Full Leather Loose Ring with Straight Bar

Suitable for horses that:

• Have not accepted anything else that has been tried

• Will not take a metal mouthpiece at all

• Become anxious or tense as soon as the bit goes in

• Have an unknown mouth history and are being restarted

• Lean on the hand and need a bit that will not stay still for them

How it works

Mouthpiece.An unjointed bar at 18mm, the widest bearing surface in the range. With no joint there is nothing to close on the bars, nothing to rise towards the palate and nothing to pinch at the lips, and rein pressure is spread across the full width of the tongue rather than concentrated at any one point. A stainless steel wire core runs through the whole length, so the bar is not rigid. Under contact it takes a shallow curve and follows the shape of the tongue rather than bridging across it the way a solid mullen does.

Cheek piece. The bit rings run through the mouthpiece rather than being fixed to it, so the mouthpiece can move and the horse can carry the bit slightly higher or lower in the mouth. Pressure comes off the moment the rein is given and the bit returns to a neutral position. Loose rings suit a horse that is stiff or hard in the hand, because there is no fixed surface to set against.

8252

Material. Built in layers over a 2mm stainless steel wire core. The core is sleeved in nylon webbing, built up with a suede layer that also carries over the cheek bushings, then wrapped in 1mm bark tanned leather and hand stitched with the seam running along the front, away from the tongue. The nylon sleeve means the horse never meets bare wire, and taking the suede across the bushings removes any hard junction where the mouthpiece meets the cheek. Leather carries no metal taste and does not draw heat from the mouth, and saliva softens it until the bar takes the shape of that individual mouth and holds it. Colour comes from vegetable oil and deepens with use. Cheeks are stainless steel.

Allow 2 to 5mm clearance at each side so the ring can rotate. An unjointed mouthpiece does not draw up under contact, so the width you measure is the width you need. At 18mm the bar is tall as well as wide, so check there is room between the upper and lower bars when the mouth is closed. Leather does not slide across the lips the way polished steel does, so do not fit tight.

Size and fit

4.5"

4.75"

5"

5.25"

5.5"

6"

115 mm

120 mm

125 mm

135 mm

140 mm

150 mm

Mouthpiece

18 mm

18 mm

18 mm

18 mm

18 mm

18 mm

Core

2 mm wire

2 mm wire

2 mm wire

2 mm wire

2 mm wire

2 mm wire

Ring

65 mm

65 mm

70 mm

70 mm

70 mm

70 mm

Wipe dry after every use. Treat with a food safe oil if the leather dries out. Do not soak, do not store wet, and do not leave the bit on a horse standing or travelling in the bridle. The covering moulds to one mouth, so keep the bit to one horse.