3 week old saddle - now not fittin!?!?!

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Scottish_Miss

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Hi

Got new K&M GP fitted 3 weeks ago and now really annoyed as pinching at the front and causing poor boy to be a little uncomfortable - bless him he does not make any fuss but knew something up as having issues turning left.

Now he is losing weight (thanksfully) but in 3 weeks would he have lost enough to cause the saddle to not fir - and also can flock settle in that time as it seems rather soft at te front now - but I never really felt it at the start so cant tell how much if any its altered???

Saddler back in UK monday and to call her then - but really annoyed and upset by this?

anyone any thoughts?
 
If it was a brand new saddle it SHOULD have been flocked at the time of sale, was it?
I always book the customer back in after a first flock up to have more added after a couple of weeks as the air will expel out of the flocking and go flat again, ALWAYS HAPPPENS with new saddles and on some second hand ones too!
I don't wait to be asked back as I know it will go flat so I arrange to come back so yes even if your saddle was flocked at the time of sale it will probably need more now, I include this second visit free as it is included in the price of the original call out and flock up,Oz
 
unicornleather said:
If it was a brand new saddle it SHOULD have been flocked at the time of sale, was it?
I always book the customer back in after a first flock up to have more added after a couple of weeks as the air will expel out of the flocking and go flat again, ALWAYS HAPPPENS with new saddles and on some second hand ones too!
I don't wait to be asked back as I know it will go flat so I arrange to come back so yes even if your saddle was flocked at the time of sale it will probably need more now, I include this second visit free as it is included in the price of the original call out and flock up,Oz
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Please could you have a word with my saddle fitter UL, I never get a service like this :rolleyes:
 
jacksmum said:
Please could you have a word with my saddle fitter UL, I never get a service like this :rolleyes:
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Sorry to hear that, this is how I was taught 23 years ago, today we have "saddle fitters" who are not necessarily saddlers.
As a saddler we are trained to design, make ALL saddlery as well as fit and flock a saddle knowing how things are made, what they are made of, the breaking strains of the materials involved as well as the lorinery involved but a saddle fitter can have a couple of days training to fit a saddle and get a certificate to go out to fit them. Some are very good don't get me wrong and some saddlers are awful, there's good and bad out there but the saddle fitters I have seen out there don't flock the saddles even, they have to send it off!
I'm sure some do flock up on site but they may be saddlers who have got their little certificate to say they can fit saddles!
It's so much easier to flock up on site, you can fit it back on the horse then get the rider up again to ride on it at different paces to make sure it is sound and the horse, rider as well as myself are happy with it before I go off site. Then as I said I KNOW 99% for sure it will need checking again after the flock has settled (usually a couple of weeks depending on use of course) it's free and ALL part of the service, so I automatically re book the customer back in before I leave, leave my home number incase of any problems so I can be contacted at all times.I do this whether the saddle is brand new or a existing saddle that needed flocking up!
I hope you get your saddle sorted!
Oz :)
 
unicornleather- thanks for that info - I knew it would settle after a few months but was just unsure if so normal after weeks, thats a releif as was getting a bit worked up about the situation, the saddler was adjusted on the day as she took it to the van to adjust the flock - prob just a comination of him losing weight and it settling even more

thanks - I feel a lot better now about situation, we can also adjust head plates is need to.
x
 
Hi

My friend has same saddle make but in the dressage model and has had hers a while now and used to her boy changing shape- so we played around with headplates and my boy has dropped down a size, same as her boy now - her saddle fitted lovely on him, so spoke to saddler as she has a plate she is dropping of.
Also looked at flock on the 2 separate saddles and its fine - just nicely soft, I had checked against an older saddle which was prob not wise as quite hard.

thansk for help folks.

so relieved

Saddle back in around 6-8 weeks to recheck fit and flock at that stage.
xx
 
OMG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! me and one of my liveries have gone threw this made to measure saddle then came back re flocked twice still not right, caused bucking me to nearly die sharer bucked off all because of saddle. check master saddler web site to make sure they are a qualified saddler fitter not just a saddler, phone up and complain... the people that helped me the most is saddles direct sent photos and templates of my horse they said kieffer was the only one and it was he has changed in all ways
 
I had a saddle fitted to my boy last April, something wasn’t quite right but in June I called the saddler back out as we worked out the saddle flap was being hit by his shoulder blades, causing bruising. Saddler came out and took my saddle back at the price I paid for it (brand new saddle) and gave me the full amount trade in against a second hand saddle (had moved from synthetic new to 2nd hand leather) and only charged me £10 for the actual fitting.

I was really worried I was going to loose a fortune but saddler was brilliant.

(although had physio yesterday and horse has muscled up so much new saddle is pinching so hoping saddler can adjust it rather than having to go through my 5th or 6th saddle in 2 years!)
 
Some saddles have synthetic flocking (K&M are one of these), they tend to be flocked enough when they come out of the factory and so very often don't need additional flocking added when the saddle is fitted. 3 weeks isn't an unusual amount of time for the flock to settle over. It is unusual for the saddle to become poorly fitting in that short time though. Perhaps the gullet size needs another look? Was the saddle fitted with the same thickness of saddle pad as you use when you ride?

Also worth considering that synthetic flocking can be much harder, and go lumpy faster than traditional good quality wool flocking as the fibres are shorter. I have a Fairfax (same as k&m underneath) and I have just had all the synthetic flocking taken out and had the saddle re-flocked with wool. I stripped the saddle down ready for re-flocking and I was shocked how hard and lumpy the flocking was (I have had the saddle less than a year) and how difficult it was to remove (my hands cramped up it was so difficult, I have never had that prob when stripping down wool flocked saddles!!). I am so glad I had it replaced, my mare had become a little sensitive in her back after a long ride, but the saddle fit is excellent and she had no muscle issues either so I can only conclude that it was down to the particular hardness of the flocking - no probs since the flocking has been changed! After it was newly flocked I rode normally for a couple of weeks before the saddle went back and the flocking was checked as it had packed in a little more.

I wouldn't slate your saddler, just get them back out asap and see what they suggest. If they insist it still fits well, well, then give them some grief!!
 
Hi All,

Spoke with saddler - she suggested he has lost weight and we tried a smaler gullet - all fine now. We have a date penciled in for 2 months to check the flock also.
So relieved - quite glad aslo the saddle are adjustable.

thanks all
 
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