I have heard that some people have a tool to crank and tighten the noseband. I think a really tight noseband irritates my horse so I adjust it to be snug but not tight.
He is busy and maybe fussing with his mouth a bit but is getting better. I think the fussing will stop once his balance improves whereas a really tight noseband just distracts him.
What is your opinion regarding tightness?
My general rule is, you should be able to fit two fingers in between the jowl and the strap and two fingers between the bridge of the nose and the noseband.
The tighter the noseband, the tighter the poll pressure on the bridle, the jaw cannot move and thus cannot relax, and many horses will inadvertently bite/damage the inside of their cheek if the noseband is cranked shut - the noseband puts pressure on the soft of their jowls and pushes it into the teeth.
After auditing at a few clinics where I’ve seen clinicians go and adjust the noseband of a tense horse to a looser setting, and witnessing the horse visibly perform better, I am always mindful now of keeping my noseband loose as possible.
That being said, it varies from horse to horse - some horses, a cranked up noseband never bothers them. Some can’t even deal with it on the loosest hole.
The reality is, the noseband is now used to keep the horse’s mouth shut to hide an unsteady hand or evasion. People can deny this, but there is no other reason to keep a noseband on a horse in this day and age.
My current project is the first horse I’ve had that is so fussy about noseband tightness. He goes best in no noseband at all. I’ve found the lightest/thinnest noseband possible (it’s a Courbette noseband) and keep it on the loosest setting and a noseband is required to compete.
On a Scale of 1 to 10, 0.
Like Beowulf, my current horse & my WB before him go fine in no caveson at all.
If I had to add one it would be using the 2-finger Rule.
I have one horse who goes in a very loose noseband, daylight all around it. He’s very sensitive. He’s also crafty, parrot mouthed and has an oral fixation (ex chuck wagon horse) so the cavesson is a back up for the times he decides to yawn/slip the bit or other creative mouth tricks.
My other horse has a fancy patent leather bridle, which looks great on him, but without a crank noseband, there’s no way I could get it close to his face. It’s pretty stiff! Probably two or three fingers all the way around. My trainer wanted him in a flash for a while, I snugged the noseband a bit tighter then, but “tight” anything mostly gets you bucked off my horse. He has a lot of feelings.
A relaxed horse licks and chews. My guy isn’t sensitive and reactive but he does brace through his jaw. No cranks for me! Two fingers is loose but not sloppy.
I use a crank because I love the padding, especially under the jaw. I don’t crank it - I can fit my entire hand along the side of the noseband. It isn’t gaping open, but it is plenty loose. The French cavessons have a buckle that is just under the jaw - and that causes rubs on a sensitive horse, even when loose, so I went to crank for that reason. Wish they gave it a different name, I think people would find it a more acceptable noseband if it was called a double padded noseband:cool:
Same as above - love the padding on the crank, always adjust it using the “2 finger” rule. I do use a flash because my horse goes better with it, it gets tightened just enough that it doesn’t slip, probably one finger
Mine has a plain cavesson and I keep it loose enough to get several fingers under it.
Part of the reason I ditched a previous trainer is that they insisted on a tighter noseband (with a foam chin pad) and a tight flash. The mare was not comfortable. I prefer to be able to see or feel when she’s not liking my hands; she’s way more “busy” with her mouth now and occasionally gets her tongue over the bit, but that’s feedback I want and need.
I do get the point of using a crank noseband but not “cranking” it, for the comfort of the horse. I don’t have one, but I get it.
I’ve ridden her with no noseband, and while I think it’s OK in a very safe environment, something about it just makes me uncomfortable. She doesn’t seem to care one way or the other.
A friend who is a ring steward at some big shows says basically 80-90% of these horses are violating the USEF rules about tightness of nosebands and especially flashes, but she’s been told to let it go, to avoid a riot basically. It really gets her that if she needs to loosen or unbuckle a flash to do a bit check, the riders always want it done back up tightly – even if they are done showing. She says that some very amped up horses calm right down for those few seconds that their mouths aren’t strapped shut.
crank user here but again, no cranking!
can slide your hand under it all the way round.
I like the cranks for the padding under the jaw, and typically adjust them at two to three fingers’ snugness, depending on the horse. I don’t ever go tighter than that.
I don’t use one unless I’m jumping or hacking out. Then I use a plain cavesson adjusted very loosely for the safety of the horse in case he falls.
a fussy mouth is an anxious mouth, cranking it shut isn’t going to get rid of anxiety
[QUOTE=sunhawk;8897169]
a fussy mouth is an anxious mouth, cranking it shut isn’t going to get rid of anxiety[/QUOTE]
That said, I do show with the flash strap done up, because one of my boy brats loves sucking the rein into his mouth every chance he gets, but when I am schooling I don’t even have a cavesson on…it just makes his face itchy and he doesn’t need it, has a wonderful quiet mouth, just plugs into the contact and stays there
I use a crank on one horse because of the padding. Those regular cavesons with the buckle underneath against the jaw BONE are not a good thing.
I have a very fussy-mouthed horse. He came that way, and it’s obviously ingrained in him. We’ve tried all kinds of combinations of bridles, nosebands, bits, dental work, and we’ve reached he “just ignore it, it’s not as bad as it was” stage (and judges seem to agree).
Cranking him shut doesn’t actually make a damned bit of difference, just gives him something to lean on. So mine is snug enough not to flop around on his face and annoy him, well within the USDF rules, and he does wear a flash, but yet again, not tight.
Frankly, I doubt that anyone who cranks the noseband very tight is going to admit it here. It breaks my heart to see at shows how tightly some nosebands/flashes are cranked. Poor horses.
Yabbut - nobody who does use a tight crank would come on here and admit it!
Have seen clinicians go up to a horse and tighten them, tho.
Another “crank for the padding” person. I can stick a couple of fingers in all around. No flash either… Bridle came with one so I was using until one day I asked myself “why are you using something with no real reason for it?”. I grew up in Pony Club and with trainers who insisted that if you’re using something you ought to be able to provide a reason as to why. I didn’t have an answer to the why question so I don’t use the flash anymore 
[QUOTE=Foxtrot’s;8897211]
Yabbut - nobody who does use a tight crank would come on here and admit it!
Have seen clinicians go up to a horse and tighten them, tho.[/QUOTE]
Yep, clinician (after complementing horse’s quiet mouth during the ride), says at the end of the ride that I must tighten the nose band and flash when she checks my bridle. I was also chastised for using a French link loose ring snaffle as that is such a harsh bit (I thought it was a kind bit). Some times you just can’t win with people.
Plain noseband, adjusted loosely enough that there’s no contact with the chin when he’s standing quietly. He seems much happier this way–less sweat around his nose or dripping down his chin, so he stays more focused and is not looking for every opportunity to rub his nose.
He also likes to really chomp the bit when he is anxious or distracted, and this is loose enough that he can do that (much more dramatic than typical chewing). Frankly, if this is how he wants to express himself, I’d rather allow it than shut it down and force him to find some other way to express himself.
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