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ISO bridle for lease horse - please enable me to shop

I’m half-leasing a wonderful guy at an eventing barn, hoping to compete in the spring. I purchased a used saddle for him, and I’ve really enjoyed having my own “stuff” - leathers, irons, girth, etc. I’m also half-leasing a different horse at a dressage barn (yes, I’ve made my life complicated), and while she came with a lovely saddle, I bought her a fancy bridle (Stubben Switch). Fancy bridle does not fit eventing guy (he’s cob-sized) and it’s black, whereas the saddle I’ll be competing him in is brown (I’m not ready to head down the rabbit hole of buying a dressage saddle, yet).

So, for a few reasons, I’d like to buy a nice bridle for my eventing guy. For jumping, we use a figure 8, and for dressage, a flash. In a perfect world, I’d like to find him a brown, cob-sized bridle, with some of the nice padding/anatomical features of the Stubben Switch, but where I can change out his flash noseband for the figure 8. Is it impossible to find one such bridle? Do I need to just buy two and hide my bridle addiction from my husband?

And yes, I realize some people my think it’s dumb to buy tack that’s not absolutely necessary for a lease horse, but it brings me joy, and I’ll be the one paying for it.

Thanks in advance for any suggestions!

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I’ve heard good things about the Eponia bridles, this one includes a flash noseband and figure 8 that you can switch out.

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Thank you @scislandsprite!

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I’ll second this recommendation. The one with both figure 8 and flash is on my shopping list and I can attest to the quality and design of the Eponias!

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I’ll enable shopping as well and recommend eponia bridles. I don’t have this one, just a regular dressage one and it’s lovely.

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If properly cared for, tack lives forever :grin: and can be passed from horse to horse. Shop away!!

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There are lots of places you can buy each part separately so you wouldn’t have to buy two bridles, but I wouldn’t blame you if you got two anyway :slight_smile: as a fellow bridle addict I share your pain!

I have a Henry James bridle that I really like. My mare has a smaller head so I got the half-moon crownpiece instead of their full blown “anatomic” one, but I still find it on the larger side for her little face.

Some places you can buy the bridles by part:

https://www.henryjamessaddlery.co.uk/collections/bridles


(I believe @Posting_Trot just got one of these and likes it - I promise I’m not stalking you Posting_Trot, I just stalk all the bridle threads :joy: )
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Yes, I got a bridle from EvoEquine. You can send them the measurements of your horse’s head (they have detailed instructions of what measurements they need), and which bridle you want, and they’ll select the proper size or mix and match different sizes to put together a bridle that will fit.

I’m very pleased with the bridle (6 weeks or so after getting it). It’s great quality for the price. The shipping was also quick (although the shipping is a bit pricey because they insure the bridle).

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You clearly need to Buy All the Tack. :grin: That’s it. That’s my advice.

(Some seek to do a good deed each day. Me, I aim for a count of aiding and abetting.)

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@AllTheCarrots, love it!

Enabling R Us :sunglasses:
I bought a saddle (Stubben Portos A/P) from Dover 4yrs before I bought my 1st horse - in 1985.
Used it on schoolies, then shareboards, then my TB & the next 3 horses I owned until 2010.
The WB I got then Did.Not.Fit. the saddle. :sleepy:
Still, I kept it & finally donated to a theraputic program this year.
This is what a 30yo saddle looks like:
(even after spending 5yrs sitting in my barn)

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Yes, you will; and IMO it is not dumb at all. It is a joy. I don’t have any suggestions for you about the bridles, but I have bought tack etc. for horses who did not belong to me; and it, and they, brought me joy.

So enjoy! And I hope you find the perfect bridle/s.

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Just wanted to report back that my Eponia bridle arrived and I had a lesson in it yesterday. I love it! Great quality for the price, and it fits by guy really well. He seems softer in the contact in it. And it’s wonderful to be able to bring it home and give it a good clean and condition, because it’s mine. Thank you all for the recommendation and the enabling!

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Wonderful!! But you know… there’s no pictures…?! No fair!!

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I promise to return with one!

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Not really related, but the chestnut horse modeling the figure 8 in the Eponia site, except for the blaze being slightly different, is a dead ringer for my horse, even down to the twinkle in his eye! Weird.

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