Make your own Biothane bridle

What you need:

• Tools for riveting
• Awl (cobbler tool)
• Rivets and necessary buckles and eyelets
• sharp knife
• Biothane
• old, matching horse snaffle
• Nylon yarn
• Saddler's needle

Problems with commercial bridles

There are, of course, reasons why someone came up with the idea of ​​making bridles for horses out of the material Biothane and putting them into production.

• Commercially available bridles are usually made of leather straps that are relatively heavy. To protect the horse's skin, these straps are lined with soft material, often even with fur.
• For one horse the strap flaps over the nose, for the other the chin strap is too tight. Bridles have to fit well. You can easily achieve this with a self-made material made of Biothane.
• Despite the natural material leather and the pads, a normal bridle is relatively heavy. The soft, gentle sub-material rubs on and the bridle rubs off the animal's skin.
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• As soon as the bridle gets wet, these material properties increase.


Types of bridles - this is how you determine which bridle fits

While horses were previously only used as work and transport animals, you will ...

• Even commercially available variants made of artificial materials are not very flexible and not very conformable.
• Remember, your horse often wears his bridle for hours, sometimes day and night.

Biothane - a colorful material 

Biothane comes from the USA. The best way to order the material is on the Internet.

• It is delivered in rolls by the meter. It is in everyone Colours available and in different widths. Make sure you don't have to take off an entire roll, as it is usually 100 feet long. That is the equivalent of a good 30 meters.
• The material Biothane is available in different strengths. It is very grippy, soft and cuddly and almost feels like leather.
• Pay attention to the subtleties when ordering. Some biothanes are more grippy than others. And also with this material, mostly for Handcraft is used, there are glitter and mica effects.
• Biothane is ideal for bridles that you can make yourself. The material is lighter than the usual leather snaffles, does not absorb moisture and cannot get moldy.
• A Biothane bridle nestles better than bridles made from other materials, is softer and therefore causes less chafing. Your horse will feel more comfortable with it, because the material remains flexible even in the cold.
• It can be cleaned very quickly by wiping it off and does not need additional maintenance.

Make a bridle yourself

To make a bridle from Biothane yourself, you should discard an existing bridle and use it as a template.

• Carefully disassemble this bridle completely and place the individual parts in front of you.
• If you have to go quickly, you can make your own Biothane bridle with rivets very quickly. You cut the appropriate pieces to size and rivet the individual parts together.
• You should round off the corners of the individual Biothane pieces slightly for a nicer look.
• You can then use the holes in the template. If the bridle does not fit perfectly, you should put it on your horse again before taking it apart and measure it exactly. Mark where the holes would be perfect.
• Write down the measurements for each horse. So you can make several bridles.
• If you want to sew instead of riveting your Biothane bridle, you will need the materials mentioned above. Use the awl to make the holes. Then sew the individual parts together with the saddlery needle and nylon thread. You should think carefully about the necessary buckles, rings, eyelets and any snap hooks before sewing. You can find all the materials on the Internet and in specialist shops.
• It is best to start sewing with the cheek pieces and then work your way up. With a sewing machine that can also sew leather and a special leather needle, you'll be finished faster.
• If you can still use the buckles on your template bridle, you should do so on your first Biothane bridle. Once you have a bridle ready you will know what to look for. Then you can order new materials and make other bridles yourself.