Old nickel bits - yey or neigh?

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pennyturner

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I have several antique nickel bit in the tackroom. They're good quality, even if they're much older than I am, and I'd say they're fit to use, but before I do (there's a couple of liverpools I've got my eye on), wondered if anyone had any experience, or could tell me advantages / disadvantages of nickel vs modern stainless steel.
 
I thought nickel was a much weaker metal than stainless steel - hence nickel stirrups being a bit of a no-no now. I don't honestly know how much of a problem this is likely to be with a bit, but I'd probably think twice about using one.
 
I have an old Pelham and a loose ring mullen mouth. The Pelham shank is a bit bent on one side, they are weaker, I'd be concerned it would snap under pressure, the other bit is fine, it polishes up nicely for an in hand bridle.
 
I read an article recently about nickel jewellery for people, apparently nickel is poisonous, so I would buy a new bit. I'd probably polish the old ones up and use them in some decorative fashion or other.
 
Pearlsasinger said:
I read an article recently about nickel jewellery for people, apparently nickel is poisonous, so I would buy a new bit. I'd probably polish the old ones up and use them in some decorative fashion or other.
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Some people are allergic to nickel, to the extent that they get a rash under a cheap watch etc. Some horses can react to nickel in bits too, but it's not usually a problem. I don't think it's 'toxic' as such.

My question is more specifically about the use of an old bit, since I know that modern kangaroo, german silver, and even some s/s bits all contain nickel. Hence other bits making a marketing point about being 'nickel free'.
 
Nickel bits were used for over 100 years and seemed to do fine :-) They were what bits were made out of when I was a nipper. They will bend under extreme pressure, but that shouldn't happen unless you're being run away with, surely?
 
Cortez said:
Nickel bits were used for over 100 years and seemed to do fine :-) They were what bits were made out of when I was a nipper. They will bend under extreme pressure, but that shouldn't happen unless you're being run away with, surely?
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I'm hoping to drive rough cheek (pair), so I would think it would be quite hard to exert that kind of pressure.
I'd have thought you'd need a runaway on the duffer's hole - which might well break the horse's jaw too!
 
Nickel wears quite easily and can leave some pretty sharp edges. I have known a snaffle to snap at the joint (scary!), so it's worth having a really close inspection for any cracks.
 
Don't be tempted to use old nickel bits. Part of our Lorinery training for our certificates was to examine old bits, we were shown some reasonably good looking nickel bits. To the naked eye they seemed fine but it was shown to us they had internal flaws and fractures.
This is the main reason everybody started selling stainless steel bits and irons instead. I have seen at saddlery college a stirrup iron that was more or less squashed flat after a horse fell at a fence landing on the iron, luckily for the man riding he was thrown clear.
It's a second rate metal.
 
cremedemonthe said:
Don't be tempted to use old nickel bits. Part of our Lorinery training for our certificates was to examine old bits, we were shown some reasonably good looking nickel bits. To the naked eye they seemed fine but it was shown to us they had internal flaws and fractures.
This is the main reason everybody started selling stainless steel bits and irons instead. I have seen at saddlery college a stirrup iron that was more or less squashed flat after a horse fell at a fence landing on the iron, luckily for the man riding he was thrown clear.
It's a second rate metal.
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Thanks CDM. Does this apply to 'german silver' and kangaroo bits too?
 
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