First Time Harness Buyer's Guide

Tune into Season 1, Episode 20
First Time Harness Buyer's Guide

In this episode of the Brabant Bulletin podcast host, Joe Worley, provides helpful tips to the first-time harness buyer.

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Transcript

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Hello Vermonters. I'm Joe Worley, your podcast host. And today I'm going to cover harness shopping. What types are on the market, what to look for, what to avoid, and what you can expect to pay. Let's get started. is the Brabant Bulletin brought to you by the European Brabant Registry of America, where people, passion and preservation are our mission. Many European Brabant owners who are working their horse and harness are well versed in the myriad of styles and types on the market and have their horses fitted and kitted by now. For those who are new to the breed or harness work or both. Harness shopping and selection can be daunting. Full disclosure I'm no harness expert. My friends at the EBRA put together this no frills fundamental podcast to help simplify your first time harness selection process. Purchasing a harness for your horse can be overwhelming, especially when you don't know what to look for or how much to pay for it. So let's start with the materials. So, do you want nylon, leather, or synthetic harness? Nylon harnesses are virtually incomparable to leather and other synthetic harnesses. Typical nylon harnesses tend to be cheaper and construction more likely to wear quicker than good leather or synthetic and be more apt to rub the horse. So we're just going to skim, ride over nylon and focus on leather and other synthetic harness options. Leather is the most traditional harness making material that's valued in the show ring, especially at upper level competitions. Most leather harnesses can be upgraded with raised or rolled leather and double stitching embellishments, too, for a little pizzazz. I like pizzazz. One of the benefits of a leather harness is longevity. With proper care and condition, it'll last you indefinitely. Plus, most scratches can be buffed out or concealed with leather dye. But the downside of leather is that it needs to be conditioned regularly, and it's generally more expensive than synthetic harnesses. Speaking of synthetics, when people talk about synthetic harnesses, many of them refer to that harness as being BioThane. Many people also have opinions as to BioThane being better than leather, BioThane being stiff in the winter, BioThane being shiny, etc.. Sometimes people use the term Beta or Beta. They think that Beta is a matte material that's softer and more desirable than BioThane. Just for clarity here, dear Brabanters, not all synthetic harnesses are BioThane or Beta, but all BioThane harnesses are synthetic. Confused. Me too. Thankfully, I've got a script in front of me that explains it. So let me try to clear things up using that. The first BioThane products used for making horseback had a shiny finish and were referred to as BioThane. Eventually, a matte finish version was introduced and was called Beta. Over time, BioThane became the leader in synthetic materials and the brand name became generalized, much like Kleenex for face tissues, a Xerox for paper copies and Band-Aids for adhesive bandages. Essentially, the brand became synonymous with all synthetic materials. But beware, there are more synthetic manufacturers out there than just BioThane that you need to be aware of and what you're getting buying when harness shopping. Not all harness makers use BioThane, and not all synthetic materials are equal. Some brands are more rubbery, plasticky, stiffer, flimsier. And don't forget, Beta is a BioThane product. BioThane can be shiny or matte as well as stiff or soft. Whether you choose leather or synthetic, be sure to pay attention to how it's constructed. Craftsmanship is everything. There should be no sharp edges, prickly stitches, or flat strapping. A good harness should be rolled material where the weight bearing areas of the harness sit against the horse. The comfort of your horse should be considered when shopping for harnesses. A good harness should be constructed with adequate built in padding. And even though harness pads can be added in, a well-built harness should require much extra padding at all. So now let's talk about harness saddles. Most harnesses are made with saddles that concentrate pressure over the back of the horse. There are now some new styles of saddles that distribute the weight of the vehicle over a greater surface area on the horse's back and down their sides. For those of you who plan to drive a two wheeled vehicle, this is very important. Many cheap harnesses have saddles that do not have a tree or any structure for support, and the saddles often sit directly on the spine with no goal clearance. Some synthetic harness saddles like those found on many marathon style harnesses do not have trees, but still provide gulletted spine clearance with built in padding. Now let's talk about breast pull style harnesses. The breast collar style also referred to as the pleasure or buggy type harness has a broad strap that runs across the horse's breast. It's best suited for cart and or buggy pleasure driving and some light draft work. A marathon style breast color has a contoured U or V-shape. I think if you turn that upside down and made a W, it might work on camels too. But that's a different podcast. The traditional straight line breast collars can lay across the windpipe, cutting off the horse's air while a gentle U-shape or deep V-shaped breast collar dips in the center and provides room for the horse to breathe. Also, when fitted to clear the windpipe, the straight line breast collar sits across the shoulder and restricts the horse's movement, while the you and V-shaped breast collar allows freer movement. Some breast colors are narrow for either a more refined look for the show ring or to fit in between the windpipe and the point of the shoulder. The more narrow the breast collar, the less surface for the horse to push into. A narrow bearing surface can be tolerable when pulling very light loads, but can be uncomfortable and even painful when pulling heavier vehicles and passengers. So when you're shopping, be on the lookout for wider breast collars with a deep U. Or V-shape that provides your horse breathing room., free shoulder movement, and maximum surface area for pushing. An entry level synthetic straight line breast collar harness can run as low as$400 for a quality V-shaped breast collar harness with all the bells and whistles. You can spend 1200 dollars or more. Again, you do get what you pay for. Most higher end harnesses will be made with the best materials or by the hands of knowledgeable craftsmanship with the horses, comfort and driver safety in mind. Ever wonder if you're pronouncing Brabant, Brabant, Brabant, Brabant! Build balderdash. Right. Me too. Hi, it's Joe here. And I'm here to tell you that no matter how you say it, the Brabant is the best horse on the planet. To learn more about this incredible draft horse breed, visit EuropeanBrababant.com, and be sure to subscribe to our newsletter while you're there. Again, that's EuropeanBrabant.com. And now back to the show. BOP, bop, pow. Now let's dive a little deeper into the various parts of the breast pull harness and what you should be looking out for when shopping for one. Cheaper harnesses have single neck and hip straps that do not provide the breast collar or breaching the support it needs. Often those single straps lead to sagging breast collars and breaching that shift out of place. A good quality breast pull harness will have split straps with two points of connection on the breast collar and the breaching that provides better support and keeps them in proper position. Now the bridle, which is arguably the most important part of the harness and therefore should fit correctly and be comfortable for the horse. An ill fitting uncomfortable bridle was akin to a lousy fitting hat or shoes. Blinkers or blinders should have structural stays that keep the blinkers off the horse's eyes. A lot of cheap harness bridles close in on the horse's eyes, making it very uncomfortable for the horse and unsafe for the driver. Other bridle features can be included to provide more comfort for your horse. A shaped crown can fit more comfortably around the horse's ears. A double buckle nose band with a padded jaw strap avoids the single buckle, digging into the jawbones. A rolled throat latch has a smooth feel that lays comfortably in the throat of the horse. There are other safety and convenient features to consider in a harness. Do regular tongued buckles are superior to Conway buckles for harness construction. Conway buckles are very inexpensive to use in the construction of the harness. However, not only are they difficult to adjust, they are also virtually impossible to release in an emergency. Regular tongued buckles are much easier to adjust and much safer to use. If you're going to buy a breast pull style harness, be sure to shop for the type where the traces buckle into the breast collar. This kind allows greater adjustment of the traces as opposed to the kind where the traces are sewn into the breast collar. More importantly, the buckle traces provide another way to get a downed horse out of the vehicle quickly by buckling the trace at the breast collar, you can avoid the thrashing hind legs of the horse in distress. Seek out a harness that has open tugs with an over girth to hold the shafts from flipping up and allow the vehicle shafts to rest lightly in the tugs. Some harnesses have wrap straps instead which transfer vehicle motion to the horse. Functional? Yes. Ideal. Maybe not. Be sure to keep in mind what type of vehicle you'll be hitching to when selecting your harness. If you use both traditional and marathon vehicles, dual ended traces are able to be used with both a regular slot or hook and single tree, as well as with quick release snap shackles on a marathon type single tree. Now, for those of you who want to do some heavier pulling, you'll want the collar and hames style harness. It's a great all purpose harness that will help your horse draft heavier loads, plow fields and pull a range of vehicles, a well-made entry level collar and hames single draft harness made with synthetic materials or run $650 or more. New plus the collar for somewhere between 250 to 400. And that sold separately and a set of driving line for around 60 bucks and some hold back straps for roughly $30. You add in a 64 ounce quick trip, Big Gulp. You're spending real money there. And that's sold separately too. And if you want to hitch to a pleasure vehicle, you'll need to buy a set of shaft loops for your cart. Now run you $65. And that's also sold separately. Now, if you want a fancy parade harness with all the bobbles, you can expect to pay upwards of $3,000 for just one harness. So let's pause a moment, talk about collars. You'll have to pick a collar based off the shape of your horse's neck. There are three main shapes. The full face type is more padded and best suited for juvenile draft horses with narrow still growing necks who are just beginning ground harness training. Then there's the Half Sweeney, which fits the most draft mares and geldings with thick but not too cresty necks. And finally, the full Sweeney, which is geared towards the heavily crested stallions and beefy necked horses. There is also the Sweeney Todd, a show on Broadway and an award winning movie starring Johnny Depp. For the first time harness buyers out there. Think about what you want to accomplish with your horse. Do you want to hitch them to a buggy and trot on down the road? If that's the case, a simple, well-made breast collar style harness will do you just fine. If you want to do pleasure driving and dabble around with a fore cart and implements. Then you're better off just investing in a solid color and a hames style harness as you prepare to buy your harness. Remember that size and fitting is important. The harness must fit the horse correctly, or it could cause discomfort, rubbing or even injury. Likewise, the size of the harness will depend on the horse's weight and height. If you're uncertain about measurements, ask your horse. Most vendors also have a sizing guide before adding that seemingly fancy harness to your shopping cart. Remember that bling on a harness does not make it better. There are plenty of cheaply made harnesses with fancy baubles. Always choose a well-made, plain harness over a cheaply made, fancy one. Quality materials and construction should always be selected over all else before you click that buy button. Also, remember that a bad harness can cause major discomfort for your horse, and in a worst case scenario, may lead to an accident. At the risk of sounding dramatic, I'll say this You may save a buck at a checkout on that cheap harness, but you may pay for that bargain with your life. So why take any chances? If you're not sure whether the harness you want to buy is good or not, jump on the EBRA Forum and ask your fellow Brabanters.. After all, we're a community that's here to help each other. All right Brabanters we want to see you and your horses all hitched up and driving around. So be sure to send your photos and videos to info@europeanbrabant.com. And if you haven't already subscribed to the Brabant bulletin, be sure to do that now. I'll be back again soon. Until then, don't forget that to ride a Brabant is to fly without wings.