Big Sioux Saddlery

Super nice job of hand stitching!

I don't make holsters but I do try to consolidate the "like" work as much as I can. Saves time and time is money. That's why one-off stuff is higher priced. Even Jeramiah Watt says you gotta have at least a couple saddles going at one time:-)

PM sent to Stelmackr

Bob, I'll measure tomorrow. Thanks!

I need a small amount of Royal Blue croc for a halter inlay. Hide House has sides, and they are reasonably priced, but this is a one time project and typically I stay away from the "fashion" stuff like this. Anyone have a small amount they'd be willing to sell me??

I rolled the edges on my oval Osborne punches after very little use. They are junk IMO. I have some Weaver oval punches, and while the quality of the steel is better and they are still cutting well after many years, I don't like the abrupt taper on them. In punching two layers, like a lined flank billet or a D & S trace on a carriage harness, after punching, the hole on top is stretched way bigger than on the bottom. The old high quality punches did not have this abrupt taper and the top and bottom of the hole were similar in size, with very little stretching on top. My favorite oval punch is a cheap one I bought from Tandy 25 years ago; I think it's a Rampart. It looks like an el cheapo, but it is a way, way better punch than any of the others I own, and it has received a lot of use. Only problem is they came in one size only, and I'm sure the new ones are nowhere near the quality of this one. Best of luck to you and I'm sorry I couldn't be of more help.

JHayek, never apologize for pricing something at what you think it's worth. Some people will try to get you down if you want to give it to them. Over the years I have adopted this policy: this is the price and if you don't like it, I guess it won't work for you. That applies to the leather business, horse tradin', and everything else. Oltoot, I have relatives in Rawlins! Second cousins, I think.

Oltoot took all the words right out of my mouth, particularly about tipping the rigging and lacing the skirts. The rigging angle takes fussing with to get right, and can differ from horse to horse. It was the first thing I saw when I looked at your saddle. Level on the stand does not equal level on the horse. I also do not lace my skirts (anymore) for exactly the reasons toot stated. The Cheyenne roll takes practice to figure out what works good (about like everything else). Sometimes mine look good, sometimes not as much. Congratulations on finishing #3! I have 2 in progress that will have to wait now until the spring rush slows down, which could be next winter!

Looks like a poorly trimmed single bend to me.

I have somewhat of a love affair with the old Landis 1's. It was the first machine I bought that I could actually sew something on, after having bought a couple other junker machines not made to sew leather. I used one exclusively for at least 15 years and still use one some today. I have 3 of them and don't really care to sell any one of them. Anyone starting out who is looking for a good machine at a reasonable price should look no further. This machine appears to sew tight and consistently. While it is limited somewhat by it's design, (all machines are) and not quite as user friendly as the brand new machines, these are trouble free, reliable machines that I guarantee will outlast anything new being made today. The price is very reasonable. While we have all seen Landis 1's sell for less, this one is ready to go, not all worn out, and the bobbin winder comes with it. These machines sold for $1000 twenty years ago. A great deal!!

Are you looking for leather calfskin or rawhide? In Lakeside, NE you should sure be able to get calf hides! Lol. I've got one in the lime tank right now. It's from a red angus calf. It'll be the first red hide I've gotten and I'm anxious to see if the color really is better, as some folks claim.

There are a number of ways to do this. The "right" way would be to start sewing at your buckle, sew one end of the keeper in and all the way around the belt to where the other end of the keeper would go in. You can either stop there and pull your work out of the machine and hand sew the rest of the way, or continue sewing up to the buckle, NOT through the keeper, Then pull your work out, remove the few stitches where the keeper should go, and re-sew the keeper in by hand. That way you have the holes that the machine made. A quicker and acceptable way for common work would be to sew one end and staple or tack the other end. Some people use a stapled keeper and slip it on the belt and then sew across the belt between the buckle and keeper, and then sew the rest of the belt. A true harness or bridle maker would break both your arms if you sew ACROSS a strap. Hope this all makes sense to you. Much simpler when you see it than to read about it.

I have a few old Gomph edgers (wish I had a complete set) and I also have a couple Watt edgers. There is no comparison; I was extremely disappointed in the Watt edgers. Now if you're upgrading from Tandy or newer Osborne tools, that might be a different story, but when I bought the Watt edgers, I had already been using the Gomph tools for years. Mostly Watt's hang on the back of my bench and look pretty. The Gomph edgers are usually ON my bench, getting used throughout the day, every day. I say, if you have an opportunity to buy some good old Gomphs, do it and don't look back

I second what CW said

Hmm, I will definitely check into that. Thanks NVLeatherWorx!

Holy Crap $350 a year for a 2 million dollar policy is cheap! I'd like to know more about that. Mine is a fraction of the coverage and over double the premium, closer to triple.

Owned good ones of both makes. Currently driving a '99 F250 with the 7.3 that I ordered new and will probably have to drive it until it's junk. Seems like the Chevys have lots of little annoying stuff go wrong; windows, door locks, gauges, etc. Always something. For longevity and pulling power, still can't beat the 5.9 Cummins in the old Dodge pickups. They'll pull my pickup out of the ditch.

Interesting thread. I have always drilled holes on most of my saddles, if they are going to have strings. I even built one early on for myself that I screwed in because I was worried about holes in the tree, and I went back years later and drilled them. The strings were always coming unscrewed, BUT I did not do it like Keith explains. I do see a lot of old saddles with the tree rotted out at the string holes. I also work on a lot of saddles that aren't drilled that are coming apart because they don't have strings through the tree to keep them together. But again, they are not made like Keith explained, and he builds far more saddles than I do. As far as the holes rotting out, I don't know if it will make a difference, but I take a little paintbrush and get some polyurethane in the holes and let it dry well before assembling. We'll all be dead before any of us have a chance to find out if it made a difference.

That's what I have done BIGGUN when I didn't want to or couldn't make my own. It is not hard to find a good woodworker, and freight does certainly add up.

Personally I like the roughout myself. I've never had a friction burn problem, although I have heard both men and women complain about it. Smooth is too slick for me, I feel like I slide around too much. I like roughout chaps against a roughout seat and fenders.

I will be interested to hear how you like this. There are many times that I cuss the strap running through the jaws in that it inhibits working on a large piece. However, I can see myself pinching my hand in the over-center mechanism where it hinges. Maybe that would only happen once:-)

Chayne, will do, but these are machines that have sold at auction sales. You have to be there when they're selling. Where are you located? I'm heading to a sale at the end of this month, and they do sometimes have one there.

Andy, in the top sketch the rear rigging and the rig hobble are one piece, and that'll certainly work. But if you wanted them separate pieces of leather, you could run the rig hobble up to the tree just in front of the rear rig leather, not overlapping. I don't have any pics of this method, and I'm not sure if a search will gain you any because most pics don't show the rigging very well, being covered by the seat jockey and fender. I've even seen the rig hobble hand sewn to the skirt, not going up to the tree at all! I don't remember what make of saddle it was, but it was a better-known, well made saddle. Maybe throwing you too many options here, and confusing you further in the process. There's nothing wrong with incorporating your rig hobble into the rear rig leather, except when it wears through where the stirrup leather rubs over the top, it's a little more of an extensive repair. Gotta get my butt to work now, but if you have more questions, just ask and i'll help if I can

Andy if you want the rear rigging leather separate from your rigging hobble (many names for it, that's just what I'm calling it here), you could modify the pattern from the picture so that the rigging hobble attaches in front of the cantle point like many rear riggings do. Follow me? I've seen quite a few modern saddles designed that way, cutting saddles in particular. You eliminate a layer of bulk that way where the rig hobble would cross over the rear rig leather, but some might argue that you add a layer of bulk in front of the cantle point. Careful pattern making and careful skiving and it will work.

There are very firm and very soft latigos and very firm and very soft chap leathers, and everything in between. Wickett and Craig has softer veg-tan than many others. There is a veg-tan leather called "milled" that has been tumbled after tanning and is supposed to be very soft and pliable, although I've never had any reason to try any. I see Waterhouse has some.