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RidersChoiceSaddleCo

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About RidersChoiceSaddleCo

  • Rank
    Member
  • Birthday 07/04/1967

Profile Information

  • Gender
    Male
  • Location
    Northeast Alabama
  • Interests
    We make Saddles, Pads and Tack!

LW Info

  • Leatherwork Specialty
    Custom Saddles & Riding Equipment
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    Everything
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  1. We used 100% neatsfoot oil on thousands of saddles over the last 40 years and found that it works great as long as it is applied evenly and allowed to dry between applications. Also, note that we only use 100% and not compound. Many makers of the compound use all types of oil to mix in with the neatsfoot and even add baby powder. We haven't had great success with the compound as it brings mixed results. Also, since the neatsfoot oil is made from cattle hooves, it is already used to being part of the animal, and part of keeping it looking good for years to come.
  2. We have used many products to do this including closed cell neoprene. Most of it works fine but as pointed out earlier if they are using a good pad they are protected anyway. Once of our best projects included a woman whose horse was so short backed that she couldn't use a bottom skirt on the saddle so we used a new product called Sil-Cush that is made nearby. It is a silicon based pad that looks like a sponge and is highly responsive. We used that on the bars of the saddle and covered it over with suede so that the bottom of our western saddle looked almost English.
  3. Generally we carve the entire saddle before it goes onto the tree. But of course this is according to the shape of the pommel and just how radical the stretch will be. Then you may have to just touch up the lines on the front but normally the process doesn't distort the carving.
  4. As someone who has been around hundreds of thousands of saddles built on Ralide trees, I can say there is a market for them because they work for the consumer that buys them. There are good and bad points as brought up by many on this question. However, I think the worst advice anyone can ever give, is advice that is outside of ones realm of personal experience. The best person to ask is a person that has had plenty of experience with those trees. Yes, like any tree they can break. Yes, being a molded product, the seat is uncomfortable in most mass produced saddles, and there is only a one size fits all proposition. However, I would never judge a tree by the stupidity of a person loading a horse in a trailer with the barrel saddle still on the horse. Of course the horn is gonna pop of as soon as he jumps. I knew that is what happened as soon as I saw the photo. I know this because I see the tree's that are returned as defective and it is a very small percentage of the tons of trees that have gone out. In 10 years I have never seen a broken Poly Roper tree returned. The only small saddle trees that I have ever fixed have had the horn snapped off like this one or the horse rolled on them and broke the cantle. In fact we see more mass produced wooden/fiberglass roper fronts broke than Polymer trees. And your probably talking less than a handful a year out of thousands. I am not shouting the praises of Poly over wood, I am just stating that it does have good points as well. If a wooden tree is not cured correctly it can change shape over time. You have to worry about wood rotting. Wood is heavier...and the one thing I hear most about building custom saddles now days from the ladies especially is, "I want a super light saddle." We have been using the Ralide type trees in production since the 80's and have found them to hold fasteners well. When they first came out they did have a problem with pulling out but that has been solved. With all this being said I do much prefer to build on wood and will only use that on my higher end saddles. Ralide in fact made wooden trees as well but sold the operation to a friend nearby because it wasn't making any money. My family also makes your so called "knock off" tree and they are just the same quality as Ralide. However, I think all of this is becoming a mute point because the American saddle maker is going to have to transition into higher end saddles and custom fits which are going to kill off the days of the mass produced American saddle. In short, they are a good product for an inexpensive saddle that you are going to build a WHOLE lot off. This is why many of the builders here don't like them and this is also the reason they will become a thing of the past.
  5. We have had this Osborne splitter in the shop since the late 60's. It is fully functional with a very sharp blade. It has gone unused since the 1990's but I kept it coated in a gel to prevent rust. All you need to do is spray off the coating and buff the blade a bit. 600.00 and I will ship anywhere in the 48 US. 256-597-2424 Jerry
  6. Yes I still have it for sale. Same price. The shop is open M-F 9-4 EST if you want to call 256-597-2424 or we can just work through Email. Thanks, Jerry
  7. I have this super tight hard to find tool. I have had it in the shop for about 30 years. I am asking 175.00 and that includes shipping in the 48 US. 256-597-2424 Jerry
  8. This is a great splitter that we use in the shop daily. We need the room now more than we need the splitter. It runs off single phase 220. It comes with an extra blade. You can see in the photo where we have been splitting with it the day of the photo. It has a 28" blade. Price is 1800.00. Pickup up at the shop or I can help with getting a shipping quote. 256-597-2424 Jerry
  9. This is a great splitter. I have had it in my shop working with it for 5 years. I purchased a band splitter so I don't use it now and just need the room. It is mounted on the table and comes with the 110V motor ready to plug up and run. You can pick up at my shop or get a shipping quote. $750.00 256-597-2424 Jerry
  10. I am cleaning around the shop and selling the machinery we really don't need or rarely use. I have this very nice hand crank strap cutter. It comes with extra bushings and blades so that you can adjust it for the size of strings or straps that you need. I used it to cut 13 oz latigo tie straps and it did a great job. It screws to any table top. The nylon roller is approx 4" long so it will cut 4" wide straps down to whatever size the bushings are. It would be simple to make more bushings if you needed different sizes. It comes with several sizes. It looks smaller in the picture than it actually is. It is about the size of a large car battery. 400.00 256-597-2424 Jerry
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