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A discussion of the various styles of holding a western saddle on a horse.
When it comes to holding a western saddle on a horse there are many varieties of arranging the hardware involved. From full double to center-fire and a whole bunch in between, the positioning of the rigging hardware is a great big "It depends." kind of deal. It just depends on the use the saddle is put to and sometimes just a personal style preference. Horse conformation can factor in as well. Sometimes an ill-fitting saddle is such because of the fact that the rigging won't hold a well-built saddle where it ought to on the horse in question. The following is a discussion of several aspects to mounting the rigging when building a saddle.
A quick first word about the metals used for rigging hardware. Stainless steel if you like shiny, silvery and solid brass if you like the warmth are definitely the metals of choice with regard to standing up under long years of exposure and use. These metals will not corrode to any extent whereas much of the less expensive formulations will and can often weaken and or break at the worst possible time. So spending the money to buy quality hardware is a must if you are truly interested in safety and a long life, for your rig and you.
While you might define rigging position from the center-fire location and move forward I define it with respect to a center line that drops plumb along the center of the fork or swell. I am not alone in this but either way works well enough. (Click here for pictorial treatment of some rigging positions) A rigging ring or plate mounted in line with dead center of the forks is called a full rigging and most nearly always you should expect that this saddle would be double rigged, as in full double rigging. This means that a pair of flank billets for a flank cinch are also on this saddle. While a rear cinch is not absolutely necessary on any saddle, if the saddle is a full rig it is best to be able to balance this cinch placement with a rear cinch, especially where roping is concerned but also if a rider does a lot of mountain, steep-type trail riding. Care needs to be taken, well, you should always take care about where you cinch up a saddle, to place full rigged saddles properly on the horse as they are prone to cause galling if they are ridden too far forward on the horse. Though I have never cinch galled a horse with a full double rigging, I have talked with many folks where this has been a problem. Cincha chafes, or cinch safes as they are sometimes called, might be an answer here, as well as realizing that a very fat horse with a round belly will often force the cincha to slide right up under the elbows of the horse. These are leather and sheepskin covers for the cincha rings, which are sometimes the cause of the galling. A longer or shorter cincha might help too as it would move the ring out from under the elbow. Using a cincha with quality hardware is always the better choice, both for comfort of the horse as well as, once again, safety.
Rigging positions are then categorized from the full position as follows: full, 7/8, 3/4, 5/8 and center-fire. I have heard of saddlemakers getting ridiculous about breaking down placement into 1/16 increments but that is a little silly for the following reason. Generally, each of these fractions from full through center-fire amounts to moving the rigging point about one to two inches rearward. This will depend on saddle size and exactly how much distance there is between the full and center-fire points. So telling me about a 9/16 rigging position just kinda makes me chuckle.
Center-fire would be most nearly under the middle of the saddle skirts, generally right under your center of gravity when riding, and is an old style of rigging from the dally roper days of the Californio vaqueros. It is a single rigging rather than a double. Makes sense cause at center-fire it is already way back around the bottom of the horse's ribcage. Double rigging a center-fire or even a 5/8 rig is a fairly pointless thing to do. Saddles rigged this way are are then single riggings.
Full, 7/8 and even 3/4 then can be double rigged effectively, though a 3/4 could serve well as a single-rigged saddle if roping or rough terrain riding is not done in this saddle. Generally, the rear cinch is there to keep the saddle from tipping forward and gouging into the horse's shoulders too much. Roping heavy cattle or fast and hard stopping of cattle, as in arena roping, can cause such. So will riding rough terrain with steep and long downhill treks. While a rider needs to ride "right" and that will keep the saddle from tipping forward to a great degree, mountain riding is often easier on the horse if a rear cinch is there. Of course, keeping that rear cinch adjusted, not too tight and not too loose, is also a key to its effectiveness in balancing the saddle.
Rigging hardware for the front cincha is generally divided into two types: ring or plate. Both ring and plate riggings can be made as "in-skirt" or separately mounted by leather strap or a rigging plate. Some folks prefer the inskirt style claiming that it reduces bulk under the leg of the rider. At the same time it must be realized that it puts the latigos right against the side of the horse. If the saddle is to be used for roping, mounting it in skirt does not allow for the best distribution of the forces involved when a cow hits the end of the rope and/or pulls. Rear cincha hardware is generally a ring or a slot cut through the skirt and reinforced with leather that prevent the billets from pulling through. Again, if roping is the use it would be best to mount the rear rigging as a ring that is part of a rigging plate or at the least securely strapped and screwed down to the tree. This allows the billets to swing forward and backward which a slot mounted billet cannot easily do. Over time the twisting of the billet will weaken the leather for a possible failure when you'd rather that rear cincha would hold up.
There is a near endless variety of rigging ring and plate styles. Generally speaking, for durability and good looks a stainless steel ring or plate is the preferred metal for the silver look while brass or bronze is what you are after for the warmer, gold look. Precious metals like gold and sliver will look pretty but sure are not as serviceable as rigging hardware, even if only as a plating. Only the showiest of saddles could be considered an appropriate place for this and even then the rigging hardware is going to see a lot of chafing from leather parts while the saddle is ridden. Many other combinations of metals are sold by saddle fittings outfits and most will corrode pretty quickly. That means they may well fail sooner rather than later. High quality hardware is a must and only one reason why custom made saddles are going to cost more to buy than saddles mass produced.
I have seen a whole bunch of different ways of doing up a latigo to try and offer multiple positions for the front cincha on one saddle. Being as a person might ride a variety of horses with different body types, as well as different levels of fitness throughout the year, this variety is something saddler's have tried to build into their rigs. Plates with multiple positions, running the latigo through the rear rigging rings and other manners of positioning the cincha are out there and each I suppose has its place. I am finding a 7/8 position to be pretty versatile but there is probably no single solutions to the variety of needs out there. You just do the best you can.
Sometimes the body style or shape of a horse means that a real well built saddle still won't fit that horse right or stay were it ought to as the horse is being ridden. I have a horse right now that cannot hold a 7/8 rigging in place. It moves forward because of the way his short back and short underline conspire to make his belly flare quickly behind his ribs. A crupper has been the answer to keep the forward tendency out of this rig. Otherwise the saddle fits his withers and often after a roping session I find the cinch is so loose I can slip my hand under it very easily. Even at that looseness the saddle stayed upright on the horse because of a dropped plate rigging that really does seem to hug the horse. Of course, a good tree with the right bars sure helps the fit too. A full rigging fits this horse and soon I will be making a Wade with a three position plate that allows from full to 7/8 to 3/4 rigging. That way I can ride him in the full position but use the others for horses were these positions are more appropriate to their build. This is sure something to consider when you are finding you saddle fits your horse but then you get another one and it isn't quite as right. Before throwing that baby out with the bathwater, checking other options in how to rig the saddle may be a less expensive answer than buying a saddle for each horse you own.
As the cincha/girth tightens, the saddle may settle down to two to three fingers over the withers. This is not a bad sign, but watch that the back of the saddle does not “pop up” 3-4”. Also, as you tighten the girth/cincha, watch your horse. Look for signs of irritation and discomfort. Tail swishing, ear pinning, biting the air, moving away from you can all be signs that the saddle is pinching the horse. If these occur, you might want to go back a step and look again at how the saddle is sitting on the horse. If all is going well, you should lunge the horse for about 5-10 minutes and watch the movement and attitude. Once the initial “freshness” wears off, the horse should move into frame, with the head at a comfortable level and rounding up into the saddle. A horse that travels high headed, with the back hollowed out under the saddle could be trying to let you know that this is not a comfortable saddle for him. Especially if the animal adds ear pinning and tail swishing opinions to the hollow movement.
You toss the saddle on the horse's back. Then you cinch it down with them there strap-thaings.
Oh.and first you tell the horse to stand still.
you take the strap run it from inside to the out on the ring. then wrap the strap around in between the horses side and the back of the first part of the strap that toy took throw the ring.work the strap till it is SNUG on the horse.then while keeping snug pull strap throw the loop you made in the strap.
(note,always lead the horse around a bit and make a couple turns to make sure there are no pinches in the strap or the saddle) I belive that is how it goes
horn over whither, girth and sinch with double ring
Carefully so as to not get kicked. This is for a western saddle which is done differently from an English. Seriously, Put your pad on the horses back. Put this towards the front of the horse and then pull backwards to the spot on the horse where the saddle will sit (You pull backwards because that is the way the horses hair lays). Then put your saddle about three inches behind that. Next you need to tighten your girth. So, reach under the horses belly, grab the girth and pull your girth strap through. Then, wrap that strap through the rigging three to four times. Why not once or twice, remember this is done to keep the saddle on the horse and keep you in the saddle. You want this tight enough that it won't fall off your horse, but make sure the back of your saddle is not in the air. At this point, some will say to use the buckle on the cinch or what I do at this point is, go clockwise around the rigging once and a half times and then from the back pull the strap through the rigging and under the strap and then pull tight (kind of like a tie).
Now, next thing you should do is get on and walk around, dismount and check to make sure everything is tight.
I'm assuming you are going to ride and possibly you own a horse?
At least take one lesson with a trainer so you don't hurt your horse. You can tighten the girth too much restricting breathing and you can not tighten it enough making the saddle slip, which causes the horse pain when it slips over the withers (what are withers? Please don't be this hopeless). It takes practice.
Having someone try to direct you step by step leaves the possibility of mistakes and who suffers from those mistakes? The horse does.
Ignorance ruins more horses than malicious intent. Do yourself a favor and take a lesson. You'll feel more confident in yourself and knowing that your horse is comfortable. Good luck!
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