LindaF Report post Posted January 30, 2010 (edited) Here is the latest show side saddle that The Side Saddlery built and sold to a lady in Texas. The saddle is built on a Steele tree. We used calf skin on the seat for better grip. We wanted to avoid the inevitable wear you get on suede. We ran the balance strap under the skirting to avoid breaking up the lines of the skirts or hiding the carving. The near side is covered by the lady's skirt or side saddle apron, so the carving & silver is limited there. We didn't feel we needed to "chase" fashion in the Arabian ring since side saddle is so different anyway. The saddle is meant to look a little "retro" and different from what anyone else might be riding. I hope you enjoy these pictures. I'll also post a Goodnight western sidesaddle we rebuit from the antique tree out in a separate post. Linda Edited January 30, 2010 by LindaF Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TimKleffner Report post Posted January 30, 2010 Linda Nice work. I'm glad you posted the pics. Nice to see the side saddle make an appearance. Have you thought about entering your side saddle at either Sheridan or Wichita Falls shows? That would be cool to see. Happy tooling Tim Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
LindaF Report post Posted January 31, 2010 Have you thought about entering your side saddle at either Sheridan or Wichita Falls shows? That would be cool to see. Tim, I hadn't given any thought to exhibiting any of our saddles. We have been building a few show side saddles on spec and actually been selling them despite the lousy economy! This particular saddle is on its way to Texas right now. We're located in West Virginia - a bit of a haul to Sheridan or Wichita. I'm planning to start another one here this Spring for the same market. I'm not certain what the thing will look like until I start doodling a bit. I'm not at found of how the pommels are set on the Steele trees. The leaping head (side pommel) is a tad too short and the exceptionally wide fixed pommel (top) can be hard to use for ladies with short legs. We've played around with replacing these with the more traditional metal tangs and building them up into medium width pommels. We've done one (a personal saddle for one of the store managers), but I'm debating whether to make modifications to a saddle tree that I'm selling to the public. I'm sure it shoots the manufacturer's "warranty" on the tree all to pieces. Do other saddlers out there make any significant modifications to a tree they get from an "assembly line" manufacturer? Linda Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
emma Report post Posted February 4, 2010 Hi Linda havnt been on here for a while! I live in england have made a couple english side saddles but its so exciteing to see your saddles i am extremley keen to restore/make something similar. Side saddle riders over here are quite a traditional lot but i have a very keen personal interest. My background/training is an english saddler whip maker but i have started to make western saddles with some help and love it. I have a side saddle i am making now on an mayhew tree but i hope to have the flaps carved however the flaps seat stirrup etc will be in an english style. Bit of a mis match but as close as i can get at the moment. Thank you for postging pictures so nice for me to see! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tosch Report post Posted February 4, 2010 Linda, not too long ago Denise and Rod Nikkel have posted a pic and description of a side saddle tree they had built. If you use the search function maybe you can find it - or Denise jumps in and gives you the link. Tosch Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
