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| Teach me mouth pieces i know that less breaks makes for stiffer horses, and more for bendier horses
but what about ports (smaller vs taller)? what do they do?
Donut or 8 mouth (dr bristol) pieces?
chain?
mullen and mullen with what looks kinda like port? (or hump)
Always wondered whats the point of a double twisted wire?? is more harsh then a mule mouth piece?
im curious to know exactly what each mouth piece is MADE for. WHY whoever "invented" that bit was trying to do and what the horse was doing they made the bit for? like how does someone decide to run their horse in a o ring with a mule mouth piece instead of bumping up to a small lifter with lighter mouth piece? etc etc
im sure plenty of people could benefit from this thread!
Edited by Barrelhorsehelp1 2017-01-04 3:23 PM
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 Scooters Savior
 
Location: "Si Fi" Ville | Bump | |
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The Advice Guru
Posts: 6419
| It is too long to explain
Dave Elliott offers biting anatomy courses, I think he goes to Arizona each year.
Myler published a book on biting.
Ports offer tongue relief, it takes a high port for it to hit the top of the mouth
Twisted is more severe due to all the grooves
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 Elite Veteran
Posts: 617
Location: London Ontario | The more breaks in a mouthpiece, the bendier a horse will be. for example my gelding is extremely bendy so I don't have anything less then a two piece in him, where as my mare is extremely stiff so I ride her in 3 pc bits. | |
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 I Don't Brag
Posts: 6960
| First one should understand the various points that a bit and bridle affect on a horse. You have the poll, corners of the mouth, tongue, bars, chin and nose (hackamores and bosals.).
I'm not sure that the more breaks in a mouth piece will "make" a horse bendier.
A true snaffle is a bit with no shank or chinstrap. Can be considered a milder bit as there is no leverage provided by the shank. There is also no effectiveness of a chin strap other than as a keeper to keep bit from spreading out.
The more breaks in a mouth piece, the "milder" the bit. a single broken mouthpiece scissors the tongue and bars so can be "more" bit than a solid bar. A mouthpiece broken many times tends to conform to the tongue and bars more. Twists are more "severe"....think about having a flat or rounded bar in your mouth , then a twisted wire.
A port can allow more tongue room but a high port will dig in to the roof of the horse's mouth, sometimes used to get a horse to break at the poll, many times creating the illusion of collection, may actually produce collection in the right hands.
The longer the shank, the more leverage the rider has.
A swivel or gag action will slow down the rider's hands, giving an "ask" to a command before a "demand".
You see many using a longer shank with a stiffer mouthpiece to take the "bend" out of a horse.
You combine various mouthpieces, shanks and nosepieces to change the effects of any given bit.
You also have the material a bit is made from. Sweet iron and copper have been held up as a way to a moister and softer mouth. The little danglies (like my technical term???lol) and rollers give a horse something to play with
IMHO some bits fit ones hands than others. In my case I usually find a Jr Cowhorse with it's small gag action and short shanks a good fit for my hands on most horses. I have taken hard mouthed horses and made them considerably lighter by switching and working in a Jr Cowhorse. However, there are always exceptions. My good old rodeo mare would work in literally anything...the trick was, you couldn't use it... if I tried helping her with the lightest contact she would shake her head and pop up coming out of the barrel...you literally had to throw her head to her (she WOULD let you move her if somehow you got in a bad position). Then I has another REALLY fast, quick and very light mouth mare that I had the devil of a time finding something we could both live with. To my great surprise, it turned out to be a Rutledge Roper. She hated a broken bit and the swivel in the shanks slowed my hands down enough for her to tolerate.
Also, IMHO, just because a bit worked for a previous rider doesn't mean it will work for you. There is a difference in the physics of strength, arm length and angle from hand to mouth that may change things drastically.
This is what I have learned and experienced throughout many years. Hope it helps. Someone may have a different opinion or have more to add.
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