Bill Black is one of the most sought after hackamore braiders out there. In this video he shares some thoughts and ideas on the hackamore. Visit Bill Black Custom Braiding on Facebook bit.ly/3sNyaJh
Bill black is right on minute 3:38 When he says “we call it brazadas in the Mexican language” It is true, we measure rawhide ropes by how many brazadas of length they are. When you go to the person who makes them you can ask them to make you a rope with the number of brazadas you want. They normally range from 12, 13... 18 brazadas are the longest I have heard of in rawhide ropes. A brazada is an archaic length measure used in Mexico and I have only heard it being used in these matters of ropes. Each brazada is the measure of roughly a meter and a half (one meter = 3 feet and a little more). My Dad tells me a story about one of my grandpas in which he got the hind legs of a mare and he dallied and the rope was long enough to heat up the head of the saddle and set it on fire (the head of the saddle is made out of wood and often times is not covered with any hide or leather) anyway, the neck of the saddle right under the head turned on fire and my grandfather had to get down from the horse to pick up dirt/manure from the ground of the corral to shut down the fire. Also, notice how Bill black said “in the Mexican language” this is likely due to the fact that Spaniards or Spanish vaqueros do not know how to rope. The Spanish vaqueros used only garrocha and no ropes, whereas Mexican vaqueros or Chinacos used ropes and garrochas as well but ropes more than garrochas. Great videos, I will be waiting for more. Thanks for sharing knowledge.
My bosal braider is Mel Cox in Orderville Utah He makes them to my exact specs which include a beautiful twisted heel knot, mediun diameter,extra long body with any core I want. I like a nose band a little longer than most people so the bosal hangs balanced. I prefer buttons to keep the head stall from traveling yet so they will not press on the nerve. When I ask my horse to bend the only thing he feels is pressure on the side of his nose bone. After all all a hackmore is for is for principle of bend. The first ride outside in the trees and rocks by the time I get back to the truck he is listening to the bosal. I just keep building from there and as time goes on I can do anyting with the principle of bend. When Mel finishes he coats the rawhide with sheep tallow. Helps the rawhind last and remain supple. Thanks for going to the trouble of a tour of bosal makers.
