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glockanator

9 foot reins questions

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A buddy of mine asked me to make him a set of reins that are 9 feet long. It seems pretty straight forward except I will need to splice in a section to make the 9 feet. Would it be best to slice glue and rivet or skive glue and sew? Thanks for any advice.

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Every once in a while you'll find a hide that's 9 ft long, or even a little over. Otherwise, I've heard of guys cutting the hide on a curve to get the 9 ft., but I've never tried that myself. First, nobody around here has ever requested 9 ft reins, for most folks, 8 ft is plenty long enough, or even too long if riding colts.  Second, I couldn't bring myself to ruin a hide by cutting it on a curve.  Reins are typically cut from the heaviest hides, and that 12+ isn't good for much else besides reins without splitting it down. It would really increase the cost if doing it that way.  If you're going to splice them, I'd sew the splice to the end opposite the bit in the form of a popper. Glue doesn't stick very well to harness leather, which is the leather most commonly used for this type of project. I'd just tack and sew. There is a place for rivets, riding reins isn't one of them.

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If you call Panhandle leather in Amarillo, I bet they can get you a side of harness that you can get some 9 ft. reins out of. It will be expensive but very good and very heavy.  Be sure to put the bit end on the butt and the tail on the neck.   I used to carry a few pair of 9 ft  when I had a shop in Rapid City but didn't get much call for them.  Panhandle carries HO harness and is some really good stuff.

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Thanks for the info. I was pretty sure that I was going to have to stitch them together just wanted to make sure. 

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@BigSiouxSaddlery & @glockanator,

 

How did this work out for you? When you stitched them together, what was the length of the join? Is 1in sufficient? 

Thanks

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On 1/26/2021 at 8:37 AM, Simmental said:

@BigSiouxSaddlery & @glockanator,

 

How did this work out for you? When you stitched them together, what was the length of the join? Is 1in sufficient? 

Thanks

If my memory serves correctly I believe I did and inch and a half over lap and them stitched together.

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