A TREE WITH NO LEAVESIt
has been said that to be born in a stable does not automatically make
you a horse. It could similarly be said that to be a tree does not
automatically mean that you are covered in leaves. The tree with which
we are all concerned is of course the framework upon which a saddle
will be built. I have displayed with this article a picture of a modern
laminated beechwood tree and a second picture of a similar tree, which
has been prepared for the leatherwork to be built upon it.Traditionally
trees have been made from wood and the trees displayed are made from
laminated beechwood. The older pattern tree was shaped by hand from
beechwood and was of necessity heavy in order to have sufficient
strength. Moreover, it was a highly skilled and time consuming process.
However for many years trees have been made from laminated beechwood,
or plywood in other words. The pre-formed front arch is reinforced with
a steel gullet plate on the underside and a head plate on top. These
are riveted together, sandwiching the wooden arch to form a structure
of great strength. It is the width of this arch that must be made to
fit the horse that the saddle is intended for, varying from narrow to
extra, extra wide. The cantle is also reinforced with a metal strip on
its underside and all modern trees are sprung by fitting two sections
of sprung steel laid along the frame from head to cantle. Quite apart
from the benefit of strengthening the tree they allow some resilience,
which improves the comfort of both horse and rider. The stirrup bars
are then riveted to the front of the tree. In order to prevent damp
affecting the wooden part of the tree, it is covered with a muslin
scrim to which a glue-based waterproofing liquid is applied, although
at least one of the English tree makers has dispensed with the scrim
element of this waterproofing process. That completes the tree making
process and the saddler can now commence to build a saddle upon it.For
the past three years at the British Equestrian Trade Association's
exhibition which is held annually at the National Exhibition Centre,
the Society of Master Saddlers has organised a saddle making
competition where a number of saddlers actually make a saddle by hand
over a three day period, and it is possible to witness the entire
process. You will see from the second photograph displayed with this
article that this tree has been prepared by our own saddler to receive
the leatherwork and this is the first process that the saddler will now
undertake. It can be seen from the picture that the points of the tree,
which are the projections of the pommel below the stirrup bars, have
been fitted with flexible point endings made from leather which will be
more comfortable for the horse if the tree happens to be slightly too
narrow. The steel springs have also been covered in leather to prevent
any risk of them cutting into the panel and to save any risk of rust.
Two nylon webs 2" wide, previously canvas, are strained from pommel to
cantle which will put the tree under tension, facilitated by the
springs which will obviate any chance of the seat sagging because it
will be constantly under tension. The web to which the stirrup leathers
will be stitched are fixed over the waist of the tree. The base upon
which the seat is built is formed by a piece of tightly stretched
strong canvas, fixed around the frame of the tree, which means in
effect that the base of the seat is composed of the girth strap webs
stitched to the canvas, supported by the web stretched from pommel to
cantle. To shape and add width to the seat and to save the rider from
feeling the hard edges of the tree leather, bellies are fitted each
side of the tree and these can clearly be identified in the picture
displayed with this article. This
then is the hand-made process whereby the tree is prepared to receive
the leatherwork. Great skill is required when straining the two webs
fixed from pommel to cantle since any inequality will result in the
tree being pulled out of alignment. This highly skilled process has
remained the same for very many years; the only difference being that
staples are now used instead of nails, the seat is now formed using
latex foam whereas it was previously serge and flock, latex
incidentally being far more comfortable. The
vast majority of English saddlers use the above method, whereas nearly
all saddles made abroad use plastic trees where the above process is
unnecessary. In my opinion English made saddles are still the best in
the world and are certainly better value for money than anything
imported, especially those made elsewhere in Europe. Most importantly
English saddlers will make saddles to a detailed specification
incorporating variations to width of tree, type and colour of leather,
dropped panels and deeper gussets for high withered types and different
girthing arrangements for cobs, longer flaps for long-legged riders
etc. All at little or no extra charge, whereas imported saddles come as
standard and no such modifications are available.Hopefully
readers will find the above information of interest, especially because
the days of the wooden tree are limited and the day will come when only
plastic trees will be available.
