What are all the parts of a western saddle?
Western Horse Saddle: Its Parts and How Long One Should Last
- Western horse saddles have many parts, including their tree, horn, stirrups, and cinch.
- The top of a Western horse saddle consists of the underlying tree, the pommel, seat, cantle, and skirt.
What is the tree on a western saddle?
The modern western saddle begins with a “tree” that defines the shape of the bars, the seat, the swells, horn, and cantle. Traditional trees are made of wood covered with rawhide, coated with varnish or a similar modern synthetic coating. In some cases, the core of the horn may be of metal.
What’s a tree on a saddle?
The tree of a saddle is the firm, inner part that gives the saddle its stability and main shape. This frame is usually made of plastic or wood and comes in different sizes to accommodate the differing shapes of horses’ backs. English saddles have varying tree widths, so what fits one horse might not fit another.
What is the skirt on a Western saddle?
The skirt of the western saddle is the leather or other material attached around the seat of the saddle. The skirt gives the western saddle its signature rectangular look. This helps to distribute weight across the horse’s back as well as keep the saddle in place.
What is a saddle tree made of?
wood
Traditionally, the tree of an English saddle is built of laminated layers of high quality wood reinforced with spring steel along its length, with a riveted gullet plate. These trees are semi-adjustable and are considered “spring trees”.
What is the twist in a western saddle?
The twist of the seat refers to the how close the tree bars are built at the narrowest part below the rider’s seat. Those looking for a “narrow twist” are referring to a narrower seat. When the tree bars are positioned wider apart, the seat has a “broad” or “wide” twist.
What is the tree of a saddle made of?
What type of wood are saddle trees made of?
All quality saddle trees are made out of wood… usually a type of pine wood, but many of the high end custom tree makers have their preferred types of wood for different parts of the tree.
What are the names of saddle parts?
TREE. The beginning of each saddle starts with the tree.
What is the Cantle on a Western saddle?
Function of the Cantle The cantle is the back part of the seat of the saddle. Its purpose is to help hold the rider in the seat, provide additional comfort and support for the rider. The cantle also anchors the bars of the saddle tree in place inside the saddle, which helps maintain the integrity of the saddle.
What are the parts of a western saddle tree?
Parts of a western saddle tree include the fork, the cantle, two bars that join them both, and the horn erected over the fork. The two bars are the foundation for the saddle seat and run along the horse’s spine. They distribute pressure over a more extensive area because weight concentration is painful for your horse – you don’t want that.
What is the horn on a western saddle?
Every western saddle has a horn, making it one of the key ways to distinguish western saddles from English ones. The horn is at the front of the saddle and sits on top of the swell, also known as the pommel or fork. The horn serves a few purposes, including stabilizing the rider when getting on or off the horse.
How to tell a western saddle from English saddles?
When the saddle sits on the horse, there should be a tunnel that forms beneath the swell and the height of the gullet above the withers should be somewhere around the width of 2 to 4 fingers. ( source) Every western saddle has a horn, making it one of the key ways to distinguish western saddles from English ones.
What is the fork on a saddle called?
The fork aka swell aka pommel is a protrusion/bump on the saddle’s front side just below the horn. Its structure resembles a bridge; the body itself is called a fork, and the underside (a void) is called the ‘gullet’.