Picking a harness

Merry Christmas everybody ! !

Merry Christmas to you too!!

Belated Merry Christmas to you!

Hope everybody had a great Christmas, just a about time to wish a happy new year, too....Anyway that isn't the main subject of my posting . Do you all just depend on the wire stays in the blinders to keep them next to the horse's face ? Or is there some trick I'm missing out on ? So far the new russet bridle hasn't been to bad about it but it's been a problem for me in the past.

The noseband does a lot to keep the blinders next to the horses face w/ no gaps. Also being adjusted correctly so that the blinders are "centered" over the eyes (the crown piece adjustment, not the bit adjustment).

Make sure that the other connector from the blinders to the browband to the crown aren't too tight and pulling the blinders closer to the eyes at the top while making them gap at the bottom, as well.

Thanks paintponylvr ! What you said makes sense already

PintoPalLover said:

Got a few pictures today. Would anyone care to add their two cents on breeching fit ? Does it need to come a little farther onto her body (towards her withers) ?

Click to expand...

[SIZE=10.5pt]It looks close. Your breeching needs to be falling a tad higher, and back strap shortened a bit so that when you have a single strap drop it comes down straight, rather than angling backwards. I think the pic I have will show that you want the breeching hitting the widest part of the thigh so that when braking it can't "sweep them off their feet."[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.5pt] [/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.5pt]Beautiful harness. I have a set of leather show harness that I love, but as you see in the picture, a set of beta harness that I use for my marathon cart in CDE's. I like them both, different horses for different courses. Regarding blinders, may need to stuff your headstall with paper to train the blinders to sit "out" away from the eye. Even with the wire, when stored etc, they tend to want to go flat.[/SIZE]

Thanks for the information Mnmini I know the back strap was too long , we sent in to be shortened a little bit ago and are waiting for it now. Hopefully that will make it easier to get the rest of the breeching fixed up. Thanks for replying !

TICA , did you ever get your harness and cart picked out ? I'd love to hear what you decided on .

PintoPalLover said:

TICA , did you ever get your harness and cart picked out ? I'd love to hear what you decided on .

Click to expand...

Hi there,

Sorry I've been off the site for awhile. I'm trying to decide if I should go ahead and get the carriage harness from Ozark or go cheaper for now and get one for training. Our minis aren't trained for driving. I'd hate to invest in a really nice harness only to have it torn up during the training. I'd appreciate any insights from folks that have trained their minis. I'm settled on a cart (I think). Any insights are welcome

I think some of the harness decision boils down to personal preference, but I will say that if you get a good quality harness it should last through training and still be perfectly fine for use in most places. It helps if you take good care of it , and I'll also add , a good quality harness is easier to take care of. I've been happy with the Ozark harness so far and the customer service there is wonderful !! That being said, I still think if I really enjoy driving a Comfy Fit or such might be in my future. I think the carriage harness from Ozark would probably suit your needs well. I got my first harness through ebay , I believe it was from Frontier Equestrian, but I would have to double check that, it's been through a lot and is still a great harness. Glad you found a cart.

I'd like to point out that most of the driving harnesses for sale are made by the Amish. Dealers like Ozark Mt. and Driving Essentials are not making the harnesses themselves but acting as middlemen and selling them. You can save money by going directly to the actual harness maker yourself. On the flip side, if you don't know exactly what you want you may be better off going to a middleman who can help you figure out what you need and advocate for you with any fit or quality issues.

I've had very good service from Samuel Esh at Center Square Harness Shop in Leola, PA. Yonie of Yonie's Harness Shop in Honeybrook, PA makes very nice synthetic harness. Becky Zimmerman in Ephrata also makes nice harness. For the most part they don't have websites or splashy ads. I live in PA so I have a lot of Amish nearby but most states have Amish enclaves.

jventresca said:

I'd like to point out that most of the driving harnesses for sale are made by the Amish. Dealers like Ozark Mt. and Driving Essentials are not making the harnesses themselves but acting as middlemen and selling them. You can save money by going directly to the actual harness maker yourself. On the flip side, if you don't know exactly what you want you may be better off going to a middleman who can help you figure out what you need and advocate for you with any fit or quality issues.

I've had very good service from Samuel Esh at Center Square Harness Shop in Leola, PA. Yonie of Yonie's Harness Shop in Honeybrook, PA makes very nice synthetic harness. Becky Zimmerman in Ephrata also makes nice harness. For the most part they don't have websites or splashy ads. I live in PA so I have a lot of Amish nearby but most states have Amish enclaves.

Click to expand...

Thank you for the insights! So if I would take harness measurements and tell them things like roller buckles, breeching etc. would that be enough? I am planning on doing country driving in fields etc. and small shows....can you make any recommendations on what all I would need to tell them?

Try to think of every part of the harness and how you'd like it to look. Here's my list:

BRIDLE

Keepers not "boxes" to hold strap ends (throughout harness) It makes your harness look more elegant.

shaped crown piece, no check

cavesson with extra loose keepers

D shaped blinkers

tear drop/ or none

Collar

buckle in traces

shaped breastcollar

turrets on neck strap

what end do you want on your traces: slots for a typical singletree or rings for snap shackles

Saddle more than 2 1/2" wide if you're using a two wheeled cart

tree

open tugs

over girth, not wrapstrap

breeching: with or without trace carriers (trace carriers go on the ring of the breeching, use when your singletree is lower than your shafts)

Reins

all brown, not brown and black

finger loop

Fittings

what color metal: brass or chrome

stainless steel tongues on all buckles

roller buckles where needed (some buckles, ones that are just for adjustment and aren't changed all the time don't need to be roller buckles)

NO CONWAYs

I'd also get extra loose keepers in a few sizes. If you use a check sometimes add a sidecheck and rings for it on the crown piece. French snaps can class it up rather than regular snaps.

I take my saddles back for restuffing once in a while, like after 10 - 15 years. I like to get browbands with a bead of colored leather or a metal decoration.

Samuel is so used to what I like he has a type of harness he calls Jaye's Harness.

Thanks jventresca !!! That's a great list

jventresca that is one awesome list! Thank you so much for your insights and taking the time for us newbies! Is there a certain type of leather I should ask for or do the harness makers know what is needed?

Tica, your question about leather is a tough one. I would try to look at harnesses made by a particular harness maker to determine if I thought his leather was nice. You can ask to see an example of the leather that will be used for your harness. Even the best harness makers can get a bad hide or two. I did return a whole harness to Samuel Esh because I didn't like the feel of the leather. It was very stiff and didn't take oil as well as it should.

Leather is from a hide, which means it has different thicknesses within the same piece. Straps cut from the middle are thicker and tougher than the slices from the edges. Leather can have imperfections in it from injuries to the animal. Black dye can hide these imperfections to a certain degree. That's one reason all natural colored reins are more desirable because any mars can be easily seen.

Harness straps should be sturdy but not overwhelm our little horses. I like the straps to be about 3/16" thick in weight bearing places down to 1/8" on bridle pieces. The "good" side should be firm and glossy; the "wrong" side should be dense without any extra fleshy strings. If it feels like cardboard forget about it!

If you look at very expensive harness you'll hear talk about linen versus nylon thread. The guys that use linen thread are making "museum pieces", expecting their work to last centuries. The Amish will use nylon thread, dependable and strong, able to outlast us. With nylon thread, if you get a loose end sticking out, just use a lighter to burn it and pat down the remains (with a oven mitt!) and it will be neat again.

Once you have a harness maker you like it easy to replace a piece or two if necessary. Leather does wear out over time. I tend to replace breeching straps (hold back straps) and get my saddles restuffed when they get flatter than I like. That said, I've used my harnesses for 15 or more years.

I do love my leather harnesses!

jventresca said:

Tica, your question about leather is a tough one. I would try to look at harnesses made by a particular harness maker to determine if I thought his leather was nice. You can ask to see an example of the leather that will be used for your harness. Even the best harness makers can get a bad hide or two. I did return a whole harness to Samuel Esh because I didn't like the feel of the leather. It was very stiff and didn't take oil as well as it should.

Leather is from a hide, which means it has different thicknesses within the same piece. Straps cut from the middle are thicker and tougher than the slices from the edges. Leather can have imperfections in it from injuries to the animal. Black dye can hide these imperfections to a certain degree. That's one reason all natural colored reins are more desirable because any mars can be easily seen.

Harness straps should be sturdy but not overwhelm our little horses. I like the straps to be about 3/16" thick in weight bearing places down to 1/8" on bridle pieces. The "good" side should be firm and glossy; the "wrong" side should be dense without any extra fleshy strings. If it feels like cardboard forget about it!

If you look at very expensive harness you'll hear talk about linen versus nylon thread. The guys that use linen thread are making "museum pieces", expecting their work to last centuries. The Amish will use nylon thread, dependable and strong, able to outlast us. With nylon thread, if you get a loose end sticking out, just use a lighter to burn it and pat down the remains (with a oven mitt!) and it will be neat again.

Once you have a harness maker you like it easy to replace a piece or two if necessary. Leather does wear out over time. I tend to replace breeching straps (hold back straps) and get my saddles restuffed when they get flatter than I like. That said, I've used my harnesses for 15 or more years.

I do love my leather harness.

Click to expand...

Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge! You have given such great details that are easy to overlook. I really cherish all of your help to this newbie!!

I'm thrilled you're interested in what I can share (and blab, blab, blab on about)! I just hope my ramblings are useful to you.

Keep 'rambling' jventresca !! Your posts always make so much sense