I recieved my Grimsley saddle, and it is a fantastic fit on Norm. I'm sitting around waiting to put it to use however, because the girth and surcingle are regulation lenght, and too short for Norms barrel, so I'm waiting to recive longer ones from the saddler.

I was amazed as to how stable it is on Norms back - I had it on him this afternoon, and without being girthed, I was able to put my upper body weight square into a stirrup, and it didn't rock or move on his back. Placing that much weight into the stirrup on one side also did not discomfort NOrm in the least.

For those of you unfamiliar with this style of saddle, it is a spoon suspension seat, used by the US Dragoons from the late 1830's to 1858, and by the US artillery well into the 1870's (The Arlington Cemetary caisson team uses these saddles to this day). It is essentially a Hungarian hussars saddle, with little modification, and I find it interesting that it is similar in some ways to Medieval saddles, with the rider not having direct contact with the horses back (not to mention the high pommel and cantle, although of course narrower, especially the cantle).

It seems to be a very comfortable design for both horse and rider - the Maclellen would in my estimation seem to have the primary virtue of being much cheaper to make, and possibly be longer-wearing.

Has anybody had any riding experience in this model, or in copies of the European versions prevelant in the early 19th century? Best yet, has anybody had experience in riding both in one of these, and say a copy of the Henry V or Madrid saddle? It would be an interesting comparison I think.

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No doubt it is similar - it is in essence a Hungarian saddle (much more so than the Maclellen). I haven't taken any good photos of mine, and I won't be taking the seat off to see the suspension, but here is a couple of shots on the net of the type.

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I got an overlarge Aussie girth to jury rig on the saddle this morning, and so I got a short ride in it. It is very comfortable, and it seems to e comfortable for the horse.

Here is a shot of an original that just sold on e-bay

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=280057972820&indexURL=0&photoDisplayType=2#ebayphotohosting

[ 02-18-2007: Message edited by: chef de chambre ]

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Interested to hear more feedback when you have ridden in it some more.

[ 02-17-2007: Message edited by: Rod Walker ]

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Cheers

They are not cheap though, that is $1200 USD worth of saddle. If you contact Doug Kidd, at Border State Leatherworks http://www.borderstates.com/
If you have a picture or diagram of a British Hussars saddle, he can make it specifically, instead of makeing a Grimsley.

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Does this mean you are going to be doing more ACW cavalry work???

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Cheers

I'm in an ACW artillery unit, the 5th Mass Battery (E). Norm and I are going to carry a guidon, since his 17hh self is too out of scale to fit in the traces with the 14.3-15hh Morgans the battery has in the traces.

They are really too-short for the job, and we have a few photos of the specific battery mounted as a unit. The owner of them would argue with me, thinking them perfect for the job, but the historical evidence is contrsry to the belief - both photographic, and documentary. The 5th's commander was a particular friend of the remount officer for his corps of the Army of the Potomac, and both when the battery was initially mounted, and after the Peninsular campain, and even as late as Gettysburg, they were given their pick of remounts, refusing many lots the captain considered unsuitanble. It was commented on by several higher powers that the 5th Mass battery was the best-mounted battery in the entire AoP, and we also have commentary from Philips and other officers that the officers in particular tended to be mounted on *tall* horses. When you see the photo in the battery history of the battery manouvering mounted in training, agaisnt the known average of height of men in the battery, it looks to my eye that average horse size was 15.2-15.3 hh, with a couple of horses in the 18-16.3hh range.

The long and the shor of it is that of 7 horses currently used by the reconstructed battery, 4 are too-short, and one is too tall (mine)

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Cheers

I just got my hands on one of the most unusual saddles I have ever seen. I'll have to post some pictures to see if anyone has any idea what they think it might be, LOL.

It was described as an "Arabian show saddle" but it's nothing of the sort. One of my friends suggested that it is similar to the German cavalry saddles but I can't find a picture of one from any period to make a definitive decision about.

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Rod, I'll post a picture once I get the breast strap and crupper to complete the rig (and get the proper girth and circingle of course), I reckon I'll have it all together by this Spring.

I find the suspension seat interesting - of course it was used for nearly a Millenium, when you look at early Eastern European saddles, and it passed out of fashion in the modern discipline of riding.

The modern riding discipline demanding the closest contact possible with the horse through the seat ha made saddle fitting problematic. I am of the opinion that a modern dressage or English saddle would be awful hard on a mount over an 8+ hour day (and wearing on the rider), but a rig like this would be easier on horse and rider over a long working day, or weeks of working days.

Basically,I think the saddle as a day-in, day-out all day long tool in use has a different set of paramaters for success than a saddle designed to be used for a few hours at a time, for a few days a week. I really think the Grimsley has more in common with a Medieval saddle than it does with any modern saddle I can think of.

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The Grimsley is a VERY comfortable saddle for both man and horse in my experience. I've put several months at a time in on mine, day in and day out, full 8+ hours a day in the saddle, and although a time or two I was sore, my horse never was. That's a tribute to a good saddle indeed.

When the later McClellan was in the process of being tested, the board was definitely of two minds in regards to adoption or not, as a minority was strongly in favour of just staying with the Grimsley that had served the US Mounted Services well for the past decade. In fact many of the pattern were privately purchased by officers during the Mexican War (1846-48) and the US Army, as I recall, purchased a large number prior to actual adoption for that war as well.

Thornton Grimsley, of St. Louis, MO had been making saddles for the US Dragoons since 1833, and was pretty well thought of. His original "Dragoon Saddle" of 1833 was basically a Mexican-style saddle with Eastern-style mounts on it (forward mounted stirrups, brass rather than wooden stirrups, leather skirts, buckle-and-girth style rigging rather than the Mexican cincha rig, etc.). The 1847 Grimsley was in fact built much like a Mexican saddle with the rawhide-covered tree, but it looked like, and was rigged like, a Hussar's saddle (and of course had the rawhide slung seat). The rawhide covered tree allows for the wood to expand and contract with the weather conditions without any loss of strength, thus there wasn't the need for all of the iron-mongery that other saddles such as the 1844 Ringgold saddle, or the various European Hussar saddles in use. Thus it could be slightly lighter for the same (if not greater) strength. In fact the later McClellan is nothing more than a slight modification of the Grimsley tree, with a lower pommel and cantle, no slung seat, and a sort-of Mexican-style rigging on it. If you look at the very earliest of the Mac's, it's not difficult to see the lineage.

Anyway, good for you that you've gotten yourself a nice Grimsley, Chef! Mine has been a joy for many years, and I'm lucky enough to have had two of my horses fit it well. I look forward to many more years of service with it, when I do ACW events (I did one in June, my first in several years. Nice to swap centuries for a while!) Besides, they just look SOOO cool!

Say hi to Doug next time you talk with him!

Cheers!

Gordon

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