Building New Saddles

I specialize in building Western working saddles. The majority of the saddles that I have finished are being used on working ranches where they are a necessary tool. For most of the people who have purchased a saddle from me, this is a once in a lifetime investment. It is my goal to provide them with a product that can be used and used again and then handed on to the next generation, with an emphasis on being comfortable for a rider who must spend hours horseback while at the same time being safe for the horse. Check out some of my finished saddles in the Photo Gallery.

Pricing

Saddle making has evolved into an art form with some incredible work being done. It is easy to spend from $5,000 to $8,000 for a custom saddle. I however cater to the folks who are using their saddle as a tool. I try to hold my prices down so that the person who is working from his/her saddle (generally at a minimum or sub minimum wage) can afford it. Quality materials are used throughout. Herman Oak or Wickett and Craig skirting, prime wool skins and Bork rigging are standard. I own my shop, light it with the sun (solar power)and have no employees so overhead is low.

Construction

It is easy to get into an argument these days about the concept of fitting a saddle to a particular horse. My suggestion is that when you buy a saddle it should be designed to fit the "type" of horse you are riding. A horses' back will change through it's life time due to growth (a horse continues growing until about seven years of age), and also through the year depending on feed, coat and body condition. It is also possible that you will need to use the saddle with a different horse.

I use good quality rawhide covered trees sewn with lace rather than nylon thread. Nylon thread, due to flexing of the tree will cut the rawhide to which it is sewn.

Tooling/Stamping

I do a little tooling and a lot more stamping. Stamping has the effect of tempering the leather allowing fender corners, rear jockeys and seat corners to retain their shape.

Repairing saddles

I enjoy repairing what I call quality saddles. Over the years I have picked up a lot of ideas working on these saddles. Old Hamley's are one my favorites as they built a lot of saddles the way I do now. I have worked on several saddles with ground seat problems and am able to make a few adjustments (with a sharp knife and edger) to narrow down the front of the ground seat. Also extra unnecessary material is trimmed from the swell area. This work is all invisible to the casual eye as it is all done under the seat leather.

Occasionally I add a lift to the ground seat. This doesn't make the saddle any narrower but it makes it FEEL narrower. If your saddle seems to push you to the back of the seat you might consider this adjustment or improvement.

Another easy fix is adding a stirrup leather glide. This allows an easier forward swing as it lifts the stirrup leathers up and over the front rigging dees.

In my limited experience every saddle with a fiberglass or plastic tree that I have repaired has had moderate to serious structural damage. At this time my policy is to say no to repairs on lower quality saddles.

One Repair Job

For this job I added new stamped leathers, skirts, strings and a fork cover. As I did not have a stamp that matched the existing pattern I built one. Replacing the skirts like this saves several hours of picking stitches from partially rotted leather and having to set the sewing machine so that the needle will hit the old holes exactly. In these cases the thread wants to pull through at several points as the old stitch holes are weak. I have found that using new materials is also a lot cheaper time wise. I set and pre-stretch my fenders and stirrup leathers, making certain that the holes in the new leathers are numbered.

Different saddles

A child's saddle

An example of a fully stamped saddle. This particular saddle was made for a 6 year old girl . The fenders are short enough for her legs now and of course can be lengthened as she grows. It should at least last her through high school and beyond. When the fenders become too short it is simple to build a longer set.

565 Bowman Makes a nice trail and pleasure saddle but strong enough for any purpose.