June 25, 2009 - Jim Taylor spent years working on ranches in Oregon and competing in equine competitions. The experience he gained working in the saddle as a cowboy gave him the knowledge to know what riders wanted and needed in a saddle.
“I started building and designing saddles in 1974,” Taylor recalled. “I first got into the retail end of selling saddles in Oregon, and then built a shop behind the store to repair old saddles. As time progressed, I started building and designing saddles myself, but didn’t sell them under my name until I moved to Texas in 1980.”
Taylor officially went into business designing and selling custom saddles under his name in 1990.
“The shop is now under the name of JWS Saddlery, LLC,” he said. “I still run the shop and do all of the design work. All saddles sold out of the shop are still under my name.”
Taylor primarily makes show-style saddles or working cow horse saddles at his shop in Greenville.
“In the past years, I have made the Pro Rodeo Cowboy Association (PRCA) Champion saddle, as well as the United States Team Roping Championships (USTRC) champion saddle,” he said. “I also build several trainer-endorsed saddles from world-known trainers in nearly all events in the equine industry.”
Jim Taylor’s custom saddles are priced from $2,250 to upwards of $11,000, and are sold all over the world.
“Our saddles are custom all the way from the tree of the saddle, to the design of the leather tooling and silver conchos,” said Taylor. “No saddle that I have made has been the exact same as another saddle. The style may be similar, but the measurements and dimensions are custom fit to the rider and the horse which the saddle will be used on.”
Taylor said, he has ridden horses nearly all of his life and knows what a rider is looking for or needs when designing their own custom saddle.
“Knowing how a saddle should fit and feel to the rider and the horse allows me to make a quality custom saddle,” he explained. “If a rider is having a problem with a saddle not fitting or being uncomfortable when riding, I usually know what the problem is simply by my time spent in the saddle.”
According to Taylor, his saddles are 100 percent handmade out of only quality, domestic materials.
“Every step in making a custom saddle is done by hand,” he said. “We do not use any machines to bend or press the leather on our saddles. We even hand tool all of our saddles.
“I have seven employees in the shop that help me put out about four to six saddles per week. We get orders from some of our distributors or from customers that have visited our website. We take our time and build one saddle at a time.”
Taylor said he also does saddle repair.
“We have several saddles come in to be repaired,” he said. “Most of the saddles I make are for riders that use them quite often. These saddles usually take a bit of abuse from constant riding and usual wear and tear. My customers usually bring the saddle back to me to be repaired so they can extend the useful life of the saddle.”
Taylor still rides and competes in several equestrian events when he has time.
“I keep my horse at Tate Ranch near my home in Rockwall,” he said “There I am able to ride and do a little bit of ranch work. I also enjoy watching my grand-daughter and daughter-in-law ride their horses as well.”
For more information about Jim Taylor Custom Saddles, visit www.JimTaylorSaddles.com .
