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michellep
New Member
20 Posts |
 Posted - 22 Aug 2011 : 12:37:11 PM
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Sorry if this has been done to death, but I'm interested to hear what types of saddles people have had success with for very wide and close coupled arabs?
Reading through old posts it looks like Ideal Ramsay and Jessica are popular, any other suggestions? I'd rather a GP style but will currently go with anything that actually fits him!
Thanks.
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Nic
Silver Member
United Kingdom
337 Posts |
Posted - 22 Aug 2011 : 1:13:17 PM
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| Having tried on a load of saddles for my 5yo recently (and wanting something that was more GP than show) still chose the Ideal Ramsay as it looked great, gave lots of shoulder clearance etc. I've had 2 sizes of removable knee blocks so I can still do a bit of jumping etc. |
Nic
Dogs have owners, cats have STAFF! |
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Kazzy
Platinum Member
England
3335 Posts |
Posted - 22 Aug 2011 : 1:18:42 PM
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I have a Stubben GP saddle for my lad that I bought second hand and it fits him like a glove. I tried others, beleive me I have tried loads and a friend of mine who has 3 pure breds said she only buys Stubben for hers and I tried one of hers on mine and it was a good fit so I bought one of that well known auction website!
Janet |
     
Sunny Cheshire |
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Quarabian
Platinum Member
Wales
4340 Posts |
Posted - 22 Aug 2011 : 1:33:22 PM
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If you want a really good stop gap saddle get a wintec 2000 or 500. You can change the gullet. extra wide fits most but very good if the withers are not high. prices are currently from £150 second hand.
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Milotkha
Gold Member
535 Posts |
Posted - 22 Aug 2011 : 1:42:59 PM
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Ooooh this is interesting for me too..! I have the same problem. I need a shire saddle to fit my 5yo..! 
Thanks
Kim |
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FullCircle
Gold Member
Scotland
554 Posts |
Posted - 22 Aug 2011 : 1:59:16 PM
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| Perhaps try an Ideal Working Hunter saddle? The jessica is lovely, but at least the WH is more like a GP, but still gives plenty of room for the shoulder? I had one for my wide Pb (and it was great on my Welsh D, too). |
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Callisto
Platinum Member
6905 Posts |
Posted - 22 Aug 2011 : 2:13:37 PM
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Our barrel shaped 15hh crabbet gelding is in a xxw Frank Baines Working Hunter saddle - very comfortable and his shoulder is free to move. We've ridden in it for showing, endurance and drag hunting and it's been brilliant - highly recommended.
My wide extremely close coupled pony is in a 16" Bates VSD on the second widest gullet - very comfortable saddle.
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  Zahkira (GR Amaretto x Taffetta)
Linda
East Sussex |
Edited by - Callisto on 22 Aug 2011 2:16:06 PM |
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Claire
Silver Member
England
422 Posts |
Posted - 22 Aug 2011 : 2:15:58 PM
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Hi after posting a similar thread recently I have just bought a black country hartley saddle second hand on line for my wide boy- nothing in the dressage line worked on him and all looked massive a bulky.
The hartley is straight cut like a ramsey but has knee rolls and is absolute heaven to sit in- best of all it is the only saddle in 9 years of being owned by mirshid that I've had a saddle that doesn't move |
      
Suffolk |
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jasjmm
Gold Member
625 Posts |
Posted - 22 Aug 2011 : 9:31:47 PM
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If you are looking for a general (ie not showing) saddle, see if you can find an Albion Selecta second hand. Good compact saddle, originally made with interchangeable knee rolls that press studded on, so you could get jumping/showing/GP/dressage. That idea doesn't work in practice, but I got the one with the showing flaps and it's a fab little GP saddle, much more compact than my Ideal, but doesn't feel small to sit in.
Otherwise, if you can find an Ideal that's correct length and wide, get your local saddler out to take a template and send saddle back to Ideal to widen.
I bought an Ideal Int Event VSD from someone who had it custom made for a 16hh Ansata gelding she imported. Has Flair, buffalo knee rolls, extra wide seat and is lovely, but only just got away with it on Madaba for width. Sent to Rob at Ideal, who widened it and now have stonking extra wide. Widening cost £80 including 2 visits from saddler!
I always find it interesting though that my Albion Selecta was a medium wide and came up same size as the Ideal wide - like a size 12 pair of jeans in two different shops - never the same size! |
    
Bristol |
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Foxtrot
Bronze Member
England
66 Posts |
Posted - 22 Aug 2011 : 10:00:02 PM
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I've just bought a Strada Saddle and we love it, its designed to fit round the horse rather than on it! My girl has never gone better and can really use her back muscles properly in it. Their saddle fitter came with all sizes of trees striped down so you can really see which tree fits your horse.
I have the St Christopher but they do a G.P version. |
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michellep
New Member
20 Posts |
Posted - 23 Aug 2011 : 12:09:32 PM
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| Thanks, I will bear this in mind. I'm still arguing the toss with the makers of my current saddle and am hoping they will sort it out but if not this gives me some good ideas for my search. |
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Red Rum
Gold Member
England
508 Posts |
Posted - 30 Aug 2011 : 8:28:59 PM
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| Strada any day. I spent hundreds of pounds on saddles and came across a Strada when having my horses back treated. Brilliant close contact and does not hinder the shoulders in any way. |
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hazelcat74
Silver Member
472 Posts |
Posted - 30 Aug 2011 : 9:47:33 PM
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| Agree with quarabian, have a wintec which is extra wide but also has xxwide gullet, fits both my 9 yr old pure bred and 4 yr old 2/3arab x welsh,(at the moment at least) light and comfy to sit on too |
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Milotkha
Gold Member
535 Posts |
Posted - 31 Aug 2011 : 1:42:09 PM
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I have a norton spring saddle with a flexi tree. I have just ordered the brown, extra extra wide gullet!
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Mrs Vlacq
Platinum Member
Wales
3776 Posts |
Posted - 31 Aug 2011 : 9:58:16 PM
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Farrington WH are fab - have several now, best buys ever!
Ideal saddles are good, also tend to be lighter.
Frank Baines are great too and come in a very XW |
    
- V Khazad - V Calacirya & V Sulime - Quarida(L) - V Boogie Knights - V Hamra Tofiq |
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Pheebs
Gold Member
944 Posts |
Posted - 01 Sep 2011 : 2:48:28 PM
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A vote for treeless saddles here, although I know they're not everyone's cup of tea
Pheebs x |
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delly-b
Gold Member
United Kingdom
1107 Posts |
Posted - 01 Sep 2011 : 3:42:53 PM
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have you looked at the Saddle Company saddles? They can be adjusted to anysize, as often as you like. They have recently done me a 14" saddle for my pony and its XXW/XXXW
The flocking can also be adjusted to the horses back shape. |
       
Adele
Batley, West Yorkshire |
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abcoboy
Silver Member
England
464 Posts |
Posted - 01 Sep 2011 : 4:22:11 PM
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Hi Michelle
Ive got an old english leather saddle collecting dust if you'd like to try that for size (depending where you are in the country of course) it is very wide though - 9.5" d-d ring? |
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michellep
New Member
20 Posts |
Posted - 02 Sep 2011 : 2:44:37 PM
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delly-b I've sort of looked at Sddle Co saddles but to be honest I've heard so many complaints about their fitting service it's put me off.
I did try treeless and it's not for us, we had major stability problems, the saddles wouldn't even stay still without me on board so it wasn't my riding either!
Thanks abcoboy, I might come back to you on that. I'm still waiting for the makers of my current saddle to tell me if they're going to fix it before deciding as I do like the one I've got (quality issues aside!) |
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rosie
Platinum Member
England
3662 Posts |
Posted - 25 Jan 2012 : 10:19:56 PM
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Found this topic interesting reading.
I'm having a major headache trying to get a saddle to fit my boy
One saddler described him as trying to fit a saddle on a round barrel - and no hes not overweight (horse not saddle fitter  ) but that's his shape!
One saddler had not one saddle to fit - got another saddler booked for next week but we may have to take the route that no saddle will be perfect and we may have to use a gel pad?????
we'll keep persevering |
     
Last picture courtesy of Sweet Photography |
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Lin123
Gold Member
England
1360 Posts |
Posted - 25 Jan 2012 : 10:42:51 PM
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Another vote for Strada saddles......yes they're not cheap but money well invested in my opinion. I have 3 out competing in Endurance at FEI level and couldn't be happier with the results after trying numerous types of saddles up to 80km and having problems.
Linda x |
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Callisto
Platinum Member
6905 Posts |
Posted - 25 Jan 2012 : 10:57:08 PM
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Lisa, the Frank Baines saddle I referred to above was made for our barrel shaped crabbet from a template, and it didn't cost any more than an off the shelf one - might be a route worth investigating?
PS It is an xxxw, not an xxw, he's 15hh |
Zahkira (GR Amaretto x Taffetta)
Linda
East Sussex |
Edited by - Callisto on 25 Jan 2012 10:58:20 PM |
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Kes
Platinum Member
England
1819 Posts |
Posted - 26 Jan 2012 : 08:19:17 AM
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I love reading these saddle topics when they come up, there seems to be a few favourites.
When I got my master saddler to pop over last year to fit a saddle for Kes I still had the MW Black Country Event from my last horse and I was so hoping it would fit (she was a TB x Welsh). It was too wide! I am having to currently use a Kieffer dressage saddle in MN. This was very surprising as he's Ansata sired so generally not known to be a narrow fit I believe. Had it checked 6 months later and despite 6 months works developing more topline he hasn't changed a huge amount. |
    
Carole & Kes, West Sussex. |
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beau
Gold Member
United Kingdom
806 Posts |
Posted - 26 Jan 2012 : 10:03:04 AM
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| With my last boy saddles were a nightmare, after lots of master saddlers and lots of money I went for a GP Barnsby and it fit him perfectly. |
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glo
Gold Member
England
1297 Posts |
Posted - 26 Jan 2012 : 11:37:39 AM
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| I would like to say that I have found that Balance Saddles are the best in my opinion. They say that ignorance is bliss and that is true. A healthy horses back should look like a boomerang /barrel shape anything that is not that shape has mussel wastage. If you look a an unbroken horse they normally have flat, low withers. One of my mares is 17 this year and she is well muscled with lots of top line and has a good flat back, my mare is a size 8x (very wide)in a balance saddle with a b tree (17) Balance is the key to fit any saddle. If you are not balanced as a rider your saddle will slip. I have ridden in treeless saddles as well. None of my saddles slip ever!! The first time I rode in a balance saddle I could feel my horse move, in fact if I had been blindfolded I would have said that I was on someone else's horse. By putting narrow saddles on our horses we are blocking the movement of that horse. We then think that this is normal. Nearly all Arabs are extra extra wide and that feeling that your saddle is moving is normal as a horse moves forward and back and side to side when ridden. Look at your horses movement when in the show ring or field with out a saddle on, is it the same with a saddle and rider? if not your saddle is not wide enough for you horse. |
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sazzlepants71
Platinum Member
United Kingdom
3536 Posts |
Posted - 26 Jan 2012 : 1:20:52 PM
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dont mention saddles!!! we have had a nightmare trying to get x-wide for my sisters anglo...eek! after literally a year of searching and borrowing saddles as dennis keep increasing in size..lol
we have now settled on a Black country WH buffulo hide saddle with serge panels..it beautiful..so maybe Black country are worth looking for..wide saddle are hard to find though! x |
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Topic |
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Saddles for wide arabs??
