Rein length??

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el_Snowflakes

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I recently got a lovely new jeffries bridle as a present from my fiance. He got me the matching reins, think it's the falcon range ones. They are beautifully light & soft however, they feel very short! There is very little hanging over when I'm holding them & if my horse is stretching i.e. In free walk, they are literally on the buckle with my hands pushed forward. My horse isn't a giant, she's only 16 hands but has a fairly long neck. I'm not sure whether to swap them for xtra long ones (if I can get my hands on a set) or if this is the norm as I'm used to riding in scubby old ones!

If anyone can tell me how much slack reins are meant to have itd be much appreciated!
 
I struggled to get some for my 16hh Gelderlander. I don't know if f it helps but I ended up with dressage type. I found so many were just too short!
 
I deliberately opt for shorter reins (My horse is 17.1hh, but his reins are from a cob size bridle). I find it far easier to grab him if he starts dicking around out hacking, and if I want him long and low, I have to put my hands forward and maintain a contact, rather than dropping the contact and letting him shuffle along. One of my bugbears is people equating long reins with loose reins - I want a contact all the time, no matter where I've asked for the head to be, so that I always have a conversation going on with the front end.

Appreciate that it's different strokes for different folks though.
 
I bought some pretty pricey reins as my old stübens needed replacing. They were so dumpy, I rode with them for five minutes before going and swapping them back, returning the reins to the shop and getting some others. I like longer reins, so if I'm rein shopping I will take the old ones with me!
 
I can't be doing with short reins as we go on longish hacks and often stop for a drink of water or a graze. Can't do that if you have to come half way down the neck to keep hold of the reins!
 
I think it is personal preference, I like long reins so that I have a loop down their shoulder and when I ride long and low, I still have enough rein to sit properly without holding the buckle. I use full reins on my 15hh and x-full on my 17.2hh.
 
I think Jeffries reins are on the short side. I had the really expensive soft rubber pony ones on my 14.2 and felt them too short for my 15.2 so I got full ones for her and irritatingly there is hardly any difference in the length of them! Got a 14.2 again so it's ok :D
 
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