Do I sell my WOW for a Sue Carson or Bates Innova

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lisa_dundee

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I'm really really struggling with what to do. I bought a WOW saddle for my 5 year old 14.2hh stallion who still has some filling out and maturing to do. I bought a WOW because I have a few back problems and was hoping it would help with my pain and it really has made a big difference, but there's a few things I don't like:

1. It's very heavy and he is a fine PBA and I weigh 9st12 (trying to lose some more weight) and am about 5ft5.

2. It doesn't seem to fit just right and moves too much, my fitter said these saddles have a lot more movement in them than other saddles but in canter especially it slips too far to the sides and I don't feel that is right.

3. He doesn't seem to like it and has started kicking his back legs when I do the girth up and generally seems unhappy with it

4. It's black and I wanted brown but second hand WOW dressage saddles in a flat Y-bar which is what my fitter said I needed are extremely rare!

So all these things have been niggling away at me constantly so I have found myself looking at other saddles. Now I really need to stick to the air bags as I feel this is what has really helped my back and I find big knee blocks help me too.

I have seen a Sue Carson saddle on eBay that I like but my boy needs a 17" as he's quite short in the back and the lady who is selling the SC doesn't know if it's a 17" or a 17.5", however she has said if I pay I can return the saddle if it doesn't fit.
I have also seen a Bates Innova Dressage saddle on eBay which I really like the look of but is almost a £1000 as it's brand new and I'm concerned if I don't like the ride in it and if it doesn't suit him. I'm really at my wits end, just can't decide what to do at all :-(
 
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Only you can decide what to do but from your decription I dont think your wow is fitted correctly. I've used wow saddles for quite a few years of several horses and not had any of the problems you describe.
 
I have a Wintec Isabell which has massive knee rolls and CAIR, also have back issues and this doesnt aggravate them :) They do a bates leather version if you don't want synthetic?
 
I was going to say that my wife has an Innova and loves it then realised she actually has two of them.
Apparently the only saddle that fitted her new ned was an Innova. Yeah right, what ever you say dear. So yes she really likes them.
 
You're right that the saddle should not move around, you could possibly get a second Wow fitter, perhaps involvig HQ, to see if they can sort it.

Please don't sacrifice fit for adjustability - these changeable head plate saddles don't fit everything and although I don't know how flat a Wow Y bar is but Bates saddles aren't flat, and Sue Carson saddles it totally depends on the tree as they are custom. Also, with the Bates, be aware that Cair is very different to the Flair you currently have, plus see this:

http://saddlefitter.blogspot.co.uk/2011/09/changeable-gullets-details.html

It's not that they're dreadful saddles, it's just I feel they have a design flaw which means they can commonly cause the same issue, especially on flat backs.

I would find a fitter who stocks saddles that would work for a flatter back - I've found that most riders even with back issues get on really well once the twist width etc is right for them, with regular wool flocking. Sheepskin pads can add to the shock absorbing effect, and I have heard good things about Thinline pads for this purpose.
 
sbloom said:
You're right that the saddle should not move around, you could possibly get a second Wow fitter, perhaps involvig HQ, to see if they can sort it.

Please don't sacrifice fit for adjustability - these changeable head plate saddles don't fit everything and although I don't know how flat a Wow Y bar is but Bates saddles aren't flat, and Sue Carson saddles it totally depends on the tree as they are custom. Also, with the Bates, be aware that Cair is very different to the Flair you currently have, plus see this:

http://saddlefitter.blogspot.co.uk/2011/09/changeable-gullets-details.html

It's not that they're dreadful saddles, it's just I feel they have a design flaw which means they can commonly cause the same issue, especially on flat backs.

I would find a fitter who stocks saddles that would work for a flatter back - I've found that most riders even with back issues get on really well once the twist width etc is right for them, with regular wool flocking. Sheepskin pads can add to the shock absorbing effect, and I have heard good things about Thinline pads for this purpose.
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How does the cair and the flair compare? Will the cair still help my back then? I have also considered buying a normal flocked saddle and having it converted to flair too.
 
Prince33Sp4rkle said:
Bates are big saddles, the 17 will come up more like 17.5 just to warn you.They are also relatively heavy (although not as heavy as wow, albion etc).
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This is really concerning me now too, I have found a really nice one brand new and a very very good price but it would mean buying it over the internet (don't worry it's not a scam) and obviously if they come up big it's not going to be any good as my little man definitely won't take bigger than a 17". So confused :-(
 
I have just Spoken to saddles direct and I think I need the flair really so I am taking him over to crow wood in a couple of weeks to try an ideal Jessica on him that has flair, ideally I would have preferred something with a bigger block but to be honest just finding something that fits properly that will help my back will be fine
 
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