Bear State Vaquero and Grijalva Bits

Most cowboys are familiar with Grijalva bits.

Bear State Vaquero is a great place to buy authentic Juan Grijalva and Ricardo Valencia-Grijalva bits, son and grandson of one of the most famous vaquero-style bit-makers that ever lived, Eduardo Grijalva. These Mexican made bits are some of the best you can buy and highly valued by collectors.

Eduardo Grijalva, Sr. began building bits and spurs in his rustic, open air shop in Magadalena, Mexico in 1944. Before coming to Magdalena, he had been repairing bits and making conchos for nearly 10 years. Those early bits were made on traditional patterns favored by the Mexican Vaqueros. The silver used on those bits were inlaid with silver acquired from discarded eating utensils. Noted authority on the history of the California Vaquero, Arnold Rojas, made Eduardo’s acquaintance in 1949. From that time on, Eduardo’s work focused on the style of bits traditionally preferred by California horsemen.

Even though Eduardo passed away in 1994, his method of building a truly handmade bits and spurs did not die with him. His sons Juan Adolfo Grijalva and Eduardo Grijalva Jr., grew up working in side by side with their father learning his techniques for building bits and spurs. Following the deaths of his father and brother Eduardo, Jr., Juan continues to build bits and spurs in the same shop his father worked in the last 48 years of his life. Like his father, Juan has earned the reputation as a master bit and spur maker. Like his father, Juan marks his creations with the famous EG* stamp. Juan does not advertise nor ship his work, yet the demand for his product far outweighs the supply.

The third generation of Grijalva bit makers is represented by Juan’s nephew, Eduardo’s grandson, Ricardo Valencia-Grijalva. who began learning the family trade by working with his grandfather Eduardo and his uncle Juan in the family workshop in Magdalena.

You can also get top quality hand-made rawhide reatas, bosals and reins at Bear State Vaquero that a working buckaroo can afford.

Chuck Woodson and his wife Shirl run the Bear State Vaquero business. They are also the owners/operators of the historic Willow Creek Ranch in the high desert county of north-eastern Siskiyou County, California. At Willow Creek, the Woodsons run their own cow/calf operation as well as take in yearlings to run on the meadows and commercial cows for the outside country. The ranch is comprised of over 40,000 acres of deeded and leased ground. Willow Creek Ranch and Chuck were featured in David Stoecklein’s books, The California Cowboy, Spirit of the West, and Cattle.

Chuck has been a cowboy his entire life working on ranches from the southern tip of California to the Oregon border, from the California Sierras to the California Coast and into Nevada and Arizona. He is well known for his ability to start colts and rehabilitate spoiled horses.

California bits and spurs have long been a passion for Chuck and his wife Shirl. Each began their own bit collections when they were teenagers. They first met when Shirl was setting up a display of her collection. Although they were raised at opposite ends of California (Chuck in Imperial Valley near the Mexican border, and Shirl in Modoc County near the Oregon border), Chuck and Shirl each featured Grijalvas as some of the earliest bits they owned.

A scholar of early California history, it was only natural that Chuck choose the name Bear State Vaquero to call his business featuring quality cowboy gear. Chuck has long-been dedicated to learning about and preserving the traditions and history of early California bit and spur makers. The Woodsons have an extensive research library devoted to early makers, their techniques and designs. Chuck often taps into these archives when designing bits for the Grijalvas to build. He also has an extensive folder of bit designs that Eduardo Sr. made that he uses when putting together a new order with Juan or Ricardo.

Woodson began making bits and conchos in the 1970’s when he was cowboying on the Samataguma Rancho in San Diego County, California. His first project was building a pair of conchos with friend John Garcia under the shade of a lemon tree. The late Elihu (Granny) Martin of Descanso, California helped Chuck with his early silver and rawhide work. Over the years, he has worked with many masters in these fields of cowboy arts. Woodson not only has created beautiful California bits and spurs using traditional methods, he also became adept at restoring old bits that had succumbed to the ravages of time. He takes special effort to make the restoration work unnoticeable by aging the silver and matching the engraving. He will not however do anything to enhance or alter an existing makers mark.

You can get more information at their website by clicking HERE.