For those of you who show in western pleasure, what kind of bit do you use?
I ask because I currently have this bit but I’m looking for something more sensitive in the mouth that will allow me greater control with less action.
http://www.statelinetack.com/item/weaver-ss-medium-port-copper-mouth-curb-bit/E011027/
[QUOTE=huntseat3;8174977]
I ask because I currently have this bit but I’m looking for something more sensitive in the mouth that will allow me greater control with less action.
http://www.statelinetack.com/item/weaver-ss-medium-port-copper-mouth-curb-bit/E011027/[/QUOTE]
Since you are showing, I expect your trainer would be who you need to ask that kind of question.
I wonder if you mean, you want more of a “signal” bit than “control” bit?
If so, try one with hinged sides, that are “noisier” to a horse.
I guess it would be helpful to know what exact things you are looking for for your horse.
Is your horse finished? Or still in training?
Is there something specific your horse needs?
And… just to add … that COTH seems to not be much of a fan of Western Pleasure (as far as what I have seen), so just don’t be surprised if you get a few derogatory comments.
For the one, I have him in an OLD California pleasure curb. Has some swivel on the sides, but a solid port. He’s mostly finished.
The other I am still training and he’s in a Bob Avila square port correction. Both the boys seem to happier and more responsive in bits I can wiggle a little (if that makes sense).
I have one showing in a C-port fixed shank http://www.sstack.com/Billy-Royal-Silver-Show-Bits/Billy-Royal-Sterling-Silver-Overlay-Show-Bit-Cheek-C-Mouth-2/ This horse is very finished.
I have a student showing one of mine in a Myler square correction: https://www.valleyvet.com/ct_detail.html?pgguid=91ba1955-2d7d-4dbf-b462-766b0dfca1e9 This horse has a pannic button in a fixed bit and needs something that moves. We’ve worked up to this bit - it’s one we’ll use for the show season and then drop him back in the off season to my favorite all around bit for the vast majority of my horses: http://www.sstack.com/western_bitscurbs_mullenlow-port/fes-bit-western-swivel-712-loose-flat-cheek/ (I also have shorter-shank versions I use just as often)
I find that bits with moving parts help relax the jaw. I do have some horses that prefer a fixed shank. Once well-schooled, many don’t care either way. I typically like something with tongue relief (as with my favorite bit), at least until the horse really understands and is comfortable with the curb. Then I can move up to something that has some tongue pressure.
[QUOTE=Bluey;8175167]
Since you are showing, I expect your trainer would be who you need to ask that kind of question.
I wonder if you mean, you want more of a “signal” bit than “control” bit?
If so, try one with hinged sides, that are “noisier” to a horse.[/QUOTE]
Yes, what I meant was not physical control.
[QUOTE=beau159;8175206]
I guess it would be helpful to know what exact things you are looking for for your horse.
Is your horse finished? Or still in training?
Is there something specific your horse needs?
And… just to add … that COTH seems to not be much of a fan of Western Pleasure (as far as what I have seen), so just don’t be surprised if you get a few derogatory comments.[/QUOTE]
He’s 11…in training as in I’m always putting finishing touches on him.
What would be a good starting place? There’s so much out there.
So much depends on what exactly you want and also what your horse likes. I have two that we show in a Bob Avilia Correction bit, it seems to help them stay soft and to relax their neck. Same bit, different horse, the hate is obvious. He goes best in a Jr. Cowhorse.
Not what you want to hear but usually to find the right bit you have to buy a lot of bits.
[QUOTE=huntseat3;8177685]
What would be a good starting place? There’s so much out there.[/QUOTE]
Well, I guess what have you tried so far?
That might help narrow it down.
The Schneider’s bit I posted above (Myler knockoff) is my starting point 
I own 3 (same mouth different shanks) and they all get used a lot. It’s the bit I put most of my students in when they start their horses in the bridle.
I have this bit for Izzy.
She is in no way a finished WP horse, although she neck reins well. I really just needed something to help her carry her neck longer (she tends to want to hold it up and in like a saddleseat horse). This bit seems to give me the tools needed to encourage the longer neck, but doesn’t make her overly backed off when things go wrong.
For her, the unjointed worked to help her hold her head straighter. In the double jointed jr cowhorse I first used, she would tilt her head.
Just wanted to add: when I judge, the “finished” horses tend to be in spades, with one very nice horse going in a Cathedral. These are horses that don’t need corrections from their riders though. At the Arabian shows, I see a fair number of reverse ports to encourage the horse to be over bent.
I rode a very successful WP mare in a whoa maker 
Her tongue had been almost severed by a former trainer who tied her back with a twisted wire snaffle (roll eyes) and left her to soak.
Nice mare- but the only bit she could tolerate was the whoa maker.
The Myler square correction may be a good place to start- your bit has those swept back grazing shanks and it takes a week to get a horse’s attention in those. Be very careful and kind with a big change in shank and angle- he’ll feel you think about sneezing in that myler. If you can handle it, it’s something to consider.
[QUOTE=beau159;8178098]
Well, I guess what have you tried so far?
That might help narrow it down.[/QUOTE]
Nothing. It’s hard to find 5 1/2"
You have to buy a lot of bits to try, or borrow. It’s an unwritten rule. : )
Many pleasure horses today show in very expensive headstalls, cheap bits, with cheap reins. Who knows why?
Some styles to try would be correction mouthpieces with various shanks, then some mullen mouth pieces, again different shanks, maybe even a snaffle mouth. Different kinds of ported mouthpieces, even some weird high ones… sometimes it’s surprising what seems to be comfortable to a horse. Really knowledgeable horsemen can look inside a horse’s mouth and make an educated guess based on mouth conformation (thick tongue, flatter roof of the mouth, etc.) but that’s kind of horse whisperer territory. Easier to just ask the horse… by trying several!
Check what your breed or club has to say about bits… but having a few to try is fun because sometimes, your horse will tell you “Aha! I like this one!” in the midst of bit-trying-out.
Notice how the bit is made: does the mouthpiece sit closer to the top (headstall) rings, or is it more equidistant, like the one in your first photo? They all work a little bit differently, in the way they sit in the horse’s mouth, and the way they engage the mouth, lips, tongue, and even poll when you pick up the reins.
This little booklet has good information for a few dollars:
http://shop.westernhorseman.com/index.php?p=product&id=84
My gelding goes well in a Myler 5" shank, #33 mouthpiece. It is a pretty mild bit with a lot of tongue relief. Like PeanutButterPony, my boy’s tongue was also mostly severed by some fool long before i got him. It is cut almost all of the way through all the way across and cut through about halfway across. It looks awful, but truly doesn’t seem to be much of an issue with him. I am careful, however, with my hands and with my choice of bit.
I have some ideas of what I would try now, but I cannot find 5 1/2" mouthpieces.
Last year for hunt seat I switched him from a French link snaffle to a kinberwicke, and he now carries his head much nicer. He does better with that extra leverage. Might be similar for western too.
I cannot find 5 1/2" mouthpieces, is the problem.
Not my experience. Most stock horses show in custom Maheu bits with Harris reins, and most arabians show in custom Principe bits with $800 romels.
