Bar None Saddles

2010-08-15T19:18:00.000-07:00

QUOTES

Summer is busy so not much time to sit down and write. For those who follow my blog here is a couple of "quickies" that blow the mind.

1. A rider who I respect [as a rider!] and who I observed always rides with poor fitting saddles, actually came and talked to me at a show. Somehow the subject of saddle fit came up. Here was his take on the subject; "Put the saddle on the horse and cinch it up. If you can get in the saddle....it fits!"

HUH?

There was no point discussing it further!

2. I saw an ad for a saddle for sale. The seller said it had an 8" wide gullet and was great for a high withered horse. I wonder how she measures a tree. An 8" wide gullet might be better used on something other than an equine. High withers usually need a narrow width gullet and a high gullet. Call me & I'll explain why.

Stupid Quote of the Week

2010-06-16T20:13:00.000-07:00

Would you buy a saddle from this person? If the answer is "yes" scroll down my blog entries....

The ad says..."Saddle for sale, fits most bars"

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Twenty First Century Trainers

2010-06-11T19:28:00.000-07:00

First of all I have never met a trainer who knew anything about fitting a saddle. That doesn't mean there aren't any. Many will pretend they know but the proof will be in the results.

I think it is unfortunate that young riders will take a few courses [good riders I might add], and the next thing you know they are handing you a business card telling you they have a training school.

I know saddle makers that have done the same thing...a two week course and they are in business. I taught a 10 month course and couldn't say any one of the students would be capable of building a good saddle.

Experience is what qualifies you, not training!

But we are talking about trainers. Here is a true story.....

I had a potential customer in my shop who refreshingly admitted she was new to the horse world and was open to advice from the experienced.

I showed her and her 12 year old daughter around my shop and gave them a quick lesson in saddle design. This included an overview of how important saddle fitting was and I showed them all kinds of saddles and saddle trees and explained how they worked. I also pointed out the merits of owning a Bar None saddle.

I could tell she was running short of time. She said she had to get her daughter to a riding lesson! So I cut the chatter and escorted her to her car where she wanted an opinion on a saddle she had bought.

On the way I asked, "who is your daughter's trainer?"......her reply.."I can't remember her name, I think it's Jeannie?...she is 16 years old".

I would like to tell you more but I have a dentist appointment. I can't remember his name...I think it's Fred. He's about 16 years old. I sure hope he knows what he is doing!

Stupid Quote of the Week

2010-05-07T20:47:00.001-07:00

Some "saddle maker" says the difference between in-skirt and tree rigging is...."..in-skirt is supposed to be more secure, and the latigo rigged directly to the tree allows a bit more freedom of movement..."

Wow I learned a lot from that!!?? I'm not sure who or what gets more freedom of movement from a tree rigging?

The fact is, there is no definitive answer as to which rigging is correct. There are too many variables and each situation has to be evaluated separately.

Variables include the style of saddle, shape of the horse [not condition.. body shape], proper fitting criteria and discipline [i.e. what works for the discipline, not necessarily related to proper fitting practices].

I can advise what is best if I build you a saddle.....what you choose, you will have to live with!

Many thanks to all who post "stupid quotes" on the net. Keep them coming!!!

THE CHINA SYNDROME

2010-05-07T19:24:00.000-07:00

Sales of low cost imported saddles have grown.

The riding consumers seem reluctant to educate themselves on saddle quality and safety and still buy on price.

What is needed to change this?

As a saddler always trying to make quality products and above all safe products, it has always been frustrating losing sales to cheap, unsafe, but pretty merchandise.......pretty in pictures that is!

Will the consumer ever learn how to judge quality? I have watched customers buy saddle after saddle before realizing that they will have to spend a little more to get what they need. But no matter how much you explain it they don't seem to learn. Unscrupulous sales people don't help.

Surely the latest experience with toys and food from China would be a lesson. Compare toys and food to saddles??? Simple. It's cheap labour, inferior materials, and no quality control!

A customer of mine came with a saddle they had purchased on the internet. They thought the tree was broken...it was OK when they bought it! All they did was pile a few other saddles on top of it. After examination, I discovered the tree was made from some synthetic material that resembled spray-in insulation foam. The seat on this saddle had to be 20 inches [Western], and the stirrup leathers were not adjustable. The gullet was too narrow even for a mini horse. I honestly believe it was designed from looking at a photo. Neither the designer nor the maker had any idea about horses or saddles.

It is cheaper to buy a $2,000 saddle once than four $500 saddles that will all likely sore up a few horses and perhaps the rider.

It's just a matter of time before someone gets seriously injured on a cheap import! How many horses have already been ruined?

Sort-of Stupid Quote of the Week

2010-05-03T18:57:00.000-07:00

This is in the category of "Stupid Quote of the Week", but it is something I run into all the time. A visitor to my shop reminded me again how much this upsets me!

It is about "How to Properly Install Spur Straps"
Once more this is a case of the "know-it-all" trying to teach the "know nothings"...or is that the other way around? More misinformation!

This time it is about what boot to wear your spur strap on.....the left or the right.
The people advising the uninformed on how to install spur straps are "people who ride horses a lot [and admittedly do it well] but are not real cowboys". They seem to think that spur straps need to go on the boot with the smooth or large side of the strap on the inside. When I asked why the answer was "for protection". My next question was "Protection of what, from what?" I never got a reasonable answer.

There is no reason for more protection than what is already provided by stirrup leathers and fenders...and the riding boots themselves!

As a saddle maker and craftsman I refuse to spend hours on beautiful tooling on spur straps to have some jackass turn the tooled side to the inside of his/her boot....no matter what they are willing to pay.

Hey! It's not complicated....just common sense which seems scarce these days.

There are a few photos here that might help the misinformed understand why spur straps were designed the way they were. All the photos are from the outside of the boot.

If you disagree email me

Here's why you should not believe everything you read on the net...

2010-04-06T20:43:00.000-07:00

I like to keep up with what people are saying about saddle fit......because that is what I do!

I recently stumbled on an article, written by a well known saddle marketer's wife. It so happens that these people bought my book "Saddle Fit For Success" that I wrote around the turn of the century. [Most of what I wrote still stands today plus a few additions].

This lady interpreted a statement I made in the book and in her internet article suggested that saddles were made too wide for women and that they should be made narrower. However, she was focusing on English saddles in her article and my statement in my book pertained to western saddles. In fact, I said that "English saddles were too narrow for women, and western saddles were too wide for women".

Obviously she hasn't clue what she is talking about.......and many of you listen to people like this!

I call marketers like this bridge burners. Their success will eventually fizzle out......

But I will still be here. Cheers!

Stupid Quote of the Week

2010-03-26T12:16:00.000-07:00

This was an ad for a western saddle. "I have a western saddle with full quarter horse bars for sale. It has fitted every horse I put it on"

What they mean is they've used it on every horse they put it on!

Let's get this straight.....There are NO Standards For Western Saddle Tree Fit!

2010-03-26T11:58:00.000-07:00

We hear people referring to different types of bars used in saddle trees by name: Mule, Gaited, Semi-quarter horse, Quarter horse, Full quarter horse, Arab, Morgan and so on. It is important to realize that there is absolutely no standard for any of these. If we lined up three 'quarter horse' trees from three different manufacturers, you would see that there would not only be significant differences in gullet height and width and bar angle but also in the rock, twist and flare of the bars. We have talked to people who have had a saddle made by brand "A" Saddle Company with 'quarter horse' bars that fitted their horse fine, then they go out and get a new saddle made by Brand "B" Saddle Company also using 'quarter horse' bars and they end up with a sore backed horse. It is absurd to think that all tree makers have some manual that defines exact measurements for all these types of trees!

Also horses' backs are not standard either.

As a test I took three trees I had in my shop that were all listed as having 'quarter horse' bars. The angles of the bars were different on all three. The gullet heights and widths were also all different.

And guess what? They were all made by the same tree maker!

Saddle Up for more of the Same

2010-03-24T20:22:00.000-07:00

A recent issue of a trade magazine had an article about saddle marketers focusing on the drop in sales of saddles and tack and various comments from leading manufacturers on how they are dealing with it. The article implies that these manufacturers are creating new designs based on the perceived needs of their customers.

Unfortunately, most of my customers would not have access to this article, and you really would need to read it to fully appreciate my view of what was said. But I can tell you that it is a good example of how the marketers are not listening to the consumer but are totally concerned with their sale! This is why riders continue to be disappointed when they buy expensive equipment that doesn't perform to their expectations.

This article was very misleading since it implied breakthroughs in saddle design. It was a well presented article if you just looked at the pictures and ignored the narrative. The fact is there were no real changes in the way these saddles were being designed. I hate to refer to the annoying expression "thinking outside the box" but here was a blatant example of a group of marketers stuck "inside the box".

Out of seven western saddle producers interviewed only two came up with anything vaguely resembling a design change. One was simply a change in materials which isn't necessarily bad. However, a comfortable saddle has more to do with good fit than with comfy cushioning. The other was an old idea being rehashed one more time; the flex bar concept. No saddle has ever been made to fit better by concentrating on only one dimension of a tree!

One maker mentioned light weight. There was no mention of what the weight might be but unless his saddle is under 20 lbs it doesn't qualify as light. A couple of companies didn't even mention design changes but referenced a drop in business and seemed prepared to wait for the market to recover for an increase in sales. Whoever said using better leather, producing good workmanship and concentrating on affordability was right.....but those are "givens". Quality control and fair pricing are just good business; nothing new here!

They all say today's consumer is smarter than before but they sure aren't acting like they really believe what they say.

In summary not one of them had "reinvented the wheel" of how they put a saddle together as was quoted. It was just more examples of improving on old ideas.

The designers of the Bar None Trail Saddle "reinvented the wheel" of how to put a saddle together!

Stupid Quote of the Week

2010-03-03T20:26:00.000-08:00

" 3/4 rigging is the most common for reining" Just read my last post!

We Need Answers, Not Opinions!

2010-02-28T17:57:00.000-08:00

I was keeping this one for later, but I have seen so much misinformation in magazines and on the net that I feel compelled to speak up now!

This is about "people who write for magazines". This would also include those who set themselves up as experts on web forums. It astounds me how many people believe these self-appointed experts. They are not qualified in any sense of the imagination to talk about products and their functions that real experts have spent many years researching and developing. Of course most of the real experts I speak of just smile and say nothing, while these poor portrayers of wisdom continue to make fools of themselves and show how utterly stupid they look in the eyes of those who actually know what they are doing.

"People who write for magazines or web forums, are people who write for magazines or web forums. They like to see their name in print!"

There are hundreds of very humorous pieces of advice...here's a couple of examples.

A recent one was from a forum with a line of discussion on saddle fitting, but in particular about riggings. When asked what kind of rigging should be used for reining the advice was that "3/4 rigging was the most common for this discipline". That is so far from the truth! First of all the rigging setting has little or nothing to do with the discipline, but has everything to do with saddle fit. In fact most professional reiners use a full double rigging. A 3/4 setting would work its way forward and take the saddle with it in reining patterns. And as a note here these positions are used for reining when performing in this sport. It does not mean it is best for the horse, only best for results. The same principle applies to professional roping.

There was also a reference to a back cinch being only decoration. He excluded roping saddles, trail saddles and endurance saddles. We build trail saddles that for the most part don't need a back cinch because they fit the horse properly. Riders of trail saddles that use a back cinch usually have a saddle that wasn't built as a trail saddle in the first place and they have a saddle that doesn't fit. The same goes for endurance riders. Admittedly accessories [breast collars, back cinchas & cruppers] have their place when riding in rough terrain but only with a well fitted saddle. Riders do not always understand the true purpose of these accessories.

An article I read last year was about the best trail saddles to buy. Would you believe all the worst saddles for trail use were recommended?

In conclusion you might ask, "What makes you any different from all these writers you criticize?"

The answer is easy.......I know what I'm talking about!

One parting shot....People need to stop talking about a horse's center of gravity like it was a magic location. It's not! The center of gravity changes with 3 dimensional movement and can sometimes be outside the horse's body altogether. It has no place in the fitting equation! When talking about saddle fit and rider/horse balance we need to address the center of motion and center of balance.

Email me if you have any comments www.barnonesaddles@gmail.com

Stupid Quote of the Week

2010-02-11T18:30:00.000-08:00

This is something I forgot to mention. In addition to my major features I will supplement my Casebook experiences with "stupid quotes".

The format will be The Quote, The Comment on the Quote, and perhaps some additional thoughts on the subject. All for your amusement and education.

Here's one to start with.....

QUOTE: A saddle fitter once said "Not all saddle fitters know how to make a saddle, and not all saddle makers know how to fit a saddle"

COMMENT: Let me tell you something.......if a saddle maker does not know how to fit a saddle UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES BUY A SADDLE FROM HIM!

Welcome to the "Ramblings of a Saddle Maker"

2010-01-28T19:08:00.000-08:00

Every blog has its own format which determines its personality. The idea of a blog is to get people interested in what you have to say, stimulating feedback and hopefully creating an information center where the open-minded can learn more about the things they are interested in.

If you are not open-minded you should steer clear of this one. What you will read here is the well researched ramblings of a saddle maker.

I will try to post a topic every week from case files I have kept over the years highlighting many of the "silly" ideas about saddles and tack horse owners seem to have embedded in their minds. Once a month I will get serious and post a thought provoking essay that relates to saddle design and some of the myths that equestrians have been subjected to by the industry over the years.

It only makes sense to start the blog rolling by discussing why we put so much time and effort into designing a TRAIL SADDLE.

Check February 1 for my first post to find out about trail saddle design!