a website? Thank you.

Not that I am aware of - there is a picture of the wide noseband hunter bridle on this thread

Ann K Hubbard bridles? - Hunter/Jumper - Chronicle Forums (chronofhorse.com)

[Equestrian24]

A JB Wiebe III with my initials stitched in the noseband is my dream bridle, which I hope to get someday! IMO, those are some of the nicest still available. I also love Edgewood and my Hadfield’s, though the Hadfield’s does have a color corrected finish (but is one of the few bridles that I’ve still really liked despite that). EquuSport is another that might be worth looking into, and I’ve also heard great things about The Country Saddler and the Horse|Man bridles from Valencia Sport Saddlery. New Cavalry might be another worth looking into as well.

If you can find an Aramas, you might like those as well.

I’ve also noticed that most of the new bridles I’ve seen aren’t very impressive. I have a MASSIVE bridle collection (35+) of mostly older bridles of various brands, and like my older bridles much better than any of the newer stuff I’ve seen in my local tack shops. Most of it does seem plasticky, painted on, and just cheap. I’m also personally not a fan of everything being so dark brown it is almost black. I personally like more of a medium brown and really miss when it was easy to find a medium or lighter colored bridle with the lighter contrasting padding (one of my favorite looks). While I don’t like the really stiff bridles, I also don’t like so floppy that they don’t hold their shape and seem to wear out within a few years either.

[Equestrian24]

I love my Ovation as well, along with my Ovation stirrup leathers! My bridle is 10 years old and my stirrup leathers 7 though, so I’m not sure if the newer stuff is the same. But if so, I would buy again in a heartbeat! I think my stuff looks and feels much more expensive than it really is.

Also, I hate the fact that Dover doesn’t carry a great selection of bridles anymore. I have one of their older Wellington bridles (and a matching martingale) and absolutely love it! I remember Dover carrying a lot of really nice tack years ago, but now I’m not really pleased with much of their stuff.

[Equestrian24]

I have a lot of older bridles as well and agree that it seems that leather quality isn’t as much of a priority anymore, and it’s not easy to find anything of comparable quality to a lot of my older bridles. I’m just hanging onto them and trying to keep them as nice as possible!

I also find that a lot of the newer bridles I’ve heard people rant or rave about are just “meh” to me or at least way overpriced for the quality, and that many of the ones I’ve been told are good/okay quality at a lower price point are what I would consider junky. And yes, almost all of it has that color corrected finish, which I’m not a fan of either (Hadfield’s is probably the only one I’ve seen in which I still liked).

[dynamite0319]

I just got a new Wiebe hunt bridle about a week ago. It was a 12 week wait. It’s VERY orange and the leather is fairly stiff. Jim provides specific information and advice regarding caring for the leather. I’m following his advice (not oiling it!) and hope it will break in and be a lovely bridle to have for many many years.
I also have an Edgewood and a Beval that I bought new in the past 5 years. Both brands recommend oiling, so the leather broke in and darkened quickly and I like both bridles just fine (the Edgewood is def nicer. I don’t recall which model is my Beval, but it’s not their top tier).