Opinions on this harness?

[Leeana]

Has anyone purchased or used or seen this harness in person? There is no option for sizing...I have a bigger boned and plump 36" mini mare and I really like the look of this harness. I know some of the just cheaper "mini" size harnesses are tiny. We drive her just for pleasure and have a nice enough at home harness/cart...but I attend our local fair every year and plan to take her to show in the harness class so I want to purchase something a bit nicer for that....thank you! Only thing I do not like about this harness is that it only has a side check, no overcheck...she has been driven without any checks and does fine, but I would like an overcheck for show purpose...I imagine I could buy one and install it? Is that easy to do?

I could give Jana at Double Diamond a call and get the measurements, but to be honest, I am not sure how to measure my mare to see if the harness would fit her...so could use some input there as well...

Tough-1 Miniature Show Harness

http://www.doublediamondtack.com/Harness_Driving_Equip.-Tough-1_Show_Harness.html

This is our driving mare...(my father driving)...You can see she is a bit bigger boned then the rest of my ponies which is why I wonder if that harness will fit her correctly..I am not sure if they make the show harnesses to fit bigger boned amish type ponies correctly vrs the refined show ponies..

Video of her as well (this was the first time we hooked her since we got her)..



I welcome tips and any informative posts as well! I have always been more of a halter horse person, but it is fun to have one pony in the barn we can actually do something with. My father and I both drive in a very different style, I know you are not suppose to use th rein as a whip, my father is a kentucky hillbilly and he tends to drive more like he is driving a plow mule (drives me crazy) while I use a driving whip and am a bit lighter on the reins...

 

[susanne]

I don't have the answer to your question, Leanna, but oooooooohhhhhh!!! I like that pony! You'd better watch out or she might bring you over to the dark side (CDEs and the like). Either way, I bet you're going to have FUN with her!

 

[Leeana]

She is fun, the "dark side" is something I have considered. I have a good friend, Mary Thomas, who breeds dartmoor ponies and competes literally all over the country in CDE events, she is down at the Natl Drive right now. Its actually something I would like to try, I'm not doing much showing over the next couple years so I have the time.

She is a good pony, my father has been wanting a driving pony for about two years now and I have inquired on several and drove to look at them but my father is 80 years old and I wanted something safe safe safe, yet fun that I could drive and show too. We have a friend the next town over who does carriage driving and raises miniature donkeys, she took this mare in as a trade for one of her miniature donkeys. My father was at her farm a couple weeks ago and seen this mare, came home and told me he bought her and told me how beautiful she was....I just kind of rolled my eyes expecting it to be have a head 2ft long and a neck 2in long and knobby knee's....we went to pick her up and she surprised me by being a pretty good looking pony! Dad loves her, so do I, she is safe....drives right down the road and around the yard and in our pasture. A good minded pony and someone at some point must have really put the time into training her!

I've had driving on my mind a lot recently. I'd actually just like to get into trail driving. At the end of my road, there is a beautiful little country road with beautiful scenary, Tonight I plan to take her for a walk down that way just to allow her to see it and take it in and the following day I would like to take her on a little trail drive that way.

Thanks Susanne

 

[Leeana]

and actually I just noticed this harness is on sale at Double Diamond for just $199...it comes in a mini and a pony size...so perhaps I should order a pony size as well as I do have a 43" classic stallion that is trained that I have been working with and he appears to still remember all his training (has not been driven since I got him back in April, but was trained with prior owners)..

 

[Minimor]

I'm not familiar with the Tough 1 harness so cannot comment on that. I just wanted to say that I would suggest sticking with the sidecheck rather than getting an overcheck. I have both but never use the overcheck--the sidechecks are so much better IMO. Actually in those photos it looks like your mare is wearing a sidecheck? She's going well that way so I would stay with that.

 

[Minimor]

Okay, now the photo has opened for me--the description says that the bridle has a sidecheck, yet the bridle in the picture is an overcheck bridle. The description refers to a cavesson, but no cavesson is pictured. I would question that, so that you know for sure what you are getting.

 

[Leeana]

Thanks Holly, I sent Jana a mssg this morning asking her about the fitting of that harness, I will be sure and ask her about that as well. I didn't even notice.

The harness pictured is just a biothane amish harness we purchased from Fairview or perhaps it was Bowmans in Millersberg Ohio. It has an overcheck, no sidechecks.

 

[Jill]

I love seeing your dad driving

. The most mine has done this ride with me in the cart.

On the other hand, I've yet to join him in a round of golf

 

[Leeana]

Jill, you made me giggle! I took my dad for granted for years, I wish I had only appreciated him this much when I was a teenager

..They just don't come like him anymore

. Like back in the Spring when I said "Dad, hook up the horse trailer...we are going up to Wisconsin to pick up ponies" and he did not argue. Pretty soon i'm going to be telling him to hook up the trailer agian....here is to hoping that goes as smooth...

 

[Jill]

Love it

. Us daddy's girls are lucky

 

[Maple Hollow Farm]

We carry the Tough-1 harnesses as well so I have used them, I actually think they fit on the larger size minis best. I had it on my 33" gelding last year and it needed holes punched for him to use it and it fits my 36" mare. I can put it on one of my larger horses and take pictures if you would like. It comes with overcheck and no caveson. I am one that actually prefers the side check as well so I just leave the check loose and it is mainly my at home harness but definitely nice enough for shows.

 

[paintponylvr]

I was kinda going to be bad and say that I feel that "Tough 1" products are terrible... but maybe I should say this instead:

- when you email/call - find out what type of hardware is on that harness.

- didn't know that "Tough 1" made a leather harness, it is much nicer looking than the nylon one that I purchased

- both Bowman's and Fairview have nice catalogs and are great to deal with personally to get things measured right to fit. I have friends that have Bowman harness & I have a pair - farm style bio from Fairview. Another acquaintance has a pleasure type harness that is styled similaar to a farm harness (spots - ugh; and only the top part of a noseband that hooks into the buckle holding the bit. That particular harness came with only an overcheck - but they do make sidechecks as well). Their harness can be both pricey or beginner/economy type - with features that change depending on what you want. Even the "low end" harness can be fitted and custom made (takes a bit of time - not much)...

*******

The "Tough 1" nylon harness that I bought was purchased from a local tack shop who orders quite a bit of mini/pony sized stuff now - not only for me but for others that have ponies/minis in our area. They didn't know who actually made it and when the dealership catalog was called - they couldn't supply any extra pieces or change sizes as it was "just a stock item". The harness only cost me $165, but I wished I'd saved it since my braided haystring harness worked fine fir training and driving cross country (at home or by ourselves - not thru agroup or CDE) and I could have used that $$ instead for a downpaymment on good harness (really want a Country Carriages one).

I can go into more detail in personal email - but I owned that harness less than one year and actually used it less than 3 months before hauling it to the dump..

Here is a picture of how this harness looked on our 38" mare. I've been told that this mare is "coarse" - she certainly doesn't have a petite or pretty dished head w/ a teacup muzzle...

 

[hobbyhorse23]

Nice horse, Paula, and I was going to say the harness actually didn't look that bad in the pictures! Most nylon harnesses are proportioned completely wrong for any real use but that one seems to fit fairly well.

Leia

 

[Lori W]

My father and I both drive in a very different style, I know you are not suppose to use th rein as a whip, my father is a kentucky hillbilly and he tends to drive more like he is driving a plow mule (drives me crazy) while I use a driving whip and am a bit lighter on the reins...

Oh, Leeana - your post brought tears to my eyes! I would have loved to share my love of minis with my Dad, but he passed two and a half years ago at age 81. Seeing your Dad, especially in the video, brought back happy memories when my Dad was part of my adventures with big horses when I was much younger.

Good luck on your search for the perfect harness for your horse. She's lovely and I know you and your Dad will enjoy lots of drives with her!

 

[paintponylvr]

Nice horse, Paula, and I was going to say the harness actually didn't look that bad in the pictures! Most nylon harnesses are proportioned completely wrong for any real use but that one seems to fit fairly well.

Leia

Leia - Thanks for the compliment on our little "Stuffy" - over the years she's meant a lot to us. She was picked up by a grandmother/daughter/granddaughter team last weekend for a 2 year lease (the grandkids - the girl and the boy who stayed at home - are both special needs children), possibly extendable and maybe at the end I'll sell her to them. That remains to be decided - I would like to have two foals from her yet - then made a deal (included in my contract) that I'd sell her (to them only) for a pre-determined price... I will be double registering her in AMHR (she's only ASPC) and they have the goal of getting the children all the way to AMHR Nationals in PMC classes next year... I'm actually pretty excited and the love and excitement they've already shared w/ me just this week - has brought shared tears to my eyes, too.

In all actuality - that harness was not very adjustable at all - some parts were way too small and others way too large w/o the availability to make smaller w/o taking it in to someone whom could cut and resew it. The headstall nylon was too wide/think - unweildy (is that a word?) and really was too small for her - but I couldn't exchange it - since it was a "stock item". I don't have an actual tackroom and our barn has a tendency in the humidity here in NC to "rain" inside... BUT I've never had any hardware turn rusty and/or actaully break in just a 3 month period like this did. It was quite disappointing... There were other problems as well - but those were the main ones... O and the nylon frayed/work quickly - making it very irritating for her to wear...

Since 1997, I've owned predominantly nylon tack that was stored in the barn outside. This includes nylon/nylon combo riding girths, halters of different styles/makes, flat nylon leadropes and various combinations of nylon/cordura in saddles - both western and english. I've just never had anything like this particular harness... and it was more than a little disconcerting as well as disappointing. I just wanted to put out a warning to double check it - IF - they were looking to get something similar... I do actually have the headstall and the driving lines - just threw out the breast collar/traces, saddle & shaft carriers/wraps and the breeching/crupper.

Since I sent Stuffy out on lease with a LOT of equipment to get them started, I hope that they will take pics of her in the biothane harness that went withher and the small cart. I have pics of two two yr olds in it, but not her...

 

[paintponylvr]

Leeana -

What a beautiful mare!!! And to be able to share that with your dad - even if he is a "different type driver" is so special. I really could envy a person that type of sharing!!!

When you do get your harness, whatever brand or style you go with, please share pics...

 

[Leeana]

Thanks everyone - I am going to go ahead and order the harness and give it a try. I really only would use it once or twice a year at our local fair and an open mini show here in Ohio - I don't really intend to take any driving horses out in the amhr/aspc shows...not yet anyway.....

The one thing I can tell that I will not like about this harness is the reins looking stiff.....so am open to suggestions on other style of reins...I could use the soft driving reins we have not but am open to suggestions...

Thank you!

 

[susanne]

There's a LOT to be said for reins that feel good in your hands! If the reins you already have fit your hands and work for you, I'd go with them.

I would definitely add breeching to this harness while driving around your farm. Driving without breeching means using the saddle as brakes, which is sort of okay for the show ring, but terrible for outside a groomed arena. If you decide to take her into a breed show, you can get her used to driving sans breeching, but for now, I'd give her the power braking.

 

[susanne]

I have to add...

I lost my mom this past spring, but while she was still doing well, she wanted to go for a cart ride with Mingus. He was her grandpony, and she always enjoyed our adventures and loved watching the video of a past beach drive.

We took him to her place for the 4th of July in 2010, where my sister had made a driving path through the woods and meadow. As I harnessed and hitched him, she wore an ear-to-ear grin in anticipation. It took a couple of people to help her in next to me, but she was still smiling.

Mingus seemed to know that he had a special passenger on board and walked carefully down the driveway and onto the path. We went up through the meadow, into the woods past the spot where Keith and I were married, past our old firepit and all our "pet" fir trees, then gently down the hill and back to our staging area, where everyone cheered. My mom went through some rough times in her last couple of years, but that day I don't believe she ever stopped smiling.

(I plan on posting photos and the whole story, but wasn't ready to write about it until now.)

I'm so glad to see you sharing this with your dad. By the way, he looks much younger than his years!

 

[lucky seven]

I have really enjoyed reading the posts and love the video of your dad driving. What I would like to know is what is the cavesson used for and is it needed?