Studded Cavessons

A Spanish serreta iron.

Duh? Yes, there are studded cavessons. They are especially popular in the Iberian riding culture. Some use them instead of a bradoon/snaffle when they ride young horses, to "spare their mouths". In this case, it''''s really a matter of what the studs are like. If they are rounded, fairly flat ones, they have very little effect. But if they are pointy, sharp and raised, they can cause harm and bloodshed.

In Spain this is called La Serreta. The Serrated. Jagged. It is a reinforced cavesson of lungeing type, with serrated edges facing the nose. Supposedly, they ride with light, skillfull hands, or their horses would be bleeding from their noses. I haven''''t seen such a sight yet, personally.

But studded nosebands are used in the Austro-Hungarian tradition, too. Not to mention the more quick-fix prone competitive scene. In such cases, they don''''t use the glaringly obvious serreta type, but merely a normal noseband, with studs added to the inside of the cavesson strap running over the nose. I have seen all kinds of homemade studded cavessons, ranging from those with rounded bumps to sharp pointed studs.

But how would that work? asks the unexperienced. Well, it works the way any cavesson also works, just that it adds extra umphf to the nose. I shall explain.

When the rider pulls on the reins, the bit (red) in the horse''''s mouth pulls the lower jaw back (green). This would usually open the mouth of the horse, if done with any applied force, and the horse had no noseband. The noseband shuts the mouth. So when the lower jaw is pulled back, the strap around the chin pulls across the nose (blue). When it does, the cavesson and the studs studs are pressed into the nose. This pull across the nose happens in any cavesson without studs, as well. Just that no studs are pressed into the nose. This is why one pads nosebands at all, not because it shouldn''''t chafe when done up really tight.