Here are some other Tex Tans: http://www.horsesaddleshop.com/tex-tan-trail-saddles.html#.VT7xqyHBzGc
Even though it would be a couple hundred more, I’d be more interested in buying from a place that has a good trial policy where I could return it if it doesn’t work out.
Does Fella go well in the gaited tree? That’s the tree I have for Mac in my JJ Maxwell and it is a good fit for him.
The horn thing is purely aesthetics. The Wade was okay, but generally I don’t prefer the look. Oh and I still want to ride cross country and jump all the things -so no horn.
I have thought about gaited saddles for Fella for the shoulders, but I don’t know if the blockage is the shoulders or the back. It feels like the back.
Thanks for the link.
[QUOTE=Bluey;8125185]
A framed saddles are the initial western saddles.[/QUOTE]
True, though slick forks have evolved over time as well. Wades or something of the like have only been around 100 years or so.
Swells built into the tree are going to be heavier than a slick fork tree with bucking rolls of the same restriction. You can’t replace light leather and fleece stuffing with hardwood and rawhide and not expect to gain some noticeable weight.
“Security” works both ways too, in that swells can restrict getting out when you want to, or bang you up if moving in hard country or jumping etc. No free lunch.
[QUOTE=aktill;8126545]
True, though slick forks have evolved over time as well. Wades or something of the like have only been around 100 years or so.
Swells built into the tree are going to be heavier than a slick fork tree with bucking rolls of the same restriction. You can’t replace light leather and fleece stuffing with hardwood and rawhide and not expect to gain some noticeable weight.
“Security” works both ways too, in that swells can restrict getting out when you want to, or bang you up if moving in hard country or jumping etc. No free lunch.[/QUOTE]
Jumping?
That is a strange comment, because western saddles were never intended for jumping.
Wade saddles originally, only were made in center fire, no back cinch, which made roping bigger stock kind of tricky.
There are trade-offs to everything, that is true.
[QUOTE=Bluey;8126569]
Jumping?
That is a strange comment, because western saddles were never intended for jumping.[/QUOTE]
Your trails and stock fields are nicer than mine if you’ve never jumped anything in a western saddle.
Umm, no: http://www.cowboyshowcase.com/wade-saddle-history.html#.VT-cJZO5KYQ
Lots of guys (and gals) rope heavy stock out of single rigs now, you just need to slip rope to do it.
From the Californios stock handling contest:
http://s222.photobucket.com/user/TeginChuchis/media/Californios008-1.jpg.html
Note the lack of back cinch on both ropers’ horses.
[QUOTE=aktill;8126708]
Your trails and stock fields are nicer than mine if you’ve never jumped anything in a western saddle.
Umm, no: http://www.cowboyshowcase.com/wade-saddle-history.html#.VT-cJZO5KYQ
Lots of guys (and gals) rope heavy stock out of single rigs now, you just need to slip rope to do it.
From the Californios stock handling contest:
http://s222.photobucket.com/user/TeginChuchis/media/Californios008-1.jpg.html
Note the lack of back cinch on both ropers’ horses.[/QUOTE]
Surely you know that is not the kind of jumping meant when talking about jumping saddles?
How much real roping have you done, just curious, don’t need to answer, of course.
Sure, you can rope from an Engish saddle also, have done it, but really, the right western saddle and two cinches are the better mousetrap, when it comes to roping all day long and bigger stock.
Not because you can’t rope any one way you have to, just makes the job a bit easier on everyone for what all happens when you keep roping and roping, like doctoring out in the fields.
With the new long lasting medications, may have gone to guns to pasture doctoring with, easier on all than with horses anyway.
Even roping as a hobby, arena roping, is easier with two cinches.
Then, for roping demonstrations, anything goes, freestyle.
[QUOTE=Bluey;8126755]
Surely you know that is not the kind of jumping meant when talking about jumping saddles?[/QUOTE]
Who was talking about jumping saddles? I merely said that if you have a saddle with significant swells they’ll hinder your ability to jump.
I went on a trail ride last year on a borrowed horse where we had to jump a lot of deadfall, and the horse was tacked up with a “Bear Trap” style saddle. Got my thighs beaten up pretty good from the swells, tough I’ve rarely felt more “secure” in another saddle (especially riding oxbows too).
That said, please see below (Mr Hunt rode slick fork saddles):
http://www.westernhorseman.com/sections/horsemanship/1556-ray-hunt-1929-2009
“A few of us stayed up to watch them discuss each horse, set up a jump designed for each individual, and then solve its problem. They’d stay until 3 a.m. or so riding one troubled animal after another… Ray didn’t use a flat saddle. He jumped five-foot fences - spreads and verticals - in his stock saddle with a cigar clamped in his mouth.”
I’ve done enough roping to know I’m no expert; I’m not putting forward any idea about what’s “better” though.
I borrowed a saddle from one of the gents in the above saddle for this clinic, and I’ll definitely say it requires more finesse to handle a single rig (read, less factor of safety):
http://www.easphotography.com/Tindur/CaldwellClinic.jpg
Says the Texan 
A preference for grass hackamores and double rigged saddles are showing your regional biases just as much as I admit mine do too.
[QUOTE=Bluey;8126755]Not because you can’t rope any one way you have to, just makes the job a bit easier on everyone for what all happens when you keep roping and roping, like doctoring out in the fields.
With the new long lasting medications, may have gone to guns to pasture doctoring with, easier on all than with horses anyway.
Even roping as a hobby, arena roping, is easier with two cinches.
Then, for roping demonstrations, anything goes, freestyle.[/QUOTE]
Roping single rigged requires more finesse because you can’t stop a cow quickly, and has much less room for error for sure. I’m not saying that makes it better, or that you can’t use finesse roping in a full double, it just is what it is.
You never hook a spur in your cinch with a single the same way you can in a full double though, that’s for sure (got that T-shirt, not all that much fun).
The guys at the Californios probably ride single more for tradition than anything else, and nothing wrong with that. But if I owned the stock and wanted to make sure that there was as little stress as possible on the cows, I’d see single rigging as a sign that I was either dealing with good hands or in for a good round of EI claims if the guys were more hat than cattle lol
All this is way off topic to the original discussion of swells being more evolved than a slick fork tree, but interesting nonetheless.
Did you see Chris Cox in his silly loping hackamore start his two colts in The Road To The Horse?
Did you see the other fellows, one with the thick stiff rawhide bosal, or the one with the snaffle?
Granted, most of that is in the mind of the one starting the colts, if they understand the concepts totally and how to apply them, but still, I think that making fun of that get-up we use, as you make there, kind of falls flat when you see that.
I am sure Cox would have made it work with the rawhide bosal or snaffle also, just would not have been as smooth on the reaction of the horse to that as the little grass rope nose hackamore can be, in the right hands.
By the way, we don’t tie hard and fast but with the lighter stock and only when you can choose your country.
No sense in chancing going tea over kettle tied hard onto something big, unless you absolutely have to, as with beets or turnip choke, when you don’t have time for other.
[QUOTE=Bluey;8127136]
Did you see Chris Cox in his silly loping hackamore start his two colts in The Road To The Horse?
Did you see the other fellows, one with the thick stiff rawhide bosal, or the one with the snaffle?[/QUOTE]
Didn’t, sorry. The more I work long-term with horses the more it becomes obvious that rushing the start really holds back progress later on, and Stacey Westfall’s report on how she had to go back to square one with her Road To the Horse colt after buying him and taking him home limited my interest in colt starting events like this.
[QUOTE=Bluey;8127136]
Granted, most of that is in the mind of the one starting the colts, if they understand the concepts totally and how to apply them, but still, I think that making fun of that get-up we use, as you make there, kind of falls flat when you see that.
I am sure Cox would have made it work with the rawhide bosal or snaffle also, just would not have been as smooth on the reaction of the horse to that as the little grass rope nose hackamore can be, in the right hands.[/QUOTE]
You seem to think that having a difference of opinion implies making fun. I’ve stated my objections to that particular tack before, and they haven’t changed. If you and Chris can make it work though, good on you.
[QUOTE=Bluey;8127136]By the way, we don’t tie hard and fast but with the lighter stock and only when you can choose your country.
No sense in chancing going tea over kettle tied hard onto something big, unless you absolutely have to, as with beets or turnip choke, when you don’t have time for other.[/QUOTE]
In a nutshell, why the different styles evolved, sure. Do as needs must.
[QUOTE=paulaedwina;8126325]
The horn thing is purely aesthetics. The Wade was okay, but generally I don’t prefer the look. Oh and I still want to ride cross country and jump all the things -so no horn.
I have thought about gaited saddles for Fella for the shoulders, but I don’t know if the blockage is the shoulders or the back. It feels like the back.
Thanks for the link.[/QUOTE]
Why don’t you just buy the same saddle you are using now? Too expensive? Too bad you just can’t get the one you are using. Would make things easier.
[QUOTE=candyappy;8127248]
Why don’t you just buy the same saddle you are using now? Too expensive? Too bad you just can’t get the one you are using. Would make things easier.[/QUOTE]
I think it is on loan, the owner won’t sell it?
People’s behind and saddles are so different, some times, even the same saddle type from the same saddlery ends up being different.
Decades ago we bought a Windy Ryon “Amy Gamblin” saddle that was super perfect, also fit every horse you ever put it on.
We ordered another one just like it and guess what, it just was not the same.
I still have both.
I hope the OP will eventually find a saddle that fits well all around, just keep looking.
[QUOTE=aktill;8127207]
Didn’t, sorry. The more I work long-term with horses the more it becomes obvious that rushing the start really holds back progress later on, and Stacey Westfall’s report on how she had to go back to square one with her Road To the Horse colt after buying him and taking him home limited my interest in colt starting events like this.
You seem to think that having a difference of opinion implies making fun. I’ve stated my objections to that particular tack before, and they haven’t changed. If you and Chris can make it work though, good on you.
In a nutshell, why the different styles evolved, sure. Do as needs must.[/QUOTE]
No, I was the one making a bit of fun with this, that fell flat, oh, well.
I don’t like that hurry and get them going they do there either.
Those fellows also don’t on principle, but for a demonstration, they are game to try.
If you saw that show, they keep saying, “at home I would not do this like that” and why what they do they do as they do for the show.
It is very interesting to see how those colts keep responding.
As you say, there is something different for everyone.
Colt breakers/horse tamers have put on demonstrations for centuries, going from town to town and stealing rides.
There is an art to that and not many can even start to pull that, or want to, of course.
Just like some don’t like arena roping for time, but pasture roping as you need is ok.
I used that colt starting competition for an example, because you mentioned the rope nose, today they call them “loping hackamores”, I heard and that was a place one was being used and very well.
Wednesday is the last day of six, will be interesting how those second colts will ride.
I don’t know any of those fellows and only have heard the name of Chris Cox, don’t know anything about him.
I would advise you to get the serial number of the western saddle you are currently riding in. With the serial number, you can usually find out what type of tree is in the saddle.
Then when you look at that saddle on Ebay, compare the serial numbers and make sure the tree is the same.
Just because the brand is the same (Tex Tan) and it’s a flex tree, does NOT automatically mean it’s the same tree. You have to verify.
If it’s a different tree, it won’t fit the same as your current saddle.
[QUOTE=Pocket Pony;8126217]
I don’t know anything about the Tex Tan flex tree saddles - do they come in just one tree size for the horse but different seat sizes for the rider? [/QUOTE]
Typically, the tree size doesn’t have a lot to do with the seat size, as far as the flare of the bars, twist, rock, etc. However, the length of the bars does change as the seat size (for the rider) gets larger.
Someone can correct me if I am wrong, but I do believe the tree length will be different between a 15" & 15.5" when compared to a 16". So OP, going from a 15.5" to a 16" might not make much difference to you, but it might make a difference to your horse because that tree will usually be longer to accommodate the larger seat size for the rider. If your horse has a short back, that isn’t going to work so well.
Again, I strongly advise you not to buy anything online unless you know it is a 100% exact match to the current Tex Tan saddle you have been riding in. You are better off going to a tack store and trying on a variety of saddles until you find one that fits you and your horse.
Indeed. The saddle I’m using is on loan and not for sale. So I’m keeping an eye out for the same saddle to coincide with having money. It is reasonably priced used so I have confidence. The only complication is that the loan is going away on Thursday and I have a show on Sunday. So I may have to look for something similar -the big horn flex tree looks similar. The tack shop has a saddle block so I’ll try them first.
Thanks, beau, I’ll note the serial number. And I appreciate your input.
http://lib.store.yahoo.net/lib/thesaddleshop/bh804c.jpg
Paula
Just remember, a new saddle is not going to feel like a nicely broken in one.
Try to get whatever you get early, so you can have a few rides in it before the show.
[QUOTE=paulaedwina;8125136]
Thanks, guys. I texted my trainer and she said I wouldn’t like it as I prefer closer contact, and that yes, it’s heavy. It was one I came across on CL. There’s also a tex tan on Ebay that if it’s still there on pay day I’ll get it. Other than that there is a neat tack shop about an hour from me (Original Horse Tack Company) that has a number of types to try.
BTW Wintec makes a synthetic Western saddle. Has anyone tried them?
Paula[/QUOTE]
You get what you pay for, I got a Wintec WESTERN saddle for my hubby that rarely rides. It is AWEFUL!! I cant ride in it for more than 45 mins, is just really uncomfortable!!
You may like a Steele Saddle, they are fairly light, don’t have a huge skirt. It is a pretty deep seat. They are not cheap, but one used by be closer your budget,
http://steelesaddle.com/product-category/steele-saddles/
They fit my hard to fit horse. Claim to fit most horses, they don’t put much of the weight on the withers, you sit more on their back. It hard to explain, but my new Steele WADE saddle fits BOTH of my horses.
They also have a nice demo program, will send you a saddle to try for three weeks…
I have been VERY happy w/my new saddle All of their saddles can come with or WITHOUT a horn. As someone pointed out, hopping over small jumps is fine, but actually jumping should be a jumping saddle, not a Western.
Did a quick search, this is on EBAY… looks like a decent deal, would think you could get at least $800.
They are VERY comfortable, can ride all day!
Those are gorgeous! Nice deep seats too.
Yes indeed -little jumps.
Paula
My trainer came across an old Big Horn flex tree for me to try. First ride today -not bad. I think it’s more real estate than the Tex Tan, but I like the front better. The seat is harder than the Tex Tan. The Tex Tan is on a big trail ride this weekend and I have a show on Sunday. And my trainer, like Santa Claus, came through.
This one will be for sale. It needs some cleaning, and some refurbishing, but Fella seems to like it. Lots of tracking up and swinging back in it. In fact he might be using himself even more than before! How is that possible? I know that my belly felt like jelly on our hill hack from all the push we were getting from behind and all the swing in his back!
Paula
Some saddlers think that flex trees are not that good for the horse, that they are more free to move with regular trees, as long as they fit well.
Then, there are all kinds of saddle trees called “flex”, so I expect it depends on which kind we are talking about and what purpose it may fit.
Someone posted not long ago a critique by a saddler of one kind of flex trees, but can’t find the link.
That difference may be what you are feeling there.
Could you add a light, thin seat saver to help your bottom feel happier in it, at least while you are working, then take it off for the show?
If the saddle really fits your horse and fits you well enough, you may be able to get used to it.
I’ve been trying to figure out what is going on with Fella and why this seems to work for him. Fella is a draft cross with wide shoulders, a high ish wither, and a short curvy back. Anything longer than say 17 inches either sits too far forward and impinges on his shoulders, or is slid back to free his shoulders then bridges.
The flex tree is able to sit back without bridging perhaps. I tried a regular Western tree on him too. It was a 17 (Western 17 so about an 18.5/19 in English?) that happened to be sitting around in the barn. We went right back to sucked back, rope-pushing.
I liked the Tex Tan alot, but it’s almost like Fella likes this one more. I do like the front of it more -it seems more substantial. The Tex tan has a better cantle IMO.
As for the hard seat -I’ll get used to it. It’s like the first time you ride a racing bike and your seat bones are like WTH!
This is the source I used to understand flex trees. http://www.horsesaddleshop.com/flex-trees-101.html#.VUQwZPlViko
My trainer says she wouldn’t use them for her level of barrel racing (D1) because the flex moves too much and doesn’t support the horse’s back like a regular tree. She doesn’t there will be an issue for us though -we don’t do D1 barrel racing :lol:
The flex tree isn’t as soft as treeless. It’s not like you can bend the saddle with your hands.
By submitting your email, you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. You may also receive promotional emails from The Chronicle of the Horse. You can opt out at any time.
For Customers
Company
Terms of Use
