cowboycolonel

Hannah, I caution you to pay particular attention to how you build the seat cover. If you cut out what you think it should look like, I will almost guarantee you that you will have cut away too much leather at the bottom of the swell. Use a very sharp knife and cut away tiny portions until you have the fit you want. Take all the time you need, as this is a very large piece of expensive leather and you don't want to ruin it. I'm looking forawrd to progress photos and questions.

Hannah, I build for cowboys - not normally arena riders. The leathers that I build are normally 11/13 oz leather, and There has never been a problem with them. In Fact, if you are going to use Superior (Kreger) QC buckles (as opposed to Blevins) you will find that the medium size fits 11/13 while the larger ones with longer shanks are required to fit thicker leather. Not to discount Sioux' advice, but remember that her work centers around big urn horses, Daily cowboy work, including brandings of over 500 calves per day, every other day, for four months at a time will arrest to not having to go to the heavier leathers. ...and if you're just going to be trail riding or riding for leisure, do yourself a favor and stay lighter. See what Keith Seidel has to say on the matter. In addition to trimming your finger nails, watch out for the buttons on your cuffs. They leave impressions that will be hard to hide without tooling. Also, go to your local Ace hardware store and buy a flexible ruler - 24 inch will work nicely. It really helps in marking centers.

I have an Adler -- my second one (story upon request) and am thoroughly thrilled with it. Most of my work is on the heavy side, and I find it not only reliable, but a piece of cake to woprk with. I send it out annually for a tune-up and cleaning, which I'd do with any machine I use. Love it!

20stitches per inch!!! stay in the 5-7 realm. Makes things look neat and professional. I'd be afraid 20 would just perforate the leather.

Hey Chris, Make certain that awl is sharp! Strop it every time you use it, just like any other knife. If your leather is properly cased and your awl is sharp, you will reduce (probably not remove) the possibility of stabbing your thumb. When you get into tight spaces, you might consider making a buck plate -- simply a couple of pieces of dense leather glued together to reduce bending. Don't bevel your edges, but dress them and apply whatever you use for a hardening agent. (Saddle soap works fine), Then as you ease the awl through the work you will feel it strike the buck plate but the plate will hold the primary leather in place and protect your hands.

why not buy directly from Ranch2Arena? Weaver is getting a little bit hard to deal with.

Yep. The guy's probably got forearms like Popeye -- but then he is (was) a sailor

For the best quality saddle silver at the price, I suggest you go to www.oldcowdogs.com. The guy has all of the old Bohlin-like dies as well as many new designs. i use his stuff a lot

Chief, Of course the primary question is, "How much time, effort, energy - not to mention money - do you want to invest. I agree with the beveling and backgrounding comments, but you might also want to use dividers to get your lines parallel on the shield. You could go a long way toward making this "pop" if you got rid of the circles surrounding and replaced that effort with a checked beveler. (Also would make the emblem more in keeping with the actual image. Of course use of dyes and textures always create a more forceful image, but if you're giving these away, you might not want to invest the effort. Please show us your next product.

Maybe you could get the guy to pay you to take it. This happened to me about ten years ago and I got some interesting stuff out of it, including a saddle that I "restored". By that I mean that I got the opportunity tore-make about all of the uppers. If you want a project, take it on, but don't pay for it and don't expect too much.

Okay, Bigfoot. I just dyed my first belt using Fiebings black oil base with no undercoat. Great results with two coats. You are right on. I'll be doing it that way in the future. I had to make a belt for a local Santa - the season's coming, you know. A four-inch wide belt size 50 has ample opportunity for mottling if it's going to happen. It looks great to me. Thanks.

Looks like this. ... and you can see everything you are doing..

Dwight, I almost NEVER apply one of those finished to my work. Instead I use Skidmore's Leather Cream. It's a beeswax product, produces a lustrous finish, and can easily be applied by the consumer as they want. I provide a can with every saddle I sell. Besides, it's better then hand cream and where you are, is will reduce chapped skin during winter months. Put it on with your bare hands, and if you leave too much in tooling impressions, etc., then just hit it with a blow dryer and then an air compressor and it will magically disappear.

I agree with Tony. I also use a groover that is built like a set of diividers. I find it's much more reliable than those light-weight groovers from Tandy. The cutting side is adjustable so you can run the standing side outside of your work, whether beveled or not, and still get a good groove.

Brilliant!!!

You have a skiver. It might do to have someone job the thinner pieces you think you need. Most saddle shops will have work order residue (you'd call it scrap) that they could cut/send you. Better than buying a side in the blind.

Hannah, I forgot to add a 13 sq ft golden fleece to the materials list. Probably other things that I forgot, but I'll add them over time as I think about it.

Quality work demands your signature. Suggest you design and buy a stamp. You'll be glad you did.

I came back to discuss the issue of a rawhide binding, but it looks like Sioux beat me to it. Yes, moisture is important, as is having a uniform thickness. But I really like the look, and durability is an issue especially when you live or ride in areas with a lot of rain/humidity. If you are in coastal Oregon, stay away from rawhide. Here on teh central coast of California, I use it because I like it to match the horn binding and I use rawhide there to prevent the rope from burning through the seam when you miss a dally. What! I'm the only guy that ever missed a dally? Also it keeps from wrecking the cantle if a calf runs behind you and the rope runs over the cantle edge. Some folks I know in western Nevada will not have rawhide anywhere because of moisture, Here's a picture of a Cliff Wade I made for a lady near here. Rough seat and fenders, but all else tooled. Remember, if you pay attention to the design space, you do not need to tool the whole area to have it look tasteful. An oak leaf and pair of acorns at the corner of the fender can look better than having the entire fender tooled.

Hannah, This is going to sound daunting, but it really isn’t. Just read through the instructions once or twice and then contact me if you need to. Get a 24-inch long flexible curve from your hardware store or a woodworking shop. They are made to hold the shape you put them in. Put a piece of masking (Blue painters’ tape is great) tape in the center of the flexible curve to mark the center. Put a Flex-curve on the horse where the center of the fork (fore and aft) should sit. This should approximate a line upward from her armpit – where the cinch will go. In reality the tree maker will read this as the center of the fork. Mark this line with a long piece of tape. Once you have the flex-curve centered on your horse’s back, use BOTH hands and mold the curve to the shape of her withers. Remove the flex-curve being very careful NOT to alter the shape! Lay it down carefully on a large piece of cardboard or stiff paper. Be careful not to let it slip, and draw around the inside of the curve after marking the center on the cardboard. Place the Flex-curve back on the horse 15 inches behind the tape mark, and form it to fit her back just like you did the first one. Remove it and place it on the cardboard and trace around the inside again. Send the cardboard to Bowden and they’ll know what to do. If you have a specific horse in mind for this saddle, it would be good to take a photo of her making certain that the light and shadows show the withers and back (highlights), shadows and form.

I have used pre-dyed stuff, but I usually end up tooling the leather, and then you have to antique it or hi-lite it to make the carving pop. Dye is not that expensive when you're talking about a saddle, is it? It only takes a quart. That's negligible when compared to the other costs. Again, referring back to my first, I used Fiebing's Antique Mahogany. Very forgiving when it comes to getting an even finish and if everything goes south, you can always cover it with a proper dye. I could type something up here, but I would just be repeating what Bowden has on hand. Call 915-877-3191 and ask them to send you instructions for measuring your horse for a tree, If it turns out that your horse is "nominal" they won't charge you custom prices, and if you get a stock tree that you don't like, you can return it for the cost of the shipping. Bowden is wonderful do deal with. Website www.saddletree,com for choices on stock trees. There's no need for you to use up 5 sides. I did because I had to invent my own wheel at every piece. With Leatherworkers.net at your disposal, you should be able to get by with 3 or less. Do you have a supplier near you where you can look at the leather beforehand? Are you going to tool the leather? Smooth or rough out? Halfbreed? Maybe you could share what your "dream saddle" looks like and we can be of more help?

Oops, forgot to address the cantle question. My first saddle, and most I've built since then, had a straight up cantle - no Cheyenne roll. Not only do I like the buckaroo look, but again, it eliminates several variables. Primarily, when you go to add the binding, you will find the corners VERY difficult to stitch, and even more difficult with a Cheyenne roll because you will be working in the blind for more of the time. I prefer a straight up cantle with a rawhide binding, but if I'm going to bind with leather, then I use a blind stitch so the back stitches don't show. When someone rides up behind you, that stitch line will scream at them if it is other than perfect, and it doesn't take more than one bad stitch to make it so. I make with either a full leather seat or with a two-piece strainer, which I make. Both approaches have advantages,, but I don't find the use of leather to be necessarily too much heavier. I would caution you to stay away from rawhide though -- too fiddly for a beginner and takes too long to dry properly. I don't cut holes/slots for stirrup leathers, but take them into account while building the ground seat, so I don't have the problem that Sioux mentioned about scoring the rawhide. If you think you are going to ride this saddle on your horses, then make a jig -- I can tell you how -- and send it to Arlen down at Bowden saddletree. He'll work with you to get it right, and if you need to go to a custom tree. the marginal cost is only about $35. If you want to take a flyer, just buy a tree that you like the looks of and use it as a learning tool,. If you've done quality work, you'll probably be able to sell it. But if you've done great work, you won't want to.