# Picking a harness!!



## HoneyPie (Apr 5, 2012)

I am having such a dilemma picking a harness!! I have narrowed it down to Ozark mountain Carriage harness with the V Breast Collar or Country Carriage Beta Bi with a Super V breast collar. I have seen the CC beta on several of the minis posted on here and I love the way it looks. It seems to fit well and have wider straps for comfort but I don't know how I feel about the beta material. I like that the OM is leather but the breast collar and saddle seem more narrow. I don't show drive but would like to do some CDS/ ADS if I can find some in our area, which of these harnesses are the most versatile for entry level showing and/or CDS/ADS competition? Are the beta reins stiff or uncomfortable? Does the beta hold up well or does it crack and show wear bad? Does the leather conform and move with the horse better? Care is a non-issue, I have a cheap leather harness now and I have no problem with cleaning/caring for it. I have been struggling with this decision for months and I need to get one ordered soon, please help!! Any opinions or advice would be so helpful.


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## Jules (Apr 5, 2012)

I am a newbie and have just ordered a new harness and did the whole to-ing and fro-ing trying to decide, as it sounds you are doing too






I ended up choosing leather as *if* I choose to do any higher level showing, then it will definitely do the trick. I know lots of people show in beta just fine, so it is just my personal choice. With my ridden horses, I wouldn't think of ever showing in a synthetic saddle/bridle so I think that is my rationale. I love the feel of good quality leather tack too, it seems supple and moulds to fit so beautifully over time.

I am a bit of a weirdo who likes to sit down and clean tack so leather care is no issue and indeed, a bonus for me.

Totally personal preference though - not everyone is a leather-cleaning-loving-freak like me.





I don't know if you have considered Iowa Valley Carriage, but their leather mini harness http://www.iowavalle...er-show-harness is comparable in price to the beta one at Country Carriages. I like the bridle better on the IVC harness too...but that is purely down to me liking pretty things





Sandee is fantastic to deal with and has really helped work with me on getting it made to fit my low-set necked pony.

I will post pics as soon as I have it in my hot little hands.


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## Minimor (Apr 6, 2012)

I have several of the Ozark carriage harnesses and am very happy with them. I've always preferred leather to anything synthetic--I don't mind cleaning leather.


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## shorthorsemom (Apr 6, 2012)

Where are you located? I got my better fit custom made harness with the v-collar at a local amish custom harness shop. He is a master craftsman and it is very well made and custom fitted to my guys and I love it. His shop is in Leola Pa.

I prefer leather personally. I have one beta halter special made that has buckle over the nose band and so I can cross tie my guy while I am tacking up and he has his bridle on and the halter on top, that is the only non-leather driving item I have. It comes in handy for my boy. My horses former owner had reins made like english riding reins with the braid in it at the same shop I got my harness and I admit to loving those reins over my flat leather reins. Take care and have fun shopping..


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## HoneyPie (Apr 6, 2012)

Thank all of you for your help!

Jules- I had that same thought you did, I don't show/ride my Quarter horses in synthetic tack so I wasn't sure how I felt about driving my mini in it. You seem to be in-line with all my other concerns too! What *if* I want to show and loving the feel of good leather reins. I will also give the Iowa harness a look.

Minimor-I have seen lots of praise for the Ozark harnesses on here and I too like cleaning my leather tack.

Shorthorsemom- I live in Arkansas now. Since starting with the miniatures horses a couple years ago I told my husband we needed to move to PA because they have so much more access to leather craftsman, cart/carriage makers, and mini horse events!

Thank you all again for replying!!


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## Jetiki (Apr 6, 2012)

Living 30 minutes from Country Carriages, and 3 hours from Camptown harness down in Aiken and in a fairly busy carriage driving area I see a lot of different harness makers equipment. As for over all appearence I like Camptown's their freedom collar is awesome. The Super V from Country Carriages is nice also, both are about the same. I have an older Super V from Country Carriages and its stiff, the newer ones aren't so stiff neither are the traces. The Country Carriages Bridle is slightly less flexible than the Camptowns bridle. This is observations from having both in the barn for comparison only. That being said they both wear about the same. Now beta vs. leather, if you are doing trail driving or ADS type competitions I would go with the wider saddle for the comfort of your horse. If you go down the trail and you get stuck in a sudden shower with leather you'll need to clean it when you get home, with the beta, you take the hose rinse the mud off hang it up to dry and your done. You can get leather reins for the harness if you'd like. there's nothing wrong with that, the reins should be brown anyway. This is my personal experience for what its worth. I've also had personal experience with a Chimicum harness and I think its their older style they may have changed things but I don't like the design of the neck strap and the saddle that came with this harness has no tree. This again is my personal preferences and experiences.


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## Jetiki (Apr 6, 2012)

i also show at the R shows with my beta harness, my horse is a western country pleasure horse, with a brown wood cart, wooden wheels and breeching and we do well. I have a brown/russet colored beta harness, it matches the cart.


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## TMR (Apr 6, 2012)

I have both a Camptown/older Chimacum and a Country Carriage harness both in beta. I mainly do CDE's and for me beta is the only way to go, cleaning mud off leather after schooling through water hazards is not my cup of tea. Beta is softer like leather. The country carriage harness saddle is a little stiffer than the camptown, but it is also my newer harness. I love the look of both and there are only slight differences between the two when hanging side by side. I would highly recommend the Freedom collar or Super V for a mini as it allows them to use themselves better. Alotof your decision will depend on what You want to do with your horse now and in the future. There is quite a big difference even between ADS pleasure shows and CDE's. Pleasure shows you will lean towards leather and your harness does not have to be so substantial as many classes are in the arena type setting and there is no cantering even in the games. CDE's you lean towards beta and you want a substantial harness as you will put all kinds of pressures and torque on it doing hazards, especially as you advance in the levels, going through hazards at a full gallop and sharp fast turns. I also have seen Iowa Valley Carriage harnesses and they are nice as well. I like the look of the leather over the beta in that particular harness and if I were to do pleasure shows it would be my pick.


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## HoneyPie (Apr 7, 2012)

I think at this point in time I would probably stick to ADS pleasure shows. I don't think the gelding I drive right now has enough grit to do the CDE's. He likes playing around on the cones in the arena but doesn't like heading out across the pasture and thru water holes. The other gelding I am training in harness now might do CDE's better but that will probably be next year before he would have enough cart hours to feel comfortable competing with. I will be getting a V breast collar no matter what I do because I have heard nothing but positive things about them. I appreciate all the advice, it has helped with my decision immensely!


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## hobbyhorse23 (Apr 8, 2012)

HoneyPie said:


> I am having such a dilemma picking a harness!! I have narrowed it down to Ozark mountain Carriage harness with the V Breast Collar or Country Carriage Beta Bi with a Super V breast collar. I have seen the CC beta on several of the minis posted on here and I love the way it looks. It seems to fit well and have wider straps for comfort but I don't know how I feel about the beta material. I like that the OM is leather but the breast collar and saddle seem more narrow. I don't show drive but would like to do some CDS/ ADS if I can find some in our area, which of these harnesses are the most versatile for entry level showing and/or CDS/ADS competition? Are the beta reins stiff or uncomfortable? Does the beta hold up well or does it crack and show wear bad? Does the leather conform and move with the horse better? Care is a non-issue, I have a cheap leather harness now and I have no problem with cleaning/caring for it. I have been struggling with this decision for months and I need to get one ordered soon, please help!! Any opinions or advice would be so helpful.


The most versatile harness is going to be the leather one. You can take off the breeching, put the neck strap back over the waterhook and add a check and go AMHR/AMHA, or use it as-is for ADS pleasure driving shows or CDE's and it will be perfectly appropriate in all of them. Leather does conform better but you'll need to pad the saddle of the OM as it's treeless and doesn't have much spine clearance although it will be fine once it's got a pad on. (Kody likes his, and he's picky.



) With a shaped breastcollar it doesn't matter much if it stretches to fit as it should lie nicely over the horse's shape and not be affected by his shoulder movement very much anyway.

How stiff a beta harness is depends on where you buy it and what grade of material it is. Just like leather, there's cheap stuff which is nasty and doesn't conform at all even after miles and miles of use, and nicer stuff which is much softer and looks a lot like leather. My initial synthetic harness from Carriage House in Florida (who uses the same manufacturer as Country Carriages) was very stiff and I ended up sending it back even though it was nice as my horse is sensitive about his harness and objected to wearing the material. Last time I handled a Country Carriages harness in 2009 they had vastly improved the materials from my previous visit in 2007 and it had become a pretty nice harness for both comfort AND looks. I still don't like it in the pure synthetic but if you order the waffle weave lining they offer on both saddle and breastcollar it becomes awesome. I love that model! Their "Super V" breastcollar has also become much more shaped and now fits like the Freedom Collar I'm always talking about. Overall it's a very nice harness and would be my second choice behind a leather-lined ComfyFit synthetic sport harness. The leather on those makes all the difference in comfort for the horse's skin but is specially treated so it's still wash-and-wear. Mine is still holding up beautifully after five years and hasn't been touched with a leather cleaner or conditioner.

Beta reins can be a mixed bag. Its awfully nice to be able to ground-drive with the (unbuckled) reins dragging in the dirt and not worry about how I'm going to get the mud out of the grain, but on the other hand they can be a little slippery and come in limited widths. On the plus side again, they don't ever stretch and don't require a splice in the middle like leather reins. On the negative side they're just a little heavier and have a bit less "feel" to them. And of course BAD beta reins suck just as nasty Indian leather does! GOOD beta reins on the other hand are great for winter driving as I don't worry about them in the rain and you can always order the grippy kind so they don't slip. I often use my leather reins with my beta harness in the summer but that's primarily because the particular beta reins I ended up with are just a bit heavier than is comfortable for me and my light-mouthed horses. That's not the fault of the material though, just the size it was ordered in.

In general beta holds up very well. Most the vendors I know will replace a part if the product wears out within the first couple of years as there's no way it should be doing that.



Jetiki said:


> I've also had personal experience with a Chimicum harness and I think its their older style they may have changed things but I don't like the design of the neck strap and the saddle that came with this harness has no tree. This again is my personal preferences and experiences.


Chimacum, like most other vendors, offers different levels of harness. They have both plain and fancy draft styles, cheap entry level pleasure harness, show harness, and the Sport Harness which we're usually referring to when we say a "Chimacum harness." The sport harness is the one I buy and it's always had a tree. I bought my first sport harness from Camptown then bought a replacement sliding backband saddle from Janie at Chimacum and they were identical in almost every way. Not surprising since they were made by the same person! Marjean is now using a different harness maker so I can't say if they're still similar, but she does sell a quality product and is very nice.

TMR really nailed it with her assessment of why you should choose one type or another and if you're thinking of doing primarily ADS pleasure driving shows I'd definitely go with leather. The CC harness has the looks to fake it at a pleasure show but the ComfyFit does not and leather is going to beat either one in that environment. Pleasure shows are all about tradition!

Leia


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## susanne (Apr 8, 2012)

Doesn't the leather lining defeat the "wash and wear" functionality of a beta harness?


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## hobbyhorse23 (Apr 8, 2012)

susanne said:


> Doesn't the leather lining defeat the "wash and wear" functionality of a beta harness?


As I said, the leather is specially treated so it's still wash-and-wear. Every single ComfyFit harness you've ever seen has been leather-lined, Susanne. ;^) I don't know what they treat it with but the instructions say you can hose it off, use fly spray, etc., and it should be fine. They do recommend taking a conditioner to it once a year but I've never done so and mine is still soft and supple after all this time.

Leia


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## susanne (Apr 9, 2012)

Oops -- missed that the first time around...

As for every one that I've seen having a leather lining, I've only every seen them ON the horses and therefore would have no idea if the lining was leather, kryptonite, or whatever :~)


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## Shari (Apr 9, 2012)

I ended up with a custom set of Beta reins from Dr Cook bitless bridle of all places. They are soft, have held up well for oh... what 12+ years or so, and unlike most beta they do have a soft texture to them, which means my not very strong hands can hold them. They are the only reins that work for me.

Not sure if they make these driving reins any more, but at some point I need to see if they will make me a shorter set for the HB.


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## hobbyhorse23 (Apr 9, 2012)

Susanne, I just meant that what I am describing is the same harness you've been drooling over all this time. The leather lining has always been there and doesn't change anything you liked about it. =^)

Leia


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