Looking for some dressage reins that stay flat and don’t curl and twist easily. Suggestions?
Can you describe what you’re experiencing? I’ve never had reins that “curl” so I’m having trouble visualizing the problem.
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Hard to describe. I guess twist is a better adjective. Both sets of reins I have get twisted very easily. One pair is cotton web, the others are leather.
I’m a big fan of Thinline reins. A little thicker and don’t twist. If you live somewhere really cold during the worst days they can get a little stiff but otherwise, they don’t get slippery or twist. I also like they are soft on my hands if I don’t feel like wearing gloves.
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Do you mean they twist on the neck while you’re riding? Like, it will appear as though you need to untwist them but they’re actually correct?
I’ve found my reins do that occasionally and I think it’s because of the leather rein stoppers. It hasn’t bothered me enough to cut them off.
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If it is the case that the reins are being twisted up and secured through the throatlatch in order to keep them out of the way e.g. for lunging, then they tend to re-twist when they’re slack. If this is the case then the simplest answer is not to twist them in the first place.
I don’t know of any rein type that won’t re-twist when it’s been tightly twisted a few times.
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Nous…Excellent point! Thank you. And SeeSpot, I will look into the Thinline reins! Thanks
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if you are going to lunge in a bridle, dont twist the reins. Put them under the throatlash , with one or two turns and then make use of a bucking strap on the pommel to secure them back. A pommel buck strap is handy when moving tack and easily clips to allow a simple securing of the reins. Much easier than unbuckling the reins at the bit. The one or two crosses should not result in twist memory in the leather
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I ride in Thinline reins as well and they twist constantly. I flip them over in my hands probably two or three times per ride trying to decide which way is up. The only ones I ever had that were worse were rolled leather.
I will slightly disagree. I do not twist my reins for any reason like lunging and over time mine have developed a slight twist in them. The are flat leather with stops if that matters. I do try to take them off and swap sides so perhaps the weight of the twist will change and help get them straighter.
I am following this thread with interest because I can’t recall in my zillion years of riding ever having reins that twisted. I nearly always lunge in a bridle, so do have to get the reins up out of the way, but I have never twisted them tight to do so. TBH, I don’t get the OP’s issue at all.
If your reins are holding a twist, then it sounds as though you may be twisting them too tightly for whatever reason you are twisting them in the first place. I suggest a good quality leather conditioner (I love Ko-cho-line Leather Conditioner). A clean, supple leather rein shouldn’t hold a twist. Just MHO.
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I have only ever had web reins with stops that had a partial twist in them from the beginning. I’ve since always used laced leather, flat leather, or flat leather with stops and never had twisting issues. I do not lunge often but when I do I twist the reins and put them through the throatlatch.
I do always clean my reins/bridle after riding with plain water and a rag and occasional oil or lederbaslam as needed. I also hang my bridle with the buckle of the reins over the crownpiece and make sure the reins are draping nicely.
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Can you post a picture of what is actually happening to your reins? I’m having a hard time envisioning it. The only thing I can think of is in wider reins, when the horse is a puller and the rider allows the horse to dictate how much contact is ok, the grip and pull required to maintain that contact can make the reins take on a longitudinal crease. Once they get to that point, they’re done, sadly. New reins, new teacher, new mindset, and plenty of willpower to reform both the horse’s and riders habits are the path to future reins remaining non-squished/folded/creased/whatever.
In re: longing, I haven’t had a problem with properly maintained reins getting mangled from doing the twisty thing to keep them out of the way.
There is another technique (hangman’s knot) which prevents any possibility lateral twisting and it looks great … but it’s a giant PITA to do regularly and takes doing it regularly to be able to get the length right first time on any given day.
Another possibility is to put the reins over the head making sure you’ve got the buckle up by the crown piece. Then, slide the loose stuff to one side and make a loop with it. Then put that over the horse’s head and even things out again and pop the lower part of the loop (the buckle area) through the throatlatch or cavesson jowl strap. Not pretty, but no more ugly than the twisty thing we all do. If the horse is a dead solid, upstanding citizen, you can even get away with not putting the buckle end of the reins through the throatlatch.
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Following because I know exactly what OP is talking about and mine do the same thing. What happens is, the reins themselves are not really twisted, but a few inches up from the bit they do not lay flat against the horse’s neck, and will appear to be twisted if you glance down quickly. I’ll try to snap a picture the next time I’m riding. I do have rein stoppers on mine, but even if I carefully arrange it so the stopper lays flat against the neck, once I actually move the rein off the neck at all it will take on the twist again. I’ve had it happen with multiple different brands of reins and even in reins without stoppers. Must be something I’m doing, but I can’t figure out what. It’s always on the left side–maybe something to do with my horse’s balance and hanging on one side more than the other? Or my own imbalance? I’ll have to pay better attention next time I change them out and see if it happens from the beginning or is something that develops over time.
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I’m not picturing this very well - where does the twist happen?
After (years and years) of trial and error, I swapped all of my reins out for rubber. I hate the thick, chunky leather reins, I don’t feel like I have as subtle and dynamic of contact as I prefer with them so I go for comparatively “flimsy” ones. I think I have are the plymouth rubber reins thru smartpak, but if you’re interested (some people hate rubber reins, which I completely get) I can double check.
This is pretty normal with a decent hand position. Flatten your hands and it goes away 
Rolled reins will make it appear less so. Much more collected, upright, shorter neck will also make it appear less so.
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