A word about saddlery and Poland:

Poland has always been a high technology country with a pride in craftsmanship. Copernicus was the first to work out that the earth and planets orbit the sun. Marie Curie-Sklodowska discovered radioactivity and Uranium. Virtually all Fiat cars are now made in Poland. The best gliders in the world are Polish or German. Boeing airliner wings are made in Poland. And, unfortunately the Polish cavalry became a laughing stock for charging a German Panzer division on horseback. But at least they did it on Polish saddles…….

The art of saddle-making in Poland has been kept alive due to the continuing use of cavalry for traditional and ceremonial purposes and the huge explosion of private horse ownership particularly since joining the EEC. At the beginning it was fashionable to import saddles from the West as a mark of prestige, and Stubbens, Pfiff and others started doing good business, and Pessoa was the must-have saddle. However, after a while the general consensus of opinion was that Polish saddles were better, more comfortable and with greater durability and we are now actually exporting saddles to the West. I have seen riding schools which have Polish saddles which are 15 or 20 years old and still in excellent condition.

The use of mounted police in Poland is growing as well, and our saddlery has the honour of being the chosen suppliers for most of the mounted police forces in Poland and we are in negotiation with other police forces abroad, which are currently evaluating our saddles. These gentlemen are riding VIKARO MAX saddles and our bridles of course.

Some things you may or may not know about leather.

Oak bark tanning creates the most durable leathers. Traditional tanning processes involve soaking the hides for up to two years in an oak bark based liquor. For the sake of economy today, most oak bark tanning takes about 6 months. A good leather should have substance (thickness) and should feel alive with tallow (fat that is scrubbed into the hide). The hide is treated with acid to remove the vegetable liquor left in the hide after tanning. The hides are then scrubbed and rubbed with oils from fish or animals (usually sheep fat). A good leather will live longer because it has more fat filling the pores of the hide to keep it supple. The beautiful smell that hits you as you enter a shop with lots of good leather products in it is often the scent of the fats, possibly even cod liver oil that has been rubbed into the leather to give it long life. If the smell is a strong chemical odour, the leather has either had dye rubbed into it to change the colour or the edge has been rubbed with dye, or the leather has been sprayed with a chemical to prevent mould while shipping by sea.

Saddle leathers vary considerably. The best saddles are made from supple premium hides of good substance (thickness). The seats of top quality saddles are usually pigskin which lasts a long time and gives a good grip. Most middle and lower priced saddles have printed leather seats that do not last as long. Many top riders prefer saddles that have supple leather that is a little thinner and therefore, gives more feeling to the rider and breaks in a lot faster. Leathers that have been printed or the surface grained for grip, last longer since the surface is a little harder (The pores  have been compressed by the printing process.) To make them a little softer, the printed leathers are usually made a little thinner, so this reduces the longevity of the leather. The smooth leather on the flaps shows scratches more easily than the grained leather. (Also, the fact that the leather has more grip, when grained, reduces the amount of slippage and therefore the amount of surface wear.) On good saddles with the full hide as a flap, the underside will look a little rough. This is because the hide has not been shaved to make it thinner. You are seeing the skin from the bottom, so there is a lot of texture. On a saddle with flaps that have been thinned by shaving or sanding, the hide will look very even on the underside. If the flap leather is thin and has the underside grain, then this is either a poor hide or the flap was cut from the wrong part of the hide, near the belly.  This flap will wear out faster than flaps made from the back of the cow's hide. A calf leather will also be thinner, but is not usually used for saddle flaps. Neck leather that is well tanned (allowed to wrinkle and shrink in the tanning process) and has good fat content, probably offers the best grip. Many saddle manufacturers offer shrunken neck leather for the seats and knee flaps on their top line saddles. The thickness and texture of good neck leather offers a very comfortable ride.

Vladimir Putin inspecting his Guard of Honour. Guess where they buy their saddles and bridles.

The main ingredients for the tanning liquors will vary from country to country and will have a profound affect on the qualities of the finished leather. The amount of calcium in the water will make a profound difference to the finished product. Areas like Walsall in England, or near the European Alps, where there is a high limestone (calcium) content in the water produce some of the strongest leathers in the world. That is why most of the English master saddle-makers tend to be around the Stafford Walsall and Birmingham area. Austria and Switzerland, as well as the French Alps tend to supply the best saddle-makers in Europe, and even renowned saddle-makers such as Henri de Rivel (Argentina) Pessoa (Argentina) and Bates (Australia) find it worth their while to obtain their leather from Austria and other European countries. Even in the UK, some of the best saddle-makers are importing Austrian and other European leathers. We also use Austrian and English leathers for our top of the range saddles.

In the south of Poland are the Tatra mountains, part of the mountain ranges which dissect Europe, with much the same geological properties as the Swiss, French German and Austrian Alps. Saddle-making and tanning has been a tradition in the area for hundreds of years, and the tanning process in Poland is identical to that in Germany, Austria and Switzerland, as well as England. The fact we are exporting saddles and other tack to Austria is definitely a case of coals to Newcastle. The iron curtain meant that, for many years, Polish saddle-makers served the discerning elite in what was a communist country, and rumours of saddle-makers being shot for making a poor saddle for a top party official’s wife, daughter or mistress are untrue. I think.

Below is a summary of some of the better know saddle- makers with a durability rating for each product. The higher the number, the more durable the saddle. Effectively this is the useful life of the saddle in years if used regularly. With leather items economy is usually with the best products. The cost per ride is often much lower than with the lower priced items, plus the usefulness is usually greatly enhanced.

GATSBY	made in India of water buffalo.	DR 3
STAFFORD	made in India of water buffalo	DR 3
STAFFORD SUPERIOR	made in India of water buffalo.	DR 4
STAFFORD PLUS	made in India of water buffalo leather. English tanning	DR 5
H.K. - HARMOHN KRAFT	made in India of water buffalo leather.	DR 4
SANTA CRUZ	made in Argentina.	DR 5
SANTA CRUZ - Premium	made in Argentina, European leather.	DR 6
HENRI de RIVEL ADVANTAGE Strap goods	made in India, buffalo leather.	DR 4
HENRI de RIVEL ADVANTAGE Saddles	made in Argentina, buffalo leather.	DR 4
HENRI de RIVEL PRO	made in Argentina, Austrian and other European leather.	DR 6
KINCADE	made in India of cow leather.	DR 5
COLLEGIATE - Strap goods	made in India, English leather	DR 7
COLLEGIATE	made in Argentina, European leather	DR 6
KREFFELD	made in India of German leather	DR 6
DELTA	made in India of English leather.	DR 6
DELTA II	made in India of English leather.	DR 7
PESSOA	made in Argentina, European leather.	DR 6 - 8
BIRMINGHAM II	made in Canada of English leather.	DR 7
BIRMINGHAM PLUS	made in Canada of a Best grade of English leather.	DR 8
BIRMINGHAM	made in England of English leather.	DR 7
BIRMINGHAM S.Q.	made in England of a school grade of English leather. (not as fine but more substantial)	DR 8
NORFOLK	made in Canada of USA leather.	DR 6
AMBASSADOR	made in England of a Best grade of English leather.	DR 8
BRITISH BRIDLE WORKS II	made in England of English leather.	DR 7
BRITISH BRIDLE WORKS	made in England of a Best grade of English leather.	DR 8
HARRY DABBS	made in England of a Best grade of English leather.	DR 8
HARRY DABBS PREMIER	made in England of a Premium grade of English leather.	DR 9
CONTINENTAL	made in England of a Best grade of English leather.	DR 8
CONTINENTAL II	made in Canada of a Best grade of English leather.	DR 8
CONTINENTAL SUPER	made in England of a Premium grade of English leather.	DR 9
LOVATT & RICKETTS	made in England of English leather.	DR 7
CROSBY - Sedgewick	made in India of fine Sedgewick English leather.	DR 8
JEFFRIES	made in England of English leather.	DR 6 - 8
BATES	made in Australia of Austrian or other European leather.	DR 8
CROSBY	made in England of English Austrian or other European leather.	DR 8 - 9
COURBETTE	made in Switzerland or Germany.	DR 8
STUBBEN	made in Switzerland.	DR 8

VIKARO made in Poland from local, Austrian and English leather NOT TESTED

All we can say is that we have a lot of satisfied users both in Poland and abroad, and the saddles are extremely durable and comfortable – they were designed for durability and comfort from the start. We are confident that we can compete with any saddlery on quality, attention to detail and particularly cost.

You will notice one major difference in most of our saddles.

The front kneepads extend much higher than most saddles. We believe this allows the saddle to mould itself to the rider more easily. Our stirrup attachment irons are also recessed further into the saddle than most other saddles for extra comfort.

Happy shopping. See our saddles