Has anyone tried a Gentil Bitless Bridle?

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As it says above really! I want the gentlest bridle possible as my girl has always just been ridden in a headcollar.
I saw the Gentil on Facebook, but at £170 I thought I'd look for feedback first!
 
I think they have only just been released

Kat they look like this

21317678_1440753909294670_1835380061221950194_n.jpg


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If the reins are connected to the rings on the side, surely it's no different to using a headcollar - and for £170 :O

I think I'd be inclined to use a Micklem or even speak to a bridle maker/saddler and see how much it would cost to make a headcollar with the "extras" you want - so its more like a bridle for aesthetics.
 
No, and I would hope much much better leather than a micklem! I also think the noseband, and padding under the rings does make it different. I'm actually not convinced I would trust a micklem to ride off the rings only.
 
That looks quite smart, if the leather is nice and you want a good quality bridle and have the money it looks worth a punt. As I said, my version is just the nosepiece but is also nice, soft, padded leather and looks nice if paired with an existing nice quality bridle. i don't have any good pictures of him working in it, as he has a jet black head, so a black bridle disappears in photos!
 
I ride in a flower hackamore which I attached to my current bridle which does the trick for mine, didn't get on with a side pull or a cross under but I agree with KatPT, looks smart so one for the Christmas list perhaps! :)
 
Hmm. Thanks everyone. I agree that it looks good quality and the padded nose caught my eye. Can't afford it right away, just putting feelers out there. If I do buy one I'll report back!
 
ester said:
No, and I would hope much much better leather than a micklem! I also think the noseband, and padding under the rings does make it different. I'm actually not convinced I would trust a micklem to ride off the rings only.
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Totally agree, I have a Micklem and was going to adapt to the bitless configuration. The design of the bridle/quality of leather was not good - the pressure/release would not work as the leather was not moving smoothly.
 
I have a normal bridle which has the chekpieces attached to the noseband so it's bitless. Get one with a nice padded noseband and it'll work well. Just to show what I mean:
sFZMdrU.jpg
 
I like the look of that. I have a rope version for the youngster at the moment but it's nowhere near as smart as this one. Does it have a comfort head piece? I have an IR bridle for my older horse and really like the shape of the head piece on it.
 
I can't find any better pictures of the head piece, I think from what there is it is probably thinned behind the ears then wider on top if that makes sense like a micklem rather than curved but I am sure if you ask Jenny she would clarify/maybe they could make a curved one?
 
Have a look at the Transcend bridle as well - 2 variations, beautifully made and my pony adores hers. She quite sensitive around poll and nose but loves working from the "curb" rein, but there is never any pressure on the curb area, the design stops it. Like yours she has never had a bit, did all her work longreining and riding in a headcollar and then orbitless but neither of us liked that.
You can trial the transcend as well which is handy.
 
soloequestrian said:
The Trascend stuff looks very nice. I found this one too https://www.kramer.co.uk/Bitless-Br...kraemer-pferdesport.47-GB&pi=320610&ci=262955 - I like the idea of the lower jaw strap to stabilise the noseband. It looks like it's only available in cob size though :-(
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I looked at that before I found Transcend, but I was trying to find something that wouldn't need to be tight to be stable. Somehow, remarkably, the Transcend stays in place for us with the noseband only done as tight as I would do a cavesson noseband on a bitted bridle, she can still move her jaw and eat easily. It just doesn't slip around at all, but I don't know how!!
The problem with bitless is that sometimes they need to be seen in person to truly understand how it would work - it isn't always obvious from the photos.
 
dollyanna said:
Somehow, remarkably, the Transcend stays in place for us with the noseband only done as tight as I would do a cavesson noseband on a bitted bridle, she can still move her jaw and eat easily. It just doesn't slip around at all, but I don't know how!!
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Do you think it's just the noseband or is there something else about the bridle that helps? I have a nice IR head piece that I could combine with the noseband - the full Transcend bridle looks exactly the same shape in the photos but as you say it's hard to tell from those!
 
It wasn't chosen for marketing the bridle, I picked it off facebook as couldn't find pics anywhere else and thought they would be helpful to people! It was posted to discuss contact and the reasons for this rein hold in training.
 
Wheels said:
It's just a different way to hold the reins, a different feel if you like. Not a bitless thing but used by some classical riders
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I was taught to hold the reins like this by a List 1 dressage judge for when I was warming up one particular horse at competitions. It gives a more relaxed feel to the contact. It wouldn't do for more precise work.
 
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