jennifer Report post Posted May 15, 2008 Okay, you guys have got me hooked. If you have been following my posts you may know me as the novice horse owner with the overweight, downward horse. I have made the decision to get Sunny a custom saddle, but have still been looking for something to use for the next 4-6 months until her saddle is built. During my search I came across a saddle that caught my eye. It was on e-bay, no bids, no questions posted and had 12 minutes left on the auction so I did some very quick research, found ML Leddy had a bother by the same name as the maker and he sold saddles from Fort Worth Texas from 1943 -1968. I put in a bid for $245.00 and bought the saddle. Don't know if the tree is solid or if the leather is rotten, but it was listed as "a good saddle" so I decided to trust the seller that it wasn't total junk and thought with luck it may fit one of my horses or may be cleaned up and re-sold if it does not fit. Anyone want to offer more information on what I bought? Jennifer Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
raftert Report post Posted May 15, 2008 Jennifer, M.L. Leddy is still in business but they consentrate more on boots. That saddle looks like 1960's Leddy and will probably has beaudark tree. This means it is industructable. The tree will never break under any condition. M.L. Leddy has made boots for all the Presidents since F.D.R. In there store on the North Side of Fort Worth ( by the Stockyards ) they have a custom saddle that when you look from the front the swells look huge, when you look from the cantle you see a car A.M radio with speakers in the swells. The batteries are in the saddle bags ( small 12 volt car battery ). The saddle in the pictures looks solid and probably has a lifetime tree. The price seems very reasonble. Tim Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
3arrows Report post Posted May 21, 2008 Hey Jenifer, like your saddle, Im a fan of 50-60's saddles. Im riding an old Herford right now that has very much the same look as the one you bought. It is heavy, comfortable, and like Tim said, probably indestructable. Compared to the junk that is sold today for $200-$300, you have a saddle that will last a long time if you take care of it. My wife has a used saddle business and that is basically all we sell. We dont buy any new saddles, we only buy good used ones, refurbish them, and then resell them. We have bought and sold about 45 saddles now and have only gotten one broken tree so far and I used the saddle parts (skirts/fenders,etc) to refurbish another similar saddle. I repaired the tree and hung it on the wall in the den and made planter out it. Clean up that saddle with glycerin saddle soap and refurbish it with a good leather balm and it will be a great saddle for years to come.. thanks ron.. Visit our WEB page at : http://www.3arrowstack.com Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kypeep Report post Posted June 3, 2008 (edited) Jennifer, I don't know much about constructing a saddle, but I do ride cutting horses, and I can tell you that Leddy's is the creme de la creme for cutters. Leddy's actually does still make some saddles - you can see them at the Nat'l Cutting Horse Futurity in Ft. Worth (Will Rogers complex) every December. They are very pricey saddles. Yours is older and, to the best of my knowledge, more of an all-around vs a cutting saddle, but you still have a quality product. Hope that helps a little bit. Edited June 3, 2008 by kypeep Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites