Leather Open Front

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Barely Used Leather Open Front Jumping Boots Size Large
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US $30.00

Open Front Leather Boots with Sheepskin lining XL
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US $40.00

New CWD Protege Leather Buckle Boots Open Front and Fetlock Brown w Silver 3
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US $290.00

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Horse Jumping Boots - Leather vs Plastic and Velcro vs Straps?

I'm thinking about ordering the pessoa leather lined open front and ankle boots: http://www.doversaddlery.com/product.asp?pn=X1-04461&ids=108394816

What are the advantages and disadvantages of leather boots to that of plastic boots that are neoprene lined?
and
What are the advantages and disadvantages of straps to velcro?
and
Would y'all go with these boots or would you pick boots like Eskarons?

Thanks!

Firstly, you're wise to go with leather lining over fleece. Fleece looks fancy, but it's a pain in the neck to keep clean.

Leather jump boots look really really nice, I'll always agree with that. However, they're much harder to maintain than plastic boots (i.e. Eskadrons). They require faithful cleaning and oiling to keep them in good condition. On rainy days you'll have to carefully dry them (not in the sun!) and then make sure they get oiled so they don't dry out and crack. Straps and buckles again look nice, but they're more annoying to put on. On the plus side any tack repair person can replace them if they break. You'll have to be very careful to clean all the sand out of the insides of your boots regularly so that they don't chafe your horse's legs - this is true with any boot, but a little harder with leather.

The perks of Eskadron-type plastic boots is that you can hose off the excess sand and chuck them in the washing machine, then in the dryer, and they come out all nice and clean. I don't recommend doing this all the time, but when they get excessively nasty it's a handy feature. I usually brush mine out after every use and then toss them in my trunk - wash them out with a hose and brush every couple of days to keep out the grit. The velcro straps are fast and easy to apply, and nice and stretchy - you have to be careful not to get them too tight, but they also stretch and give as the horse moves. Most leather boots with buckle straps also have an elastic piece at the end of the straps so that they give as well.

One complaint most people have with the plastic boots is that they don't breathe well - leather in theory will breathe, but in my experience horses sweat under pretty much all boots. I have both - to be honest I have never used my leather boots because I save them to show and it poured buckets at the few horse shows I did this summer - I wasn't using my expensive leathers in the mud! I've had my Eskadrons for 6 or 7 years and they still look great and work very well - scuffed up a bit but they still clean up well enough to show in. I find that I get a lot of use out of them, but when I found my leathers on clearance for a great price I couldn't pass them up - I know I'll use them eventually, I'm just picky about my equipment!

Hope this helps, good luck!