I have narrowed myself down to 3 harnesses

[mydaddysjag]

So, we have been researching for weeks, and I have narrowed myself down to the pleasure harness from Ozark, the leather driving harness from starlake, and the basic leather harness from Estate horse supply.

The ozark and starlake include a breeching, the estate harness does not. The ozark harness can be made as an overcheck or side check, the starlake harness converts from sidecheck and overcheck. The guys at estate said they could make my bridle with slits and loops so I could use a sidecheck or overcheck. I think we are generally going to use a sidecheck, but probably an overcheck in roadster. The estate harness looks well padded, and included the martingale, and has the martingale loop on the breast collar.

So:

Ozark - Has breeching, sidecheck OR overcheck, does not say it is padded, no martingale. $250

Starlake - Has breeching, cheaper without though, sidecheck and overcheck, does not say is padded, no martingale. $240

Estate - Breeching sold seperate, will make so accomidates sidecheck and overcheck, looks well padded (they said it is padded the same as all of the harnesses they sell) includes martingale. $355

Harness will be used for practice at home, as well as local shows. Main concern is comfort for the horse, and having a harness that is well made to last for a while, while still being presentable. I dont plan to be driving on hills, we have both an indoor and outdoor flat sand arena.

Right now Im leaning toward the estate harness, however Im not quite sure because its $100 more than the other harnesses, and does not include breeching. It can be purchased for an additional $79.

Have you used these harnesses, and if so which would you pick?

 

[RebelsHope]

<--- kicking self for not getting breeching. just my two cents.

 

[Royal Crescent]

I have never driven with breeching so I can't speak to that. If you are not on hills, I have been told you don't need it. I have a harness from Star Lake Tack and one from Mini Express. Both are good and I have seen what they have to offer in person at the World show 3 yrs in a row. As with all things, you get what you pay for. One that has a lot that you don't need on it may cost more, but not be a better quality.

Have fun!

Barb

 

[mydaddysjag]

Also,

My driving horse is a silver dapple, so I assumed I should go with silver hardwear. while going through past posts on here I read that you shouldnt show in a harness with silver hardwear, only brass. Is this still true?

 

[susanne]

If you don't have breeching, you will be limited to only show ring driving. I would always want breeching, removing it only if necessary for breed shows.

However, if you really love the Estate harness, you could always buy the breeching separately, since for recreational driving it's not the end of the world if it doesn't match perfectly.

ETA:

I'm sure someone will correct me if I'm wrong here, but as for only brass being correct...that would be true in the most traditional point of view, as with ADS shows, vut then in that world you would never show without breeching. I don't think the breed show world takes such a dim view of stainless hardware, so I'd go with what looks best on your horse.

 

[mydaddysjag]

Does anyone have issues with the ozark or starlake harnesses causing pressure on the spine? The one thing that I am really partial with on the estate harness is the formed padding on the back saddle. This will be my first harness, but when I rode horses I know I would never get a saddle that caused pressure on the spine, but is that different with a harness?

Also, If I order the harness without breeching is there any reason I cant add it at another time?

 

[Echo Acres]

I have 2 harnesses and neither has breeching. If you won't be doing a lot of hills you don't need it. You would not be limited to show ring driving only without it like suggested. I drive all over my farm, down the road and have done trail drives. The one time I used an easy entry cart and we did a lot of hills, could have used breeching then. But I did a trail drive with my show cart one year hills and all and it never needed the breeching.

As far as silver hardware, that is not the case. We have 1 of each. I used the silver on my silver dapple pinto and now I am driving a sorrel and have brass hardware. I have seen both as far as nationals and agree it should be the one that looks the best with your horse. Silver can be polished and shined too.

I can't help you on the 3 harnesses you are looking at because I don't have any of them. Good luck with your shopping. It is fun, but I understand a big decission.

 

[mydaddysjag]

I just found mini exress, and came across thier all patent leather show saddle. No breeching, no martingale, but it a little fancier than the other harnesses. Not sure if it has a padded back saddle or not, I will have to email or call. Has anyone used this harness? Is it sturdy enough to use at home too, or is it really refined? Does anyone know if they can customize the harnesses at all? I would really prefer a bridle than can convert from sidecheck to overcheck, and theirs is one or the other.

I am on a "beginner budget" however I want something that is going to be very comfortable for my horse, im pretty set on leather since it conforms to the horse better, and I want something I dont have to be embarrassed to use at local shows.

 

[rabbitsfizz]

It depends entirely on what you want to do...the skimpy little harnesses without breaching are fine for the show ring, and can be used there without extra padding.

If you are going to drive seriously, and work the horse, as Susanne says, you will need breaching for the horses sake, it is the reason it was invented in the first place!!

You need to take all the strain off the horses middle area, think about it....the horse uses it's rear end as a brake with the breaching, without it it has no real brakes...you would be fine until something bad happened then you would be in real trouble.

I do not drive without breaching...I use it when I work, and when I finally get around to showing Bertie I shall also use it in the ring.

Without any sort of check rein, obviously!

And I would go for as much padding on the harness as I can get, I absolutely loathe those additional fabric harness pads...I don't mind using a small "numnah" type pad if the horse is sweating a lot, but the harness should have enough padding to be able to be used for everyday work without extra padding.

People say the padded harness looks too bulky....get a skimpy harness and stuff fabric padding under it...sorry, makes no sense to me!!

 

[RebelsHope]

Without any sort of check rein, obviously!

I don't understand why no check rein? What is wrong with a properly adjusted check rein?

 

[georgiegirl]

So, we have been researching for weeks, and I have narrowed myself down to the pleasure harness from Ozark, the leather driving harness from starlake, and the basic leather harness from Estate horse supply.The ozark and starlake include a breeching, the estate harness does not. The ozark harness can be made as an overcheck or side check, the starlake harness converts from sidecheck and overcheck. The guys at estate said they could make my bridle with slits and loops so I could use a sidecheck or overcheck. I think we are generally going to use a sidecheck, but probably an overcheck in roadster. The estate harness looks well padded, and included the martingale, and has the martingale loop on the breast collar.

So:

Ozark - Has breeching, sidecheck OR overcheck, does not say it is padded, no martingale. $250

Starlake - Has breeching, cheaper without though, sidecheck and overcheck, does not say is padded, no martingale. $240

Estate - Breeching sold seperate, will make so accomidates sidecheck and overcheck, looks well padded (they said it is padded the same as all of the harnesses they sell) includes martingale. $355

Harness will be used for practice at home, as well as local shows. Main concern is comfort for the horse, and having a harness that is well made to last for a while, while still being presentable. I dont plan to be driving on hills, we have both an indoor and outdoor flat sand arena.

Right now Im leaning toward the estate harness, however Im not quite sure because its $100 more than the other harnesses, and does not include breeching. It can be purchased for an additional $79.

Have you used these harnesses, and if so which would you pick?

Here is another option on harnesses for you. I have one of these.

The leather is nice and heavy, it does come with breeching, and the saddle is padded and fits very well. The price is less that the others you are looking at. Just something else for you to consider.

http://easyentrycart.tripod.com/ronshorsetackcopy/id82.html

 

[Minimor]

I have the Ozark Pleasure harness--I like it just fine, though I like their carriage harness (have 2 of those) better. So, of the 3 you list that one would be my choice.

 

[targetsmom]

I have the Star Lake harness - 3 of them. I bought the first one without breeching and added it later, but to do that I had to have some harness work done. Make sure you get the breeching or tell them you might want it later. I have chrome hardware because all our horses are pintos and I think it looks nicer with them. Have not done any ADS events yet, but do plan to. The saddle is padded but I always use it with one of the fleece pads (in black). The ONE time I didn't use the fleece pad, the first time I drove this spring with lots of hair, Princess bucked. But you have to understand this is Princess and think of the Princess and the pea. I added back the pad and no more problems though.

 

[river]

I have several of the Ozark Harnesses. I also love the Carriage Harness but use the pleasure harness on my day to day driving. The back saddle is padded nicely. If you buy a sidecheck you get the caveson and can always add an overcheck later if you need it. Mose Miller makes all of their leather harness so you know it is great quality. There is also enough patent on the hanress for you to be able to use it as a show harness.

River

 

[ClickMini]

I have the Estate harness, the deluxe version. It is absolutely wonderful, the best harness BY FAR I have for the comfort of the horse. My coach is Patty Cloke, one of the top trainers in the mini driving world and that is the harness that she 100% recommends her clients buy.

I have also purchased the patent harness and two of the show harnesses from Mini Express. I would say they are nice in general, the show harness is beautiful in the ring, but they are not as horse friendly in the saddle area. To me this is a very, VERY important aspect, and I wouldn't use these for general driving.

I recommend you go with the Estate, you will not be sorry.

 

[hobbyhorse23]

Lots to reply to here!

First of all, talk to Lisa at Ozark but I think you'll find the bridle comes with slots for overcheck and rings for sidecheck. It's just part of the price that only one type of check will be included. I could be wrong, but I think that's how it works! I have the Carriage Harness from them and it comes with both types of fittings AND both types of checks.

For pure comfort for training and such I do prefer a softer leather breastcollar like the Ozark harness comes with as the patent breastcollars on the other models are stiffer and less gentle on the skin...especially since in a deep sand arena your horse may be pulling pretty hard! That's another reason to get a good strong harness and avoid something too dainty. But on the other hand you can always lightly pad the breastcollar with sheepskin or something when you're not showing and keep the horse more comfortable that way while still having a very presentable show harness.

If you only wanted a training harness I'd recommend the Ozark Pleasure Harness. If you were only showing I'd point you towards an Estate harness, a Lutke or the Ozark show model. I got myself into a bit of a pickle when I first started out because I got a nice middle-of-the-road harness that would "sort of do" for everything. I could fancy it up a bit for show and take off the breeching and it was almost perfect. I could put the breeching back on and do CDE's and it looked good, but I would have liked a little more padding and a few things changed. It was great for training and parades as it was quite comfortable and functional but looked good if you happened to snap that perfect picture. But eventually I ended up upgrading to a fancy CDE harness and a separate fancy show harness and that left my middle-of-the-road harness sitting around with nothing to do.

I did the same thing with carts and I can tell you, it would have been cheaper to just buy the right things to start with if only I'd had the money at the time!

So because of that and the fact you want to show, I'd say go for the Estate Harness. It's sturdy, better padded in the saddle than the others, very much nice enough for show, and you can always pad the breastcollar a bit to make it more comfortable in heavy work. Also, that way if you do drive without breeching the saddle is wide enough and well-enough padded on its own to prevent some of the discomfort the horse may experience from braking and pushing backwards with the saddle. I would still order breeching to go with it for driving at home because I personally don't like the way most carts roll forward on the horse without it (this is less of an issue in a show cart but you see it a lot with easy entries) but it's up to you. My thinking is that 1) a horse trained with breeching can always drive without it, 2) it keeps the cart from rolling up on the horse and prevents the shafts from possibly slipping through the tugs, and 3) it makes backing and pivoting easier in the sand so your horse doesn't become resistant during training. I understand that many people drive minis on the trails without breeching and do just fine and have in fact done so myself, but it really depends on the fit of your cart and the adjustment of your harness as to how comfortable that's going to be. And too many times I have had something happen that made me SO GRATEFUL I had breeching!

(Picture your horse suddenly diving into the ditch when a dog scares him, etc.) I'd rather have it and take it off than not have it available when I need it.

My driving horse is a silver dapple, so I assumed I should go with silver hardwear. while going through past posts on here I read that you shouldnt show in a harness with silver hardwear, only brass. Is this still true?

There is nothing wrong with stainless steel/silver. It is less traditional for formal carriage work (i.e. ADS shows, etc.) but even there is it accepted. On a silver dapple being used for breed and open shows I would absolutely use stainless. I would in ADS as well, as silver-toned horses don't necessarily look good in brass and the point is to have a lovely turnout. The main thing is that in the wider world of driving stainless steel is often paired with harnesses of lesser quality or marathon harnesses which are meant to be functional, not pretty, so you've got to make sure you've got a nice harness to go with that stainless. It's not a problem with show harness!

Does anyone have issues with the ozark or starlake harnesses causing pressure on the spine? The one thing that I am really partial with on the estate harness is the formed padding on the back saddle. This will be my first harness, but when I rode horses I know I would never get a saddle that caused pressure on the spine, but is that different with a harness?Also, If I order the harness without breeching is there any reason I cant add it at another time?

Good for you for being aware of that! These harnesses all have some sort of padding on the saddle but in my opinion only the Estate Harness is padded enough by itself to be used for more than a few minutes without some sort of additional cushion. I haven't seen the Star Lake harness but I have played with both a Mini Express and the Ozark harnesses and there is no way I would use them without a back pad. Don't get me wrong, I like the Ozark harness very much as a starter unit and it's quite comfortable when padded but I still wouldn't use it bare. The Mini Express harness in my opinion is the least padded and least comfortable of the options you're considering although it's quite attractive and is a nice little harness.

As for adding breeching, the only thing is that there needs to be a slot on the backstrap for the hip strap to run through. You could always buy a new backstrap when you bought the breeching but it's easier just to tell them now that you're going to want breeching later and make sure they include that little slot.

Leia

 

[ClickMini]

Another thing to note about the Estate harness. It is the ONLY show harness I have seen that has a rigid tree. It truly gives spine relief. I still use a thin pad with it, but it is truly a great harness.

 

[hobbyhorse23]

The Ozark show harness has a rigid tree too, but the saddle is much thinner and narrower and has less padding. The Pleasure harness and Carriage harness from Ozark do not have a tree as far as I know.

Leia

 

[mydaddysjag]

I measured Domingo today for his harness, but looking at the measurements I'm wondering if I somehow measured wrong. The numbers seem huge. I measured for the back saddle about my hands width behind his armpit, is that too far back?

I got:

corner of mouth, over poll, to corner of mouth: 31.5'

Poll to where waterhook would be:21'

saddle to top of tail 31"

Girth 45"