I know the figures you mean. Quilted linen.
If you want good variation, I can only see conversion work as a solution.
The Assault Group do some excellent Conquistadore cavalry but without bards.
TAG Horses:
The horses don't have barding but perhaps you could find some suitable plastic horses convert one model, but some blue stuff and cast some basic moulds that you could then clean up with some putty on the vaious horse poses.
Sounds like a lot of hard work and TBH, it will be.