built a saddle on a flex-tree?

[Hidemechanic]

Okay, I'll just sit in the corner here with Lippy wondering why I never get the girl,<;,

[Elton Joorisity]

I kinda get the feeling that sitting in the corner watching and listening to Steve and Gummy might be way more entertaining than some girls are!!!! Greg's got a pretty good story about a chap order from an actor!(at least that's what I was told) We'll just say that the actor is Asian!!

[Blake]

Hello Mike

I don't guess that you have gotten an answer to your question yet but its pretty obvious what most of us think about the tree.

Steele has a few different versions of the flex tree. It was developed for the production line where staples and lots of hands are the norm. Otherwise it is a pain in the ass for the custom maker and very undesirable especially when you get it already assembled.

For Production, You can change the fork and the cantle along with the angles and distance that the bars will sit in relation to each other and the type or breed of horse you would like to fit. This is the theory so keep in mind that actual practice can vary wildly.

The version that you have has The seperate glass strainer and depending how you install it it can change the rock/rocker as well as distort the symmetry of the tree. I have pulled these type trees from problem saddles and actually found the bottom of the tree to be convex because the tree was held down with extreme pressure when the strainer was stapled in thus ignoring/eliminating the rock or purpose of the rock altogether. The strainers also tend to come loose after a period of time because of the flex and even sooner when the fit isn't the best.

Several Saddle Mfg. companies make there own versions of the flex tree and advertise it as an answer for proper fit but in reality it seems to be causing more problems at the horses expense. This is pretty obvious that it is a huge quality control issue. Whatever the outcome (which is usually bad) your name is on it so you will be the one to take blame or credit regardless of who supplied the tree.

Steele tree co. is the largest maker of production trees in the world and they cater to the PRODUCTION companies not the custom saddle maker.

Just another fact is that synthetic trees and the components are usually supplied by outside contracting to the Tree or saddle mfg. companies thus eliminating some of the tree making processes that create hazardous work enviroments because of sawdust and related chemical fumes. This appeases OSHA and keeps workman comp down a little.

This all points to the cost factor and not the overall quality of the finished product. Do yourself and your clients a favor and find you a tree maker that will work with you and will also be willing to help you in selecting your trees for your clients use.

This is just my $.02 worth and you can keep the change.

Kind Regards

Blake

[Rod and Denise Nikkel]

We have been hesitant to post here because it may be seen to be self-serving, which is honestly not the case. But since no one else has yet come up with the same things we would say, here goes… Disclaimer: We know in general about flexible bar trees, but have not spent time studying any brand specifically, and these are more general comments and questions relating to all flexible trees.

For the horse, the benefit of being ridden in a saddle rather than bareback is that the rider’s weight is spread over a larger surface area, causing less PSI in any one spot. With a rigid tree, the weight is spread pretty evenly over the surface area that is in contact with the horse (if it fits well). We see some possible problems with a tree that is flexible.

1.) It flexes, therefore it sags under the rider’s weight, putting more pressure in the center of the bars than on the ends of them. Yes, it distributes the pressure better than riding bareback would, but not as well as a rigid tree. And while most people don’t ride bareback for any great length of time, they will ride in a saddle like this for hours at a time, which may lead to problems.

2.) Any type of saddle has an interface between a movable horse’s back and a rigid structure somewhere. With a rigid tree, that is the whole surface area of the bars. For something like this, it is where the fork and cantle attach. These have the potential of becoming pressure points.

3.) Is the shape of the bar one you would accept and use if the tree were rigid? If not, the areas of concern to you will not be problem free just because the tree flexes. Flexible or not, it still needs to fit as is.

4.) Because we live further north than the vast majority of the world’s population, we know by experience how stiff everything (including ourselves) becomes when it gets cold. At what temperature are these bars still flexible, and at what point do they stiffen up? Combined with #3 above, this may also cause problems.

Just our 1.93 cents worth (2 cents American).