A Saddlers Stitching Horse

[antiquecowboy]

I'm brand new around here. Just now in the process of restarting my Leather Shop after a few years of what most folks consider being "semi-retired"... though... I never truly quit working. I just found, I'd thought, a way I could work less hard... Economics and a desire to eat has pushed me to take on the more common labors required to keep beans in the pantry.

I ran my own custom leather shop for a numer of years primarily building gun leather for the cowboy action shooting market.

So... as I work at gearing up a fresh shop I was needful of building a new stitching horse... since I'd given the last one I built away...

I've been publishing mostly Western Fiction on Amazon and such the last few years... and that gave me an idea. I've seen folks hunting around for "Plans" and such for Stitching Horses. I'm curious if an Ebook for the building of this particular design might find a bit of popularity? I was thinking a price of $2.99 or so would be fair? with full list of tools, parts list and a goodly number of photographs and descriptions/directions showing how to put it together?

I'm hoping this is the right forum to place this post, as it is only an enquiry... I appologize to the administrators if it is not.

Your comments about the need or desire for such a publication is most appreciated.

[Hi Im Joe]

That is awesome.

[King's X]

Welcome to the forum. Bring it on....I believe that your idea and price would be of interest to many on this forum and elsewhere. It looks like a solidly built horse. I know that the extended jaw would help quite a few folks. Good luck!

[LTC]

there are plenty of free plans and videos out there so i wouldn't pay anything for it. i'm sure people that don't know about all the free plans and instructions will pay though. just not me. i'm not cheap i'm just a disabled vet with very little income.

[JAM]

Sounds terrific - and my KindleFire is chock full of eBooks that are $2.99. That's the perfect (and standard) price, and I'd pay that in a heartbeat to add another useful eBook to my bookaholic's eLibrary.

I'm curious, though - does it rely on just spring pressure to keep is closed? Because I've got a similar one that ratchets closed, and I find that I have to lock those jaws together pretty tightly to hold a skirt in place, especially when it's not centered and its weight pulls it over.

Edited April 10, 2014 by JAM

[Trox]

I have seen many different saddler horse designs, and I like parts of your design. However, the spring as the only locking device.... it will not work for heavy stuff. If you added another wheeled lever on the opposite side; that locked the jaws. Then you would have something that might work well.

Tor

[antiquecowboy]

hmmmm... the springs won't work? Not my first rodeo...

I didin't have any skirts laying about... Did have my old shop album full of pictures of what I'd built... seems to hold it up ok... so then... I got curious... and picked up an unused plank I built the horse out of... now that pine was slick so I had to put a couple pieces of leather alongside it for the jaws to get traction...

... but... if your skirts are heavier than that?... Having rode a lot of leather off a tree chasin' cows... I'd suggest for the horses sake... build those suckers a mite lighter... and I didn't use the strongest springs available...

Truth be known, I changed the hinge on the jaw... That's the one place I've had trouble... finding a hinge that wasn't so sloppy.

[WyomingSlick]

LOL I don't think Leatherworker realized that there were TWO springs !

[keplerts]

I'd buy it. In fact I love the design. The deep throat would be awesome when sewing saddle skirts. Let me know when your plans are available.

Thanks,

Tom

[Mike 257]

I would be interested in buying one of these . Would be great if you could break one down and sell it as a kit .