Zach76 Report post Posted May 19, 2018 Do you know what model this saddle is? The patent stamp is either 1885, or 1886. It's difficult to make out. I've seen many saddles from this era, but none with the wingnut adjustments. Would this add to the value, or possibly make it a rare enough item to not let go of? Has anyone seen another like? Where did you find it? Any info helps. Thanks. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
harryhorse Report post Posted May 26, 2018 Hi Zach, This is a very cool-way before it's time saddle! The adjustments are to make the head plate (front of the saddle) wider or more narrow depending on the withers of the horse, mule,, draft horses. Some drafts are so large, their withers would be pinched with a small narrow head plate. Some horses withers are prominent (stick up-have no muscling) and some are almost round (like ponies that have a crupper on the saddle to keep it from rolling over). The panels (sitting on either side of the spine) also sometimes need a saddle that can be adjusted for the broadness of their backs. Or it could be that depending on how many saddle pads or blankets were used. There have been several saddlers in the UK that have created custom saddles (English, Western, Racing, Endurance) that can be fully dismantled. You can adjust the flaps for hacking out or jumping, or pure dressage. Headplates can be changed to accommodate various horses within minutes, it has no tree, there is the seat, and the panels, and the flaps. Each panel has a front and a rear airbag to adjust the fit and comfort for the horse. The gullet (down the spine is created to be quite wide to lay on either side of the spine and not so close like the old saddles. Endurance horses love this as much as the fox hunting horse that is out for many hours. The tubing for the air bags can be seen mid-point of the seat- This is just my personal idea, but it is very cool. Please let us know if you decide to restore it. Dinah Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Thistledown Report post Posted May 28, 2018 It's an interesting looking saddle. I'm not sure just how practical it would have been ? The idea for it being adjustable sounds good in theory...but I suspect those wing nuts would have rather quickly loosened up under the stresses of riding and everything would have loosened up fairly quickly Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Zach76 Report post Posted February 24, 2019 ...Months later... Sorry, I thought I was set up to receive notifications, but I wasn't. Thanks for the input. I agree that the wingnuts may have been a problem in real-world use. It seems to me that the saddle could have been used for taking measurements. Maybe it could have been adjusted to a particular horse, then measurements taken to build a tree. I'm still not entirely certain. Over a hundred and thirty years after the patent date, I'm not sure I'll ever find out any more details. I guess it's a keeper. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Smartee Report post Posted March 1, 2019 I thought it looked like a McClellan so I did a little research and came up with this - It appears to be a Jones "adjustable tree" saddle. https://petruzzi.wordpress.com/2007/05/30/the-mcclellan-saddle/ https://books.google.com/books?id=5O02DwAAQBAJ&pg=PA68&lpg=PA68&dq=jones+adjustable+tree+saddle&source=bl&ots=fGgCsxfEXI&sig=ACfU3U2rXoW9oC_dtbFaDx6ea2B8LJFa0Q&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwii44CbsuHgAhXRwFkKHTxtBgcQ6AEwAHoECAwQAQ#v=onepage&q=jones adjustable tree saddle&f=false Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Zach76 Report post Posted March 8, 2019 Thank you for finding this information. This sounds very much like what I have. A couple of things that seem odd though are the patent date and a spring adjustment. The stamped patent date appears to be from the 1880's, and Mr. Jones did his business in the 1850's. The article also mentions something about a spring mechanism that does not appear on the saddle I have. I am going to try researching the Jones saddle a little more. Thanks again! -Zach Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Smartee Report post Posted March 19, 2019 Some more interesting reading: https://books.google.com/books?id=4WgsMDHdV1wC&pg=PA61&lpg=PA61&dq=jones+adjustable+saddle&source=bl&ots=SoZtQn7dwR&sig=ACfU3U11Kvs7wZouvUFzh18s55TnxEi-YA&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwim1ufR5Y7hAhUQrlkKHczrCYMQ6AEwCHoECAYQAQ#v=onepage&q=jones adjustable saddle&f=false Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MilitaryHorse Report post Posted April 5, 2019 (edited) That would be a 'Wint' saddle - these were made in 1880s and 1890s as an experimental type for US cavalry. This one looks like it's been modified a bit in post-military life, but still pretty much there. Quite a rare beastie. Here's some discussion of the Wint - https://www.militaryhorse.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=10442 Apparently made in slightly different configurations, but that was norm for experimentals. Todd H. Edited April 5, 2019 by MilitaryHorse More info to add! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
