# Mystery buckle



## Marsha Cassada (Jun 24, 2011)

This is the little harness that came with my old sulky. It was used for miniature horse racing in Florida originally. What are the two buckles behind the terrets used for?

This is the setup I use for ground driving. I run the reins through the rings at the bottom of the hitch shackle instead of through the terrets. It makes the reins around shaft height on the horse.


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## hobbyhorse23 (Jun 24, 2011)

Goodness- no idea! The ones on the front are for the standing martingale-style racing breastcollar (don't know the proper name) but not sure about the ones in the rear. Stabilizer straps of some kind?

Leia


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## Jetiki (Jun 24, 2011)

Its a quick Hitch Harness looking at pictures of big horse stuff could it be for like Hopples or something that wouldn't be normally used on minis but this could be a modified pony harness or something? Thats what it looks like to me.

Karen


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## Marsha Cassada (Jun 24, 2011)

Jetiki said:


> Its a quick Hitch Harness looking at pictures of big horse stuff could it be for like Hopples or something that wouldn't be normally used on minis but this could be a modified pony harness or something? Thats what it looks like to me.
> 
> Karen


I'll bet you're right. The man I got the harness and sulky from did a lot of horse racing with big horses until he got into miniatures. Whoever made the harness probably adapted it from the big size. I've had it many years--the guy is no longer alive I got it from. Wish I had thought to ask him about the buckles.

I wonder if I could find a picture of hopples? I'm trying to wrap my brain around how they would work...

I've sure enjoyed the sulky/quick hitch setup!


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## Reignmaker Miniatures (Jun 24, 2011)

Oh good call Jetiki. Try the Greenhawk website (I think they are a Canadian company only but still on line) I'm pretty sure they show a horse wearing hopples in the harness section.


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## Minimor (Jun 25, 2011)

Here is a diagram showing the hopples and the location of the hangers that hold them up--though you can't see how the center hangers attach to the harness.

racing harness

I've seen some training surcingles (bitting rigs actually) that have something similar to those straps/buckles--in that case they have straps that run back to the crupper or to the back strap near the crupper--they stabilize the surcingle when you're longlining or longing the horse with side reins and check--the straps placed wider apart on the surcingle make it more stable than if you use only the back strap. That's what they remind me of, but on a quick hitch harness that isn't likely to be their purpose.


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## Marsha Cassada (Jun 25, 2011)

The hopples pictures don't show exactly how they attach to the saddle, but I'll bet that is what the buckles are. I only use this with the sulky and ground driving, but having used it for lunging in the past, some stabilizing straps would have been a plus there. Even with the breast strap, the saddle will roll a little while lunging.

I guess as long as men and horses have been associated with each other, someone has come up with a training device for just about every situation.

Thanks for solving my buckle mystery!


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## Little Bits (Jun 26, 2011)

The buckle is not for hanging hopples for racing. Actually it is used for a trace. The rest of the trace part is missing. If you look on the other side of the mystrey buckle is another d ring that is where you would put a thimble. You use the thimble and the trace attached and you don't need to us a breast plate. You would then use a buxton for your horse. I like that set up and would love to use it for my minis if I could find someone that made them. It allows for much freer movement.

Hopple hangers connect under and around the back strap.


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## Marsha Cassada (Jun 26, 2011)

Little Bits said:


> The buckle is not for hanging hopples for racing. Actually it is used for a trace. The rest of the trace part is missing. If you look on the other side of the mystrey buckle is another d ring that is where you would put a thimble. You use the thimble and the trace attached and you don't need to us a breast plate. You would then use a buxton for your horse. I like that set up and would love to use it for my minis if I could find someone that made them. It allows for much freer movement.
> 
> Hopple hangers connect under and around the back strap.


Yes, I have thimbles and I use them on the sulky. I don't understand about the trace replacing the breast strap. This harness has a breast strap and it attaches to D rings on the saddle. New terms I need to investigate!

Could you also explain what a buxton is exactly?


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## iowa (Jun 27, 2011)

From a website:

Buxton (Breastcollar) is a combination of straps worn that fits around the neck and between the front legs of the horse. It is used to hold the saddle and girth of the harness in place and keeps it from slipping back along the horse's flanks. The proper name for this piece of equipment is Breastcollar, but in harness racing circles it has long been referred to as a "Buxton" because Ohio-based trainer Dick Buxton was the first harness horsemen to use this type of breast collar on Standardbreds in the early 1960's. Previously, it had been used mainly on hunter-jumper horses, and today you can find it used in all horse disciplines.

Here is a link for a picture of a buxton. I don't see how the buckles would be used for a buxton, but then I have never seen one!

http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://theharnessshoponline.com/images/11131_thumb.jpg&imgrefurl=http://theharnessshoponline.com/index.php%3Fmain_page%3Dproduct_info%26products_id%3D1011&h=122&w=122&sz=14&tbnid=6-2ZlSjViLLTHM:&tbnh=89&tbnw=89&prev=/search%3Fq%3Dbuxton%2Bon%2B%2Bharness%2Bpicture%26tbm%3Disch%26tbo%3Du&zoom=1&q=buxton+on++harness+picture&hl=en&usg=__Jr-mwd5dt3hTP-W0ZZtqhhuu1p8=&sa=X&ei=BPEITu7eNMultweHoaW6DQ&ved=0CCAQ9QEwAw Then click on Buxtons and Parts.


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## Marsha Cassada (Jun 27, 2011)

iowa said:


> From a website:
> 
> Buxton (Breastcollar) is a combination of straps worn that fits around the neck and between the front legs of the horse. It is used to hold the saddle and girth of the harness in place and keeps it from slipping back along the horse's flanks. The proper name for this piece of equipment is Breastcollar, but in harness racing circles it has long been referred to as a "Buxton" because Ohio-based trainer Dick Buxton was the first harness horsemen to use this type of breast collar on Standardbreds in the early 1960's. Previously, it had been used mainly on hunter-jumper horses, and today you can find it used in all horse disciplines.


Gosh, each discipline seems to have its own language. Actually, I guess I made a buxton out of the breast strap on this little harness because I devised a strap that went down to the girth. The D rings were actually already there; I just had a strap fabricated. I liked the way it worked so well that I had one made for my driving harnessess also. Would it be proper, then, to call that strap a Buxton?


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## hobbyhorse23 (Jun 27, 2011)

The Buxton is the entire harness racing breastcoller assembly, not the strap between the front legs. Here's a picture:

Buxton picture

I like the idea for its intended purpose but would NOT use this with a miniature except with a true harness-racing setup including a light quick-hitch sulky with arched shafts on a hard surface in a straight line. There's a very big difference between a 15-16h Standardbred pulling a light jockey in a fly-weight sulky and asking a mini to pull an adult driver who weighs half as much as they do plus a heavy Jerald-type cart as well. And then to ask them to do so from the saddle with the only thing holding it forward being narrow little shoe-lace type straps cutting across their shoulders? Oy! No thank you. On pavement, sure. I'm all for getting straps up off the point of the shoulder and I think it would be fun to try. But as a regular thing for most recreational drivers? No way. The setup is excellent for what it's meant for but is not the best way to outfit a small horse to pull a big load, to make fast turns, or to stop a heavy load. That's what carriage harness was designed for.

Leia


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## Marsha Cassada (Jun 27, 2011)

Yes, that is the setup I have; thanks for the links to the photos. I will now correctly call the breast strap assembly a buxton--and amaze and mystify my big horse western pleasure friends!

I really enjoy the sulky and quickhitch harness for excercise jaunts, buzzing around the section line. No, the quickhitch is not a good setup for the regular cart. I use it strictly for the sulky.

So, are my mystery buckles for hopples after all?


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## hobbyhorse23 (Jun 27, 2011)

I still tentatively vote some sort of stabilizer strap. Minis don't pace so I can't imagine it was for hopples!

Leia


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