The first improvised saddle for a horse appeared at the moment when a person first began to use this graceful animal for his own purposes. For example, in the time of Alexander the Great, the back of the horses was simply covered with the skin of animals, securing it with a rope through the chest of the animal. Over time, saddle technology has come a long way. This article will discuss how to make a saddle for a horse with your own hands to make it as comfortable and convenient as possible.
What you need to know before making?
Before you start making a saddle for a horse, you need to measure the animal, because the quality of the future product will depend on this. If you make the saddle too big, then it will constantly move off the horse and rub its sides, which will cause pain to the animal, and unnecessary inconvenience to the rider. And too small a saddle simply will not fit on the animal. Therefore, be careful when taking measurements, so that later you do not have to redo the entire structure.
Also, you shoulddecide on the type of saddle you will be making. There are quite a few varieties of products, each of which has a specific purpose. For example, English saddles are designed for sports, while cavalry saddles have a special design that allows you to ride for a long time.
If you decide to make a saddle for a horse, then first we recommend that you familiarize yourself with the main types of products and their purpose. This information will be presented in the following sections. Choose your saddle type wisely as it will determine how comfortable you feel while riding.
English
This product is also called sports product, because it is quite often used in professional horse racing or fox hunting. The design of the saddle is not designed for long rides, but it is very comfortable to sit in when the horse is moving into a canter gait.
The design features of the product are the absence of shelves and the presence of special pillows that put a lot of pressure on the horse's back by reducing the contact area. Such differences in design are strictly fundamental, as they allow the rider to develop fast speed.
A significant disadvantage of sport saddles for horses is that the cushions have to be constantly stuffed with new material. In addition, if you still decide to purchase a product in a store, then get ready to face a crooked tree -frequent marriage at the base of the saddle.
Shelf food
The most ancient product, which has in its design two curved parts, which are called shelves (hence the name). Now such a saddle is extremely rare, but its undeniable advantage lies in the ease of making it yourself.
Also shelf saddles have several varieties:
- cavalry;
- shepherds;
- women's;
- Cossack.
Also, hunting saddles for horses, which are a modification of shepherd designs, can also be added to this list. Each of these varieties allows the rider to be on the horse for quite a long time. Unlike English saddles, the shelf design distributes the load on the horse's back more evenly, making it very comfortable to ride.
Bag
What other types of horse saddles are there? Perhaps it's time to mention the pack product, which is considered one of the most comfortable in the world. The original design of such a saddle was a wooden frame with a rather thick cushion, which was stuffed with various soft materials (usually straw). Modern designs are quite similar to shelf ones, but they lack the upper part. Also included in the product are special support stands for side packs, which allow you to perform complex maneuvers on horseback. Many modern deviceshave several fasteners designed to secure the load. This type of saddle is one of the best, but it will be very difficult to make at home.
Building
Decided to make a saddle for a horse with your own hands? To begin with, it is strongly recommended that you familiarize yourself with the main components of such a design. Otherwise, you will not be able to understand the steps that will be described in the product manufacturing instructions.
Here are the main parts of the horse saddle that most modern varieties have:
- tree is the basis of any design;
- wing - a place for the rider's knee;
- girths - straps for fixation;
- bow - the front of the saddle;
- Stirrup - a place for the foot.
Understanding all the other parts shouldn't be much of a problem. The upholstery is used to make the saddle less susceptible to rain and soften the blows of the product on the horse's back, and the connecting straps make it possible to achieve a rigid fixation of the structure on the horse. Felt lining is designed to adjust the height of the product.
Self-made
Thought about how horse saddles are made? This work can hardly be called simple, since the master must follow not only the size of the horse, but also his own individual preferences. If you decide to start making such a design for the first time, then it would be best to start with a shelf saddle (Cossack orcavalry), since it will be much easier to make it with your own hands than English or pack. However, be prepared for the fact that you may need outside help. For example, if you do not have a welding machine at home or you do not know how to use it, you will have to turn to a professional so that the quality of the construction does not suffer as a result of inept work. The following sections provide a detailed description of each step in DIY saddle making.
Make a tree tree
As soon as you manage to take the dimensions for the saddle from the horse, you need to draw up a drawing of the future design and begin the manufacturing process. Of course, you should start with the basics - cutting out the shape for the tree. It is best to use for this purpose a full-fledged piece of wood that is easy to process (birch or pine). But it is best to immediately abandon the idea of \u200b\u200busing plywood, since this material cannot be bent into the desired position. In addition, repairing a wooden saddle will be quite simple - you just need to cut out a broken piece and glue it with a good glue. Feel free to test the quality of the construction by trying it on a horse a few times. The better the tree will sit at the initial stage, the less work will have to be done later.
Making live bait
It is best to make this element from rawhide, since this material provides comfort not only for the rider, but also for the horse. What is a living creature? It's a wide stripskin, which is fixed at the upper points of the anterior and posterior arcs of the tree. Width can be adjusted to individual rider preference and horse anatomy.
Also, eight holes must be drilled on each shelf of the tree, which will be used to weave a thin leather ribbon inside. However, for this, it is recommended to first soak the material in warm water so that it acquires good elasticity. After that, it remains only to make another sixteen holes in a wide strip and interlace all the details together in any way convenient for you.
Felt padded shelves
So that the shelves of the tree do not put much pressure on the stallion, it is necessary to line them with some soft material. It is best to use insole felt for this, which is used in the manufacture of shoes. Distinguishing high-quality material is quite simple - you need to rub a piece between your palms. If the hair starts to move under your fingers, then someone is trying to sell you a cheap fake that will not work for saddle padding.
Some riders prefer to make the felt removable by nailing it to the shelves, but for the first time it will be enough to use ordinary shoe glue, but in large quantities. Glue the felt in parts to achieve a secure fit. Remember that it is not the time of pressing the two surfaces together, but the force that plays the important role.
Girths and girths
Pristruga is a belt that is "tightly" attached tothe basis of the saddle and is used to fix the structure on the animal. A girth is a long piece of fabric or leather that wraps around the horse's chest. Whatever type of saddle you decide to make, there will always be two girths, but the number of girths can vary from four to eight. To adjust the height, it is recommended to use metal straps, which are available from a specialized store.
It is best to fasten the pruning directly to the tree, using small nails for this. You must ensure that the elements are arranged in such a way that during the use of the saddle the girths do not twist and do not cause discomfort to the horse. If there is no more good skin left in stock, then gel girths can be used. This option is wider, but also provides a secure fit of the saddle to the body of the horse.
Making sweatshirt
If you decide to make a saddle for a horse of the highest quality, then you simply cannot do without a sweatshirt, which prevents the live bait from rubbing against the back of the horse. You can make it using the same felt that is used to pad the saddle shelves. However, to ensure the best preservation of this material, it is recommended to sew a thin layer of calfskin onto the felt (a rather expensive option). As a leather substitute, ordinary tarpaulin or tarpaulin is suitable. To make the saddle shelves more securely attached to the saddle, special straps with straps are sewn to the cover.
It is best to sew a sweatshirt from two pieces of felt, and a patternproduce in such a way that the front piece of material "peeps out" a little from under the shelves (no more than three to five centimeters). On the sides, the sweatshirt should cover half of the horse's body, protecting the body from pressure with the buckles of the girths. Also, during fitting work, it is necessary to tighten the sweatshirt so that a small "house" is formed on top. This is to prevent the guard from sliding down when driving fast.
A few words in conclusion
The article provided recommendations on how to make a saddle for a horse (photos of products can be found in previous sections). In the video below, the master of his craft talks about how he made a Cossack saddle for horse riding with his own hands based on dragoon regiments. This information will be useful for both a beginner rider and a professional rider.
As you can see, making a quality saddle for a horse is quite difficult, but not impossible. A beginner rider is advised to study more information on this subject and learn from professionals. If you are constantly interested in the design of various types of saddles, and also not afraid to apply knowledge in practice, then you will certainly learn to create products that simply will not be equal over time. Buying a saddle in the store today is not a big problem, but no one guarantees that it will perfectly fit the figure of your stallion, unlike a saddle made by yourself, according to specific measurements.
