Hi, my western saddle fenders/stirrups doesn’t allow me to shorten my stirrups enough. I am going to put some english stirrup leathers on instead, and then try to get the western ones modified. It looks like the slot where I put the stirrup leathers back on the western saddle is tucked way up under the saddle flap. How in the world do I insert english stirrup leathers (or my western ones after I get them altered) back up inside of the slot? thanks.
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You feed them thru pushing the end in and then fishing it out the other end.
That is a finger eating task.
Western fenders have stiff leaders that you can bend over the tree bar, stick the end behind it and push thru until you see the tip show up, then with pliers pull as you keep pushing from the top.
You can also use a very thin and strong string tied to the last hole, run the string thru with a wire, then use the string gently to help guide the end and pull it once showing up below.
Once you catch on, it really is not hard.
Be sure to hold your tongue just right, that helps.
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thank you Bluey! Great explanation of how to do it!
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While it’s possible, you’ll save yourself a lot of time (and creative swearing) if you simply bring the saddle to a local saddler and have them do it. It takes about 5 minutes for them, but you’ll be swearing for hours about it. Ask me how I know.
It’s also very easy for them to shorten the fenders on your saddle. I had mine done and it cost next to nothing. What they did was cut and re-shape the tops of the fenders so I could shorten them without the fender getting jammed under the jockeys. That job cost roughly $70 CDN and you can’t even tell it was done. But if your fenders are completely tooled, it’ll take extra care to not look weird.
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I agree with getting the fenders shortened professionally.
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I have two sets of fenders, a regular sized one and junior ones, that is what I use, being so short.
If someone is going to be using my saddle, I change them around.
It is hard on old stiff fingers, but really doesn’t take long, a few minutes at most.
One reason I have never liked any western saddle too much is that, no matter how appropiate the fender size may be, they are still way more binding, especially for short legged people, than an English saddle stirrup leathers.
Why I start colts in an English saddle, not a western one.
You can balance and help a horse with leg aids much better with more limber fenders/stirrup leathers when short legged, mere physics.
I agree that if someone can get to a saddle shop, let them do any altering necessary, if you don’t know how.
my clever hubby did the re-configuration for me. now he’s crabby
:lol:
It happens.
Ditto just taking it to a saddle maker and letting them cut the length of the fender down. I fear trying to make the English ones work on the Western is going to be complicated and not get you what you think you will get.
I feel your pain, I always got kid saddles or specified shorter fenders. That is one thing that’s better about the English saddles if you are short. But there are things you can do without trying to mix and match.
I am with Bluey, get a set of shorter, junior fenders and don’t cut the others shorter. Does affect the resale value having cut down fenders. I always check for that, pass on cut down fenders because the are less flexible or easy to get “formed and twisted” for staying bent to EASILY SLIDE my feet into when mounting. I had a pair of junior fenders that we used on the kid saddle, 12 inch seat when son’s legs got too long for short length kid stirrups. He was quite long legged but very slender, so saddle still fit him well. Used the same junior stirrups on a bigger saddle for shorter legged daughter until she got some length of leg to her. Girls and boys are just built different, grow differently as they get some age on them.
I have had some saddles it is impossible to get fender strap around with my hands. These days I put a binder twine thru the last hole when pulling fenders off. I leave the length of twine over the saddle tree bar to put back in fender hole to help me “make” the new fender tip bend around the tree and come back out. I can pull the twine ends to get leather moving to where I can get a good grip for pulling it into place with my hands. Lots easier than fingers when I have such tight tolerances on the saddle areas. Maybe my hands are too big. Anyway, running the twine over the bar with fender removal makes it easier to put the next fender back on.
Let me add that thinking back to when I had Western saddles…there’s no way you are going to get anything through that slot, it’s a byatch for sure, Best left to a pro with long, stirong fingers. Even if you get them off, getting them back on is a whole other daunting task.
On getting replacement fenders instead of cutting them down? Sometimes that doesn’t work, they aren’t really a standard width/thickness for any and all makes of saddles. Lots of variation can mean it’s the right length but too fat to fit thru the slot. I can personally attest to that. Plus the tooling pattern, color and wear pattern in the new fenders won’t match the rest of the older saddle. You may not see when you sit in it but it looks like heck when you walk up to it. Cutting it down might effect the tooling a little but won’t get attention from anybody walking by your saddled horse when you aren’t aboard. Might be easier, and cheaper in the long run, to just sell the saddle and replace it with one that fits you.
I ended up special ordering instead of buying saddles off the rack. Got one custom made eventually. PITA compared to English saddles. But, then again, the size of those English horses compared to typical Western types is just as challenging if you are short…and you can’t change that like you can fenders or leathers.
I see the task is done now, but I’ve had success using a strip of slippery thin pastic (yogurt/butter container kind) and tying it to the fender. Slip that through the tree and pull with all your might. The first one usually takes 20 minutes, the second takes two minutes.
Still something that I don’t love to do, however!
