saddle up for a hard-sell!
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When in the market to buy a commercial saddle pad, the common size is 32" x 32" with wear-leathers are down each side. In my opinion, this is a brilliant marketing plan! Add to that size countour pads, vents down center, high-wither releif, even shims, and the industry standard moves the needle. My regret is I didn't come up those ideas. Oh wait...I have!!!
[When using a hard-pressed felt pad of any sort, some of my top-hand-clients who rope cattle large enough repeatedly share hair-rubbing off the withers when said said horse faces up. But, as of yet, I have not had anyone update me this is the case with a PWSP. Hmmm...]
A common question for me is: "Can, or will, you put wear-leathers on pulled wool saddle pads?" Short answer: "No." Besides sewing challenges, the underside at stitching will collect debris and run the risk of making your horse sore.
My conversation with the pad-skeptics goes something like this when I ask:
"Why do you suppose there are wear-leathers, Joe?"
"Well, to protect the horse at the latigo cinches!" says he.
"Good point!" I say. "Let me ask: Are there any puffs or welts anywhere along the latigos, especially lower at the cinch ring?"
"Well, no" Joe responds. "But..." and he trails verbally off with his thoughts!
No puffs or welts...there is the answer.
I know guys very pleased with "off the shelf, compressed felt pads" we all have seen. Some of those hard-riding hands will eventually cut the compressed/hardened material beneath latigo cinch-rub "out" in an upside down "U" shape from underneath wear-leathers to avoid making a horse sore, then go on and use the pad with no other coverage than the thin wear-leather.
So why not make pads appropriately sized to begin with? The HARD SELL to a new client on a pulled wool saddle pad is building the pad the width to/at the riggin rings. This also supports my personal rule: "Don't build anything I am not willing to repair." I'm not willing to repair damage that should have, or could have, been avoided. If a person truly wants an oversized pad, there are other makers out there willing to build a 32" wide pad...plenty of them.
Here's is what I've learned: With the exception of a real thin-skin-young horse: if there are no puffs along or around latigos, even lower or near the cinch rings, there likely won't be any puffs upper even at/near rigging rings either. This is a very hard concept to grasp for many horsemen/women and by far a difficult sell for many. It is met with a great deal of reservations. However, with a bit of "q & a" on my part, showing photos of damage, typically the skepticisim can be swayed. I have never, ever had a new client return a pad, or come back with dissappointments that a correctly sized pad doesn't work well for them.
My own journey on this topic has come from my personal pad use, listening to the needs of clients, and looking closely at originaly pads that came out of the Cederville, California area. *Also interesting to me: saddle-skirt leathers have changed over the years, but many of the riggin "widths" have stayed much the same. This seems to be the case whether riggins are full, 7/8, 3/4, 5/8, or center fire; most being today 28" to 29."
Knowing there are exceptions to every rule and keeping an open mind to new formats, certainly keeps topics alive for disscussion!
[When using a hard-pressed felt pad of any sort, some of my top-hand-clients who rope cattle large enough repeatedly share hair-rubbing off the withers when said said horse faces up. But, as of yet, I have not had anyone update me this is the case with a PWSP. Hmmm...]
A common question for me is: "Can, or will, you put wear-leathers on pulled wool saddle pads?" Short answer: "No." Besides sewing challenges, the underside at stitching will collect debris and run the risk of making your horse sore.
My conversation with the pad-skeptics goes something like this when I ask:
"Why do you suppose there are wear-leathers, Joe?"
"Well, to protect the horse at the latigo cinches!" says he.
"Good point!" I say. "Let me ask: Are there any puffs or welts anywhere along the latigos, especially lower at the cinch ring?"
"Well, no" Joe responds. "But..." and he trails verbally off with his thoughts!
No puffs or welts...there is the answer.
I know guys very pleased with "off the shelf, compressed felt pads" we all have seen. Some of those hard-riding hands will eventually cut the compressed/hardened material beneath latigo cinch-rub "out" in an upside down "U" shape from underneath wear-leathers to avoid making a horse sore, then go on and use the pad with no other coverage than the thin wear-leather.
So why not make pads appropriately sized to begin with? The HARD SELL to a new client on a pulled wool saddle pad is building the pad the width to/at the riggin rings. This also supports my personal rule: "Don't build anything I am not willing to repair." I'm not willing to repair damage that should have, or could have, been avoided. If a person truly wants an oversized pad, there are other makers out there willing to build a 32" wide pad...plenty of them.
Here's is what I've learned: With the exception of a real thin-skin-young horse: if there are no puffs along or around latigos, even lower or near the cinch rings, there likely won't be any puffs upper even at/near rigging rings either. This is a very hard concept to grasp for many horsemen/women and by far a difficult sell for many. It is met with a great deal of reservations. However, with a bit of "q & a" on my part, showing photos of damage, typically the skepticisim can be swayed. I have never, ever had a new client return a pad, or come back with dissappointments that a correctly sized pad doesn't work well for them.
My own journey on this topic has come from my personal pad use, listening to the needs of clients, and looking closely at originaly pads that came out of the Cederville, California area. *Also interesting to me: saddle-skirt leathers have changed over the years, but many of the riggin "widths" have stayed much the same. This seems to be the case whether riggins are full, 7/8, 3/4, 5/8, or center fire; most being today 28" to 29."
Knowing there are exceptions to every rule and keeping an open mind to new formats, certainly keeps topics alive for disscussion!
Classic example of an "off the shelf pad" 32" x 32" with excessive wear from latigo.
Every new client is asked to offer general measurements of saddle(s).
