Advice, please - Cair or Flock? Or anything else ...

Archiesmummy

Archiesmummy

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About to order a new saddle. Cair or flock? Or Flair ... or anything else that I don't know about.

My saddle fitter recommended flock but is this a ploy to get them out more than I would need with say a Cair?

Advice, please asap.

Thank you x
 
Having had a Wintec Cair and both synthetic and leather flocked saddles, I would go for flock every time. There is much more flexibility in where and how much with flocking, which means much more adaptability, IMHO.
 
A different saddle?! The old style wintecs are horrible!

Cairs great if the panels are a perfect fit. But if they need to bed or shift slightly (i.e most horses!) the cairs' awful: unlike flock it never 'beds' to shape and springs back with every stride. That's fine if it was really soft like Flair but Cair panels are stiff and fairly hard so take a fair amount of pressure to deforms then and eventually give the horse a sore back. Flocking, on the other hand, beds and moulds to the horses back shape then stays there.
 
From a Saddler's point of view I'd say Flock every time, it's traditional, been around alot longer than cair and is fully adjustable with a set of flocking irons and a good eye, never did like Cair and always struggled to get a perfect fit of cair saddles on horses I disliked Cair even more when I stripped cair saddles down to replace the foam when it goes flat (and it will) and see what cheap rubbish is inside.
 
Have had all 3 over the years, flock has been by far the best for my horses, then flair, good but not as good as well maintained flock. Didn't like cair at all, same thoughts on it as Kallibear, but then it was in a synthetic saddle and don't really like synthetic saddles either as they just never seem to fit in the same way as leather!!
 
Same here. My cair saddle was as hard as concrete and my horse hated it. I had the cair panels removed and replaced with flock.
 
I had a cair saddle for my mare - and then changed her to a flock Wintec. The difference in her way of going immediately was amazing! Needless to say I got rid of the cair very quickly after that!

Wouldn't buy another cair - they are on the whole rock solid underneath
 
Flair all the way! Borrowed ny instructors dressage saddle that had flair & was amazing -i hav since bought the exact same saddle & flair was a must!
Also hav a flocked jumping saddle- & after riding in the flair it feels like concrete 2 sit on :)
 
Flock every time for me every horse I've ever seen ridden or ridden myself in either cair or flair have hated them, ended up with a sore back and gone much better in flocked saddles so I'm quite anti.

I wonder how much of this is due to them not fitting the horse correctly and will admit to secretly hankering after a WOW.
 
Had a wintec cair on Buds, terrible, gave him a sore back as it misplaced the pressure, tipped my weight forward and was just generally awful! Yes it was proffesionally fitted.

Love my flocked saddle now (falcon) its being constantly tweaked by my saddle fitter to keep it perfect.
 
After two saddle fitters, one Wintec, one Thorowgood and neither convincing me the saddle fitted properly and only on my suggestion agreeing a VSD would suit his shoulder better, I thought blow this I'd do better getting a saddle myself. Found a lovely Walsall Farrington VSD on ebay, tried and fitted today and its perfect. I don't think I will waste my time and money again on a saddle fitter with a preference to a particular make as they contradict each other on what is best. Oh, and its flock.
 
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