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Really proud...wanted to share.

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Lawn Ranger
Lawn Ranger Posts: 5,467
edited November -1 in Off Topic
After 10 or so years in the works, an incredible book has finally been published detailing the life and work of my Grandfather. He and my Dad were saddle makers in Matador, Texas. It's 529 hard-covered pages of family history, photos, order books, catalogs and reminicences of 35 years worth of customers.

Probably not of much importance to most, but it is incredible for us.

Mike

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  • Rusty Rooster
    Rusty Rooster Posts: 1,239
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    That is really cool Mike. I would be proud too. Congrats.
    Tom
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  • Photo Egg
    Photo Egg Posts: 12,110
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    Hi Mike,
    That is way cool. What a family keep sake.
    Darian
    Thank you,
    Darian

    Galveston Texas
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  • Spring Hen
    Spring Hen Posts: 1,578
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    Very nice, Mike. I can see where your talent comes from. Who knows, maybe one day there will be a book about Big Green Egg handles and the great guy that made them.

    Love ya.
    Judy
    Covington, Louisiana USA
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  • mollyshark
    mollyshark Posts: 1,519
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    Gee..my dad's family memoirs are mostly on posters in the post office.

    Neat Mike. Very neat.
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  • Car Wash Mike
    Car Wash Mike Posts: 11,244
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    Mike that is so nice. You are a very happy and proud man.

    Mike
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  • Rolling Egg
    Rolling Egg Posts: 1,995
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    That is a very nice piece of work. I would be proud as well!!! From the pics you showed, looks like he was a very talented gentleman.
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  • Lawn Ranger
    Lawn Ranger Posts: 5,467
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    You have no idea!
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  • fishlessman
    fishlessman Posts: 32,758
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    thats really nice, all i have from my grandfather is his shot glasses and a name plate from a boiler he built back in the 50's :laugh: im sure ill be able to pass the shotglasses down to the next generation. :laugh: you have a treasure there
    fukahwee maine

    you can lead a fish to water but you can not make him drink it
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  • Spring Chicken
    Spring Chicken Posts: 10,255
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    WOW Mike. That's gotta make you proud.

    Just looking at the photos he must have been one heck of a saddle maker. Those are beautiful.

    I know just enough about saddle-making to talk a good line, and I happened to learn that one of the partiers at the Plano fest was an Irish saddle maker from England. He claimed credit for making saddles for the Royal Family's horse brigade or something like that.

    Anyway, I enjoyed talking to him about the differences in American saddles and English saddles, and how the leather is tanned, cut, shaped, etc. Your Dad would'a liked him. He's quite a character, as I think all saddle makers are. I know I certainly enjoyed our conversation and I think he did too. I'm thinking he needs to know about the book. Maybe Horn Honk can tell him about it.

    In the meantime I'll check around to see if I can afford to have a copy.

    Thanks for letting us know.

    Spring "Saddle Up And Ride" Chicken
    Spring Texas USA
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  • AZRP
    AZRP Posts: 10,116
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    Very cool Mike! -RP
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  • RRP
    RRP Posts: 25,894
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    Neat!!! You have something very special there! Thanks for sharing!
    Re-gasketing America one yard at a time.
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  • Lawn Ranger
    Lawn Ranger Posts: 5,467
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    Leroy:

    I'd love for him to know about it. It was so extensive and time consuming that the first printing only consisted of 50 books. They are definitely coffee table quality and are $125 a copy. Unfortunately, the writer now has Parkinson's, so not sure if he'll get around to a second printing.

    Let me know if you are really interested. I just donated one to the Trinity library about 10 minutes ago. The head librarian was blown away.
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  • hornhonk
    hornhonk Posts: 3,841
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    Thanks, Spring Chicken. The English saddle maker from Plano is Tony Phillips. I'll make him aware of this wonderful book. FYI, Tony is English, not Irish. :(
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  • eenie meenie
    eenie meenie Posts: 4,394
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    "Inclined to Beauty, Compelled to Excellence" is an understatement. Beautiful workmanship on those saddles. I can see your artistic talent is inherited. Thanks for sharing.
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  • Lawn Ranger
    Lawn Ranger Posts: 5,467
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    Thank you, so much.
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  • cookn biker
    cookn biker Posts: 13,407
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    Mike, that is excellent!! Pieces of art!!
    Molly
    Colorado Springs
    "Loney Queen"
    "Respect your fellow human being, treat them fairly, disagree with them honestly, enjoy their friendship, explore your thoughts about one another candidly, work together for a common goal and help one another achieve it."
    Bill Bradley; American hall of fame basketball player, Rhodes scholar, former U.S. Senator from New Jersey
    LBGE, MBGE, SBGE , MiniBGE and a Mini Mini BGE
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  • Spring Chicken
    Spring Chicken Posts: 10,255
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    Thanks. I had forgotten his name but there's no way I could have forgotten him.

    Also, I could have sworn he said something about being Irish. Could have been the JR Ewing mess'n with my brain LOL.

    See Mike's reply to my post below. The book is kinda expensive but luck would have it that a copy is available to review at Trinity University, and we all know someone who can get us access to it...

    Spring "Nothing Like A Good Saddle On A Skinny Horse" Chicken
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  • Lawn Ranger
    Lawn Ranger Posts: 5,467
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    I bought 5 copies total for me and the kids, and can get more. Unfortunately, because it took twice as long as expected, a lot of his target audience died before it was finished. That would include my Dad and a lot of old cowboys who owned the saddles, and who appeared throughout the book.
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  • Grandpas Grub
    Grandpas Grub Posts: 14,226
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    That is beautiful Mike and what a treasure.

    It only takes a few generations to loose concept of the art, efforts and love one puts into their work and life.

    Now your family and others have those treasures forever.

    Congratulations and the work is of great importance.

    Kent
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  • hornhonk
    hornhonk Posts: 3,841
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    Are you selling them?
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  • Little Steven
    Little Steven Posts: 28,817
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    Mike,

    Amazing tooling!

    Steve

    Steve 

    Caledon, ON

     

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  • Lawn Ranger
    Lawn Ranger Posts: 5,467
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    Thanks, My Friend. You don't know how good he was. Boggles my mind.
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  • Lawn Ranger
    Lawn Ranger Posts: 5,467
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    Are you referring to the books?
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  • hornhonk
    hornhonk Posts: 3,841
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    Yes, the books.
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  • Lawn Ranger
    Lawn Ranger Posts: 5,467
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    I'm not, but can arrange for a purchase if someone is interested. They are being sold by the author.
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  • Humphrey Chimpden Earwicker
    Humphrey Chimpden Earwicker Posts: 3,743
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    that's pretty amazing stuff. i cannot imagine the effort involved in five hundred pages, photos, etc.

    i have been putting together a similar book about a craftsman in our family(not saddles though), and it has taken 15 years to find enough to fill a handful of pages.

    my hat's off to whomever put all that together.

    it doesn't look like merely a vanity piece, either. the catalogs and photos are going to be valuable as a written record to other people outside your family. publish or perish, as they say. simply recording that, and bundling it all together, is going to preserve the legacy of the work and help establish them in the record even more than they might already be.

    fantastic.
    congrats
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  • Lawn Ranger
    Lawn Ranger Posts: 5,467
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    Thanks, Man. You just summarized the project in a nutshell. Life is kind of fickle, though. The author

    http://sites.actx.edu/~mcginnis_lb/progress.htm

    worked for years with my Dad on compiling much of the info. Although Dad saw the last draft in looseleaf form, he died in July, 6 months before it was published. The author has slaved at this for over a decade, and has recently been stricken with Parkinson's Disease. I had a very difficult phone conversation with him this morning. We are eternally grateful for the huge amount of information that he compiled.

    Good luck on your endeavor.

    Mike
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  • Humphrey Chimpden Earwicker
    Humphrey Chimpden Earwicker Posts: 3,743
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    bittersweet, but at least your dad got to see it coming together, and knew that there was going to be a legacy for his work and his father's.

    really is a wonderful thing to have. i hope you have a couple of the saddles, too!

    that looks like an expensive hobby, collecting saddles!
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  • loco_engr
    loco_engr Posts: 5,765
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    Mike:

    That is an accomlishment to be very proud of!
    aka marysvilleksegghead
    Lrg 2008
    mini 2009
    XL 2021 (sold 8/24/23)
    Henny Youngman:
    I said to my wife, 'Where do you want to go for our anniversary?' She said, 'I want to go somewhere I've never been before.' I said, 'Try the kitchen.'
    Bob Hope: When I wake up in the morning, I don’t feel anything until noon, and then it’s time for my nap
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  • Rib Bones
    Rib Bones Posts: 449
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    What an amazing family treasure! Truly beautiful workmanship. You should be proud. They were certainly very talented saddle makers. Did you ever try your hand at this as well?

    If you have any of their masterpieces, I'd love to see more pics. :):)
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