Webbers/buckleless leathers - interesting fact from saddler.

kerilli

kerilli

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apparently on pressure testing, the buckleless leathers/webbers are much comfier for the horse... the downward pressure from the thickness of 3 pieces of leather on normal leathers under your thigh can actually be shown acting on the trapezius muscle. the muscle can't come up into that area, kind of thing, if i understood correctly.
well, i thought it was interesting and worth sharing. have just ordered another pair...
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amazing what you find out, isn't it?
please submit your "i think everyone should hear this" discoveries here!
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It's very interesting, and didn't surprise me one little bit when I was told this. If only more riders thought about this sort of thing - like the damage the tree points do to the horse's back (you can feel the dents when you put your fingers where the tree points go) there would be a lot of happier horses (and probably riders) around.

I don't recommend webbers for jumping however, as they are more likely to slip off the stirrup bar. You can get riveted leathers (rather than stitched) which sit flatter at the top, and are more comfortable for horse and rider.
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I like them, I find them more comfortable than ordinary leathers. Having little legs ordinary leathers always feel bulky, although that could be imagination?
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Never knew that fact though Kerilli, will pass it on to friends.
 
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Have you tried jumping in them yet? If so did they stay on? I am very tempted but worried I might lose them mid jump
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That's why I don't recommend them for jumping, only for flatwork/hacking etc
 
I guess an answer is to not have e-bars but have the regular ones that flip up to stop that happening, though it'd be a good idea to use barnes buckles or similar safety system! God knows how much it costs to get the bars changed though....
 
carthorse, webbers are about £20 on Equestrian Clearance, i don't think that's expensive tbh.
i'm going to try them for jumping, can't see why they're likely to come off the bars.
Chestnut_mare, they're definitely less bulky than normal leathers, no question at all. much comfier for horse and rider, i think.
 
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I guess an answer is to not have e-bars but have the regular ones that flip up to stop that happening,

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Sorry I have to say this you should NEVER ride with the bars closed, the whole idea is that if you fall off and your foot stays in the stirrup, at least the stirrup leather will pull free.

What you don't want is the stirrup leather to come off when you are still on board, and I am interested that some people have said they jump with webbers no problem.

Anyway, the point of Kerilli's OP was the fact that stirrups with buckles cause more discomfort to the horse than webbers do.
 
the WOW i tried had leather webbers with it. however, the stirrup bar was a slightly different shape to a normal one, iirc.
i think it's alright to ride with the bars closed if you only ride with the balls of your feet on the stirrups, never ever push your feet home, and are very well-balanced.
otherwise, why do they have the option of being closed at all?
 
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i think it's alright to ride with the bars closed if you only ride with the balls of your feet on the stirrups, never ever push your feet home, and are very well-balanced.
otherwise, why do they have the option of being closed at all?

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Traditionally you put the bars up to keep the stirrups in place for storage or transporting the saddle. Oh dear I am showing my age here
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Oh thats really interesting. I've been umming and arring about treating myself to a pair for a while now but the only ones I've nearly invested in have been the bates (I hate the synthetic ones and they leave marks on my saddle - no idea why though!) but I couldn't get them through my stirrups.

Can you recommend any good quality, havana leather ones for under £40?

My interesting bit of info is that you shouldn't ever use sheepskin boots on a horse that doing fast work/jumping or prone to tendon problems. Infact I wouldn't let any sheepskin or wool lined boots anywhere near my horse - its just asking for problems as the insulation provided by the sheepskin keeps the legs (and thus tendons) very warm and particularly when galloping the tendons get very hot weakening the tendon fibres considerably.
 
I use them and jump with them all the time, never had a problem.

I had a struggle to get them through my stirrups too, but beat them into submission! The wow ones are thicker than Bates if you were thinking of trying them!!

I use bates synthetic ones as they were shorter than the leather ones...
 
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Sorry I have to say this you should NEVER ride with the bars closed, the whole idea is that if you fall off and your foot stays in the stirrup, at least the stirrup leather will pull free.



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Hence why I'd use a safety system
 
I've got the ones off bettersaddles.co.uk and although they are more expensive I have found they have lasted and lasted and lasted whereas the bates ones got really worn around the holes almost straight away. BS also punched some extra holes in for me so I could have the leathers short enough to jump (and they've never flown off the stirrup bars either on my WOW)
 
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