Thursday, January 6, 2011

Updating My Tack

My darling family blessed me with this set at Christmas...

It's going to look good on the Black Horse...
It's big and loud...just like Spooks...LOL.

When we were in Vegas, I picked these up...
They were on sale for only $20 a pair...so why pass them up?

What I really plan on getting for competition is a full set of these...
These are the Iconoclast double slings that Sue Smith turned me onto. Luckily for me, they are sold right here in town, so I can pick a set up when I am ready for them.

The biggest update I plan on doing with my tack is switching to Tod Sloan 100% wool pads...
These babies are not cheap. Heck, even cheap pads are not cheap these days. But, Megan used my brother's Tod Sloan pad for the last couple of years and I just really like the way that pad sits down on a horse's back. And it has really held up. The other day, I told my brother I would probably have to replace his pad cause I felt bad we had used his new pad so much. He surprised me by telling me that he had had that pad for a couple of years and used it a lot himself. Now I am really impressed.

For the last few years I have been using ESP pads with the navajo tops and something that Sue Smith noted when we were discussing the difficulty I have been having finding a barrel saddle that fit Moon really made me start looking at other options. I was joking about having to run barrels in my roping saddle until I could afford to buy Moon a custom saddle and Sue mentioned that part of the problem may be that my ESP pad may be too thick and it was definitely too long.

Don't get me wrong. I still love my ESP pads and won't be dumping them, but I will definitely be getting a Tod Sloan pad for Moon to start with. I want the 3/4 inch pad. Because the wool felt is of such high quality on these pads, I won't need one that is as thick as most. It just may be that the Sharon Camarillo barrel saddle that I picked up last summer might fit Moon after all. It was just a little bit off when I tried it on him with his ESP pad. A lighter, more contoured pad might just be the ticket.

I better not say that too loudly around this house though...I was promised a new barrel saddle as my anniversary present and I am hoping to find the perfect one at the Denver Stock Show this month.

(I can blab about the saddle pad to you guys though because My Honey is going to be away from his computer this weekend and won't be reading the blog-LMAO-;-)

25 comments:

Paint Girl said...

Love the new bridle/breastcollar set! That is very nice!
I like those wool pads too. I was thinking of getting one for Chance, but the price! Oh goodness, won't be able to get one for awhile. Not like I need another pad, I already have around 16 saddle pads (and 3 horses? We won't go there!)

cdncowgirl said...

Love the new bling :)

I bought 2 Ed Wright wool pads (1 for Voodoo 1 for Applejack) and I really like them.
I had been mostly using neoprene backed pads because they are easier to keep clean. Then had fairly recently switched to Pro Choice pads because I didn't like what I was hearing about the neoprene pads holding too much heat.

cdncowgirl said...

Oh yeah... Denver Stock Show? I'm jealous!! That's the first place I thought of when I started thinking of where to find a cute little "Western" dog collar for Tucker lol
(a friend found one there a few years ago for her small dog)

Unknown said...

What is it about new tack eh? Those boots are fun! I love the felt/wool pads. My favorite is my sheepskin bottom one. Light but lovely.

Mikey said...

Lol, Wade says stuff like "Didn't you JUST buy a saddle?" "Now you need another one?" lol, men just don't get it!!
Love the new tack. I'd have scooped up those boots too, for $20!

ACountryCowgirl said...

So many fun and exciting things going on:) I can't wait to see y'all set up and runnin them barrels this spring:) It will be awesome to watch!!! Have fun shopping at the stock show, they are always so much fun but man can the money fly out the window:) To many cool things:) hee hee!!!!

Danielle Michelle said...

I love my wool pad - not sure which brand but it's awesome! I'm so jealous you are updating your tack! I haven't bought new tack in YEARS! It sucks.

I hope I make it to stock show, but Nate's possibly going to Pheonix to work at the end of the month and with both kids and worthless inlaws I probably won't make it. But I can hope...

I love the kitty you took in! He looks like my old cat sly who one day dissapeared. He was such a good cat! Sometimes the best cats find you!

Funder said...

Love love love real wool for saddle pads. I like my Toklat Woolbacks because they're machine washable! but I'd love a wool felt pad too - just too hard for me to keep clean.

That's a beautiful breastcollar too :)

SunnySD said...

So pretty! Definitely going to look sharp.

I'm hunting for a good pad for T and Rufus, and it'll be wool, although I need to go out with my tape measure. Rufus is so short-backed pads just don't conform right. Sunny's the same way, but I use a wool liner and Cashel pad on top with him. It's a bit long, but malleable enough not to bother. Fitting is such a joy - not, lol!

C-ingspots said...

Love your new tack! I bought a contoured all wool saddle pad about 6-7 years ago from Brad Cameron...the Montana mule trainer when he was in town. LOVE it!! I think I paid $150 for it, which to me was a lot...but, it was sooo worth it! It's the only pad I've used since then and it still looks almost brand new (except for the chew mark Ladde put in it-grr). Don't know how much the one you're looking at is, but the Cameron pads can be bought on line, and they're very, very well made. Worth every penny!! Oh, and I'm totally jealous of you going to the Denver stock show...how fun!!!

gtyyup said...

Aren't you gonna look spiffy!!! I'm going to take a look at those wool pads. Colt has a funny spot at the whither where his hair has a permanent wave to it...it's probably a pad issue.

Kristen said...

love the looks & sounds of that pad. I couldn't even tell you what type of pad I use, except that it has a navajo design, but that really doesn't tell me anything! lol

sara said...

We have 2 Tod Sloan pads and absolutely love them! We've had them for 6 & 7 years I believe and just now are getting to the point that they need to be replaced. We do alot of arena work and put many miles of rough trailrides each year so the pads are put to the test. Expensive yes but well worth the investment!

Sherry Sikstrom said...

Very nice headstall and breast collar! and the rest looks like worthwhile investments as well

BrownEyed Cowgirl said...

Investments...That's a good way of looking at them Fern.

I have to admit that buying saddle pads is one of my least favorite things to do. They are so extremely expensive these days and it really is hard to figure out which ones are really all that good.

I'm glad to hear that someone else has used the Tod Sloan pad and had just as good of luck with it Sara.

I did not know (but probably should have realized) that Ed Wright made a pad as well. Thanks Cdn. I'll look into those too. What kind of collar are you thinking of for Tucker? If I have an idea, I'll keep my eye open for you. ;-)

Leah Fry said...

Stylin' and profilin'

Anonymous said...

Where can I find a Tod Sloan pad? It looks like it might work well on my Casey. He's been hard to fit saddles to as he's high-withered. I've been thinking of getting a cutback saddle pad, but maybe the Tod Sloan is the way to go?

cdncowgirl said...

Ed has a 3/4 wool pad and a 1" pad for $120 & $130 each, which is less than we pay here for the Pro Choice pads (at between $175 and $200) Ed suggests having seperate pads for each horse as they conform to the horse after about 10 rides. (I have few enough horses that everyone has their own pad anyway)

Here's the link to Ed's tack for sale page: http://www.edandmartha.com/bitsnew2.htm

Collar, well I'd really like something "Westerny" so I'm thinking leather with little conchos of some sort. NOT hearts lol (which is what my friend's dog Crash's collar has but it suits her) I'm thinking regular round conchos or cross ones. If you see something and they have a website I could order from send me a message :)
Pie would hate to turn me lose somewhere like that, he saw how much damage I did in less than an hour at Frontier last month lmao

BrownEyed Cowgirl said...

Thx Cdn! And I agree with the individual pads. My guys have to kind of earn their 'own' pad though-LOL. My pocket book cannot handle outfitting the whole crew. The only thing I have done for a long time is make sure I have enough cinches for each horse. I do not like sharing cinches-particularly in the summer. Besides the bacteria factor, I'm pretty sure getting cinched up with someone else's sweaty, wet cinch can't feel all that great.

OS-I found them in the Smith Brother's catalog. SB also has an online catalog...

http://www.smithbrothers.com

Smith Brothers also has a 100% wool pad that I thought about ordering to try. They are about 1/2 the cost of the Tod Sloan and I believe they make quality items. Maybe won't last as long as the TS, but it depends on how much you ride.

I hear 5 Star also makes a very nice wool pad that is guaranteed for 2000 hours.

Unknown said...

Love the new gear!

And yay for you for going with the white wraps! They look really classy on almost any horse.

cdncowgirl said...

Meant to ask, those Pro Equine boots, are they pretty similar to the Professional Choice SMBs?

BrownEyed Cowgirl said...

Yes, I believe so Cdn.

Mostly I just picked them up because they were cute...and 'on sale'. I figured at that price, it was worth checking them out.

Anonymous said...

Thanks! I will check them out! I haven't rode my boy, yet, for a variety of reasons. And I haven't rode Molly because the tack that came with her doesn't seem to fit!

Any recommendations on saddle brand/type for a high withered Quarter Horse?

~The South Dakota Cowgirl~ said...

I love my Iconoclast boots! I have 3 pairs! They're just awesome and really help my horses!

I have ridden w/a Tod Slone pad a couple times, but my favorite pads are CSI pads. We love them so much we became dealers. They really stay put and free up our horses through the shoulders. I've had no back or loin problems since I started using them. I hope that the Tod Slone does that for your horses! :-)

Yay for new tack!

Anonymous said...

I love your new breast collar and bridle. Tia was no longer fitting her saddle.. wither has somehow grown too high. I traded my circle y and got a new one. ohh so comfortable and accomadates that high wither. Saddle color is walnut which appears you have here.. will have to check out your website that you purchased from.. bunches of hugs to you
Angie