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This thing has 9 bids

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  • #21
    I feel like if I bought it, I'd have to make my horse look otherwise gangsta.
    "Remain relentlessly cheerful."

    Graphite/Pastel Portraits

    Comment

    • #22
      Originally posted by Cherry View Post
      Bluedejavu, you must be as old as I am! Ding, ding, ding--you are the winner!!!!

      I knew that bit didn't belong to Trigger, but to Champion (Gene Autry's horse)!!!!! Actually, he was a bit before my time, but Gene Autry was one of my older brother's heros.... I was a Lone Ranger/Roy Roger's kind of gal....

      Here is Gene Autry and Champion, showing off that handsome bit: http://www.geocities.com/Yosemite/trails/3539/Gene.jpg

      And here is Roy Rogers and Trigger, showing off their equally handsome bit:
      http://www.geocities.com/TelevisionC...andTrigger.jpg

      I have a bit collection but I have to say that I have never, ever wanted a "pistol bit". Maybe the bidders are grownups trying to recreate their youthful dreams....

      With the way I feel here lately, I may very well be older than you LOL! I'm a 59 model so I'm no spring chicken. I honestly didn't grow up watching all the cowbody stuff on T.V. but I fell in love with those silver saddles watching parade classes and swore I would own one when I grew up and got rich. Well I never got rich but they are now considered an investment that will definitely rise in value (if the economy ever recovers), so my DH and I started collecting them. Each parade saddle has it's own history like many other antiques do, and the pistol bits are just a small part of the whole package.
      Susan N.

      Don't get confused between my personality & my attitude. My personality is who I am, my attitude depends on who you are.

      Comment

      • #23
        Pistol bits are awesome. One of the local tack stores commissioned 20 in german silver, of course I had to buy one.

        http://image73.webshots.com/73/4/13/...4WDcsPY_fs.jpg

        Comment

        • #24
          Originally posted by nightsong View Post
          I really find it hard to believe that a horse "loves" a "correction" (means that the sucker really HURTS!!!) bit.
          I don't find it all that hard to believe. *shrug* It's not like the bit does the correcting all on its own.

          Comment

          • #25
            My first thought was Champion as soon as I started reading the thread ... never a cowgirl myself, but I have a vintage ViewMaster reel of Gene Autry and Champion, and the pistol bit shanks are quite visible in some of the shots.

            Ahh, nostalgia!
            If thou hast a sorrow, tell it not to the arrow, tell it to thy saddlebow, and ride on, singing. -- King Alfred the Great

            Comment

            • #26
              Quote:
              Originally Posted by nightsong
              I really find it hard to believe that a horse "loves" a "correction" (means that the sucker really HURTS!!!) bit.

              I don't find it all that hard to believe. *shrug* It's not like the bit does the correcting all on its own.
              Ya' know, I've been a hunter person for 40 years and had never been acquainted with much western tack until I started riding western in the arena & on the trails as a hobby a few years ago. I was ignorant of a lot of western tack.

              If you've ever handled a quality western correction bit, you'd know it's actually very light and supple. Despite having a port, it has multiple joints to it so it has a great deal of "give" in the horse's mouth; it's not a fixed mouthpiece. It's very flexible. The term "correction" is a misnomer.

              Comment

              • #27
                You can use the nastiest-looking bit you can find, and the horse will still "like" it as long as it fits correctly and you use it appropriately. Western bits are meant for light touches here and there, not constant contact. If you find yourself regularly using your bit for pain rather than communication, you have a training problem, not a bit problem.

                I kinda like the pistol bits. The picture LuvMyNSH posted is beautiful. I also love the old US cavalry bits. Those sweeping curves appeal to me.

                Comment

                • #28
                  The only point of a bit is to inflict PAIN. How can a horse "love" THAT???

                  Comment

                  • #29
                    Originally posted by nightsong View Post
                    The only point of a bit is to inflict PAIN. How can a horse "love" THAT???
                    Really? I thought it was for communication. Guess I've been using it wrong.
                    "Remain relentlessly cheerful."

                    Graphite/Pastel Portraits

                    Comment

                    • #30
                      Originally posted by SarahandSam View Post
                      Really? I thought it was for communication. Guess I've been using it wrong.
                      No kidding! I guess we have all had the wrong idea about the real point of using bits.

                      Comment

                      • Original Poster
                        #31
                        Originally posted by nightsong View Post
                        The only point of a bit is to inflict PAIN. How can a horse "love" THAT???
                        Um, the bit is a pressure device, just like your leg and your butt. Doesn't need to inflict pain.

                        In fact, I would hazard a guess that there are many trainers/riders out there who would agree that a horse goes best if it learns to trust that the bit will not be uncomfortable/cause pain. This is why you see so many of us working on quieting and softening out hands and finding the "right bit" for our horse.

                        One reason I love my current trainer is that he really never uses pain in training. Ever.

                        Comment

                        • #32
                          Originally posted by nightsong View Post
                          The only point of a bit is to inflict PAIN. How can a horse "love" THAT???
                          I have to wonder about the frame of reference from which such a statement would arise.

                          I can only think that the maker might not have the experience to use such a device with the finesse it requires. It is not a bit for training, but one for the ''finished'' horse and makes it possible for the western rider to communicate virtually invisibly whilst achieving feats of great athleticism. Much like the finished Grand Prix Dressage horse in a double bridle. Far more humane in those hands than some amateurs with a snaffle.

                          Large ported bits are often comforting to the finished horse who can hold the device stable with the port without risking pinching his tongue, poking his palate or the corners of the lips (as one does in a simple snaffle if one is not careful)

                          The Bit is only as good as the Hands.
                          The Hands are only as good as the Seat.
                          "The Threat of Internet Ignorance: ... we are witnessing the rise of an age of equestrian disinformation, one where a trusting public can graze on nonsense packaged to look like fact."-LRG-AF

                          Comment

                          • #33
                            I agree. Ports on a finished horse and experienced rider are not painful devices when used correctly. Unexperienced or ignorant hands with this equipment can be harsh.
                            Airborne? Oh. Yes, he can take a joke. Once. After that, the joke's on you.

                            Comment

                            • #34
                              Originally posted by CatOnLap View Post
                              I have to wonder about the frame of reference from which such a statement would arise.

                              I can only think that the maker might not have the experience to use such a device with the finesse it requires. It is not a bit for training, but one for the ''finished'' horse and makes it possible for the western rider to communicate virtually invisibly whilst achieving feats of great athleticism. Much like the finished Grand Prix Dressage horse in a double bridle. Far more humane in those hands than some amateurs with a snaffle.

                              Large ported bits are often comforting to the finished horse who can hold the device stable with the port without risking pinching his tongue, poking his palate or the corners of the lips (as one does in a simple snaffle if one is not careful)

                              The Bit is only as good as the Hands.
                              The Hands are only as good as the Seat.
                              Very well said.

                              Comment

                              • #35
                                For the freak-out faction:

                                http://www.dtrefzsilver.com/2701/2794.html

                                Comment

                                • Original Poster
                                  #36
                                  I disagree on one point. It's much easier, physically, to cause pain to a horse if you have a leverage bit and curb chain. The leverage means less force on your end translates to more force on horse's end, and the curb chain is on a sensitive area.

                                  So I don't necessarily think all bits are created equal. Most horses are pretty comfortable even with uneducated hands if they are in a smooth, large diameter snaffle. They might get annoyed, but not sore or injured. A twisted wire snaffle, not so much. Something with leverage? ouch.

                                  And indeed, some people do want to cause discomfort with their bits. Otherwise, these would never be made:

                                  http://www.buytack.com/products/bits...ain_mouth1.htm

                                  Comment

                                  • #37
                                    Originally posted by greysandbays View Post
                                    For the freak-out faction:

                                    http://www.dtrefzsilver.com/2701/2794.html
                                    Certainly that price would freak me out.

                                    Comment

                                    • #38
                                      Originally posted by Ambrey View Post
                                      LOL, you guys are all craaaazy! OK, I feel a little more confident in the future of mankind knowing that this is a nostalgia bit and not someone's idea of highly attractive tack

                                      When they start coming out with replicas of semi-automatic machine guns, instead of vintage six shooters, then we can worry

                                      Comment

                                      • #39
                                        bludejavu - AWESOME on the parade horses. I remember seeing parade horse classes at the American Royal and falling in love. All that silver on those Saddlebreds made me drool. I had kind of forgotten about them until now.. but now I remember how much I want a parade horse and tack.
                                        Visit us at Bluebonnet Equine Humane Society - www.bluebonnetequine.org

                                        Want to get involved in rescue or start your own? Check out How to Start a Horse Rescue - www.howtostartarescue.com

                                        Comment

                                        • #40
                                          Actually, the simple snaffle IS a LEVERAGE bit. I am surprised anyone would argue otherwise.

                                          The lever is the simple snaffle joint, whose action I have already explained.

                                          Even a mullen is a type of leverage bit- the lever action in that case comes from the action of the straight bar against the pull of the rein and the cheek piece. And even a mullen mouth can be harsh on a horse because the straight bar presses on the tongue and the corners of the mouth.

                                          In my opinion, the only reason to put a shanked bit on an inexperienced rider's horse is to make it safer for the rider, recognizing, that you are sacrificing the horse's comfort in inexperienced hands. In experienced hands, the horse's comfort is not sacrificed.
                                          "The Threat of Internet Ignorance: ... we are witnessing the rise of an age of equestrian disinformation, one where a trusting public can graze on nonsense packaged to look like fact."-LRG-AF

                                          Comment

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