GrampaJoel

A friend brought this saddle for me to look at. It is made differently than I'm use to. The tree is pretty crooked. See what you think. Any ideas who might have made it?

I'm 6'1" tall. So I like the ability to raise or lower the stand as I work. I don't have the cantle attachment, so I just stuff something under the tree bars, strap the saddle down and sew away. The tree pad is stationary. Non movable. The stand can be raised or lowered with the tension set, without the tension being affected. My only complaint would be the pull down spring. I bump my shins on it sometimes. Joel

I'd go with Ron's also. I love mine. The weaver one didn't seem to be as sturdy. I did add locking casters to the bottom of the stand so that it could be moved around the shop easier.

Like oltoot says. Put them on the top piece and stitch on each side of the spots. The legs of the spots most likely aren't long enough to go through both pieces of leather anyway. When doing a added fringe, spots or not, always put two rows of stitching to hold the fringe on. One won't do it. And it looks cheaply made in my opinion. Joel As an after thought I thought you might like a photo or two of what we are talking about. These are old past projects of mine. The pink pair was a pair of batwing style chaps brought in to be made into chinks. The hair on pair I did for a shop example, the same with the two tone pair, but a customer bought them to hang on his wall.

Matching the quilting lines, on both purses, is a high quality sign. Good job on the detail. Nice job! Joel

Very nice. I love the era style. I really like the color you used also! Would you mind showing or explaining how you do your horn cap? I can't find an example any where. I've seen them with screws which I just can't figure out in my mind. However, it doesn't look like you use screws, but I can't make out what you are using. Thanks Joel

Many of the machined today are clone machines. They tend to work very similar in fashion. Most do what they are designed to do pretty well. That said, I have three Cobra machines. The reason? Steve and his customer service. When someone needs help, If they can't help you, you may be un-helpable. Joel.

You have to send a request and then it will appear down toward the bottom of the rooms.

I've got a timberline tree on my bench right now. I think it only took about 9-10 weeks to get once it was ordered and paid for. It's not a top of the line tree, but it only cost $319.00. It's appears to be built correctly, but there are things I dont like about it. The saddle will be made for a person that can't afford a high quality expensive saddle. But i like this person and as long as I build a safe saddle it doesn't have to be built of perfect first rate materials. Some folks just can't afford a professional high quality tree to have a saddle built on. (To tell the truth I think it is easier on the builder if the tree is high quality.) So, I try to help where I can. Some trees like timberline are just fine. But the saddle maker has to be ready to make a few adjustments occasionally. Now, buying a saddle tree and leather does not a saddle make. There are many tools and supplies that are needed also. Some specialized tools help make a good saddle,,,Or make making the saddle easier. For all the money I have invested into saddle building equipment and supplies, I could have had Keith make a fancy saddle for me. So if you do as Keith recommends, you might be better off in the long run. Some schools guarantee you will have a saddle when you finish. I've seen posters here that went to a saddle building school and ended up with a pretty nice saddle. Just my thoughts. Joel

VERRY NICE! How do you protect art like that from getting wet or stained when mounted on a bike? Joel

Very eye catching! The colors are great. Joel

I've seen it done with one piece of leather and also seen it done with a latigo strap. Here's a web site that uses the strap method. It's more crude looking than the one piece of leather method, but maybe it will help. . -----> http://twistandwrap.blogspot.com The one piece of leather method is basically the same way, but you squeeze the leather than wrap the one piece of leather around and lace the back of the leather.

Nice work, Nice pattern, Very refreshing. It's nice to see a new pattern. Joel

The old stand by is, get as pair of pants that fit like you want the chaps to fit. Then just cut them at the seems and copy to leather. You might try Tandy. But then you would need to adjust the pattern to fit yourself. I've made enough chap and chinks to know how to make the pattern from scratch with just measurements. But it took some time to get there. Good luck on your search. Joel

I may be wrong, but it looks like he was doing a buck stitch, and punching the holes as he went! Ok, where's the head spin smiley? I wonder, what amount of time has he spent doing the same thing over and over? I have heard that it take ten thousand hours of doing something to master it. I guess he must have his time in. Joel

Well it may be back to basics, but they look pretty nice to me. Nice work! Maybe you'll set a trend. Joel

If you are just trying to use what you have, to learn, then I say go ahead. Take the saddles apart. Look at how the leather is worn and try and imagine how it looked new. You will end up spending money no matter what you do to learn saddle building. These saddles may not be worth anything dollar wise, as a restored saddle, but they may be worth a fortune in the experience you gain learning how and why they are built as they are. Joel

Very cool! How many stingrays did it take? Joel

Ah,, step-in's my favorite kind. Nice job! Joel

Well I'm not the resident expert, but I'll have a goo at it. Looks like you are doing 8 strand without a core. This makes your braided string square if I see it correctly. The knot you are trying to tie on the end works well on a round braid, but I don't see why it wouldn't work on a square one with a little finesse. The knot will cover your strings where they start the knot so I think it will work to just start the turn backs and see how it works and then just make some adjustments. Here's a link, maybe it will help. http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=_QTNluJzsZw

Thanks. I really like the color.

You might consider a Mc Cellan style saddle for a light weight. I had one that was covered in a , I'd say maybe six ounce leather. It had equestrian style stirrup leathers and a smallish fender. The total weight was about 14 lbs. I rode this saddle daily working up an endurance racing prospect. It was comfortable to ride at say three or four hours at a time. Without getting off. Not a great saddle for packing on a trail horse, and it certainly didn't look western, but here it is thirty years later, and I still remember that saddle with fondness. Joel

Geez Ron, you stamping depth is incredible! How heavy is your maul? I tried to see the rear cantle stitches, but I'm betting they are the hidden kind. It looks really nice and clean. I think you did a nice job at putting the modern, and vaquero styles together. The saddle just has a nice overall californios look to it. Nice job! Joel

Very nice job Bret! The nose band is awesome, but I really like the heel knot. It looks perfect. Straight lines, and a beautiful shape! I am wondering, Do you know if the buffalo calf has been colored, or is it a natural color? Joel

I like your new bag. Look comfortable and inviting right off the get go. Three boys! Your a blessed lady. Joel