Bub Warren. A respected craftsman in the Old World tradition. Creator of exquisite handmade western saddles and accoutrements.
With a price tag of $28,000.00 whoever ends up with this saddle probably won’t be using it much riding the range!
JULY 2, 2014.
REDMOND, OREGON. This was a really special day! As most of you know, I’m taking this Journey as much to meet folks as I am to see places. Today I got to meet a really special man. Here’s how it happened: We had taken our RV to a detail shop to have it washed, polished and waxed. We were told it would take about six hours for the job to be completed, so we had lots of time on our hands. We drove around Redmond a bit, saw Smith Rock State Park and had some coffee. I mentioned to Florence that yesterday I’d seen a shop that sells western saddles and tack…”Maybe it’d be fun to go in there and poke around,” I said. She agreed and a few minutes later we were parking in front of this old building with little idea, really, of what we’d find inside. What a “find.” The place is more museum than retail store. I met the owner and talked to him a very long time. We hit it off and I’m sure if I lived around here his shop is a place I’d frequent just to hang out and swap stories. This guy is truly an interesting American!
MEET BUB WARREN: Born in the Osage Indian lands of Oklahoma, Glen “Bub” Warren was raised on the farms and ranches of the great American West. In his younger days, Bub earned his keep as a carpenter, lawman and as a working cowboy. He later learned the craft of saddle-making from Jerry Franklin of the legendary Franklin Saddle Company. Franklin rigs were prized by generations of genuine buckaroos for their fit, craftsmanship and rugged durability. Before Jerry Franklin died in 1976, he passed the company to Bub Warren, and Bub has preserved the great Franklin tradition in the trappings and art of the Franklin Saddle Company.
FROM COWBOYS TO COLLECTORS: Today, riders and collectors the world over recognize the museum quality of original Bub Warren leatherwork. Every piece he produces reflects the hand of a craftsman, the eye of an artist and the heritage of a true son of the American West. A respected craftsman in the Old World tradition, Bub has made about 1,300 saddles for riders in America, Europe, Japan, Australia and elsewhere. His work has been honored by the Oklahoma diamond Jubilee, the Pendleton Round-Up and the Smithsonian Museum folk life festival. To ensure the authenticity and lasting value of his work, all Bub Warren originals carry his distinctive Buffalo,s skull trademark medallion.
It takes Bub about 300 hours to make one of these saddles. I learned that lots of serious collectors prefer this type of saddle to those heavily adorned with silver. They say the others are “hiding behind the silver.”
Each piece is unique.
This close-up shot shows the leather work detail on these beautiful custom saddles.
YOU NEED A LOT OF CASH IN YOUR POCKET TO SHOP FOR ONE OF THESE SADDLES: In his museum here in Redmond, Bub showed me saddles, spur leathers, cartridge belts, holsters and saddlebags he’s made. One of his saddles fetched $40,000.00 from a determined collector. Charlie Daniels, the famed country music icon has three of Bub’s saddles in his collection of western memorabilia. In fact, Bub showed me an autographed fiddle Charlie gave him in appreciation for the custom saddles Bub had made for him. The fiddle is proudly displayed in a glass case right in the shop. All the pieces I saw were intricately tooled and had elaborate one-of-a-kind designs. Although all his saddles are made for “working,” many never see the light of day, as they are proudly displayed indoors in the homes and galleries of serious collectors.
Country-Western music man Charlie Daniels gave Bub this autographed fiddle in appreciation for the saddles Bub made for him.
