# Bridles & Reins tack?



## starbuster (Jul 10, 2019)

I believe that's the site for Royal Sports, and that their tack is Indian-made. I've never owned any of it and don't have any experience with it, but I've heard very mixed things. Some people love it and say it's good quality for the price, and others say it's cheap and of poor quality. From pictures of used tack of theirs I've found online, it looks to be "meh" to me, probably on par with HDR's bridles (which to me, are one of the lower quality options of their price range; I find most of them to be pretty plasticky and crack easily, though I've seen a few older ones and even the rare newer one in the mix that are actually okay). It doesn't appear to be total bottom of the barrel $19.99 junk, but it's not very nice, either.

I imagine that like HDR, it's probably hit or miss. If I recall correctly, don't they have different leather options? I think I remember a discussion on either this forum or another where there were options for high quality Indian leather, lower quality Indian leather, and maybe even some sort of a European leather option. Perhaps some of your better wearing pieces are made of one of the higher quality leather options?

They do have some cool color combinations and designs. However, I personally tend to prefer higher leather quality and craftsmanship over bling these days (though I used to be all about the bling and loud colors!). I think for that price point, you could get a much higher quality used bridle, even if it's more plain or out of style. 

I personally LOVE to shop used, as you can get some really nice quality stuff for a great price. For new, my favorite options are the Harmohn Kraft lines like Americana and Aramas, Ovation, Exselle (this is an excellent value if you can find it), Edgewood, New Cavalry, and Hadfield's. Hadfield's and Bennett's Hunter Fine Bridles are both extremely expensive, but excellent quality products (Bennett's is made by the son of Jim Wiebe, who made the famous Jimmy's tack). I really love Edgewood and New Cavalry just as much, though they're probably about half of the price of Hadfield's/Bennett's. Exselle is what used to be Crosby back when it was good, and it lasts forever and wears like iron. Ovation is pretty much what the older Collegiate stuff was when it was still a great value and a very solid mid-range option, and I think it's a great mid-range option, as are the higher end HK lines (as well as the higher end Dover and SmartPak bridles they make).

There's a new company called Huntley that's supposed to make a really nice product for the price, out of Sedgwick leather. State Line Tack had the bridles for a steal, but they're currently sold out of all but the pony sizes, I believe. 

There is also EquuSport, Horse|Man from Valencia Sport Saddlery, Legacy from the Country Saddler (not to be confused with Legacy from Intrepid International), Ann K Hubbard's, etc. that are all quite pricey, but supposed to be extremely nice. Some are custom as well.

I've heard that Beval has gone downhill, sadly, and I'm also personally not a fan of the French brands, as anything that soft and floppy brand new tends to wear out and fall apart faster. There are also a lot of them that just don't seem high quality to me at all and almost seem to have the painted on finish found on much cheaper tack. Not many of the mid to low range options impress me very much, either.

Sorry for the book, but I hope this helps!


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## starbuster (Jul 10, 2019)

Also, with used tack, you have a lot of options for quality brands: all of the ones I listed, plus older Beval stuff (made in England), discontinued stuff like Jimmy's, Crosby (also the made in England stuff, not the later stuff that was junky), Somerset, Miller's Collegiate, Blue Ribbon, Whitman/Campbell, the older English made Crump stuff, Courbette/Lemetex, Triumph, etc.

Also, Jeffries, Moritz, and Equitana still make great products, but are much harder to find. 

Stübben is another great brand, though not really trendy at the moment. Their stuff lasts forever, though!


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## starbuster (Jul 10, 2019)

Another good lower priced brand you could try is Tory. I believe there at least used to be (not sure if there still is) a bridle with colored padding, but I believe it only may have been available in one or two colors. 

Perri's is supposed to make nice options with several color options!


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