the "Wonder Bit"

[Hey Mickey]

Tell me about it.
I'm looking to downgrade from the 3 ring.
I jump at home in a snaffle 90% of the time these days.

[vineyridge]

Which "Wonder Bit"? The waterford baucher or the Western one? :)

[Bobthehorse]

The Beval, right? The snaffle with fixed rein and cheek?

I love it. Elevator (3 ring, on the first leverage ring) was too much for my horse. Just with the rein on the snaffle ring was too little. I find the Beval to be quite soft, but with just that little extra gag.

[Snapdragon]

I know which bit you're talking about, also called the dream bit.

Tried my girl in a Pessoa, or bubble bit, and she was not happy. Wonder bit did the trick, and seems to be somewhere between a snaffle and a Pessoa. Gave me just the little bit (ha, ha) more that I needed but didn't seem to get in my horse's way. You can configure your reins and cheek pieces in different ways to get the effect you want.

Here's a pic on the bottom left:

http://www.bitofbritain.com/SearchResults.asp?Search=wonder+bit

[FLeckenAwesome]

hmmm. i like this one.... though i've been calling it a miracle bit :)

http://www.vtosaddlery.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=VTO&Product_Code=CRLRGB&Category_Code=BITS

and i gotta tell you... it is a miracle!!! i LOVE it! and fleck seems to really like it too! helps me get him much more bouncy and up and packaged without having to haul on him like i felt like i had to do with my myler low ported comfort snaffle with hooks :)

and... this one is cheaper ;)

not sure which bit you mean though...... but i gotta give props for this one :)

[Snapdragon]

FA, yes, that's the one! Wonder, Dream, Miracle--good marketing! But, by whichever name, really is Fabulous for my one beastie!

[luise]

I use this one for stadium and XC: http://www.vtosaddlery.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=VTO&Product_Code=KJBLRB&Category_Code=GAG
Used to use a 3 ring elevator, but it curled up my horse too much. Trainer suggested I try this bit and we've been using it since. The $20 Korsteel bit (the one I have) is thinner than the pricier one.

[FLeckenAwesome]

yes, i love it :) and... you can just put the reins through the big ring and...instant snaffle :)

[riva1]

sorry to hijack this thread - but now you've peaked my interest in the 'miracle' bit. I have my horse going in a happy mouth double jointed loose ring for jumping, and he is quite happy. He has a very soft mouth. For my dressage briddle, I have been using a myler double jointed full cheek, or an eggbutt. But, he gets a little heavy in those. At my last competition, I just switched my happy mouth. So, with that being said, I want a second bit that he likes. Switching bits is a PITA....
This miracle bit being described as: "helps me get him much more bouncy and up and packaged" :yes:
Now, that sounds appealing!!! I'm thinking this would be a nice second option. Do you simply put the cheek pieces through the top rings, and your reins through the big rings?

[Speedy]

sorry to hijack this thread - but now you've peaked my interest in the 'miracle' bit. I have my horse going in a happy mouth double jointed loose ring for jumping, and he is quite happy. He has a very soft mouth. For my dressage briddle, I have been using a myler double jointed full cheek, or an eggbutt. But, he gets a little heavy in those. At my last competition, I just switched my happy mouth. So, with that being said, I want a second bit that he likes. Switching bits is a PITA....
This miracle bit being described as: "helps me get him much more bouncy and up and packaged" :yes:
Now, that sounds appealing!!! I'm thinking this would be a nice second option. Do you simply put the cheek pieces through the top rings, and your reins through the big rings?

Not legal for dressage.

[beeblebrox]

I saw someone posted this bit.

Stübben Golden Cheeks Wonder Bit.
http://www.bitofbritain.com/St_bben_Golden_Cheeks_Wonder_Bit_p/381.htm

Both this version above and the one without the fixed rings can rub horses, like think bloody rubs. The edges to do not seem sharp and I in fact use one on a horse in my barn but some horses who have looser softer skin or riders who sea saw a bit (hell it could happen to anyone on a stronger horse on XC).
Lastly even the plain loose ring in this line is NOT LEGAL for dressage.

As for the wonder bit, to many anything mouth piece with the fixed rings. IT is a nice little something extra but no miracle or wonder. These types of bits have been out for 50 years in the western world.

[FLeckenAwesome]

oops, sorry!

i meant that you could put the reins through the big loop instead of the little loop for stadium or XC if you didn't need that little extra bit, but yeah.... not legal for dressage. sorry!

i do like it though...now granted, i'm sure most of the "up, bouncy, and packaged" probably has to do with how i was riding and exercises to encourage that, but.... the bit sure as heck did make it alot easier! and... as much as i thought i loved my myler.... i really like this one so much better!

[betsyk]

A couple people at our barn use them for jumping. I like the idea that you have only a fixed range on the gag action, determined by the size of the rings. Big ring = more gag, smaller ring = less gag, so look around a little before you buy one to see what size rings you want. The guy who hated the Pessoa does ok in this bit and his owner feels like she can say "hey you" without pulling his teeth out.

[deltawave]

I have one and like it OK for Bonnie, who can pull DOWN like crazy and get all crumpled up on her forehand. Definitely improving with time, but this is default mode if she's too fresh or too tired. Somewhere in the middle of any given ride, she's a snaffle horse! :lol:

My problem with many bits is they pinch the corners of her lips. She is a 5.25" mouth now that she's grown up, so the 5" Wonder Bit I have was pinching her. Bit guards helped but made it tighter.

She's now going in a Myler combination bit (with bit guards--it pinches, too) and it's great--hate, hate, hate the look of it but love how I can just gently touch her and get her to lighten and re-balance. She's happy in it and the worst I can do to punish her if I make a mistake with my hands is squeeze her nose. :)

I ordered a Stubben "wing" bit in the "wonder" style about 8 weeks ago from VTO and still haven't seen it. :(

[Hey Mickey]

Thank you everyone! I think I'm going to give it a try! The one fleck posted was what i was looking for, and its cheaper than I've seen them! yay!

[luise]

I saw someone posted this bit.

Stübben Golden Cheeks Wonder Bit.
http://www.bitofbritain.com/St_bben_Golden_Cheeks_Wonder_Bit_p/381.htm

Both this version above and the one without the fixed rings can rub horses, like think bloody rubs. The edges to do not seem sharp and I in fact use one on a horse in my barn but some horses who have looser softer skin or riders who sea saw a bit (hell it could happen to anyone on a stronger horse on XC).
Lastly even the plain loose ring in this line is NOT LEGAL for dressage.

As for the wonder bit, to many anything mouth piece with the fixed rings. IT is a nice little something extra but no miracle or wonder. These types of bits have been out for 50 years in the western world.

Any loose ring can rub a horse. That's why I have bit guards on mine. And the Stubben golden cheeks bit, the regular snaffle, is legal for dressage. I e-mailed Sharon at USEA about it this past spring with a link to the Stubben bit and she said it was legal.
I put both the cheek pieces and the reins in the fixed loops. It gives me a little bit of leverage, but not so much that it curls my horse up.

[asterix]

I agree with Luise. I use the wonder bit, with cheek pieces and reins in the loop, for my prelim horse (see my pics in sig under "big man") -- he is not rude at all but he IS very, very big, and when he gets rolling at even Training speed it can be more than my fairly small frame can manage to repackage him down hill to the coffin. :eek:
The wonder bit gives me the extra oomph I need without backing him off or making him curl. I have never had any trouble with rubbing (but he also goes in a loose ring for dressage with no rubs) -- this is an individual horse thing, not a flaw in the bit.

[Sandy M]

Other times, other morals....(and definitely not criticizing anyone or looking to pick a fight):

I absolutely understand that times have changed, and especially some of the WB crosses may be a handful in terms of strength and go, and also acknowledge the old saw that a bit is only as severe as the hands using it, but (grump,grump,good olddays,grump,grump) I am amazed at the variety of bits, the very frequent use of gags, elevator bits, etc. Back when I was eventing (prelim), I rode a 16.3, 1,400 lb horse that could pull like a train. Some people used gags then, and I tried one for two events, but we discovered that the farther he ran, the higher he galloped, with or without the gag. After that, the most severe bit I used on him was a Dr. Bristol (no martingale), and eventually just a plain full check. (Used a french-mouth eggbut for dressage). Are horses really that much more difficult to control these days?? Perhaps the increased technicality of the course means you MUST have an "I mean NOW!" type bit?? I once used a rubber mullen mouth Tom Thumb pelham on my first event horse, who was very thick necked and had been screwed up with poor dressage so that he had an overdeveloped "under neck", but even he came around and went in a plain snaffle.

(P.S. I think the bit you're talking about looks quite reasonable and a relatively mild gag. I have no problem with it, but the talk of the three-ring Pessoas and their gag/elevator capacities, not to mention the nutcracker effect with the snaffle mouth, etc., just got me thinking. Way back when, almost everyone was using some sort of relatively plain snaffle, and the occasional pelham, double or gag, at least in my exerience. I evented from the early 70s through 1987. Just a curious ex-eventer wondering.....)

[beeblebrox]

luise
Advanced

http://www.bitofbritain.com/St_bben_..._Bit_p/381.htm
Lastly even the plain loose ring in this line is NOT LEGAL for dressage.

." These types of bits have been out for 50 years in the western world.
Any loose ring can rub a horse. That's why I have bit guards on mine. And the Stubben golden cheeks bit, the regular snaffle, is legal for dressage. I e-mailed Sharon at USEA about it this past spring with a link to the Stubben bit and she said it was legal. "


YOUR SURE THE GOLDEN WINGS STUBBEN IS LEGAL. as when we spoke to the rep from Stubben they said as of APRIL (while we shopped at Rolex) IT WAS NOT LEGAL FOR DRESSAGE (THE PLAIN ONE without the fixed rings) They are in many ways similar to full cheeks but they are NOT currently in the LEGAL bit list in the USEA or USEF booklets. I hear what your saying about Sharon but that is not what you get sometimes at shows! SO before you ride in the ring with one folks I would make darned sure as we watched someone asked to change it at Rebecca Farms

To your second note. I have never had a loose ring rub a horse before, I do not feel that bit guards are the way to go all the time. My point with the golden rings is there are some horses that it rubs on even when other bits loose ring or not. I own both versions of the Golden wings as the rep wanted me to try them. I used them on about 8 horses, 2 who were never rubbed by bits ended up with sores, I would have to say I think I know how to fit a bit ;-)

[luise]

YOUR SURE THE GOLDEN WINGS STUBBEN IS LEGAL. as when we spoke to the rep from Stubben they said as of APRIL (while we shopped at Rolex) IT WAS NOT LEGAL FOR DRESSAGE (THE PLAIN ONE without the fixed rings) They are in many ways similar to full cheeks but they are NOT currently in the LEGAL bit list in the USEA or USEF booklets. I hear what your saying about Sharon but that is not what you get sometimes at shows! SO before you ride in the ring with one folks I would make darned sure as we watched someone asked to change it at Rebecca Farms

To your second note. I have never had a loose ring rub a horse before, I do not feel that bit guards are the way to go all the time. My point with the golden rings is there are some horses that it rubs on even when other bits loose ring or not. I own both versions of the Golden wings as the rep wanted me to try them. I used them on about 8 horses, 2 who were never rubbed by bits ended up with sores, I would have to say I think I know how to fit a bit ;-)

See my post on the other thread. I have an e-mail from Sharon. She contacted USEF who said it was legal. I suppose you could print the e-mail out and carry it around with you to show the bit checkers! (I think it is too much trouble though, and so I use a fulmer instead.)

[beeblebrox]

Aug. 8, 2008, 03:58 PM

The bit is not legal for dressage in the real world the event usef rep is out today
Thank you for your inquiry below. Unfortunately, this bit pictured below is not legal for Dressage Competition as it does not conform to any of the bits pictured in DR Figure 1. I am only able to give you a clarification for the Dressage Discipline. Shealagh Costello is the Director of National Eventing and should be able to help you with this bit question relating to Eventing.

Thank you,

Jenny Van Wieren
United States Equestrian Federation, Inc.
Assistant Director of Dressage
Direct Dial: 859-225-6949
Fax: 859-231-6662


http://www.bitofbritain.com/St_bben_...ffle_p/382.htm

Is this bit legal



"luise
It is not the same bit as the above link
I e-mailed Sharon at USEA about both of these bits (the HS and the Stubben), and she checked with USEF and told me that both are legal. I have the e-mail if anyone wants it."

BeebleBrox:
Maybe she or they thought is was another bit.
The bit checks at most events on the west coast ARE NOT allowing them and I checked with the usef reps for dressage (see post above) and THE ANSWER WAS NO!

The event rep for usef is out today and Sharon from USEA said she would check as she did not know if it was legal.. So there you GO

from Sharon's email this morning:
"The actually approval would have come from the USEF. I cannot remember
whether this met their approval or not. I will forward the photo (thanks for
including it) to Shealagh Costello, USEF Director of Eventing for
clarification.



Sharon Gallagher, Director
Sport Services
703.779.0440 x 3005 "

[huntrpaint]

Other times, other morals....(and definitely not criticizing anyone or looking to pick a fight):

I absolutely understand that times have changed, and especially some of the WB crosses may be a handful in terms of strength and go, and also acknowledge the old saw that a bit is only as severe as the hands using it, but (grump,grump,good olddays,grump,grump) I am amazed at the variety of bits, the very frequent use of gags, elevator bits, etc. Back when I was eventing (prelim), I rode a 16.3, 1,400 lb horse that could pull like a train. Some people used gags then, and I tried one for two events, but we discovered that the farther he ran, the higher he galloped, with or without the gag. After that, the most severe bit I used on him was a Dr. Bristol (no martingale), and eventually just a plain full check. (Used a french-mouth eggbut for dressage). Are horses really that much more difficult to control these days?? Perhaps the increased technicality of the course means you MUST have an "I mean NOW!" type bit?? I once used a rubber mullen mouth Tom Thumb pelham on my first event horse, who was very thick necked and had been screwed up with poor dressage so that he had an overdeveloped "under neck", but even he came around and went in a plain snaffle.

(P.S. I think the bit you're talking about looks quite reasonable and a relatively mild gag. I have no problem with it, but the talk of the three-ring Pessoas and their gag/elevator capacities, not to mention the nutcracker effect with the snaffle mouth, etc., just got me thinking. Way back when, almost everyone was using some sort of relatively plain snaffle, and the occasional pelham, double or gag, at least in my exerience. I evented from the early 70s through 1987. Just a curious ex-eventer wondering.....)

I have nerve damage from a broken neck. I recently discovered that one of the mikmar combination bits can make my life in the foxhunting field and jumping arena much more pleasant on my OTTB. Am I so wrong for not using a plain d-ring when I have almost no tricep or interfinger strength? My trainer sure likes the way the mikmar has made my lessons much more enjoyable and productive.
I'm just saying the plain snaffle is not for every horse or every rider. Don't criticize what you don't understand. I actually found my horse more relaxed and rounder/happier with the mikmar then with a plain dr. Bristow snaffle.

[Sandy M]

I have nerve damage from a broken neck. I recently discovered that one of the mikmar combination bits can make my life in the foxhunting field and jumping arena much more pleasant on my OTTB. Am I so wrong for not using a plain d-ring when I have almost no tricep or interfinger strength? My trainer sure likes the way the mikmar has made my lessons much more enjoyable and productive.
I'm just saying the plain snaffle is not for every horse or every rider. Don't criticize what you don't understand. I actually found my horse more relaxed and rounder/happier with the mikmar then with a plain dr. Bristow snaffle.


I particularly said I wasn't pointing fingers (or criticizing). I was just curious in that back in the Dark Ages when I was eventing, I saw very few elevator, mechanical hack/bit combinations, other leverage bits and not nearly so many gags. I was just wondered about the change and the proliferation of "stronger" bits. Obviously, the Mikmar type bits didn't even EXIST back then. Perhaps if they had more people would have used them. I don't know. That's why I asked, wondering if it was a trend of some sort, what necessity generated it, etc.

[deltawave]

Not all mechanical-looking bits are "stronger" in the sense of being more forceful on a horse's mouth. This concept was SO HARD for me to accept! :) Back in the day there simply weren't options like we have now. I've evolved (very, very grudgingly) from a snaffle Nazi to someone who believes that maybe there are some better options out there. :)