TomE

I buy half hides of Hermann Oak tooling leather and bridle leather from Springfield Leather. I've never been disappointed with the quality. The different grades of HO veg tan refer to how many blemishes are in the leather, the tanning is all high quality, but you have to work around more defects in the lower grade leather. You can specify which piece of the cow you want. The Springfield Leather PDF catalog has a fairly lengthy description of how to select leather for your projects, and you can call them with questions. I don't routinely clean my leather, but I use Deglazer to remove any excess Barge cement when I'm assembling prior to sewing. I do have some import hides that are difficult to cut and skive, and don't take dye evenly.

Nice work! Inconsistent absorption of dye or oil can be caused by an inferior tanning process or surface contaminants. The cure for the former is to buy more costly leather that typically has a tighter and uniform fiber structure. My favorite is Hermann Oak. If you can visit your supplier then you can feel the substance of the leather and get a feel of the inconsistancies. Many imported hides are bleached and dry (sometimes with splotches) so they don't take up water, oil, dye consistently. Springfield Leather Co has a Youtube video on selecting veg tan leather that addresses this. For surface contamination, you can try removing with Fiebing's Deglazer. Al Stohlman mentions using oxalic acid to clean skin oil and dirt before applying a finish after letting it dry completely. 1 teaspoon oxalic acid per quart of water. I haven't tried it.

Thank you! I debate about the clip, and see it both ways on purchased tack. She who must be obeyed likes it turned in, and says it won't catch on hay nets, etc. when they scratch an itch.

Halter with padded crown and nose band, and a rolled throat strap. Hermann Oak bridle leather in havana. Supply chain has me waiting for more heavy brass hardware, so I guess I'll learn something new.

Stohlman’s “Belts Galore” booklet has lots of patterns and construction tips for ranger and other belts.

I requested a price quote several weeks ago (shipping to Missouri) through your email address on the Wild Harry website. What is the best way to contact you? I would like to try the plate and feed dog on a Cobra Class 4.

I learned about making padded straps watching YouTube videos from JH Leather on padded dog collars. I use 1/8" neoprene padding and shape 2-3 oz leather around the pad before sewing the pad to the leather top piece. I am repairing a padded bridle similar to the one in your post. I made a pattern and cut the crown piece out of 7-8 oz leather using a round knife. On this Anteres bridle, the points for the throatlatch are sewn to the crown piece. The points have squares of leather, skived to a thin edge, that are inserted between the crown piece and the paddding. I will be stitching this bridle by hand, but I use a machine for padded halters. When I get more time for leatherwork I will post some photos.

Thanks for the interesting discussion. The Stohlman Encyclopedia of Saddle Making is a fun read and the construction methods are generally informative, even though I don't plan to build a saddle. Stohlman's "Art of Making Leather Cases" (Vol 1-3) is another great resource for constructing sturdy leather items. @Mulesaw let me know if you have trouble finding the Saddle Making Encyclopedia. It was in stock at the Springfield Leather Co store a few months ago when I visited.

Love what the Thoroughbred adds to Warmblood horses. We use a local Holsteiner stallion for some breedings. https://www.facebook.com/maefieldfarm/photos/pcb.3269782936422467/3269757966424964/ Had good weather in Bergen. I think it was late June.

Enjoyed seeing your work and horse. Nice stitching, especially free handing it! That's a big horse. Is he an eventer, jumper, both? What is his breeding? I spent a few days in Bergen about 15 yrs ago during a layover before a scientific conference. Enjoyed the sights and hiking in the hills around the funicular.

Those straps are a work of art! I like Hermann Oak for making tack - tight fibers and nice finish are consistent from hide to hide. Dr. Google says "bouche pores" is wood grain filler in English. You're using it as a resist for the finish?

Good to know about the 2 types of HO bridle leather. I visit the SLC store to select sides so I will find out more on my next trip. In June a SLC staffer mentioned that HO orders were backlogged because one of the tannery's splitting machines was broken for several months. HO is the home town tannery for me - I'm 40 mi west of St Louis.

I have purchased 3 sides of HO bridle leather from SLC this year. All have a smooth, dyed finish on the flesh side. SLC had a HO bridle side in Havana (dark red-brown), a color I hadn't seen before and really like. I like working with the HO bridle leather but notice that the cut edges tend to require more burnishing effort than their regular veg tanned leather. Sanding tends to raise the fibers of bridle leather in my experience. I did compare HO to Chahin bridle leather while visiting the SLC store, and thought the HO side had more substance/tighter fiber structure than Chahin. I've had another tack maker tell me he prefers Chahin over HO bridle leather.

I've learned a lot about construction methods and dimensions by repairing tack. I repair friends' tack at no cost with the understanding that I'm in the learning process. Al Stohlman's books on hand sewing leather and constructing cases have a lot of practical tips. Also, his book on using and maintaining (sharpening) leathercraft tools is helpful. JH Leather's videos on making padded dog collars, and raised/swelled leather collars helped me refine my work for padded halters and swelled nose bands. Bruce Johnson Leathercraft has guides on using a rein rounder (to make round throat lashes) and using a draw gauge to cut straps. I found quality hardware for tack at Batz Corp in AR. I wet mold the returns on the straps (around the hardware) and use quick clamps with leather pads to hold the shape while they dry before gluing and sewing. I usually machine burnish the edges after molding the straps and before assembling them on the hardware then touch up the edges once the project is sewn together. If you're using a sewing machine there are some tips for sewing up close to the hardware to make a tight connection that causes less wear. From there, it's practice and a willingness to try again if you're not happy with the first attempt.

Sorry for the delay. I wrote a reply but it didn't post. The padding is 1/8" neoprene and the liner is cowhide tanned to resemble deerskin.

Of course, Donkey Boy is a well known sire - a rock star! How fortunate that your son can learn horsemanship from top notch professionals.

Thank you! Thanks! We breed sport horses for several registeries in the USA (Dutch Warmblood, Westfalen, Hanoverian). http://www.maefieldfarm.com I began making halters as a way of saying thank you to our clients but it's becoming a bad habit. Our mares are typically presented in a halter with foal at their side. The foal halters and slips tend to be a primitive affair made of oil tanned leather with rough edges and rivet fasteners. I think I can do better based on some designs in Steinke's book "Bridlework.". The required halter size varies, depending on when the foal was born, but I think 2 or 3 different sizes would cover the range.

Made a padded halter for a sales horse from Hermann Oak Havana bridle leather. Liked it well enough that I made the same design with 3/4" straps for a special pony. Now it's got me thinking that matching halters for broodmares and foals could be "a thing" at foal inspections sponsored by breed registries.

Will put in a plug for Batz Corp as a reliable provider of quality brass and stainless hardware for tack. I have more luck shopping from their PDF catalog then searching the website with a part number for price/min. qty. https://www.batzusa.com/

I'm late to the party, but Batz Corp in Prattsville AR has very nice, heavy duty brass and stainless steel hardware that I use for tack... and dog collars. You might find it easier to download their catalog then search the website using the part number for price and minimum quantity. They have not disappointed me.

The baseball stitch is covered in Stohlman's The Art of Hand Sewing Leather.

Nice work. Congratulations! Seems that holster style worked out OK for her.

Thanks for the hand sewing tips. I’m thinking about making a bridle with some padded straps.

Nice work! I am envious of your stitching. How do you prepare the padded liner for sewing? Is it glued in place?

I made a few round pieces using the hidden stitch as described in Al Stohlman's "The Art of Making Leather Cases." Thought that worked well. He describes using a leather strap held in a vise instead of a metal rounder. For now, I've switched to machine sewing the round and essentially mushrooming the corners using the rein rounder to mostly cover the stitches. I'm using a 1.25 in wide strap of 7 oz leather wrapped around a 9 oz filler. I got started using a metal rounder with this tutorial https://brucejohnsonleather.com/index.php/download_file/1038/202/. Good luck finding the halter. We have ponies (Caspian horses) that wear breakaway halters with grazing muzzles. Some disappear until discovered the following spring when I am spreading manure.