How to Choose a Saddle Water Bottle Holder: Horn, Clip-On, or Rear Billet?

The steadiest place to carry a water bottle on a Western saddle is on the rear billet, behind your leg and against the skirt. I know because I tried the horn and a clip-on first. I built my saddle water bottle holder for people who ride all day or trail ride, whether that's on the ranch, in the woods or out with friends. It gives you a safe place for a water bottle or a drink so it isn't flopping around, sliding down or causing a wreck. Part of it is safety. Part of it is looks. It looks great, and people love a saddle accessory that goes with their style. Here's how the three ways of carrying a bottle compare, and how to tell which one fits your riding.

What are the ways to mount a water bottle holder on a saddle?

There are three places a bottle can ride on a Western saddle, and each one acts differently once the horse moves.

• Horn mount. A holder that loops over the horn and hangs down the swell. It's quick to put on and easy to reach, but it hangs from one point, so it swings at a trot and lope. It also sits right where a roper's hand and coils need to be.
• Clip-on to a dee or saddle string. Usually a nylon holster with a snap or plastic buckle. It's cheap and fits about anything, but it hangs free, so it swings and bangs the skirt or your leg.
• Rear billet mount. A leather holder with a strap loop that the rear billet passes through, so it sits between the rear rigging dee and the back cinch buckle. It lays flat against the rear skirt behind your leg and can't swing, because it's held at the top and pressed against the horse by the back cinch. This is the one I build.

Pommel and horn bags with a bottle pocket are another option if you also want to carry lunch and a phone. They put the weight in front of your hands, which is fine at a walk and in the way for anything faster.

Horn vs clip-on vs rear billet: side by side

Why I quit carrying a bottle on the horn

Everything in front of a rider is already crowded: your hands, your reins, the horn, and if you rope, your coils. I got tired of a water bottle being one more thing in that space, getting grabbed by accident or catching a leg. So I tried a horn holder, and then a clip-on that tied to the saddle strings, and I didn't like either one. Both flopped. On a broke horse that's an annoyance. On a horse that isn't used to something slapping his side, it's a wreck waiting to happen.

That's when I moved the bottle to the rear billet. Anything attached to the rear billet can be held down tight with no movement. It lays flat against the horse, and the horse stays comfortable. That was the whole idea, and it still is.

A horn holder hangs from one point at the top, and a full 32 oz bottle is a couple of pounds swinging on it. At a walk it sways. At a trot it slaps the swell. At a lope it can flip up and hit your hand. A clip-on has the same problem for the same reason. The rear billet mount fixes both, because the holder has two points of contact: the billet through the top and the back cinch holding it against the horse. That's one more reason your back cinch should be snug, sitting right against the belly with no gap.

How does a rear billet water bottle holder attach?

The rear billet is the strap that hangs from the rear rigging dee on each side of a Western saddle and buckles to the back cinch. If you want all the parts of the saddle named, my parts of a Western saddle guide has them. Putting the holder on takes about a minute:

1. Unbuckle the back cinch on the side you want the bottle. A lot of riders put it on the left, the side you get on from.
2. Slide the holder's strap loop up the rear billet until it sits against the rear rigging dee. The holder should hang flat against the rear skirt.
3. Buckle the back cinch again, snug. The cinch now holds the bottom of the holder against the horse.
4. Drop the bottle in and close the top strap with the cart buckle.

Here's my short install video:

And here it is on a saddle, step by step:

No rear billet, or one that's worn out? Some saddles are rigged without a back cinch, and some have billets so dry-rotted they won't hold a bottle safely. If your saddle has rear rigging dees, a new set of rear billets fixes it. Mine are 30" double-ply harness leather in dark brown, which matches the harness leather base of the holder.

Leather or nylon: which holder lasts?

Nylon wins on price and weight. For a bottle you only carry a couple of times a summer, it's a sensible buy.

Leather wins after that. A full-grain leather holder holds its shape with the bottle out, so it doesn't collapse and you can drop the bottle back in one-handed. Mine has a harness leather base and a chrome tan leather cup, all full grain from United States hides, with reinforced stitching and a 5/8" stainless steel cart buckle. Everything I make has a lifetime warranty. It covers anything that breaks or fails in normal use. Parts that wear with use, like latigos and off billets, aren't covered once they've worn out. If it can be repaired, I'll repair it. If it can't, I'll replace it, at no charge. The details are on the warranty and leather care page.

The trade-off is that leather costs more and needs a little care. Once or twice a year, along with the rest of your tack, brush it off, clean it with a liquid saddle soap, let it dry completely and put on a thin coat of a conditioner like Skidmore's. Let it sit a day, then wipe it down with saddle soap again to take off any tackiness. Here's how to clean and condition leather the way I do it in my shop.

What size bottle fits?

Go by the holder's opening, not the bottle's capacity. Mine is 9" tall by 4" across and fits most 20 to 32 oz bottles, tumblers and thermoses. Tumblers with a fixed side handle are the ones to check first, because the handle is what won't clear the rim. A tall bottle stands above the rim and the top strap catches it. A short 20 oz bottle sits low and rides fine. What you want to avoid is an opening so much bigger than the bottle that it rattles.

Styles and prices

Every holder is the same dark brown holder underneath. The 2" accent band on top is what changes, because most riders want it to match something already on their saddle or tack.

Which should you choose?

• You rope, ranch or ride long trail days: a leather rear billet mount. It stays put at speed and stays out of your hands.
• Your saddle has no back cinch: add rear billets if it has rear rigging dees, or use a clip-on to a dee.
• You only walk and want a bottle you can reach without looking: a horn holder works. Tie it down with a saddle string.
• You're buying a gift for a rider: the rear billet holder in their tack color. It fits any Western saddle with a rear billet and needs no sizing, which makes it an easy gift. See my gifts for horse lovers for more ideas.

One on each side: a story from the mountains

I have a customer, a husband and wife, who haul out west every summer and ride the mountains in Wyoming, Colorado and Montana. They used to carry one bottle on the horn. One day it got knocked off going through a stretch of brush and timber, and neither of them noticed until they reached for it. That was six or seven hours into the ride, and they were out of water with a long way back to the truck.

They run two of my holders now, one on each rear billet, and they haven't lost a bottle since. Two 32 oz bottles is half a gallon of water riding where it can't be brushed off. If you ride long country, that's the setup I'd tell you to copy.

Frequently asked questions

What is the best water bottle holder for behind the saddle?

A leather holder that mounts on the rear billet. It sits flat against the rear skirt behind your leg, held at the top by the billet and against the horse by the back cinch, so it doesn't swing at a trot or lope.

Does a saddle water bottle holder fit any saddle?

My holder fits any Western saddle with a rear billet and back cinch, which is most of them. It isn't made for English saddles. If your saddle has rear rigging dees but worn or missing billets, add a set of rear billets first.

What size bottle fits?

Mine is 9" tall and 4" across and fits most 20 to 32 oz bottles, tumblers and thermoses. Check tumblers with a fixed side handle first, because the handle has to clear the rim.

Which side of the saddle should the water bottle go on?

Either side works. A lot of riders put it on the left, the side they get on from. Some riders run one on each side for a long day.

How do I keep a water bottle from bouncing on my saddle?

Mount it on the rear billet instead of the horn, keep the back cinch snug against the belly so it holds the holder against the horse, and use a holder that fits the bottle so it can't rattle.

How much is the saddle water bottle holder?

$85 for plain leather, $125 for most accent bands (basket weave, floral turquoise, Aztec, golden zebra, rough out and the suedes), and $145 for white or turquoise buckstitch.