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Cable Rigging

In the year 2000, the idea of using cable rigging in our saddles seemed pretty radical to us. Bob Wattus, our saddle treemaker was very keen following his contact with Mark Howes, and kept bugging (sorry) encouraging us to give it a try! The idea certainly had appeal. Could it help us solve the problem of positioning the fixed rigging dees especially for horses with girth galling problems?

We “tested the water” for a time, encouraging our customers to give us feedback on the cable, and the response was very positive. We have made some modifications over the years, finding that the cable protected with a good coating of PVC is ideal for our stock saddles which mostly receive a fairly tough workout. Having made over 1200 saddles since the introduction of cable rigging we are 100% sold on the innovation. More than 9 out of 10 of Kent Saddlery’s personal saddle buyers now choose cable rigging and we have many testimonials from satisfied customers giving the cable rigging a big wrap.

Our association with Bob and Robyn Wattus and their team of workers at Maclean, North NSW goes back to the late 90’s. The Cable rigging, along with the carbon composite tree, are all evidence of Bob’s desire to keep up with the latest developments in tree making. We appreciate his interest, enthusiasm and skill in manufacturing the saddle trees which are the foundation of our custom made saddles.

 
Left to Right: Stan, Geoff, Bob with Ashley & Robin
 
Bob Wattus Saddle Trees

Bob and Robyn Wattus continue to be the sole supplier of saddle trees for Kent Saddlery.

Bob and Robyn have been operating their saddle tree making business for sixteen years, and during that time have kept up with the latest developments in technology, and saddle tree materials. During research into saddle fit, Bob learned about the concept of Cable Rigging, and when he visited the USA, he met with saddle maker, Mark Howes, who uses Cable Rigging in his saddles.

Mark has the patent on Cable Rigging, click here for the story about “Double H Cable Rigging."

Bob introduced us to the use of cable rigging, the benefits of which are two fold. Cable Rigging has revolutionised saddle comfort for both horse and rider, and for details of cable rigging, go to the Kent Saddlery website.

Bob and Robyn live at Maclean in Northern NSW, and their team members, Geoff Ellis and Stan Cormick, assist in producing custom made saddle trees for Kent Saddles, according to the specifications and detailed information given to us by our customers. The saddle trees in Kent Saddles are made from carbon composite, reinforced with carbon fibre. Engineering, marine and aviation industries use this material extensively (in yacht keels etc), guaranteeing incredible, lightweight strength.

Kent Saddlery appreciates our friendship with Bob and Robyn and their team, and the assurance that they are making saddle trees with skill and expertise. We’re in agreement that if tree is right, the saddle will be right.