Dy’on bridles. Are they really assembled in India?
If so; what about ADT, PS Sweden, Antares, Passier, CWD…and other higher end bridles?
What bridles are still assembled in the USA, Canada, UK, France,Germany ect?
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I recently purchased a Dy’on bridle and was really disappointed by the quality. The tag did say that it was manufactured in India. 10ish years ago I had a really nice, soft Dy’on bridle that I remember being made in France and the newer one is definitely of lesser quality. I’d say it’s comparable to the Bridles & Reins version. I actually don’t mind the Bridles & Reins ones – they are unabashedly made in India and do soften up over time – but they’re also not $600. I would not buy more Dy’on tack.
On the other hand, I bought a PS of Sweden bridle last month and was really impressed with the quality and workmanship. I’d have to double check the tag to see where it was made but it’s definitely nicer than the Dy’on bridle, and the price point was slightly lower.
I have a pair of Dy’on reins and if they’re indicative of how the rest of their tack is, I definitely don’t think they’re worth the price. They have the color corrected finish I don’t care for (the only bridle I’ve seen that has a color corrected finish that I’ve still really liked is my Hadfield’s). The reins are pretty supple and there’s nothing wrong with them, but I don’t think they’re as nice as others in the same price point as far as leather quality goes.
I believe they are being assembled in India.
I’ve heard Arc de Triomphe’s quality has really gone downhill, and have read a few reviews about them cracking and breaking when new or nearly new, which has scared me off of them. I’ve seen PS of Sweden in person and personally, it wasn’t my cup of tea. I want to say I’ve heard CWD bridles are made in the same factory as Dy’on, but that is just hearsay and I don’t know that for sure. I haven’t seen Antares or Passier in person, but have heard mixed things about both as of lately.
Edgewood and New Cavalry are still made in the USA (as well as EquuSport, Bennett’s Hunter Fine Bridles, and Legacy by The Country Saddler). Moritz, Exselle, Jeffries, and Hadfield’s are still made in the UK. Huntley is made of Sedgwick leather, but I’m not sure where they’re assembled. Stübben I believe is still made in either Germany or Switzerland. I believe Devoucoux bridles are made in France, and probably Antares. Hermes is as well, if you have that kind of budget.
I own stuff from Edgewood, New Cavalry, Jimmy’s (which should be similar to Bennett’s), Moritz, older Crosby (which is the same product as Exselle), older Beval and Dover Wellington (both made by Jeffries), Hadfield’s, and Stübben. I love all of it and prefer the quality over a lot of the other brands I’ve come across. Edgewood and New Cavalry are very similar (the owner of Edgewood used to be in business with the owner of New Cavalry) and I love the fact that their leather has a very natural, “raw” feel, for lack of a better word. No color corrected finish or dye and oils up to a nice rich mahogany. The reins are some of my favorites I own. Moritz is also beautiful, as is Jimmy’s. My older Crosby tack is my go-to and some of my favorites. Very durable and also high quality, and the bridle I took camping and used for trails and schooling for years still looks almost like it did when it was new. I think they were an excellent value in their day, and Exselle is an EXTREMELY excellent value (though they are harder to find). My older Beval and Dover Wellington tack is among my favorite stuff I own as well. Soft and supple leather that is still sturdy and holds its shape nicely. I love my Hadfield’s bridle, but it is an older model, so I’m not sure if they’ve changed or not. I love my Stübben as well, though it’s more of a sturdy, coarse, workmanlike bridle than a refined show bridle. Still, it’s extremely durable and wears like iron, and I don’t think you can go wrong if you’re looking for a bridle than can stand up to almost anything and will last forever.
I have old no name tack from the 1970s that was rawish leather like Edgewood, needed oiling up, and is still totally functional after being rescued from 30 years in the basement.
I also have two black Stubben bridles I got second hand as a returning rider. One was well used, the other as new. I have not felt anything in the tack stores that feels like an upgrade. The well used one is a bit shabby, but is clearly going to last forever.
We don’t necessarily have a full range of all the brands here. From what I’ve seen, I can’t do better than the Stubbens.
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I love the old school tack like that, and have quite a bit of it as well! A lot of it just says “Made in England” or has no stamp at all, but I also have a Crosby USET bridle and a few other really old Crosby strap goods, a Martin Kinlet bridle (I want to say they were bought out by either Kieffer or County years and years ago?), an original English-made Crump bridle, and a Triumph breastplate that are all like that and all buttery soft and beautiful!
I really love my Stübben bridle as well, it is extremely durable and the leather is wonderful!
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My older D’yon bridles from 2009(ish) are way nicer quality than my new ones.
I’d like to buy a Butet bridle but they don’t have many noseband options.
As of a few years ago (three years ago?) someone from Dy’on HQ told me they owned their own factory in India and the bridles were made there, out of leather sent from Europe.
That factory is also contracted out to make other high end bridles - CWD and Equiline at least. For companies who specialize in saddles, it’s a lot simpler to just work with a factory/company experienced in bridles to start a bridle line, rather than begin from scratch.
Oddly, due to basically colonialism, a lot of the bridlemaking knowledge that was lost in the UK or is now very rare is much more commonplace in India - there is a bigger workforce there with these skills, and their labor is cheaper than in Europe.
Stubben briefly had a “Stubben Select” line using the same materials as their EU-made product, but made in India to lower the price, but I think they’ve cancelled that. I believe all their products are still made in the EU?
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Yes they really don’t seem to make many brands of high quality bridles anymore.
The most recent bridle I bought is an Antares Origin with reins. The leather is really really buttery. That’s why I bought it on sale at a show a couple years ago. That and current horse is Warmblood bridle size. Think wide between the eyes.
All the other bridles are early 2000’s including two ADT Imperial, ADT Starman ( prototype sample), two Moritz, a Collegiate and a Five Star Tack figure eight. The Five Star might be the only single crown we have. They no longer make Five Star bridles and Moritz.
I have a padded crown style Passier on order from Europe for jump schooling.
To learn Dy’on is assembled in India is disappointing since it’s pretty expensive. Makes me very leary about other options. Maybe I can find a couple of ADT x-full/Warmblood brow bands?
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Very true, I’m finding it harder and harder to find nice new bridles.
I have a few Collegiates as well, one I bought new 13 years ago and a couple of older Miller’s ones from the '90s. I find all of them to be really solid for the price, but was admiring how soft the leather on one of my oldest ones was as I was oiling it earlier today. It’s surprisingly nice for the price point it was originally sold at.
Moritz is still made, but very hard to find in the States. There is a user here who knows of a tack shop that still carries them (Olson Nolte Tack Shop, I believe?). Moritz’s site is also still up.
Yes, more and more bridles these days are being assembled in India it seems, even high end ones. I have a few I like that are Indian-made, such as Ovation and the Harmohn Kraft bridles (Americana and Aramas), however. I don’t think they beat the brands that are still closest to old world quality (or actual old world quality itself), but they’re solid and nice for the price.
I occasionally see browbands off of high end bridles for sale on eBay (one of my favorite sellers regularly sells lots of nice bridle parts), so it might be worth keeping some saved searches on there!
Agree with all. I really liked the look of the Dyon Hunter bridle online, couldn’t find one locally so I ordered one from Dover. The quality was pretty bad for the reasons above and I sent it back. I went out on a limb and ordered a wider noseband for my 20 year old Edgewood and must say I am quite pleased with the result. Far nicer quality than the kinda gross dyed Dyon. Even then, on close inspection the stitching isn’t “what it used to be” on the new Edgewood. But, at least it’s tight and the color is “real”. And a shout out to Farmhouse Tack for being super easy to work with trying to find the best match for my old bridle.
Edited to add I agree with the comment about Bridles and Reins. Nice for the price point and unabashedly who they are. I have a schooling martingale of theirs for a very sneaky chronic tack “nibbler” I bought on a whim. Quality seems a tiny bit above Ovation (my last Ovation cracked even before it got nibbled).
Besides Olson Nolte**, where do you buy Moritz tack these days? Have you ordered from their website?
For our non NorCal readers: Olson Nolte is a bricks-n-mortar, very old school tack shop in San Carlos, CA. In fact, Olson Nolte was a (San Francisco?) saddle company dating back to the 19th century, I believe. Their very old western saddles are collectors items.
I have seen Dy’on stuff in person and my review is “Meh.” It is fine-grained leather tanned with a color-corrected layer, but in a warm, reddish brown. I think it would look nice for a while. I don’t think any color corrected piece of tack will look awesome as it reaches true middle age and its geriatric years. Some of the “naked” leather tack can look and feel great even when it’s very old. I don’t think these modern Dy’ons worth the price. But then again, I’m surprised that the $400 bridle made of leather that I think is non-spectacular is A Thing. That’s a lot of money for quality that’s lower than what I remember from yestercentury.
ETA: For everyone worrying about where bridles are made, I would not be quick to dismiss modern strap goods made in India, Argentina or Algeria (France’s colony). The workmanship and quality control these days seems really good. To me, the big gap now is in the quality of the leather and tanning vs. high prices.
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Echoing what others have said, I just bought a Dy’on hunter bridle from Dover and I absolutely hate it especially considering the price! Plasticky leather that won’t darken. Looks awful on my black horse. Unfortunately I didn’t realize either of these things before using it and putting a plate on it (not smart on my part) and now can’t return. I knew I should have brought another Edgewood instead, arrg. Won’t be making this mistake again, hope I can keep someone else from doing this!
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I’m pretty sure the website for Moritz is from years ago, as is any stock any stores may have on hand.
I was looking for a particular size and style Five Star Tack bridle and found a couple stores still had some limited old stock. Unfortunately, not what I was looking for.
The Moritz website shows the same style bridles I bought around 15 years ago. They were $300 retail and I bought two on store close out for $100 each, with reins. Nice but not nearly the substance and quality of the ADT Imperial bridles at that time.
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All of my Moritz tack is old and was purchased used, so I haven’t been able to find them new anywhere else. I haven’t tried ordering from their site yet, but have thought about it.
That is very neat about Olson Nolte!
I agree about Dy’on, and I feel the same way about Vespucci and even some of the $$$ trendy tack I’ve seen. It just doesn’t “wow” me enough to justify the price tag. I haven’t liked the look of the new Arc de Triomphe leather that I’ve seen in pictures either, but have yet to see one in person.
I also agree about the quality control of bridles coming out of those countries. I’ve found some Indian made bridles I think are quite solid. They are no Edgewood or anything like that, but still nice bridles and worth the price.
I bought a martingale with an elastic fork from Bridles & Reins because they are weirdly hard to find unless you want to drop $250+ on a CWD one and I was super impressed with it! My expectations were low but it was definitely worth $50 and frankly, a lot nicer than some martingales I’ve seen at a higher price point.
I am so sad to hear about the new ADT bridles not being comparable to the older stuff… I really, really like my ADT bridles, but they are probably 15 years old, at least. A friend did just get a beautiful Voltaire bridle to go with her lovely new saddle, and if you don’t mind the styling (a little contoured compared to traditional looking bridles), the leather is lovely!
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I just bought dyon webbed reins (been wanting a pair forever), and LOVED the quality and the dark brown leather.
SO I ordered a bridle…
It arrives and is a lighter brown than the reins (when I selected just “brown” for both). Fine, I can always oil it.
The throat latch is HUGE so I had to punch two more holes. Also fine.
The noseband? Small! It’s tight on the second hole.
I found the inconsistencies really odd, but the bridle is lovely overall. I like the quality & I have an OLD Edgewood and a brand new Edgewood, both with reins.
Actually, I believe Dover has a satisfaction guarantee and that you can return (sized items only?) for up to a year. For that amount you spent on that bridle and the way it’s at the top of what Dover is offering, I’d return it and explain why.
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These days you’re hard pressed to find any leather manufacturer that does not either source leather from India, or, does not assemble/manufacture it in India. Including higher brand tack. Even if they claim “made in USA” or “crafted in USA”, they can still (and do) use leather tanned and processed in India.
Being assembled or manufactured in India is no longer synonymous with poorer quality leather goods – although, there are certain environmental impacts (tanning process) to consider.
D’yon has never been at the top of my list of “quality exceeds price-point” but that’s not because it’s made or assembled in India. I just never felt the hardware + leather was good for the price. Their brass hardware is actually brass plated, and the pins/studs in said hardware are not even brass at all, but nickel - which left me cold since it’s a $500 bridle.
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I like Dyon a lot actually! They are pretty transparent that they are manufactured in India… The leather is sturdy (I have not gotten any cracks or wrinkles) and has a huge line of options. I’ve had many bridles, tons of reins and just bought my first breastplate.
I always buy from Europe, so the bridles are closer to $200 than $500.
