Help! Saddle maintenance ?

[NWFBowhunter]

What does everyone do year to year to make sure saddle is safe?

 

[MattMan81]

Look at it. No pulled threads, or damage. Check manufacturer suggestions.

 

[SNIPERBBB]

Hide it from kids and pets

 

[Fl Canopy Stalker]

What does everyone do year to year to make sure saddle is safe?

Visually inspect your bridge for frays or signs of overheating at the friction hitch. Look over the main chassis webbing and make sure it’s not knicked cut or fraying. And visually inspect the stitches. Look for loose stitching, broken or even pulled stitching especially on the over lap areas and lineman’s loops. If you have waist buckles or leg buckles be sure they snap in and release properly. Do a good firm hand to hand tug and check the saddle body for signs of excessive wear. Inspect you tether and lineman’s ropes the same way you did your bridge. If you’re familiar with friction hitches, I suggest untying them or at least feeding enough slack to inspect the underside of the hitch cord for signs of heat damage or excessive wear. Pull everything back tight, check the stopper knots on your ropes and look the ropes over for flat spots (sign of damaged core in kermantle designed ropes). If all that looks good, you’re good to go. Keep your saddle out of direct sunlight when you’re not hunting. And always hang it up to dry inside in front of a good box fan to be sure it dries out completely after getting it wet or sweaty. If you do this your rig should last you a long long time

 

[NWFBowhunter]

Visually inspect your bridge for frays or signs of overheating at the friction hitch. Look over the main chassis webbing and make sure it’s not knicked cut or fraying. And visually inspect the stitches. Look for loose stitching, broken or even pulled stitching especially on the over lap areas and lineman’s loops. If you have waist buckles or leg buckles be sure they snap in and release properly. Do a good firm hand to hand tug and check the saddle body for signs of excessive wear. Inspect you tether and lineman’s ropes the same way you did your bridge. If you’re familiar with friction hitches, I suggest untying them or at least feeding enough slack to inspect the underside of the hitch cord for signs of heat damage or excessive wear. Pull everything back tight, check the stopper knots on your ropes and look the ropes over for flat spots (sign of damaged core in kermantle designed ropes). If all that looks good, you’re good to go. Keep your saddle out of direct sunlight when you’re not hunting. And always hang it up to dry inside in front of a good box fan to be sure it dries out completely after getting it wet or sweaty. If you do this your rig should last you a long long time

Thanks for the information… under normal hunting conditions what is your life span of the bridge…

 

[Fl Canopy Stalker]

Thanks for the information… under normal hunting conditions what is your life span of the bridge…

Ideally the life span of the saddle… of course it depends on how often you adjust it and if you adjust it under load or if you take your load off it (friction wears the rope out faster). It also depends on what material your bridge is made out of. Technora rope like oplux loses strength much faster in sunlight than a polyester rope bridge or an amsteel bridge. If you have a webbing bridge inspect it the same way you inspect the webbing chassis of your saddle paying close attention to overlaps and if it’s girth hitched check where the webbing rubs itself.

on one of my saddles, I have an amsteel bridge that is about to see its 4th season. In my saddle that I use the most and at demos, I’ve changed the bridge twice in 3 seasons. I have an old predator bridge on a saddle that has lasted for a long long time but it’s also a fixed position bridge.

 

[tailgunner]

Yea..... my dude said it.

 

[bfriendly]

Yea..... my dude said it.

Yep! great question AND answer!

 

[NWFBowhunter]

So good… I didn’t have another guestion! Thanks Fl Canopy Stalker… AT is great source!