I had to order a new cotton lead, and I realized the new one is thinner and starting to shred already. What happened to the heavy duty cotton lead lines? I have been looking online, and I can find up to 3/4 inch. I want the older style, heavy thick cotton leads. Anyone know of where i could find one? I am willing to pay for a decent one. 1 inch or thicker and 8-12 ft long would be perfect.
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Please post if you find any. I’d love to have one or two in reserve. I haven’t seen those really thick heavy ones in ages. They were the best.
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Try Amazon maybe? I bought one there a year or so ago.
thicker leads are fairly common around here, check Teskey’s in Weatherford TX
do a search for “FLAT BRAID LEAD” there are a many sources coming up
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Reading the OP’s post, I realized that I, too, hadn’t seen one of these in years, so I went to searching as I’d like to have a couple myself. The only 1 inch cotton lead rope source I’ve found online, so far, is:
I know nothing about this company, or the quality of their products.
Amazon has some -
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Me too. Cotton only and have one thick gorgeous one left. All my others are thin and they’re ok but…
Thanks for all these links. Christmas is coming and I’ve been a good girl!
I just keep the snaps and rebraid them myself. You can usually get the rope at Home Depot. Just make sure it’s 3 strand, or there are other YouTube videos for 4 strand etc.
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Thanks everyone. Decided to buy one of the Ravenox ones… amazon price after shipping and taxes, $60. Wth. Covid has changed so much.
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Clanter-I trained at Bat World in Mineral Wells Tx, near Weatherford. Had friends there. I was looking for a round lead not a flat one, but thank you.
Paul Taylor’s in Aubrey has the hardware to make rope leads
Last time I was in Mineral Wells I stayed at the Best Western down the road from Bat World. I didn’t realize it is a sanctuary. Do they allow visitors?
I don’t know if they still do tours, you can call and ask.
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Holy Moley, I should come out of retirement and make lead ropes. $60!!
I can get 1" cotton rope for less that $1.5 a foot!
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BUT without a bull snap. I used to braid quick releases into mine And I got my cotton by the foot at the local hardware store. Then I don’t have the problem of a horse with a leg over the rope tied to a trailer and pulling back ! You can’t release a taut pulled bullsnap!
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Come to my local Amish tack shop. Lots of colors, great prices!
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I do not like bull snaps either nor do we let lines get long when tying to a a trailer (learned a lot by riding NATRC rides) however we carry lock blade knives to cut those things if needed
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The flimsy ones are made in China, Taiwan etc instead of the U.S. I no longer buy any Chinese made tack or strapwork after having stitching come loose, rope unravel, cheap pot metal snaps break, etc. IMO it’s a significant and undiscussed safety issue. It’s one thing to cheapen a toy or item of clothing but quite another to put someone’s life in danger by making shoddy equipment used to handle horses.
Hiring celebrity trainer spokesmen and emphasizing “the brand” seems to correlate with shifting production out of the U.S. overseas with a concomitant decline in safety and quality. 
Now I either buy quality used US-made items off eBay, consignment tack shops, etc. or pay through the nose for the few remaining US sources. Not near any Amish tack stores but makes sense that would be another good option.
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Tractor Supply sometimes has them in stock. Cotton, probably 1” thick and at least 10’ long with a regular snap that’s braided on (no clamp thingy). They tend to have them in different colors. They are usually around $10-15.
When they do have them, they are always in their sale bins that are towards the front of the store, never stocked in the horse section with the other halters and leads. I have bought 4 or 5 of them over the years because like you said, it’s so rare to see them anymore. The ropes do fray a little, but some duct tape around the ends prevents that.
I can’t find them on their app, maybe they aren’t there because they aren’t always stocked.
ETA: I think I over-estimated the width-- they are probably more like 3/4". But the ropes are still significantly thicker than most of the others available on the market.
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I get those too. I’ve found them to be of acceptable quality. I don’t usually love the color combos but for the price and quality I can’t be picky about the colors!
