Horse brass and harness decoration info wanted

[Drive_NJ]

EF

The bottle opener ones have a little dip or ‘tab’ on the hanger

Bottle opener
http://www.tias.com/13227/PictPage/1923093137.html

Horse Brass
http://creekbed.org/collection/images/horse-brass.jpg

Also, Brasses were stamped or cast. Both can be repro, newer but authentic, faked or real

I’m no authority, but try to pick brasses in shapes I like with decent detail (but not too much, some look like detail has been added back in). The stamping or casting should be good quality (stamping is less common than casting). You want decent edges; wear from use, not overcleaning or rubbing to make old; cleanly punched holes part of design. Older brasses often have “gets” or little posts where cast brass could be held for polishing, but fakers sometimes add those too. Supposedly the Indian copies have a coarser surface on front or back.

For me the best policy is look for quality look and then enjoy.

[pony_grandma]

The brasses with the stag deer are really lovely hung into a bough for Christmas

I have two larger 4.5" brasses that I happened upon. One was at the Goodwill store :eek: for $2. Oops it was senior day (less 30%).

You can get the leather hangers on ebay - or check the brasses on ebay and then you will find the brass shop websites to order from them. Shipping for them is reasonable from England and cheaper than trying to have them made here.

[elysian_fields_farm1]

Thanks for the info Pony Grandma and Drive NJ. I checked, and I don’t have any bottle opener brasses. Some of mine may be reproductions, though. But my non-horsey friends probably just thought they would be nice “horsey” gifts, and didn’t know about real vs. reproduction.

Also the info on where to get the leather to hang the brasses on was helpful, too. I could not find any ready-made martingale or hangers for brasses in any of the American harness supply catalogs I checked. I was thinking of asking a saddle maker in a nearby town how much he would charge to make one up-- but I know he prefers to stick to making and repairing Western saddles and tack.

I found that out when I asked him if he could replace the billets on my plantation saddle-- that really what this type of saddle is called “plantation saddle.” It has English style billets rather than Western rigging.

He first offered to change out the billets to a Western cinch-- but then he went ahead and replaced the billets for me while telling me how he doesn’t like to work on anything but Western tack.

I don’t know how I would have been received if I had asked him to make a leather brass hanger for me – or what he would say if ever I asked him to repair part of a harness.

[pony_grandma]

hamster8 is the ebay user I was thinking of

http://stores.ebay.com/hamster8-Horse-brasses-from-England

he has leather straps, all sizes.