Stamping and tooling saddles

[DirtyDusty]

Whats your process for stamping saddles. Take a cantle back for instance.  When you mold it and tack it, do you let it dry enough to stamp, then pull it off right then and stamp, or let it dry up overnight, pull off and dampen enough to tool?  Do you back up the thick skirting leather, like you do the thinner stuff, to prevent stretch?

[gk68]

Ive only made a couple saddles so far so take this with a grain of salt.

i did a basket stamped cantle back with a single border running across the top.

I molded it to the cantle marked and trimmed for my cantle binding. After trimming i reinstalled and then marked where the binding is going to be.  After that i took it back off.  It still had enough moisture so i didnt have to recase.  I marked i think 3/8ths in for my border.  Tooled my border along the arc and then basket stamped all the way out to the end of the bottom.  The jockeys covered the bottom.  I think next time ill rough fit my jockeys and then make the border on the bottom as well.