These stirrups are made of aluminum and have a removable EVA foam pad. The pad is designed with gripping nobs to help absorb concussion and help grip your boot to the stirrup in a safe manner.
This stirrup is durable and could certainly be the last pair of stirrups you ever need to buy. With the three different sized stirrup leather areas, it can fit a variety of fender widths, making it suitable for any saddle type or any discipline. It is light weight and low profile.
The removable pad means that as it wears out, all you have to do is replace it and your stirrup is like new again.
*Tip* If you find that the pads are wearing more on one side compared to the other you can rotate the stirrup to the other leg or just flip it around so that it wears evenly over time.
In order to remove and replace the stirrup it will take a few tools.
I find a screw driver (flat head) works best and a pair of plyers can come in handy.
First you can place the screw driver (or another object that provides leverage) under the pad and put pressure on the pad in the middle pulling up towards the bar. You can then use your finger or another object to push the notch through the hole.
*Note* It is good for that notch to be stiff and not easy to work with. This just ensures that the pad will stay in place.
Next you can do this on each of the four notches to completely remove the pad.
Once the old pad is removed you can place the new pad in the stirrup.
It is easier to insert if you try to fold the pad in half making an arch. You can start on one end and guide one side in before the other.
The notches don’t have to be all the way through at first but it will help keep the pad in place while working on the other side.
You may find that the notches don’t easily push into the holes on the stirrups. Again, this is good because it means it will be hard for the pad to just slip out while in use.
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To feed the notches in to the hole you can do a combination of pushing from the back with a screw driver and pulling/pinching the notch to get it through with plyers on the outside.
____________________________Thankfully the trend ‘no stirrup November’ is over and we can get back to riding in stirrups!
Happy booting!
