Let me start off by saying that I am by no means a tack expert, just someone who loves it and collects it, and I am only in my mid 20’s, so my experience with older tack is mostly based off of things that have already been used and broken in, with the exception of a few rare treasures that were frozen in time, so it may not be completely accurate compared to those who were alive a few decades ago and remember what this kind of tack was made like new then.
I have a huge collection of tack that I’ve accumulated over the years, from the entry level to mid-range tack I grew up using to some really nice stuff I’ve splurged on or bought used. I have stuff that is easily twice as old as me, if not more, and stuff that is only a few years old, if that, and all ages in between. What I’ve noticed is that the older the piece of tack, the better quality and craftsmanship you can find. The leather is much more durable and has a MUCH better feel to it, the attention to detail seems better, and the hardware is almost always really nice stuff. If I compare a 30- or 40-year-old bridle to a much newer one of the same brand, no matter the brand, there is almost always a profound difference in quality, and the older piece never fails to be the nicer one. I actually don’t really know of any brands that have been around for a very long time that haven’t declined in quality, even if just slightly.
Take a look at Beval, for instance. Everything I see of theirs made within the last ten years or so has a plasticky look and feel to it, while their older stuff is gorgeous. Even Stübben’s new stuff doesn’t even begin to compare to their quality during the era when the Siegfried was the saddle of choice, despite their stuff still being very nice. The European leather from the '70s and '80s and probably even before that is just unbeatable in my opinion, but that kind of quality has disappeared and a lot of the stuff they’re calling “high end” these days would be considered junk compared to that stuff when it was new. Although the French leather that’s popular today has an amazing look and feel, it is not durable at all, and all of the other stuff has a slightly plasticky look and feel to it compared to the older stuff. Maybe I am biased because this older stuff makes up a huge amount of the part of my collection that I still use on a regular basis (ancient Fels Bach/Courbette, Crosby, Triumph, Equitana Romania, tons of old stuff stamped with just Made in England, etc.), but I really think the quality of horse tack, especially leather goods, has significantly declined over time.
Is there anything left still being made that truly compares to that old stuff, or is that level of quality gone for good? I would absolutely love to still be able to find that grade of leather and craftsmanship new, especially when it comes time to finally retire the old stuff, which will unfortunately happen at some point during my lifetime. Also, why do you think the quality has dropped so much and so many things have cheapened? It’s very disappointing to me, as I’ve heard many of my elders talk about how people no longer take the same pride in their work as they used to, and that seems to be pretty true with more things than just tack and horse-related stuff.
