The Hidden Dangers of an All Copper Snaffle Bit
Copper has been used in bits for a long time, and for good reasons. It encourages salivation, and it has antimicrobial properties. Riders and trainers across every discipline recommend it, and the all-copper snaffle has become a tack room staple.
The problem is that copper is soft.
Soft metal wears. In a horse’s mouth it sits in a wet environment against grinding teeth, which is close to the worst case for a metal that gives. Over time an all-copper mouthpiece changes shape — and a mouthpiece that has changed shape no longer acts the way it was designed to. Worn far enough, it develops sharp edges. Further still, it breaks.
None of that happens overnight, and none of it is a reason to avoid copper. It is a reason to be careful about where the copper sits.
Inlay instead
Copper used as inlay, or as rollers, keeps the benefit and removes the wear problem. The copper is placed away from the teeth, so it is not the surface taking the grinding. It does not wear down or change shape, and the mouthpiece keeps the geometry it was built with.
Paired with sweet iron — the material doing the work in the mouth — copper inlay gives you the salivation without the failure mode.
Our bits are sweet iron dee ring snaffles with copper inlay, in smooth, dogbone roller and twisted mouthpieces.