Am i stupid to think i could ride in a 16.5 inch saddle?? with pictures

domane said:
I would say try it. See if you can get a saddle fitter to bring a T'good Cob with a square cantle in a 16.5" I have one in a 17.5" and find it far roomier for my ample derriere than previous 17.5" saddles. You may be pleasantly surprised.
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This is what i have at the moment in a 17.5" and i hate it with a passion
 
Why not get a good saddle fitter to come out and look at your horse and let you know what is best for both of you? My old competition horse had a very bad back and one point due to an ill-fitting saddle and after that I have always had everything tailor made to fit my horses, I've paid £2500 for an Albion but I've also paid £350 for a thorowgood so the price can differ greatly. I've found that I'd rather pay a bit extra and have the saddle perfectly fitted by a professional but then not have to pay £2000 for physiotherapy on my horses back! Sadly I had to learn from experience! So personally I would suggest getting out a good saddle fitter (if you are in Cheshire then I STRONGLY reccomend the Villiage Saddlery, I wouldn't have anyone else!!) and see what new or second hand saddles they have an take reccomendations and most of all get it fitted! :D
Ps. I use a 17'' on my 14.2 Connemara X and he is fine with it? If that helps at all haha!
 
yeah looks fine to me that saddle. Room at the back, room in front. Fits horse. What more do you want.

Half an inch is the size of you nail virtually. What difference will it make to your botty? If horse is comfy, go for it.

I say, as long as your foo-foo is safe from pommel bruises, you are ok :D
 
That saddle is 17.5inch and is really big on him, goes way past his last rib. What im worried about is getting a smaller saddle and being sat on the back of it. surely its better to be balanced a have saddle past last rib than have a saddle that is "fitting correctly" but the rider is sat on the back and not comfortable???
 
Im a saddle co fitter and id say saddle is definatly 2 long for him if thats a 17.5" id say your right he needs a 16.5". My boy is very short needs a 16" his 17" caused sore back and bridging but im lucky 5' size 8 so I can ride in a 16". You could get a saddle made with a 17.5 seat and 16.5 panel that would be your best bet. It would cost roughly £650ish to get one made.
 
I have a short backed pony that I have ridden in a 16" dressage saddle - however, I measured it and it looks like 17 by measurement but it would be a very deep seated 17" and the back of the cantle comes past the panels so you feel like you have more room than you do. The saddler told me that he needed a 16" as 16.5" in her saddle have the same panel length as the 17" saddle.
I am just over 5ft7 and weigh about 9.5 stone. I ride very long even in a gp saddle though so the thorowgood saddle seat length of thigh bone is completely out for me - according to that i need an 18" saddle and having ridden in an 18" i can categorically say it was far too big! felt like i was swimming and it was hard to balance in it!
I now have a 16.5" dressage saddle for pony - its a collegiate mentor, it has velcro knee blocks that i at first removed thinking they'd be in the way, turns out they make leg position far more stable as my knee can't go over the front of the saddle :p Very comfy dressage saddle and not overly expensive when i bought it.
so if you're going for a dressage saddle- remember your leg will be straighter and nearer vertical than in a gp saddle so you DON'T need such a big seat. I find when i'm jumping i need a bigger seat for space to move!
this is my 16.5inch saddle
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I ride my 15.3 Appy in a 161/2 " saddle and I am 5'6" and weight 9 stones. The problem I have is that I have long legs for my height, particularly long thighs. This tends to put the stirrup bars too far forward for me. The mare though cannot tolerate a longer saddle. According to the link above, I should ride on an 18" saddle, but no way could the mare manage it.
 
On average more people go down a size in a flatter seated jump saddle than in a deeper seated dressage - case in point my dressage is a 17.5", though not that deep actually, and my jump saddle when I had one was 17" - this is very common. Again the more forward flap allows more room for a long femur, and the flatter seats feel roomier. Very uncommon to find it the other way round.
 
sbloom said:
On average more people go down a size in a flatter seated jump saddle than in a deeper seated dressage - case in point my dressage is a 17.5", though not that deep actually, and my jump saddle when I had one was 17" - this is very common. Again the more forward flap allows more room for a long femur, and the flatter seats feel roomier. Very uncommon to find it the other way round.
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i'm one of the few uncommon ones then :p just find that jumping, my thigh needs the room that it doesn't when riding on the flat
 
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