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Not as tight as the front, but definitely in contact with the belly. The wider the rear cinch, the tighter it can be. Make sure it’s attached to the front so it doesn’t slide into buck country.

I use the buckle on my roller cinch. Still plenty of friction.

They are saying now that your front and back cinches should be 50/50.


I told that to dad and he near fell out of his chair.

+1

Only on the pack saddles. grin

Who is saying that?

Various western saddle and horsie types.

I think there is good theory behind it.

The old hands of generations past knew how to saddle a horse properly.

I reckon they'd done it a time or two.

But I never heard of any of them tightening a back cinch like the front...

Jim, it sounds to me like a good way to restrict the horse's breathing.

I have to wonder if the same folks promoting two tight girth are bright enough to loosen a cinch when they water the animal and retighten after the horse is done drinking?

A lot of smart folks have been harnessing and saddling horses for at least a couple thousand years. Most of them only used one girth strap. I don't really understand why it would take two tight straps, all of a sudden to keep a saddle in place.

Perhaps if one is riding a whitherless wonder, or a horse which is so obese that it's back is round. The first is cured by a proper culling program, the latter by lots of riding.

All the Saddle talk, there was what my father called a Calvary saddle in an old shed here years back. It rotted away with the rest of the shed.

I guess it aint quite as tight.


Well, both cinches are snug, rather than the front cinch being tight. Supposedly to spread the load on the horse's back.

Agreed.

Lots of the old saddles didn't even have a back cinch. Nor a back cinch ring.


I've seen a few idiots and back cinch problems though....

If you get it too tight, I've seen a horse act like he was "flanked" out of the bucking chute..

If you get it too loose, and it's hanging below the horses' belly, in some instances, they can get a rear hoof through it for a massive wreck...

My experience is that you should be able to get your hand between the back cinch, and the horse's belly with just feeling both touch your hand.


Fat or witherless horses? Or a mule? Get a crupper.

You have any idea how much it would cost to feed him?

For sure.

Got a link or source for that Jim? New to me, and I’d like to read that.

Intuitively, I’d disagree.
One can safely and effectively saddle a horse with only the front cinch, but not with rear cinch alone. So I disagree with the 50/50. My understanding of the rear cinch’s purp ose is to keep the cantle from tipping up when something (bovine, tree, etc.) is dallied to the horn.

There have been times we’ve used double pack girths with 4 latigo (not billets). That’s snug and secure for a heavy saddle with the equipment we have attached.

i grew up being told to keep a back girth loose but after i started training young ones i began to wonder. some time in the 80's a clinician said that you should tighten the girth tight the first time you saddled up. if you use a back girth, tighten it also. i have tightened both ever since.

you dont always get to choose the horse you will be breaking. his build is what it is and you may not know what his job will be later on.

i think i have half a dozen saddles around here [ some pretty busted up] in an effort to fit as many as possible. most people have a saddle and it has to work..
if you are ever going to take that horse where he may have to do double duty as a rider and a packer it is a wise thing to have him used to a tight rear girth.

now i just tighten both cinches every time i ride. the animal is always used to it and the saddle stays put much better. it works for me.

We shouldn't be using stirrups either.

Horses were ridden for centuries and centuries without lol.

You might find that you like reservation tipi living.....

Well, that takes horses out of the equation completely then if we're being authentic.

I've found stirrups pretty useful.

Back cinches... not so much.

FWIW, my current saddle has a back cinch, and I use it. I just don't tighten it to match the front cinch.

You know full well that all indians ride big bays or sorrells.