09/01/2026
I get very excited when a really special horse turns up on my doorstep. This one is an absolute corker!
A Paul Leach from 1890.
Even more amazing is that he’s never been altered, tweaked, touched up, or molested in any way! 130 years and still totally original.
He would slot straight into the Bethnell Green toy museum and be one of the top attractions.
Trouble is the owner didn’t want a museum piece, she wanted something that the little ones could occasionally ride and didn’t shed its skin every time the dog barked!
So we were tasked with keeping as much originality but making him user friendly.
First off the stand was straight forward. A couple of small repairs, a good clean up and three coats of varnish. Cover it up with a blanket and stick it under a work table.
All the legs were loose so I removed them. It was apparent that most of the gesso had been lost so I decided to strip it off down to bare wood and start again. New muscle blocks were fitted and a few light coats of gesso applied.
The body was in much better condition with only about 20% losses.
I consolidated the damaged areas with Earls wood hardener which is a great product. It’s water based and sets hard . It’s very searching and finds it’s way under the adjoining gesso to adhere it to the wood.
I know most people use sanding sealer but this product works for me every time. After a few days I fill the losses with a thicker gesso mix and leave to harden. I use one of Sue’s cast off emery boards to sand smooth, they are perfect for the job.
Now for me is the tricky bit trying to disappear the repair. I’ve long since stopped trying to do it in one coat of paint , I do it with several thin layers to build it up to match the surrounding areas.
Several coats of Matt varnish an he’s ready for his tack.
The original tack was far too dilapidated to reuse but I did salvage the martingale and the cantle strap.
The saddle cloths were made of Brocade and the owner sent me a napkin of similar pattern , it just needed dying to match the original.
All kitted up now with new hair and looking ready to return.
The owner is over the moon and I’m fairly pleased with how well he turned out but I do have a slight sense of guilt in that I was that bloke who took away his originality. In fairness I don’t think he would have lasted much longer before all the gesso dropped so he would have been less original.
Sorry for the long wordage but someone out there will be interested 🤣
