Advice please - calfskin leathers vs well-worn rawhide leather for new cc saddle...

kerilli

kerilli

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I have my first ever cc saddle, a delectable Barnsby Xtreem with snazzy show-offy blue seat, love it!
The saddler recommended calfskin leathers to protect the leather of the flaps, but I don't have any, my usual xc leathers are all rawhide. They are years old (as in, probably 15 or more) so are now stretched and dark and shiny, not orange and hairy as they are when new. (of course the huge advantage of rawhide is that they never snap, just stretch, and i'm very fussy about swapping them around and checking they are absolutely even...)

does anyone know whether these will be okay? the saddler thought so, but on fb a few people have said the leathers must be calfskin on a cc saddle.
any advice much appreciated please. don't want to risk damaging it. will prob email Barnsby tomorrow if i'm still dithering. thankyou!
 
I would go calf skin leathers but make sure they have nylon up the middle so that there is a little "insurance" for want of a better word if leather were to get damaged or anything give mid round
 
It depends on how much you care about wear on your flaps. :) I'd say the hide ones (not real buffalo, apparently :)) will definitely mark the saddle. Some of the modern leather is surprisingly fragile relative to older stuff.
 
The leather of my daughters CC saddle is beautifully soft and I wouldn't let her use rawhide leathers on it at all (it was a bday pressie to her, so I told her I have a say in it!) Whereas my grandaughter has a much older saddle and rawhide doesn't leave the slightest mark on it. I'm not sure if the beautifully soft leather we have now is actually any good?

Anyway getting to the end of my point a friend used these she had one pair where the "calf skin" (which was paper thin on them) wore off after 7 uses, not even jumping and then just the nylon was on display - she was told they were a dodgy batch so was sent some new ones and exactly the same thing happened after about 10 rides so she gave up with those!
 
icestationzebra said:
Which saddler did you go with in the end K? PM me if you would rather. I'm a big Barnsby fan and I'm sure you will love your new saddle :)
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Barnsby recommended 1 of their top guys, Greg Walters, who has moved up to Lincoln area from down south. He was absolutely excellent, has a fantastic eye for horse's backs and movement, took loads of time on both visits, also happily checked fittings of all my other saddles on the horses. Very very highly recommended. He's a rider too, and really really knows his stuff. :) :) :) :) :) :) :)
 
Just to get technical, close contact is about the thickness of panel (the flock or foam) and fit for the horse rather than the flap. It sounds like the saddle is a monoflap, and may therefore be doubled calf leather - it is THAT that needs a soft stirrup leather and not the fact it is close contact :)
 
sbloom said:
Just to get technical, close contact is about the thickness of panel (the flock or foam) and fit for the horse rather than the flap. It sounds like the saddle is a monoflap, and may therefore be doubled calf leather - it is THAT that needs a soft stirrup leather and not the fact it is close contact :)
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ah, yes, you're right... it's monoflap, which is new for me. Thanks. Why calf leather, out of interest, anyone, please?
 
On the saddle? It is fine and soft, and is often used for seats on regular saddles. It is not thick enough to be used alone of course so is doubled, or wrapped around another leather. Personally I'd rather have butt leather, the regular single thickness flap, but that's not really possible for a mono-flap. The issue is that the calf leather is ultimately less hard wearing. So ensure you use the right cleaning product - anything oil based can cause the two layers to delaminate. I had a Prestige jump saddle (Paris D) which I used only the Prestige conditioner for.
 
Kerry, my saddle is calf skin and my saddler recommemded the effax soap and conditioner. Ive found it great on my calfskin saddle.
 
I would go to the maker of the saddle and ask them - their warranty will only cover the leather if you use an approved product and much as I love Effax Lederbalsam I'd not use it on doubled calf leather.
 
sbloom said:
I would go to the maker of the saddle and ask them - their warranty will only cover the leather if you use an approved product and much as I love Effax Lederbalsam I'd not use it on doubled calf leather.
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I know this is true for Passier products, or at least it used to be. You always got a pot of their cream with a new saddle and, as mentioned above, it does last forever.
 
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