How to Make a Loop Seat on a Saddle

The loop seat saddle first became popular in the early 1900s when it was discovered that this style made cleaning the saddle stirrups easy and efficient because the stirrups become visible through a void in the saddle seat. This style also eliminated the need to glue the stirrups to the underside of the saddle because glue easily lost its bond when the saddle became damp from rain exposure or if a horse rode through a body of water. Older loop saddles are still around because the design makes the saddle so easy to maintain.

Things You'll Need

  • Saddle seat
  • Saddle tree
  • Stirrup leather
  • Sewing awl
  • Saddle oil
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Instructions

    • 1

      Stretch the saddle seat over the saddle tree. Measure and mark front to back on your seat where cuts are to be made, ensuring that the saddle tree will not be left exposed by any cuts. The measured area to be cut should be just longer than the width of the stirrup leather you are using.

    • 2

      Take a sewing awl and use it to carefully cut along the lines that you marked on your saddle seat in Step 1. Remove the saddle seat from the saddle tree.

    • 3

      Flip the saddle seat upside down. Thread the stirrup leather from the underside of the saddle seat up through the first cut that was made and back down through the second cut. Flip the saddle seat face up so the stirrup leather is visible through the window created by the cuts in the seat.

    • 4

      Stretch the saddle seat back over the saddle tree and oil the finished loop seat.