Special Edition: FlexArch Baby Pelham
- Best for
- for horses needing mild leverage in a compact pelham
- Feel
- flexible rubber with built-in tongue relief
- Material
- Rubber
- Thickness
- Medium (13-15mm)
- Ships from
- Burlington, Ontario
- Returns
- Not once it has been ridden in. Rubber cannot be resold
Dressage legality
- USEFNot legal
- ECNot legal
- FEINot legal
- USEANot legal
- EC EventingNot legal
The FlexArch mouthpiece features a softly arched, ported design created to offer generous tongue space while maintaining a smooth, forgiving feel.
The large port lifts gently over the tongue, allowing it to sit more freely without being compressed, while the arched shape helps the mouthpiece settle evenly when rein contact is taken. This design supports a relaxed tongue position and reduces the feeling of crowding, encouraging a steady, comfortable contact without sharp pressure.
Made from semi-flexible green rubber, the FlexArch mouthpiece is designed to feel soft and accommodating in the horse’s mouth. The controlled flexibility allows the mouthpiece to adapt to tongue movement while remaining stable and easy to understand for the horse. This makes FlexArch a good option for horses with sensitive tongues or those that resist more rigid or restrictive mouthpiece designs, promoting relaxation, acceptance, and a quieter overall feel in the contact.
The Baby Pelham cheekpiece combines the action of a double bridle into a single bit, with shorter shanks than a full-size pelham for a milder lever effect. It provides additional pressure on the chin and poll while offering more precision and control than a simple snaffle. Baby Pelhams can be used with a double rein to separate the lever action of the curb and the snaffle, or with a converter which mediates the action between the two. The curb chain must be fitted so that the shanks cannot move past 45 degrees upon engagement of the reins for correct bit action.
The shorter shank length makes the Baby Pelham a popular choice for horses and ponies that need a step up from a snaffle without the full leverage of a standard pelham, ideal for show jumping, eventing, and general riding where a little extra control is needed while keeping the aids soft and clear.
Due to the shape of the mouthpiece we recommend sizing up 1/4" to accommodate the attachment of the cheekpiece.
Mouthpiece thickness: 14mm
Please note that all rubber bits are non-returnable and non-exchangeable due to the porous nature of the material.
We don't make this one in every size yet. Tell us which you need and we'll count you in. Enough riders asking is how new sizes get made.
Thank you. We've noted it. If this size launches, we'll get in touch.
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Done. We'll email you when it's back in stock. No newsletter signup, just the one note.
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⚠ Not for chewers. Rubber is soft, which is what makes it gentle in the mouth. But a horse that chews will destroy it fast, in some cases within five minutes. Simple test: if your horse leaves teeth marks on the bit, rubber is a no go, choose metal instead. Rubber bits are also final sale and cannot be returned or exchanged for hygiene reasons.
Questions riders ask about this bit
Riders often choose this bit for:
- Horses that put their tongue over the bit: our most tongue relief, with a forward tilt
- The tricky combination of a small mouth with a fat tongue
Worth knowing:
- Semi-flexible rubber: this bit is not chew proof, not even a little. If your horse chews or grabs the bit with its teeth, choose a metal mouthpiece instead
- Like all rubber bits, it is not returnable once used. If you are unsure, we usually suggest trying the CalmBlue first
Every horse is an individual. If you are not sure, take our two minute quiz or write to hello@agadors.com and we will help you decide.
There is no soft material that wins an argument with teeth. That is true of every soft bit on the market, and the softest ones degrade fastest. Softness is exactly what makes them kind, and the honest trade-off is durability. For a confirmed chewer, choose a metal, non-ported mouthpiece.
Worth checking either way: chew damage usually appears where the mouthpiece meets the premolars, which means the bit is riding too high. Dropping the bridle cheekpieces half a hole to a hole often stops it.
This is a hygiene policy rather than a sales tactic. Once a bit has been in a horse's mouth it cannot go to another customer. If you are not sure how your horse will take it, start with a metal bit you can send back within 30 days.
This does not repair deep pits and it will not stop it happening again. There is no wire or core reinforcement inside, so once a bit is deeply chewed, stop using it. Bit tape will cover the marks but it will not change your horse's mouth.
Bit size is the width of the mouthpiece. We list inches. Some bits are stamped in centimetres, so a bit marked 13.5 is 13.5cm, which is our 5.5".
Measure your horse rather than going by their height. A 17hh horse can have a 5" mouth. If you already have a bit that fits well, measure that instead and match it.
Fixed cheek (eggbutt, Baucher, D-ring, full cheek): about 0.5cm of clearance each side. Loose ring: up to 1/8" between the corner of the lip and the bore hole each side. If you ride in bit guards, or your horse has fleshy lips that catch, order a quarter inch up from your fixed-cheek size.
Too wide slides side to side and can pinch the corners. Too narrow presses on the lips. If your current bit fits with no room at all, stay at that size. If it "just" fits, go up a quarter inch.
Send us a photo of your horse in their current bit and we will tell you what we see.
Ask us. We would rather look at your horse than have you guess.
Useful things to tell us: what they go in now and what is not working, your discipline and whether it needs to be competition legal, the size, and what their mouth looks like inside. Peel the lip back and look at the tongue. Is it fleshy and full, or thin and tucked? Is the palate low? Are the bars sharp to the touch?
A photo of your horse wearing their current bit tells us more than a paragraph.
One thing worth saying up front: the bit is one variable. Saddle fit, dental work, noseband tightness and rider hands cause a lot of what gets blamed on bits. If your horse has changed suddenly, get the teeth and the saddle checked before you change the bit.
Our range runs 10mm to 16mm. For reference, 10mm is narrow, 12mm narrow to medium, 14mm average, and 16mm wide. 14mm is an ordinary thickness in the bit world, not a thick bit.
The counterintuitive part: a horse with a big fleshy tongue usually wants a thinner mouthpiece, not a thicker one. The average horse has around 16mm of space from tongue to palate, so anything over about 14mm starts competing with the tongue for room. More material in a mouth that is already full makes things worse.
Which way up does it go?
Lay the bit flat on a table. The roller or centre link should sit as the highest point. The Agador's lettering and the size should read upright, and the "A" points toward the nostrils.
Our logo placement is not perfectly consistent across the range, because where it lands depends on the bore hole the cheekpiece rings pass through, and some bits work either way up. If it looks odd, send a photo and we will confirm rather than have you guess.
When will my size be back in stock?
A restock is usually 4 to 8 weeks. Canada tends to land first and the US follows about 2 to 3 weeks later, so if you are in the US and it shows in stock for Canada, ask us. We can often ship one across the border, which adds roughly $10 in duties.
Sign up for the restock alert on this page and you will hear the moment your size lands.
Two honest caveats. Some cheekpieces get discontinued and will not return, and we will tell you plainly if yours is one of them. And sizes 6.5" and up are not something we stock regularly, because the orders are too few to justify holding them.
Still deciding? See how this compares with similar bits.
Choose options
- Best for
- for horses needing mild leverage in a compact pelham
- Feel
- flexible rubber with built-in tongue relief
- Material
- Rubber
- Thickness
- Medium (13-15mm)
- Ships from
- Burlington, Ontario
- Returns
- Not once it has been ridden in. Rubber cannot be resold
Dressage legality
- USEFNot legal
- ECNot legal
- FEINot legal
- USEANot legal
- EC EventingNot legal
We don't make this one in every size yet. Tell us which you need and we'll count you in. Enough riders asking is how new sizes get made.
Thank you. We've noted it. If this size launches, we'll get in touch.
That didn't go through. Please check the email address and try again.
Done. We'll email you when it's back in stock. No newsletter signup, just the one note.
That didn't go through. Please check the email address and try again.
⚠ Not for chewers. Rubber is soft, which is what makes it gentle in the mouth. But a horse that chews will destroy it fast, in some cases within five minutes. Simple test: if your horse leaves teeth marks on the bit, rubber is a no go, choose metal instead. Rubber bits are also final sale and cannot be returned or exchanged for hygiene reasons.
Not sure?