Advice needed about a Bates Caprilli with Cair. How adjustable is the Cair??

Nickles1973

Nickles1973

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I have a Bates Caprilli saddle with Cair for my full TB and I last had the fit checked by a master saddler/saddle fitter in Nov 2010 when it was deemed to be fine. I haven't noticed the feel of it changing but due to a comment made to me last week by my farrier (which I posted about last week) I watched back a video of my last dressage test and I can see the back of the saddle moving slightly (up and down) It isn't all that noticable but I can see it move.
I placed the saddle directly on his back this morning and it still fits just fine at the front but I do feel that it can be lifted up at the back a little too much. Before I get jumped on I have booked the saddler to come out next Thursday (earliest they can come). But I'm interested to know if anyone knows if the Cair can be adjusted to change the fit? The saddlers assistant that I talked to on the phone seemed to think that adjusting the fit by adding flocking could be the answer but I don't know how familiar she is with the type of saddle we were talking about.
I really love the comfort of this saddle and would be disappointed if I have to part with it, obviously my boys comfort has to come first though.
 
AFAIK you can't adjust the amount of air in a CAIR saddle you can only add extra flocking around the air bags.....

FLAIR saddles have airbags which can have extra air added :)
 
Depends how new your saddle is. I have the older version which can be flocked around the air bags however newer versions of the saddle have pads which are inserted rather than flocking. I've recently had mine done by a master saddle and it took a couple of minutes to flock. I do notice mine still moves slighty up and down at the back when I lunge my boy and I have the straps as tight as possible!
 
My Flair, which was bought in 2008, had air-filled inserts which were used to increase or reduce the amount of the air in the saddle. It didn't suit my mare, but it was pretty adjustable!
 
As it has been stated above, you cannot adjust the amount of air in CAIR air bags. You could always have the air bags taken out and replaced with either FLAIR air bags (which can be adjusted) or flock.
 
The newer cairs have not only the air bags which as others have said are not adjustable but in with them is foam, I took the foam that had gone flat out of a friends saddle and added some new seat foam which had the effect of "flocking it up a little" to the desired fit for the horse.
It takes about an hour to do, the saddle can be stripped down in a few minutes, it is the cutting to pattern of the foam and siting it in the saddle that takes the time so if you get a saddler to do it for you, you should be looking at around a hours labour charge (give or take a few mins!) hope this helps, Oz :)
 
Thank you for all your replies. I'm not entirely sure how old my saddle is as I bought it second hand. It is an adjustable gullet with cair version but I'd guess that it is at least 5 years old. In which case I'm hoping that it will be suitable for adding a bit of flocking to. I'm hoping that this woudn't de value the saddle in case I needed to sell it in future. I'm also preparing to have to buy a new (Second hand) saddle if needs be as my horses comfort is my main priority.
 
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