Bridles that came with the Keiffer dressage saddle

 This was a mixed bag of tricks you could say- either these bridles were high quality, or absolute junk. So let's see some "before " pics (before being cleaned and conditioned) 

I guess I didn't have "before " pics saved of the Maroon browband Saddleseat bridle.  But it was the same quality and in the same dirty, dry shape as the Red one. It came with a set of reins that were nothing really special, but I will try to keep getting them soft and flexible. The bridle is at least Full size, but seems huge, maybe 0/S.

Note that the Red Saddleseat bridle is also a double bridle, and had a bradoon bit on it as well, with a matching fine narrow rein. Sadly the other rein wasn't with it. Also I couldn't restore the noseband and browband from where the black material had flaked off.  Perhaps in future I'll take on making replacements myself.  But honestly I'm not much interested in Saddleseat, and know very little about it. The bits look rather intimidating though! But then, I guess everything does if you don't know the nuances of it, so I can't judge something I know so little about. 

At any rate, these bridles are clean and I'll just have them in my collection. 

The rest of the bridles were "all the black stuff" the seller had managed to find, which included miscellaneous pieces and reins. They were even more dirty and drier than the Saddleseat bridles. 

When all was said and done, there was a nice dressage bridle with no cavesson, shown here.

 It'll be a hunt now to find a cavesson for it. There was also a nice set of black reins that probably went with it. 

  And the rest was junk. There was a complete Silver Fox bridle, some pieces of a bridle, 2 sets of reins and one odd rein?  that had rings stitched in various places. I haven't yet cleaned this odd item or researched what it actually is. 

I've never owned a Silver Fox bridle but read enough reviews that they're absolute crap. I see why now- nothing has worked to soften the cheapo leather, if it even can be called that, but at least they're clean and won't mold the rest of my gear. At best I'll take them apart for using as patterns for making good bridles someday. But that's the only use I can think of for them.

All in all, I wouldn't have bought any of these had they been offered individually or as a lot, but they went with the Keiffer saddle, so there you go.