Bucas Select Quilts: review

These are not cheap rugs but they are high performance and durable, representing excellent value for money.

I tried two under-rugs from this range; the heavyweight (300g, pictured)) with the stay-dry lining, and the lighter rug (150g) with the silky lining.

While the thinner rug was a useful addition to my horse’s wardrobe in the spring and autumn, the heavier weight has become an absolute winter essential.

I work full-time so often ride late in the evenings and my horse isn’t always completely dry by the time I leave the yard. I used to have to call in favours and ask the yard owner to change my horse’s rug a couple of hours later — but not any more. I can happily leave the thick rug on my mare because it is breathable and wicking, so she dries off, stays warm and there’s less work to be done. Brilliant.

The rugs appear smart, too, and I particularly like the snap-close clips on the surcingles. They’re another time-saver and can be done up/undone even if I’m wearing gloves, which is handy in winter.

They are a very good fit on my horse. I did question whether shoulder gussets would improve the fit, but after using them for a number of months, there was no rubbing on the shoulders at all, and the mane was still intact; something I’ve struggled with for the past few years. I think it’s the shoulder darts that provide plenty of space inside the rug.

The Velcro at the chest with overlapping material means that the either side of the rug does not split apart and fold back, causing pressure points. The fastening at the chest is the t-hook and eye you’d normally expect to see on cross-surcingles, and at the chest the lie nice and flat – though they do limit the fitting adjustment in that area.

The neck rug was also easy to attach and stayed in place well. I like the simple Velcro fold-back closure system.

My only real criticism is that while I found the clips on the cross surcingles less fiddly than the usual T-hook design, they did clonk the horse hard on the legs if I was too enthusiastic chucking it on! I liked that the cross-surcingles were elasticated.

There is also no tail flap, but I suspect I was more concerned about my horse’s chilly tail than she was. And it kept the back of the rug cleaner, too.

The thin rug is a neat, useful allround stable rug, but the thicker, wicking one is a king among rugs.

I liked that, to convert into a turnout rug — or just for an extra layer of protection, the Velcro fastening system meant that both rugs could then be put on and taken off as one — another time-saver.

These are not cheap rugs but they are high performance and durable, representing excellent value for money.

Verdict

These are not cheap rugs but they are high performance and durable, representing excellent value for money.