Is there anything you actually prefer cheaper versions/brands of

Strangely I was thinking about this when I swapped rugs for lighter ones this morning. My lad's Shires full neck (his only one) is second-hand, has been repaired at least twice (once by me), fits like a glove and is still waterproof. I haven't had it cleaned as he rarely wears it apart from when living out in the winter or if it's really cold but it is definitely a great rug and deserves a clean this spring. His other Shires rugs are also good.

My Shires breeches are actually my best ones - all my others are either Aldi or Decathlon - and after my expensive Sealskinz gloves died, I am now using Aldi waterproof cycling gloves which are just as good. My expensive Muck Boots also died so my wellies are from Decathlon, on their second winter and very comfortable!
 
I am not a believer in expensive stirrups. Why would I pay hundreds for faffy colourful ones that look scruffy and don't have any real weight to them when I can have a good pair of bent-leg/simplex irons for £20 or less? Whack them on a pair of plain, boring, old-fashioned leathers of the sort made in one layer with a buckle and appropriate holes (leather-faced synthetic 'leathers' annoy me), and crack on.

It occurs to me that this may be mainly down to a Yorkshire mentality about money, but I've ridden in various fancy lightweight and/or flexible irons (on other people's horses), and I just don't like them. They are not for me. I like my boring old-school cheap stirrups, and if it ain't broke, why fix it?
 
pennandh said:
I am not a believer in expensive stirrups. Why would I pay hundreds for faffy colourful ones that look scruffy and don't have any real weight to them when I can have a good pair of bent-leg/simplex irons for £20 or less? Whack them on a pair of plain, boring, old-fashioned leathers of the sort made in one layer with a buckle and appropriate holes (leather-faced synthetic 'leathers' annoy me), and crack on.

It occurs to me that this may be mainly down to a Yorkshire mentality about money, but I've ridden in various fancy lightweight and/or flexible irons (on other people's horses), and I just don't like them. They are not for me. I like my boring old-school cheap stirrups, and if it ain't broke, why fix it?
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I often think the same thing. It may be a yorkshire thing as I'm from South Yorkshire and never have seen the point in fancy coloured stirrups when I'm going to be putting my muddy boots in them anyway :D
 
Lyle said:
Argh, if Aldi Aus brought their equestrian line here, it would be the answer to my prayers! I have a vest from them, the old Crane brand, which lasted for years and was just gorgeous. There aren't enough lower end brands... it's either $150-$200 for a pair of standard type breeches, or $300 for the big name brands. All I want is a pair for home, that I can buy for $50 when I need to.

I buy hooman things for my horses where I can, like shampoo, baby wipes, combs, rock salt. There's not a tonne of choice otherwise, have to go to Horseland to buy overpriced pink and purple junk, or some fancy store which has severely marked up their 'euro' products. I buy a lot of second hand stuff, and online too
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Im liking performa ride at the moment. $70ish for everyday jods, and very comfortable.
You are right about the lack of choice though, and the massive price hike on European brands. I end up paying for postage and buying from the uk
 
I love Aldi! They had reversible reflective gilets in recently, in pink or yellow. They are great! Quite warm, and I use the reflective side for hacking and switch to the fabric side for lessons. As I am horseless at the moment, I haven't bought anything else horsey from Aldi but will definitely consider it when I need to.

As a non-horsey add on, I also find Aldi's Almat washing powder a great buy. Have recently convinced the OH that it does the job just like Fairy at a quarter of the price (same ingredients, bar the addition of 'soap' in the Fairy one). 100 washes for £8.99, will probably last us a year haha. :D
 
pennyturner said:
The latex work gloves you can get from ebay in packs of 20 for about a tenner are great. Small, so they're skin tight, and you can actually do buckles etc without taking them off, and they have the same grip as your bare hand. I use them for carriage driving too.
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Link to them on ebay please! thanks
 
hlb93 said:
I love Aldi! They had reversible reflective gilets in recently, in pink or yellow. They are great! Quite warm, and I use the reflective side for hacking and switch to the fabric side for lessons. As I am horseless at the moment, I haven't bought anything else horsey from Aldi but will definitely consider it when I need to.

As a non-horsey add on, I also find Aldi's Almat washing powder a great buy. Have recently convinced the OH that it does the job just like Fairy at a quarter of the price (same ingredients, bar the addition of 'soap' in the Fairy one). 100 washes for £8.99, will probably last us a year haha. :D
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I bought Almat to do horsey washing so I wasn't using up all our more expensive detergent and I have to say I was really impressed actually. It gets rid of the wee smell on stable rugs better than my normal stuff
 
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