jwwright

Bruce, I've never used any of the paste, but I have had a couple of discussions about it with a friend who has been building saddles for 50 years. He uses rubber cement on his skirt linings.................but does still use some paste on swell covers sometimes that have quite a bit of undercut to the swells. He commented that he figured most of skirt linings they used to put on with the paste probably turned loose somewhat during the first few rides. I personally use rubber cement on the linings. I also leave the rigs on the tree when doing a reline job. When possible / practical I convert those pocketed rigs over to lug straps. JW

The color you will get depends some what on the skirting leather you have used, but yes you can get a deeper, more red-ish color by setting the saddle in the sun . I have not used olive oil on new saddles I have built, except for show saddles which were desired to be very light in color.........so obviously I didn't set them in the sun. On most other saddles I use pure neatsfoot oil. I like to set a new saddle out in the sun for a while when the weather permits, and I have an extra day or two before I need to ship the completed saddle out to the customer. It doesn't work well here in the winter! JW

Good job CW. JW

Nice work Alan. JW

Off the chart good in every respect Steve! What did you use for the inlay cover on this one? JW

Very nice Darcy! JW

Nice job Luke, and congrats on getting the first one done. No doubt you have already picked up on a few things you will try to do differently next time.............but it is probably smoother than my first one. JW

The stirrups were built by Danny Pollard, Merkel, Texas. Thanks, JW

My thoughts go along with Bruce's. Cletus Hulling, along with Sonny Thomison, were the 2 late great horse traders of the modern era..................I never knew Hulling to build a saddle, but it makes sense that this saddle you are asking about came from him, with Price or another saddle maker as the actual maker. JW

Price reduced to $250..........this is a good tree, but I don't build many Wades, and don't need it. Thanks, JW.

I charge $275, which includes new strings and tugs. ..............might charge more, depending upon the situation. JW

Joel.........this is a personal preference thing, but some folks feel like they can ride a little shorter seat in a slick fork. JW

Huntet..........I'm sorry that I was not able to take a look at your saddle / horse when you called the other day. Before you make any further decisions, would you please give me another phone call. JW

I think that the saddles produced when D Martin owned the company were marked Dale Martin. After Equi Brand purchased them, the Martin Saddlery mark to over. JW

I personally would not mess with replacing the horn.........unless the current horn is broken loose , or something like that. Otherwise, if I couldn't live with the horn the way it was, I would trade saddles. Depending upon what tree is in this saddle of yours, it may not be suitable for anything other than very light roping. Many of the ranch cutters being made, especially those coming from production shops, have narrow bars with no bar riser on them, similar to regular cutting bars............I have seen quite a few broken. One other thing.....I know it can be scary roping on those small horns with mulehide...............it takes several turns to get anything slowed or stopped, and that rope runs wicked fast. There is no shame in rubber on the horn.........better to be a cowpuncher with all your digits, rather than trying to be too buckaroo with a burnt up hand. JW

.........my answer is the same here , just as Andy said...........In my experience, the "cushion" effect of the woolskin is minimal, if any, after it is broke in. It serves to help keep the blankets from slipping. Another material, wool felt, was widely used in the past, and in our part of the cowboy country, is coming back in popularity. JW

It's hard to make judgements based on photos alone, but......your horse looks to have a good back shape, and keeping a saddle in place on her should be no problem, provided the saddle is a decent fit. I would agree with the others, also in saying that you are indeed trying to place the saddle too far forward. Again, hard to judge from just these photos, but your new saddle looks to have the rigging at about 3/4 position, while your previous saddle looks to be rigged slightly forward of what I would call the Full position. As for having a qualified saddle maker, such as the person you mentioned, look at it........good idea. As I previously said, I'd be happy to take a look at no charge, if you can come here. I will say that if there is an obvious defect in the saddle, such as the gullet liner or skirt plug improperly skived and fitted.............you should visit with the folks you bought it from. I would bet that they would want to make it right, and the shipping cost for you to ship it to Texas will be much cheaper than if you pay a qualified person to the repair. JW

You didn't say where in Kansas you are...............but, if it's possible for me to see the saddle / horse , I'd be happy to take a look at the situation for you. JW

GAP............this particular ranch cutter has a little higher front end ( 8 1/2"), and the bars in this tree are a little narrower and thinner...........but not as much as many straight cutter trees. The seat has a bit less rise to it than the typical ranch saddle I would build, maybe.....depending upon customer preferences. I have built quite a few ranch cutters with double D rigs in the past, and most ranch cutters are built with that style of rigging. I really prefer a flat plate for a lot of reasons, and this customer agreed, so that's what he got. The tree in this saddle will hold up to moderate roping, but due to the narrower, thinner bars, I wouldn't recommend it for roping big stock. Mark , Thanks. JW

I finished this ranch cutter in the shop this morning. I built it for a customer who raises and trains cowhorses, as well as looking after some cattle. JW

Very nice Chris........and Thank You for your service. JW

Josh.............my Artisan is my only machine currently..........other than an old Singer I picked up to use for building leggins, but I have not taken the time to get that one in usable shape just yet. The needle /awl machines do make the best looking stitch, in my opinion...........I hope to get a Campbell or Landis 3 sometime in the near future, but I will keep the Artisan machine always for the sake of versatility and reliability. JW

I have no experience with the Boss machines.............but, I do have an Artisan machine that I purchased a couple of years ago, from Steve before he started his new company. The Artisan machine has been reliable. My experience with Steve was great, so I am sure that it is no different now with the Cobra machines. JW

What makes mohair the best choice for a cinch is not only in the fact that it is a natural material. It is longer in fiber than "regular" sheep wool, which gives it more life and strength, especially when wet. Other natural fibers, such as cotton, loose strength when wet. I've made (and used) a bunch of cinchas over the years, from mohair, some mohair/wool blends, yak hair and horse mane hair. I think 100% mohair is the best choice, with a high % mohair / wool blend being a second choice. The yak hair doesn't seem to hold up as well, with quite a bit of fuzzing and pilling. Horse mane hair will last a very long time, but does require some break in time (on a long haired horse, preferably).......and it doesn't have a much give to it as mohair. This has been my experience, your mileage may vary............JW.

Thanks for the comments guys. I appreciate it. JW