Authenticity and Value?Buying Your First Bit

There is a wide-eyed horseman in a second-hand store or at an auction looking at a shiny bit
for sale. “Wow, look at that! What are they asking for it? What is it worth? What would I do
with it?” And the questions go on: calling good friends to talk it through, hoping no one buys
it before you decide if you want it. You think you need to know who made it, where it came
from, what horse used it, is it really a collectable? Value and authenticity are uppermost;
you don’t want to get scammed. I remember the first bit I bought on my own; every one of
us has to go through that first step.

I was so excited to see the silver bit with an elaborate mouthpiece sitting on the trading
table. I was a big girl, I could buy a bit too. I didn’t even notice the plain silver that had been
tapped into the empty well. I did see that it was silver though, and it was good silver.
Unmarked was okay because we had many of those, and I knew that I knew what a good bit
was, even unmarked. After agreeing to a price, the hundred-dollar bills in “my roll” peeled
off, and I proudly took the bit home to my father.

We sat, rolled the cricket, studied the whole bit carefully, and that is when I learned what the
questions should have been. I had been asking about what was important to other people,
but not specifically to myself. If I were a trader, those questions of other people’s opinions
would have more merit. This was a personal purchase; the questions changed. what did I
want? How valuable is that bit to me? When you ride a horse, or two or three or more, you learn what fits your hand, your horse, and your temperament. If you hang a collection on a wall or place it in a case, you know what style you like, what maker/style/time-frame holes might be in your collection, and what you have paid for others. If you are a trader, you know your clientele, their financial
abilities, and the mark-ups you need. If you are entering into any of these arenas for the
first time, when you don’t even know the questions, how can you know if the answer is
right? Everyone has to take that first step, and excuse themselves for not having all the
right answers the first time or times thereafter.

A bit is so much more than a piece or two of iron and silver; it encompasses many valuation
factors. Some are more important to one buyer than another. Material, age, maker,
workmanship, provenance, and style can all carry different import to different people. The
most important questions are: How valuable is it to you? Can you afford it? Does it answer
your needs?

It is important to educate yourself as much as possible before laying out any money. That is
true in all walks of life, and most of us behave accordingly. I have heard some interesting
stories though of unknowing people buying treasures because they liked them. Only to find
out, it is an actual treasure when they go on Antique Roadshow and learn the potential
astronomical value. Would that we all could have just one of those opportunities.
Let’s address some of these elements and learn what questions we might ask when that
shiny treasure is looking back at us. Obviously, the first question is why do you want it? All
answers are correct, just be brutally honest with yourself. When I saw that bit, Dad was
lying in a hospital bed recovering from cancer. I wanted to impress him. And I was proud of
myself too for the knowledge I had and the unselfish behavior. It was a silver inlaid bit, AB Hunt style with the teardrops and the Santa Barbara ratios. It was old, tempered iron, I could feel the warmth of the iron, something that your fingers learn when you clean or feel enough of those old relics. Your fingers learn to communicate with your brain; they work together. The iron was warm and soft; the edges were fine and smooth. It checked those boxes: iron, silver, and older (remember this was 1985). It was a classic pattern that followed the 1:2 ratio that we want in a cheekpiece. Therefore, to me it
was one we (the Morgan Bit Collection) would be interested in. For the arena horseman,
probably not. For the trader, it would have to be a great price.

The maker was unknown. That is a big question; it is a little less important to a practitioner
than to someone looking for verification or collectability. Important, never the less. For the
curious, the name-the-maker game is always on when holding an unmarked bit. Check the
engraving and ironwork with known, marked bits, look and compare to bits shown in old
catalogs, and talk to the sages of the bit-collecting world. Look at and feel the iron; does it
represent the era? As you talk to “your resources” you’ll hear many thoughts and ideas, no
guarantees that you won’t get 6 opinions from 5 people. It is merely an opinion, but
valuable when it is from knowledgeable sources. A maker’s mark does help define its age,
most times its quality, and location. It works in the provenance, which benefits a collector or
a trader. The contrarian in me is proud of an absolutely beautiful bit without a mark. I like
to think of some unnamed, talented soul creating good work because he knows what he
wants. A mark doesn’t make a “good usin’ bit,” the quality is what speaks. A mark doesn’t
always guarantee quality or usability. Know your marks and the quality they represent.

Marks can become very confusing. For example: a Garcia is not a Garcia is not a Garcia.
GS Garcia was the original Garcia for the bit world, a highly collectable name. Now and
through the times there are many more: A Garcia, E Garcia, Garcia Salinas, Garcia Reno.
Each one fits a different locale, timeframe, and quality. Additionally, there were two
Figueroas, several Hernandez, and generations of Grijalvas. Know the history of that mark
and the nuances embedded in its history.

Some of the marks grew and traveled with a specific bitmaker. The one I am most aware of
is Eduardo Grijalva. His EG* carried all the way through, but as he moved, stamped
locations changed and dates were added to satisfy “los federales”. Be aware of the EG San
Francisco; that was a Mexican import for El Gato/Bob McBride, not the same as EG*. We
believe the similarity was planned for marketing purposes. Al Tietjen also changed his mark
as he moved, as he changed partners, and as his processes progressed. A mark can tell
much more than solely the maker. More information and examples of maker’s marks can be
found in One Man’s Opinion.

Add to the story that a mark may not identify the actual maker. Many of the names bandied
around, GS Garcia, Buermann, Hamley, Main and Winchester, are not the artisans of
bitmaking. They are distributors, geniuses in marketing but not bitmaking. GS Garcia did
not make all those bits; he had bitmakers doing the work. Bitmakers like Juan Estrada,
Adolph Biancani, Rafael Gutierrez, and many others. Bitmakers had distinctive styles that
cannot be erased by a distributor’s label, but the old-time distributors get the credit of
quality. Who made those bits? The unnamed employees. And we also know that some of
the bits were made by two or three of those artists partnering on a project. A buyer’s
responsibility is to know the back story of many of the marks. Some of these distributors
have special cheekpiece patterns developed and sold by that distributor. GS Garcia had
some that were definitely distinctive, the eagle bit. Add to that Main and Winchester, little
kissing bird bits. (It’s important to have those old catalogs for the name game.) But that
doesn’t necessarily identify the actual maker. There was a quality assurance implied by
working with these distributors. Another tweak to the game – these distributors would sell
blank cheek pieces to handy, unnamed cowboys with a good idea. So yes, the cheek might
be a GS Garcia, but the work is not. It is part of the tapestry of our heritage.

In recent years, things have changed. Historically the artisans made the bits in the back-
store factories; the distributors took the orders and sold them. At the same time, the
blacksmiths in town or on the ranches were making equipment for the local hands using
forges, hammers, and lots of skill. Many of those are possibly the unmarked bits we find in
old barns, in attic boxes, in second-hand stores, or out in the mountains. Later some of the
distributor bitmakers started their own business, adding their mark to these works. Then
actual maker marks became more prevalent.

Today, my two cautions to new bit buyers: 1. A very old bit with a mark, be careful, that wasn’t always the custom; 2.Present day bits with a
mark don’t always signify value. Know your marks and all that they say and don’t say.
So many factors to really examine if you are looking at a bit. Don’t be surprised if one of
them slips your mind. What is the quality of the silver? Are there missing or replaced in-
lays? What is the mouthpiece? Spade? OK, or maybe you are looking for something else.
Spoon, alligator, half-breed, Mona Lisa, and on and on? Is it balanced in design and in feel?
Is the width of the mouthpiece right for your horse? Provenance can be interesting and
maybe speak to the quality. Most importantly, does it fit into your plans? No wrong
answers, just be honest with yourself. Don’t fall into the trap of grabbing something, and
paying more than you should, merely because someone else wants it. Don’t be afraid that
the seller is making money, and don’t take offense if he is making more than you think he
should. If that is the case, walk away.

The real value of any item, bit, horse, home, ranch, or Remington art, is when a seller gets
what they want and the buyer thinks the price is fair. We have appraisals, evaluations, and
experts, but it really is a personal transaction between two parties. It is important to be
informed throughout this horseman’s journey. Read books like One Man’s Collection and
One Man’s Opinion. Go to the websites, and study the specifics of each item. Learn the
jargon, the language of the horseman. Look at catalogs; go to stores. Note the differences
that might affect the price. What is a replacement price? Is the seller or your resource
talking about the same discipline as you are? The value of bits changes with the different
disciplines. You have the money, the means of making this deal. You are the power broker.
Determine what you think it is worth to you and stay true to that evaluation.

Generally, the seller determines what the value is to him and the buyer determines if that is
right for him, not the neighbor or the kibitzer in the tack store, but for him. The heritage
likes a little back-and-forth negotiation, and then an outcome agreeable to all. That is a
good sale. The vendor had a price in mind (many of them add a little for wiggle room).
That bit I brought home was immediately put in the collection. I did well there. We believed
by the iron and the ironwork it was about a 1950s Fleming. That is good. The replaced
silver was not engraved. All right, I learned to look a little more specifically at all of it. The
cheekpieces were in good shape, in the right style, and thinner like we preferred. They were
balanced weight, and not banged up. Good job. It had rein chains. That’s a plus. The
mouthpiece was wrapped to the front. Good again. The braces were intact. Good. The
spade.... Oops, it was a vicuna, not a real spade. Well, I learned, that is what this is all
about. Dad and I put it in the collection, numbered and stamped it with the RM
identification, and recorded the provenance in our collection binder.

Acquiring bits can grab ahold of you and not let go. The Morgan Bit Collection, when it was
dispersed, consisted of 161 silver, hand-worked bits. There were several others that we did
not record; they were bought and sold as so many often are. You can visit 154 of the
keepers in One Man’s Collection. The vast majority were spades of all different shapes.
There were some half-breeds and their variations (like a vicuna) because we had a reason for them too. We knew not all riders nor horses were spade-bit ready. But those other bits met all the other criteria to be a quality tool to help a ranch horse and rider do their job.