Making a Saddle Water Bottle Holder
Check out this video showing how we make our saddle water bottle holders.
Legend has it that the mountain men of the early 19th century traveled the American West without canteens. Their boast was that because there was so much good water in the Rockies there was no need to carry any. Well, times have changed. Today, most people like to bring something along to slake their thirst. I know our family does. Whether I go out alone, or we go out as a family, we almost always bring water. However, carrying a water bottle on a saddle isn’t always convenient. The problem of packing water in a convenient way was becoming persistent. As a result, I wanted to come up with a functional and durable saddle water bottle holder.
After looking on the Internet, doing some thinking, and making a few that ended up in the trash, I eventually settled on a functional design. Ultimately, I decided to design a saddle water bottle holder to attach to the rear D-ring and billet. This keeps it off the pommel and out of the way. Attaching it to the billet also keeps it from bouncing around as you ride. These water bottle holders are also made out of 5-7 oz. leather. This keeps them durable enough to last a long time. It also makes them lighter than if we used unnecessarily thick leather. Also, as I looked around, I noticed many other makers use rivets to hold everything together. I’m sure this works, but personally, I wanted to keep things simpler. As a result, with the help of my wife, we came up with a design that eliminates any metal but the buckle. Speaking of buckles, the center-bar buckles from Jeremiah Watt sure add a little flair.
As already mentioned, we use these on our own rides and have found them great for day riding and camping. If you think you might find one useful, but don’t have the materials and tools to make your own, check out our trading post to see what’s in stock.
If you’d like to make your own, check out this video showing the process. It’s a little piece of equipment, but I hope it can help you enjoy the outdoors.