saddles

I'm not debating the right or the wrong of them, just telling you what I know from working on and building on alot of them. I'm sure everyone would love to own a custom saddle built especially for their horse, but the truth is that's not going to happen for alot of people. You have to know how to deal with them (ralide trees) when they come to you for repairs, fit problems, etc. because there are more out there then we all care to admit.Would I recommend one? Yes and no. Depends on the circumstances. Trail riding, yes. Roping, no. In my opinion there are even worse super cheap rawhide covered wood trees out there. Lacey

You know I've actually got an older saddle here that has a hollow fiberglass tree in it. There is absolutely no way to repair them, they used pop rivets and staples to put it together. Definitely can't be safe! Lacey

It all depends on what you are doing with them. I have found the seats in some of them to be more comfortable than alot of the big, wide ropers out there. They tend to get brittle with age though, and are subject to temperature change. They either fit a horse or they don't. The best thing about them is they make several specialty trees that are hard to find. It's also relatively inexpensive to replace them when they do break since they have never changed the patterns. There are several knock offs of these trees out there as well, and they are WAY worse then the originals. We used to build a production saddle for Weaver Leather a few years ago. We built around 1,000 saddles on the Ralide trees. We use a stainless steel pan head sheet metal screw on them with great success. The screw melts right into the plastic as you run it in. Now after that screw has been taken out a few times for repairs and such, you may need to retap it or use a longer screw. Also, the only time we have seen the bars tails broken off is when they have had string holes drilled all the way through them. They can and do hold up to several years of riding, but you have to have the type of tree for the activity you have chosen. A barrel/pleasure tree was not designed to rope out of for instance, you just can't get that through some peoples heads Lacey

I didn't know if you found your number for Harvey Boutin, so here it is. Phone# (510)569-6100 Fax# (510)569-6122. They carry a huge inventory of Salz latigo, but I think they have others as well. The only problem we've ever had with it is it's really hard to slick the edges. Otherwise, it has little or no stretch and the usability is fantastic. I rarely have Salz bellies laying around! Hope that will help you a little! Lacey

Thanks a Bunch! Lacey

Hi Guys, Can anybody tell me how to get a hold of Quality Manufacturing? We have a saddle here with a Sunny Felkin tree that needs replaced. Am I on the right track? Who do I need to contact? Any help would be greatly appreciated! Thanks! Lacey

Good source for sheepskin is: International Sheepskin & Leather 3090 E. 50th Street Vernon, CA 90058 (800)421-6154 We've had really good luck with them and their prices are excellent. Lacey