Colne Saddlery- yes or no?!

[poiuytrewq]

I need a new saddle badly. I also need to sell the old one to help fund new.
Originally I’d sold the old one privately for £850 which I’d planned would go a good way towards the saddle I’d love (pending on fitting the horse if course) new.
However the sale fell through due to redundancy. I have advertised very lightly but little response.
So I figure I’m going to have to take a hit on it and part ex for a second hand. Sadly the second hand stuff under £1000 say on their website will be a down step from my current saddle- as in I’ll have to buy much older and not as nice and pay more ?
A few people have advised me not to go there for one reason or another.
I like that it’s easy to get to, I can try several and it’s hassle free.
Opinions? Good or bad before I bankrupt myself please?
Any alternatives? I did wonder if a quick trip out to Rimmels at Shipston on Stour but they don’t fit, I’d just take one home to trial it.

 

[Billyandme]

Personally I wouldn't use Colne for a saddle. There are others in the area who are far beter in my humble opinion.

 

[poiuytrewq]

Personally I wouldn't use Colne for a saddle. There are others in the area who are far beter in my humble opinion.

Thank you. Who would you use?
When you say better, better fitters or better second hand stock?

 

[Shilasdair]

Never again.
Avoid, avoid, avoid.

PM me if you want more details.

 

[poiuytrewq]

? I thought they were supposed to be ok!

 

[oldie48]

I have used Maurice at Colne Saddlery for 20 years and always had good service and saddles that fit. I've bought second hand and new saddles from him, traded a saddle in against a new one, used a second hand one from him for 6 months and he's given me the amount I paid back against a new saddle. The only time I had a problem was when I use his son in law as Maurice was so busy, he doesn't work there anymore and hasn't for years. Again, I can only speak as I find.

 

[AdorableAlice]

Maurice visited a friend very recently and would not take anything against a new saddle. The saddles that were no longer needed and need moving on are good quality brands and not old but he wasn't interested. With a new saddle sale not possible he did however, offer a second hand saddle for sale, Ideal Jessica, in good condition but very obviously 2nd hand, he wanted £900 for it which is very steep and the same saddle is available at £450 elsewhere.

 

[poiuytrewq]

Maurice visited a friend very recently and would not take anything against a new saddle. The saddles that were no longer needed and need moving on are good quality brands and not old but he wasn't interested. With a new saddle sale not possible he did however, offer a second hand saddle for sale, Ideal Jessica, in good condition but very obviously 2nd hand, he wanted £900 for it which is very steep and the same saddle is available at £450 elsewhere.

Well yes this is my issue, when I look through the second hand stock say a K2 for £1200 could be purchased via eBay far newer and nicer.

 

[HappyHollyDays]

Laura Dempsey has a very good reputation and isn’t that far from you.

 

[OrangeAndLemon]

I saw Fylde offering new saddles at £600 on Facebook the other day. They have a list of SMS saddlers on their website.

 

[PinkvSantaboots]

I have a really nice Heritage saddle which was an ex demo for £500 It is basically brand new, he has quite a few available you could just email him your requirements and he will let you know what he has, you then take templates and pictures and he adjusts the saddle accordingly, I had my saddle fitter double check when it arrived and it just needed flocking at the back but he said it was a very good fit, so I would highly recommend Matt at Heritage the saddles are just a lovely quality and his a very helpful easy to deal with man.

 

[Starzaan]

I have used Maurice for a long time and have always had very good experiences. About fifteen years ago I had some money coming in to buy a new saddle for my very hard to fit horse. I had the saddle for a weeks trial with agreement to pay for it in full at the end of the week. Money fell through, and Maurice let me keep the saddle, save up over the next three months, and pay when I had the money. For that, I will always always be grateful. He’s also fitted some absolute buggers for me and hugely improved their way of going with correctly fitting saddles.
I’ve never used anyone else from colne so can’t offer opinions about them though I’m afraid.

 

[Annagain]

Ride and Stride in Chepstow have a good reputation. Not sure if you're too far away but it's always worth an ask.

 

[Carlosmum]

I used an independent saddler, but she purchased my saddle through Colne

 

[oldie48]

Maurice visited a friend very recently and would not take anything against a new saddle. The saddles that were no longer needed and need moving on are good quality brands and not old but he wasn't interested. With a new saddle sale not possible he did however, offer a second hand saddle for sale, Ideal Jessica, in good condition but very obviously 2nd hand, he wanted £900 for it which is very steep and the same saddle is available at £450 elsewhere.

Where he is now he has fewer clients wanting to buy second hand saddles and he only will take saddles that he knows he can sell. It's a business after all. I had a Jaguar jump saddle which I wanted to trade in against a new Albion and he wouldn't take it, that's fair enough and I understood his reason. I sold it via Saddles direct. I've had some second hand saddles from him that were very good value. He took back my Ideal Jessica against a new saddle and gave me a very fair price, I would expect him to sell it for more than he gave me though and there is a good market for second hand Jessicas, they are a popular saddle.

 

[ihatework]

Well yes this is my issue, when I look through the second hand stock say a K2 for £1200 could be purchased via eBay far newer and nicer.

But to play devils advocate that isn’t directly comparable.

If you are buying secondhand from a reputable saddler they will have sourced the saddle. Safety checked it. Stored it for X amount of time. Will come and see if it fits your horse. Will make adjustments if necessary. Will give you time to ride in it. Will offer an after sales service. Will be insured in case anything goes wrong.

It’s unfair to condemn someone for trying to make a decent living.

But equally you can take your chances on eBay which is exactly what I do!

 

[oldie48]

I have used Maurice for a long time and have always had very good experiences. About fifteen years ago I had some money coming in to buy a new saddle for my very hard to fit horse. I had the saddle for a weeks trial with agreement to pay for it in full at the end of the week. Money fell through, and Maurice let me keep the saddle, save up over the next three months, and pay when I had the money. For that, I will always always be grateful. He’s also fitted some absolute buggers for me and hugely improved their way of going with correctly fitting saddles.
I’ve never used anyone else from colne so can’t offer opinions about them though I’m afraid.

He has lent me saddles in the past! I took Rose + 2 saddles up post lockdown and he altered both to fit and charged me £20!

 

[poiuytrewq]

But to play devils advocate that isn’t directly comparable.

If you are buying secondhand from a reputable saddler they will have sourced the saddle. Safety checked it. Stored it for X amount of time. Will come and see if it fits your horse. Will make adjustments if necessary. Will give you time to ride in it. Will offer an after sales service. Will be insured in case anything goes wrong.

It’s unfair to condemn someone for trying to make a decent living.

But equally you can take your chances on eBay which is exactly what I do!

No I quite agree. I’ve been arguing (with friends telling me not to go) that exact thing. I’d rather go to a saddler, try several makes/models and not buy if they don’t fit, where as my eBay purchase I’m then stick with. Just all these people saying to cancel has worried me!