I’m looking for a schooling bridle for my gelding so I can save his current one for shows. I’d like to stay around $100 bc quite frankly, I’m hard on tack. I would probably show in it sometimes for my dressage test (we event now but I’m not crazy about event style tack, hence why I’m over in H/J land). I like nice leather and am looking for the best bang for my buck.
Thanks! Other recs would be great too!
I have a couple of the Harwich bridles and love them. Good quality for the price and they seem to hold up well with wear. Look nice too!
Check out eBay and Facebook groups like English Tack Trader. You can probably find something used and already broken in for that price, and decent quality as well.
You can find a Bobby’s, Ovation, Courbette, or Schneider’s for that price. Any would be good choices.
My Harwich is really nice leather, unfortunately the bridle was built wrong and sort of sits ‘sideways’- it works for schooling and was ~$35 with reins, so I can’t complain!
If you can wait, I got a few Dover bridles around Christmas last year for about $50, maybe $60?
I have owned 2 harwich bridles, but I haven’t seen one that has been made within the last two years. The circuit bridles were on sale within the last week, but horse size was sold out. I have a horse sized one I’d sell if you’re interested, just send me a PM if you are. 
Yes, if you wait a little longer (think towards Black Friday), Dover usually does a huge slash on their bridles.
The two are comparable, but Circuit is better quality than Harwich, and is more on par with Smartpak’s higher end bridles. Harwich is on par with Suffolk or Crown if we’re talking Dover products. I’m pretty sure the two are sourced from very similar manufacturers.
The Circuit is more on par in terms of quality as Bobby’s. I’d say better quality than Ovation/Pessoa, but not as brilliantly made as Courbette.
If I had to pick between those two options I’d pick Circuit. I’ve handled tons of their bridles and saddles and they all age very well and oil up beautifully.
I have a Harwich, a plain Plymouth, a Plymouth Elite and a Wellfleet from SmartPak. I love the Wellfleet but it’s only been used a couple of times at a show (it was a closeout and oversize, so it only fits one particular horse). I’ve been showing my younger horse in the Plymouth Elite and my trainer actually commented out of the blue at the last show how much he liked the bridle. I had to fess up that it was a “cheapie” I had bought on sale. But I like it every bit as much as my Harwich.
In the past 6 months I bought a Circuit. I found the leather quality to be meh. The details were meh. It’s fine. Seems sturdy enough. Nothing that impresses me.
I used to buy SP bridlework and have many Harwich and Wellfleet bridles. I have not bought one in the last 6 months due to major quality control issues. Prior to that I found the leather, finishing, and overall quality to be superior in EVERY way. By a lot. But I’ve had several Harwich bridle nosebands rip and HK has been radiosilent on the issue so I am done with them.
I’ll probably sell the Circuit bridle because, as I said, it’s just so average.
[QUOTE=beowulf;8311624]
Yes, if you wait a little longer (think towards Black Friday), Dover usually does a huge slash on their bridles.
The two are comparable, but Circuit is better quality than Harwich, and is more on par with Smartpak’s higher end bridles. Harwich is on par with Suffolk or Crown if we’re talking Dover products. I’m pretty sure the two are sourced from very similar manufacturers.
The Circuit is more on par in terms of quality as Bobby’s. I’d say better quality than Ovation/Pessoa, but not as brilliantly made as Courbette.
If I had to pick between those two options I’d pick Circuit. I’ve handled tons of their bridles and saddles and they all age very well and oil up beautifully.[/QUOTE]
I disagree. I think the PLYMOUTH is on par with the Suffolk/Crown and that the Harwich and Circuit are fairly comperable. YMMV but stacking them up side by side both broken in and new, the leather on the Harwich and Circuit are closer.
[QUOTE=vxf111;8312027]
I disagree. I think the PLYMOUTH is on par with the Suffolk/Crown and that the Harwich and Circuit are fairly comperable. YMMV but stacking them up side by side both broken in and new, the leather on the Harwich and Circuit are closer.[/QUOTE]
Yeah, that’s been my experience too. I haven’t bought a Circuit recently, but of the one I had some years ago and the Harwich I bought last year, I’d pick the Harwich. Just a little nicer in the details.
I have both a Crown and a Plymouth and they’re roughly comparable to me (though there are specific things I dislike about each, but that’s what $60 bridles get you.)
I’ve never had a Dover bridle, I did have a Circuit saddle that was eh, but that is all I have to compare to.
I really love my SmartPak bridles. I really love SmartPak in general.
[QUOTE=TheBrownHorse;8314915]
I’ve never had a Dover bridle, I did have a Circuit saddle that was eh, but that is all I have to compare to.
I really love my SmartPak bridles. I really love SmartPak in general.[/QUOTE]
We had some Dover(Circuit) saddles in college, I still remember the one ride I had to do in it, it was just awful, and leather quality was non-existant.
I think their bridles compared to other higher-end bridles are much closer than their saddles are when compared to nicer saddles.
I love love love my Courbettes. You can get them for $75 from VTO. I have had one for at least 10 years and it is just as nice as the day I bought it. It is still so nice that we use it for trot ups at FEI events.
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