Dave Jones is an old-fashioned craftsman—a master at building saddles that look good and, even more importantly, ride well. Here, he shows you how to avoid the high cost of modern saddles by building your own or repairing that old favorite.

Jones shares the secrets of successful saddlemaking. He offers tips on tools and techniques, a long list of sources for the materials you'll need and some extremely valuable pointers on how to set up your workshop. If you're not quite ready to try to build one from scratch, he'll show you how to repair the most common sore spots on older saddles. And if your saddle is still in good shape, you can use some of the tools and tips he offers to dress up the saddle you have. This is all done in simple, step-by-step fashion, illustrated with more than 100 clear, helpful photos.