Equorum Tack

I was recently asked by Helen Moore of Equorum to develop a line of tack suitable for her handmade latex horses and ponies. I was very flattered to be asked and set about making up some examples sets that we could sell via her website. You can buy from an ever expanding range of pose-able horse and pony breeds, riders and accessories. I think they're adorable and my collection is growing month by month. They make a lovely antidote for the frustration that can often come along with trying to create super-realistic set-ups, using fragile artist resins and delicate tack! Plus, more and more shows in the UK are having dedicated divisions for handmade/craft type models which I think is fantastic as they are all very much a part of our model horse heritage.

I started off with one of the smallest in the Equorum range, the Shetland Pony, pictured below. I made a pony pad with suede seat and knee rolls. The girth and stirrup buckles work with tongues whereas the bridle has slip buckles. The set is not as detailed as my normal hobby tack but we needed to keep both costs and production time down.

Next I tackled the Connemara, one of my favourite moulds. For this one I made a more conventional General Purpose saddle with knee rolls. The bridle has buckles with tongues for added realism.

On my workbench right now I am making a set to fit the Show Hunter Pony and a side-saddle for the Connemara. Next up will be new prototypes for the Welsh B pony, the Welsh Cob and the Trakehner, and these sets will be available to buy from the Load The Lorry page in a few weeks.

Longer term I hope to develop other styles, such as dressage sets, cross country and polo sets. It makes a really refreshing change to make simpler tack and not be so obsessed with the finer detail. I think many of these sets could be shown with success as the tack is user-friendly and has all the right proportions.