Where are people finding high quality, well priced flat bridles for their hunt horses? I would like one as it will match my side saddle much better than my fancy stitched tack, but am not entirely sure where to start looking. Thanks!
Bartsville and Bobby’s seem to be the most popular.
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Bartville Harness in Christiana, PA has well priced, long lasting flat tack. Plus, all leather tack is10% off til Christmas. No website, call them for a catalog.
I’ve been window shopping for the same thing for a while and agree with the above posters. Most of my foxhunting friends have Bobby’s or Bartville. I have heard some grumblings about inconsistent or declining leather quality from Bobby’s, but I don’t have any firsthand experience.
I was about ready to go with Bartville (a friend of mine got a bridle from them a few months ago so I got to see it in person, I really liked it) but then a post somewhere on this forum sang the praises of a bridle from a new company, Lund Saddlery. Even though I’m usually (ok, always) ‘take the safe, known option’ person - and seriously, the Bartville bridle was very nice, I think you can’t go wrong - , apparently I don’t have enough excitement in my life because I decided to live on the edge and ordered a Lund bridle. Should be here next week!
Northrun does a nice English leather bridle that runs under $200 that has a lovely feel. It’s not quite as heavy as Bobby’s and looks nice on a more refined head without sacrificing durability.
Perfect Sit of Sweden has a really nice flat bridle. I have it and love it!
If you are good with second hand, there is a Hunting tack for sale page on FB and some come up on there ever now and then. I sold a new one that I had on that page. I also got 2 very nice old leather ones on that page.
I do have to say that I was at a tack store in Ireland when I was there and they had tons of them. I wish more tack shops over here carried them all the time without the special ordering. I love to touch the leather before buying.
Eleanor - That’s exactly it! I feel so much better being able to feel the leather, look at the under side and the cuts, the buckles, etc before buying. I’m a bridle snob in that I really want a certain quality of leather and craftsmanship (I’m not picky about the name at all though). I get nervous ordering, especially when I have to go cross-border or if it becomes a special order that requires finagling to return. The cross-border piece is why I haven’t looked at Bartville, to be honest.
I would be fine with second hand, especially if the price was such that the bridle would be relatively easy to resell if it wasn’t quite what I was looking for once it arrived.
Thanks for the suggestions everyone, and if any of you have a nice flat bridle in a regular horse size lurking around in need of a new home… 
Jealoushe - the PS of Sweden bridle is lovely, but I was hoping for something a bit more traditional since it will be used with a sidesaddle and habit.
[QUOTE=Risuena;8955942]
I was about ready to go with Bartville (a friend of mine got a bridle from them a few months ago so I got to see it in person, I really liked it) but then a post somewhere on this forum sang the praises of a bridle from a new company, Lund Saddlery. Even though I’m usually (ok, always) ‘take the safe, known option’ person - and seriously, the Bartville bridle was very nice, I think you can’t go wrong - , apparently I don’t have enough excitement in my life because I decided to live on the edge and ordered a Lund bridle. Should be here next week![/QUOTE]
Okay, so I Googled Lund Saddlery, and a FB page popped up for one in Woodstock, ON Canada (I tried looking at their regular website, but it seems to be only half built?). Is this the same one you ordered from? If so, that’s about 20 minutes down the road from me. I may have to go see these bridles in person!
[QUOTE=Small Change;8956333]
Okay, so I Googled Lund Saddlery, and a FB page popped up for one in Woodstock, ON Canada (I tried looking at their regular website, but it seems to be only half built?). Is this the same one you ordered from? If so, that’s about 20 minutes down the road from me. I may have to go see these bridles in person![/QUOTE]
Yes, that’s them! I pm’d them through Facebook and they hooked me up with a distributor here in the states who I ordered from, but I do remember they are based in Canada. I didn’t look for a phone number but they were very responsive when I messaged them.
You cannot go wrong with Bartville… it is the bridle that the hunts local to me use. I’ve capped (is that the right word?) on invitation with them a few times and they’re all decked in Bartville. I love the company and the leatherwork and have pined after one of their figure 8s for a long time.
[QUOTE=WNT;8956261]
Northrun does a nice English leather bridle that runs under $200 that has a lovely feel. It’s not quite as heavy as Bobby’s and looks nice on a more refined head without sacrificing durability.[/QUOTE]
Be careful with Northrun. I have some very nice tack from them and bought a couple of new bridles from a seller online. What I got (new with tags) is nowhere near the quality of my other tack. Evidently, they have a cheap line - think ‘painted’ leather - that should be avoided. The leather would not hold up to real hunting.
Does anyone have pictures of their Bartville bridles please?
None of these are mine, I pulled them off the internet:
brown/silver
brown
A COTHER has an album in the thread below with the bridle:
http://s1356.photobucket.com/user/AbsoluteChoice/library/?sort=3&page=1
I love their leather… and I love how durable their hardware is; I personally like how clunky it looks but some don’t like the look. Here’s an old thread about Bartville:
http://www.chronofhorse.com/forum/showthread.php?378406-Favorite-Hunt-Bridle
[QUOTE=Small Change;8956786]
Does anyone have pictures of their Bartville bridles please?[/QUOTE]
It’s not a close up but the horse in my profile pic is wearing one. The photo below is brand new out of the box. The breastplates run a bit small. The one shown is horse sized and the horse is 15.3. I needed an oversized to fit my 16.3 TBs.
The only thing I didn’t like was the half inch reins I chose. The little bit of leather that touches the bit rings warped over time and sort of hung out the side. I much prefer the 3/4 inch laced reins.
Thank you very much!
Another thing that is nice about Bartville is that you can pick and choose the size of the bridle part to fit your horse. IOW, my Connemara and CSH bridles are a combination of horse and cob size pieces. I love my 1" laced reins from Bartville, nothing better for using on long hunts to keep your hands feeling good.
A note about Bartville, the hardware is a bit clunky. It fits my draft cross well, and looks quite nice, but it may be overwhelming on a finer head. They do a lot of custom work, it might be worth asking is they have more refined hardware. I will say, the bigger hardware is very sturdy, great for hunting.
They also stand by their products. I used my rider’s belt to give a lead to an unruly mount over water and a rivet popped (not the tack’s fault, there was no hope for it) and they fixed it right away, no charge. I had written them to buy a new one and they insisted that they would repair the old. Love Bartville!
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Bobby’s Tack, www.bobbystack.com They are a wholesale co most tack shops order from. Great quality.
If they don’t have a vendor near you www.ridingwarehouse.com has ordered things for me.
Or check Bobby’s ‘Where to Buy’ page.
I have an Ovation and was pleasantly surprised by the quality and weight for the pricepoint (I believe it was around $250CAD when i bought it 2 years ago).
(I added a bradoon hanger because I jump him in a double)
