Harwich Eventer Bridle by SmartPak
4.8
5
31
33
Gorgeous bridle
I bought this bridle at Rolex. I'm. In. Love. Such quality for such a reasonable price. I had been shopping around for a while and chose this bridle over some other expensive brands and am very glad I did so!
May 17, 2013
Great Bridle for the Price!
I bought this bridle because of the removable flash, such a great feature! The leather is high quality, definitely can't be beat for the price. The bridle is inexpensive enough for an everyday schooling bridle, yet nice enough for shows as well. I've had mine almost 9 months, and it is holding up beautifully. I'd recommend oiling it up before using, as the keepers were very tight to start out with. I ordered the O/S, and I'd say the bridle runs on the large size, as it is a little big for my very large headed horse.
April 29, 2013
very nice bridle
I ordered this bridle but ended up returning as I didn't really NEED a new bridle at the time, had buyers remorse, and returned. Am back in bridle shopping mode though and this one is definitely on my short list! Seems like a great value!!
March 18, 2013
My FAVORITE Piece of Tack!!!
I ordered this bridle and the Harwich Padded Fancy Stitch Bridle at the same time because they looked so good on the web that I couldn't choose which one to buy, but in the end I went with this one!
First of all, I think that the leather quality on this bridle is absolutely phenomenal; it's so soft and supple and I would be willing to pay $200+ for such leather quality on an unpadded bridle (if I had the $$), but $150 for a fully padded one? Impossible! Then, the rich, deep color is droolworthy - even my mom loved it! And the contrast stitching? Makes for a very, very fancy bridle! My trainer commented on it the moment she saw it and couldn't get over how nice it was! Then, the padding is fantastic. Every padded part is so soft and I have no fear of rubs! Plus, I LOVE the fact that the crown is padded, but not monocrown - I sometimes like to take the noseband off of my bridle and ride in a simple bosal-type hackamore that attaches to the cheek straps, and that would be very difficult/unattractive with a monocrown bridle! I'm definitely going to take good care of this bridle in case the monocrowns take over so I'll still have that option! Additionally, the rubber reins were SO soft, yet grippy at the same time! Normally when I ride with rubber reins they bite right through my hands, but these are "squishier," which also helps improve the grip - my reins didn't slip even with my thick winter sports gloves that aren't made for riding! Plus I love the detachable flash - I only use flashes when I ride in loose rings to keep the rings from slipping through the horse's mouth, so it's great that I don't need an empty loop on my noseband when I'm not using the flash!
With all that said, I would maybe add a few things to this bridle:
1) A padded chin on the noseband. I was kind of surprised with all of the great workmanship that the noseband was plain.
2) The throatlatch is way, WAY long! This bridle fit my 14hh pony with holes to spare on everything except for the throatlatch, which was so big that it sagged all the way down to her noseband unless there was a knot in it! I'm taking it to my local cobbler to shorten, but I found that pretty bizarre.
3) Maybe have a fancy stitch option? I know that makes it sound too much like the other bridle, but comparing the two bridles I would prefer this exact one fancy stitched than that one in this color!
4) As someone else said, maybe have a laced rein option? I'm almost glad it doesn't because I probably wouldn't have gone with the rubber reins (which I'm now in love with and will probably only switch out if I absolutely must because of a rated hunter show or something), but I understand that some people would prefer laced reins.
But overall, the best piece of tack I've ever bought! I have three bridles (one that I bought for $215!!) and this one's leaps and bounds above them both! Thank you SmartPak for offering this lovely bridle, and anyone who's ever considered purchasing it - do it now, you won't regret it!
December 1, 2012
Unbeatable!
I planned on spending around $300 for my next bridle, but when I read all the reviews on this bridle I though I'd give it a shot (hey, free return shipping!). The quality is phenomenal, and not just for this price range. It was soft and supple right out of the box. It fits my horse great and looks awesome. Another great buy from smartpak
August 22, 2012
nice bridle
Very nice bridle, leather is soft right out of the bag. One thing I do not like, and did not like when ordering, is that the only reins available are the rubber ones. I wish Smartpak offered web or rubberized web reins that matched and were in the same price category.
August 14, 2012