My red headed lady has agreed to be ridden in a hackamore finally, and actually loves it now :lol:
What are the fav hackamore bridles recommended by Coth? She has a very petite head and wears a 4.75 bit or a cob bridle so something that is smaller would be best.
looking for high quality soft leather that will last. Any budget. Thanks!!
The PS of Sweden hackamore bridles are very nice. They do come with a hackamore. I did just see one for sale on one of the Facebook groups that was cob size a couple days ago. Might not hurt to do a FB search.
The other one I know of is made by Dyâon. Also a very nice bridle.
Super thanks. I have some PS bridles but I canât justify the cost new for the quality, it just isnât there for the price imo but second hand would be a good option. Ill check FB!
Weâve always just used a regular bridle (sans noseband, sometimes with cob cheekpieces for sizing), then added a strap (or, um, a number string) to keep it out of the eyes. Go figure some of the makers have caught on and are purpose building this now! (Of course⊠it always seems to be the more expensive makers :lol:).
Sorry for commenting with zero advice, just the fact I learned something new today 
What kind of hackamore (nose) style do you want?
Not quite hackamores, but I really like side pulls. Most of them are western, and âcheapâ so not anyoneâs version of a buttered up Vespucci â but I find theyâre a lot more adjustable and better fit than english makers.
No idea what the quality is on this brand, but I like how it has less is more:
https://www.artofriding.nl/en/fra-arâŠ555&quantity=1
Tory brand is very good leather for the price, I have a few Tori all-leather goods, including an all leather side-pull in black:
https://www.statelinetack.com/item/tâŠ-pull/E001199/
Dover has a Waldhausen, which is a medium range brand (think Smartpackâs house brand):
https://www.doversaddlery.com/ltj-liâŠe/p/X1-120192/
Honestly, Iâve always fallen to just making my own. With the exception of the Tory I posted above, Iâve had a hard time getting a really good fit on most stock hackamores. Usually the leather is too stiff by the jaws, and the nose doesnât have much give. I donât need much with my guys in hackamores, since I usually am just trail riding in the winter with them and want to do without warming the bit.
I have a Herm Sprenger hackamore (nose part) that is easy to chuck on any bridle. I usually put it on my Stubben in the winter and hack out with it. Itâs very good quality, I like it a lot:
https://www.smartpakequine.com/pt/herm-sprenger-short-shank-hackamore-7096
So I have the hackamore already, its this one; https://www.bahrsaddlery.com/braidedâŠre-240713.html
Those little nice once like with pinwheels donât quite work on my beast sadly, tried that first and had no control :lol:
I am planning if she stays agreeing with it, to get the Herm Sprenger one. If anyone has recommendations about which Sprenger one is best, let me know. How do you find the leather one for control? There are a few options I see. This is a new world to me. I have used one before but it was just to start a horse with a terrible mouth until his mouth was fixed.
I find with her face, it just doesnât work well with normal bridles. She has a very petite nose. This is how I have it set up now. Its a Waldhausen dressage bridle with the hack instead of a bit. It works fine, I would just like something a bit nicer if I will ride every day in it.
Also, any comments on the placement of the nose piece are welcome.
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Side pulls and mechanical hackamore are very different ways to go bitless.
The side pull doesnât offer much more âwhoaâ than a halter, but you can use the direct rein as with a snaffle.
The mechanical hackamore gives a lot of âwhoaâ but is a leverage bit. You need to ride with minimal contact and you have no finesse with the direct reins for English riding.
I use them both on my mare, but if i think there is going to be any bolting from my riding companions on their OTTB or maresy is going to be diving for grass, I prefer the mechanical hackamore. On our own we have no problem with whoa and also I use the sidepull to school a bit of basic dressage, particularly lateral work.
Iâve tried a few hackamore bridles⊠I did like the Dyâon but it only comes in cob and full and I had to use the full size on my large pony⊠so thats not very flexible sizing. I actually DO have the PS of Sweden hackamore but I replaced the shanks. I didnt want to buy the whole bridle as it didnt look like it would be enough leverage for what I wanted⊠the strap under the chin had me a little considered that my horse would react badly to the pressure under her jaw when I was trying to exert pressure on the nose.
At the end of the day, my favourite hackamore setup is actually to just have a regular bridle (with a noseband), have the hackamore attached to the cheekpieces, and then tie each cheekpiece to the cheek part of the noseband with a thin rope. It looks best, and it works best to prevent the cheekpieces from going up into the eye without affecting the leverage on the nose.
Ok thank you! Thatâs basically what I have set up now. Maybe Iâll just get her a nice regular bridle and use it the same way.
They totally are! But I find side-pulls have much better range of adjustment when it comes to fit. Because theyâre considered âwesternâ not many english people use them â but a side-pull with a bosal or rope nose has plentyof bite to it.
Iâve recently picked up a âhalf breedâ side pull, it seems very interesting. I donât need much bite in my hackamores, so I havenât tried it on my current guy. I imagine itâd be very strong.
Mechanical hackamores definitely have a leverage advantage - good if you have one that is hard to stop.
One thing you(g) can do if using a regular bridle for a mechanical hackamore nose-band, is to save those little velcro strips that come on brand new bridles - you can stitch them in a loop around the cheek piece, and then velcro the strap ends together instead of a string or a leather piece.
Also⊠this is verboten in some circles, but I âstartedâ my guy bitless with a rope halter. I think it made the transition to a plain leather side-pull much easier. He doesnât need much to stop. In fact, halting is his favorite thing to do :lol:
ooo I have some of those!
I wish I would have known all this years ago, shes 14 now so I dont think restarting her in a halter would do anything LOL But I wish I had of done that years ago when I first got her. I see Lauren Kieffer starts all hers in rope halters and commented that every single one goes in a snaffle that starts that way. The hackamore is definitely making me ride more off my leg and body so I am enjoying that aspect. She seems to like it and actually rides quite nice in it. Way better than she ever did with a bit.
I think most horses like going bitless. I donât feel I can accomplish everything bitless that I can in a snaffle, but can do much of it.
You can also do this with braiding elastics, and tuck them under the keepers so theyâre completely invisible. Bonus points for not scratching up your bridle if itâs buttery soft.
Just got âwitlessâ nose piece. Nicely made. Check out their web page. Sunset Halters.com Good service nice price. Came quickly.
Reviving this thread because Iâm looking to purchase a bitless bridle or hackamore for my cob sized horse. There seems to be a lot more on the market now! Iâm torn between PS of Sweden, the Nalanta one, or a side pull that SS tack has. HmmmâŠâŠ
I have a couple ps of Sweden ones, theyâre so pretty!
My Ottb went really nice in it for years but unfortunately picked up some bad habits from a kid lease and started getting really strong/heavy in it and it started rubbing her face really badly. But idk she was good in it for years and only started getting rubs in it after this kid rode her for awhile so Iâm not inclined to think it was the bridles fault lol.
Slightly off topic, but this makes me laugh in memory. I had a coach that was vehemently anti-mechanical hackamore that insisted you couldnât turn with them. This regularly happened WHILE I was schooling 10m circles/half-turns and serpentines at trot/canter with my mare wearing said hackamore. 
(16.3 hippo of a TB/draft cross too)
God that mare loved her mechanical hackamore. So many breakthroughs with it that translated back with a bit. Thanks for bringing up the happy memory 
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