What kind of force would it take to break the tree of a saddle?

Question

So I was in the bathroom, and I come out, and two of my friends are sitting together in my jumping saddle on the back of the couch, and my other friend was shaking the couch violently and he was yelling "Ride that bull!" He then tipped the couch up, and everyone fell on the floor. Both boys that were riding the saddle, came crashing down on top of it.

While they thought it was hilarious, I was slightly upset because my saddle was squished all over the place from having to carry two riders and the cantel was pushed backwards, and they landed on it!!

I don't want to be a drama queen but I think from now on Im hiding the saddle before they come over!!

What kind of force would it take to compromise the tree? I was so worried they would break it. Could they?

Answer 1

It's possible that the tree was compromised, but the only way you'll know with any kind of certainty is to have a saddler drop the panels and check the tree. A flex test can often let you know if something might be amiss, but it can be misleading, too - I've heard creaks and pops from loose rivets or from the spring bars clicking against a dried seam of varnish. OTOH, I've flexed broken trees that didn't seem broken due to the location of the break (usually under the spring bars).



Most saddle trees, unless you're talking about polo saddles or Indian saddles (which often have trees made from a single piece of wood), are either injection molded or made from a laminate - often beechwood - and reinforced with spring steel bars (there are no saddle trees made solely of steel, brass. or any other metal). They can be very durable (especially Passier's wooden trees, which have a stitched-in joint at the pommel and are reinforced with bamboo - I've seen them survive being landed on). However, I've seen injection molded trees crack from being knocked off a saddle rack onto a concrete floor in the winter when they were really cold.



So if you have any concerns about the soundness of your tree, please have it checked.

Answer 2

It depends on the tree. I don t know where all the comments are coming from on brass or steel trees. Most good western saddle trees are made with wood covered with rawhide, fiberglass, kevlar, etc...



could you break the tree in situation you described? i cant imagine a good tree breaking that way. But again, it depends on how much you paid for the saddle and what kind of tree is in it. Of course, anything can happen, but odds are.... As earlier poster said, a good tree should be able to withstand the horse rolling over on the saddle.



if it is a low cost saddle and it is broke, it is probably not worth repairing. repairing a break in the tree can costs as much as $600 - 1200 depending on the saddle (i.e. is it full tooled, how much leather needs to be replace, skill and reputation of saddler you choose to fix your saddle). If the saddle cost $1500, $2500 or more you may find it is worth it.

Answer 3

I have no idea but I do have a story... I was trail riding with a few people and one of the girls is about 5'10 130lbs her and two others were racing she had a barrel saddle on her horse THAT DANG TREE SNAPPED!!!!!!!!!!!! Catapulted her into the ground off the left side of the horse knocking her out for 10 mins... we all thought she had broke her neck one of the scariest things I've ever seen! Since that day I REFUSE to buy a synthetic saddle will not do it will not NOPE! So as you can see from that story it just happened no added weight nothing bad it just broke.. we found pieces of that tree all over the place it was crazy never seen anything like it before. But I would hide my saddle if your friends don't care about your stuff then I would just hide it.

Answer 4

Most saddle trees can withstand a horse going over backwards, and landing ontop of it. Unless it was an exceptionally cheap saddle, it should be fine. Just give it a good check over, and if you think something is amiss, take it to a good saddler. They should be able to tell pretty easily if it's broken.



Chew them out, wave the threat of making them pay to replace it, and then hide it where they'll never find it without going on an all out search. But that would take a brain, which they won't acquire for another couple of years. (If at all)



Mine would take the impact of a train, or something similar to break. It's a brass tree. XD

Answer 5

It is possible but unlikely-- depending on the type of saddle, most trees can withstand up to 3000 PSI before breaking (the general rule of thumb is if your horse lands on it, get it checked). However, that's usually the numbers given by the lab under optimal conditions. Any amount of torque on the tree lessens the tensile strength and of course impact on a hard surface can lead to cracks.



Your saddle's probably fine but there's an easy test for a compromised tree. Have someone hold the cantle and the pommel in place and lean your weight on the seat. If you feel the seat give suddenly or hear squeaking as you adjust your weight, the tree might be compromised. Of course, always get the local saddlery to double check before you give up on it!

Answer 6

That kind of force could have easly broken the tree. Are you sure it wasn't broken? There are good reasons for storing a saddle on a saddle rack that is somewhat shaped like the saddle. I would have been more than a little upset to find "friends" abusing my property in such a way.

Answer 7

It depends what type of saddle tree it is. Most saddlers use steel ones, which are strong enough. I would recommend hiding your saddle, though. The cantle can be very easily damaged in some saddles. It seems hiding the saddle would not only help your saddle's safety, it might help your friends' too! Lol

Answer 8

Well, of course they thought it was hilarious. They didn't pay for the saddle! Maybe remind them you paid about $500 for it, and that they are welcome to break it AFTER they provide you with the cash.



The problem is that your couch isn't curved like a horse's back, while your saddle IS curved. I know of people who managed to break English saddle trees just by lunging a fractious colt. While trees aren't supposed to break easily, they can and do break if used in a way that isn't consistent with their design. The couch isn't a horse's back, and I highly doubt your friends were riding and using it correctly anyway.



Lucky friends. If they were my friends, they'd be in pain right now. :D

Answer 9

What you describe could have broken your tree. You can test it for twist yourself, if you know how, which it doesn't sound like you do, or take it to any saddle shop nearby and they will test it for you. Since you haven't done it before, I would take it to an expert to be checked. It has nothing to do with whether the saddle is cheap or expensive......the tree can only take so much stress that is not intended in its design.

I hope it's okay, but I won't be surprised if it isn't.

Answer 10

Stand directly in front of the saddle. Grab the pommel with one hand and the cantle with the other. Pull them towards each other. If they come towards each other at all (remember, though, the leather will "squish" when you put pressure on it, which isn't the same as the pommel and cantle coming closer together), then the tree's broken.



And in answer to your other question, yes, yes they would have easily broken the tree.

Answer 11

Unfortunatly, the only way to repair a broken tree is to completely rebuild the saddle. And that's not terribly cost effective. Best bet.... find a new one. I know how you feel. I had a 20yr old Crosby, totally flat, narrow twist, no knee/thigh rolls, and it was the greatest saddle I ever sat in. I loved it and was very disheartened when the tree cracked, but you know, everything eventually wears out.

Answer 12

hiya yes they definately could break it from doing that! i bet u were angry! there not cheap saddles! id make them pay for a new one! well u can probably have a check of it yourself if it was mine i would hold the saddle one hand on the front of the saddle the pomal and one on the back and just see if its soild or if it seems to wobble? to be honest if it was me i would definately take it to a saddler or a local horse shop that would sell saddles and know about them and have it looked at they should check it for u and i dont think they would charge just to look at it u see it might appear ok but an expert might be able to see damage that u or i probably wouldnt! you dont want to risk riding if its broken as it could cause all sorts of problems it would be uncomfy for the horse and could cause the horse to behave out of character to normal and maybe even cause damage to your horses back! saddles are pretty hard wearing but they will break easierly!so yeah id get it checked just to be safe! :)

Answer 13

on my western saddle the horse wearing the saddle reared over backwards into a trailer hitch the hitch hit the saddle and the tree didnt break the horse was fine 2

Answer 14

it would take a very heavy force to break the tree. but i would hide it from your friends next time, i would hate it if someone was doing that to my saddle. :S

Answer 15

If they keep doing that they could. Saddle trees are like big rocks eventually they can crack.