“Gag bit” covers two quite different designs. A running gag slides up in the mouth and lifts. A 3 ring or Dutch gag works by leverage and poll pressure, and is meant for the opposite kind of horse.
A running gag looks like a snaffle with two extra holes in each ring. Rounded leather or cord cheekpieces pass through those holes and end in a ring for the gag rein. Take up that rein and the mouthpiece moves up towards the corners of the mouth while the bridle presses on the poll.
The Cheltenham has eggbutt rings and the Balding has loose rings. The Neue Schule Tranz Angled Cheltenham Gag and the Stubben Sweet Copper Cheltenham Gag are Cheltenhams; the Neue Schule Tranz Balding Gag is the loose ring version. The rest are under running gag bits.
The horse that leans on your hand or drops its head below the line of control in fast work. Abbey describes the overriding action as lifting the head and neck. Sprenger aims its gag at horses that lean down on the hand or evade with the head down, and says the action means the horse presses down less.
Abbey doesn’t recommend riding in one every day, but says it’s useful when a strong horse needs more control in fast work. Sprenger recommends gag snaffles only for experienced riders with well-trained hands.
The bridle cheekpiece buckles to a small ring at the top. Below it is the big ring, attached to the mouthpiece, which acts much like a snaffle. Below that come one or two smaller rings for a second rein. You’ll also hear it called a Dutch, continental or Pessoa gag. The Stubben 3 Ring Gag Double Jointed and the 3 Ring Waterford Continental Gag are typical, and the Shires Blue Sweet Iron Two Ring Gag is a two ring version.
Sprenger says leverage bits suit horses that evade the aids by lifting upwards, and are “rather counterproductive” for a horse that carries its head low. Set that against the running gag advice above and you get a rule of thumb, one that bitting advisers such as Bit Bank Australia also give: the 3 ring for the horse that goes up, the running gag for the one that goes down. Our universal bit guide takes each ring in turn, and the full range is under gags and universal bits.
Because it decides how strong the bit is. On a running gag, Abbey puts the snaffle rein on the bit ring for most of the work and a thinner gag rein on the cheekpiece ring, used with care and only when needed. On a 3 ring, Sprenger has the main rein in the big ring acting on the tongue and lower jaw, and a second rein in a lower ring adding pressure through the cheekpiece as needed. Sprenger adds that the lower the rein is buckled, the stronger the pressure, so treat the bottom ring with real caution. Leverage bits explained covers the mechanics.
With two reins the bit works as a snaffle most of the time, and the gag action comes in only when you ask for it. Sprenger advises two pairs of reins because they let you use the bit in a targeted way.
The metal gags linked here can go out on a 30-day Bit Bank trial. Rubber versions such as the Rubber Three Ring Dutch Gag are sold outright, because they can’t be sterilised to the standard our library needs. If you’re not sure which way your horse evades, ring our Bitting Specialists on 01405 861800, option 3.