3Rd Saddle

[buckaroo93]

This is my 3rd saddle, the second one I have done by myself. Its a Rod Nikkel tree, its a 17'' seat 3 by 5 1/2'' finished horn cap with a 30 degree slant, 5'' cantle, 93 degree bars,9'' swell. All brass hardware and 5'' brass bound bell stirrups. This rig still has quite a few flaws on it, so any suggestions and advice is welcome. Thanks for looking.

[buckaroo93]

Just some more pics of the same rig.

[BondoBobCustomSaddles]

Hi Buckaroo, nice job on that rig. Especially for your third. I do see the little things like edges and knicks that will disappear as you get farther along. The one thing that stands out to me is the rear jockeys and how they do not lay flat at the back where they are laced together. It is not too late to "tighten up them up". I would pull them off, unlace and then shave off a wedge of about 1/4" on both sides, where they come together, starting at the rear 1/4" in, and tapering to nothing at the spot where they go under the cantle. When you lace them up again, wet them some, and then really draw spike them in tight to the back of the cantle. That will pull them down tight to the skirts and sandwich the rear points of the tree, and give you a nice clean look. Here is a pic of what I am talking about.

Bob

[buckaroo93]

Thanks a lot Bob. Ya its kind of ironic, those jockeys was one thing that was 'not gona happen' but of course it did. The guy who ordered it was happy with it and he lives 20 hrs away from me so I geuss I wont be able to straighten that up to easy but I'm working on another one now that i'll make pretty sure its flat. The next one i'm building has square skirts, is it a good idea to round the skirts up where the stirrup hangs or is that not a big deal if the skirt is straight across the bottom.

Thanks, Wyndelle

[BondoBobCustomSaddles]

Thanks a lot Bob. Ya its kind of ironic, those jockeys was one thing that was 'not gona happen' but of course it did. The guy who ordered it was happy with it and he lives 20 hrs away from me so I geuss I wont be able to straighten that up to easy but I'm working on another one now that i'll make pretty sure its flat. The next one i'm building has square skirts, is it a good idea to round the skirts up where the stirrup hangs or is that not a big deal if the skirt is straight across the bottom.

Thanks, Wyndelle

Rounded or square, should make no difference, just don't make the final trim till you have draws-piked it down and in place and then you can make the final trim to match the skirt round or square. Here is a pick of one I did that was squared with rounded corners, and the skirt actually was a shape somewhere between rounded and square, the design that the owner wanted. You can see that regardless of the shape as long as it is pulled tight up against the cantle, it will give you a nice "tight" fit. This is something that is covered in the stohlman books very well.

Bob

[buckaroo93]

Rounded or square, should make no difference, just don't make the final trim till you have draws-piked it down and in place and then you can make the final trim to match the skirt round or square. Here is a pick of one I did that was squared with rounded corners, and the skirt actually was a shape somewhere between rounded and square, the design that the owner wanted. You can see that regardless of the shape as long as it is pulled tight up against the cantle, it will give you a nice "tight" fit. This is something that is covered in the stohlman books very well.

Bob

Thanks a lot Bob. A quick question on doing a cheyenne roll, do you glue and stitch through the whole roll or do you stitch the top edge and just glue it on? Or maybe there is a thread on cheyenne rolls someplace. Thanks Wyndelle

[BondoBobCustomSaddles]

Thanks a lot Bob. A quick question on doing a cheyenne roll, do you glue and stitch through the whole roll or do you stitch the top edge and just glue it on? Or maybe there is a thread on cheyenne rolls someplace. Thanks Wyndelle

My Cheyenne rolls are first fitted and tacked in place and allowed to dry. Once they are formed if they are to be tooled, that is when I tool, and burnish the edges and stain. Then I glue, tack back in place and let dry, finally I hand stitch through the whole binding the old fashioned way. It takes a lot longer, and is a lot more work, but; that's the best to do it.

Bob

[buckaroo93]

My Cheyenne rolls are first fitted and tacked in place and allowed to dry. Once they are formed if they are to be tooled, that is when I tool, and burnish the edges and stain. Then I glue, tack back in place and let dry, finally I hand stitch through the whole binding the old fashioned way. It takes a lot longer, and is a lot more work, but; that's the best to do it.

Bob

Thanks I appreciate the info. Thats kind of down the lines i was thinking, except one older gentleman I had the priviledge of building a rig with said all you had to do was glue it and it would last but it just seemed kind of cheap and production line like.

Wyndelle