Fairfax Saddles

Squeak

Squeak

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Having just bought a youngster who is a completely different shape to my last horse I'm having to get a new jumping and dressage saddle. I like the look of the Fairfax saddles but can't see a huge amount of reviews on them and there seem to be a lot of second hand ones for sale already so I wanted to make sure I wasn't missing anything with them. Are they good and do they live up to the hype or are they just well marketed?
 
Squeak said:
Having just bought a youngster who is a completely different shape to my last horse I'm having to get a new jumping and dressage saddle. I like the look of the Fairfax saddles but can't see a huge amount of reviews on them and there seem to be a lot of second hand ones for sale already so I wanted to make sure I wasn't missing anything with them. Are they good and do they live up to the hype or are they just well marketed?
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I absolutely love mine. When I got my mare at the end of 2015 I was hoping to get a nice second hand saddle, but sadly (for my bank balance!) a brand new Fairfax was the only thing that fitted. I love the fact that although she has changed shape a lot since I got her, it has also been changed and still fits her, and me, very well. It did feel strange to sit in for the first couple of rides, but I don't even think about it now. So whilst I don't have masses of experience of other saddles (previous ones have been Ideal and Albion), I certainly don't regret getting my Fairfax. Hope that helps. :) x
 
Interesting you think there are a lot of second hand ones as I've been idley looking for a second hand Andrew Hoy and I've only seen one which was snapped up in 24hrs. I love the idea of the split panel shoulder thing but I keep going back to the fact they are on the same tree as a TG!
 
You see a LOT of the dressage saddles out eventing, I think they're quite popular. That being said I've never personally sat in one myself so cant offer an opinion!
 
I bought one new for my 3yr old, shes now 6, its been altered several times and fits her so well! She has a very flat back! Personally i hate it! I have the XC mono flap, find the seat too big and not very secure.
 
Thanks for the replies. FW I didn't realise they had the same tree as a thorowgood, that worries me and probably completely puts me off I just can't see how the tree in a £500 saddle could be the best. I'm happy to be corrected though if anyone knows any better/ more?
 
Yes that's how I felt about it and TG saddles give me a really sore back so I didn't fancy spending that money on one to find out it did too. I don't know if they are all/still the same tree it might be worth asking them. I asked them recently if the Andrew Hoy saddle came in a cob tree and they said no but they had found it fits lots of different types so I should book a fitting appointment and I just thought what a nonsense reply - if it's not a very flat cob tree it's not going to fit my horse!
 
They're not for me, not a comfortable shape for my conformation but that doesn't mean they won't suit you op.

I wouldn't let the tree thing put you off. The tree is a relatively cheap component in most saddles when you take the other costs into account (labour, quality of leather, hand or machine finished etc)

I believe fairfax are made in Walsall whereas TG and K&M are mostly made elsewhere and I think K&M are finished here, not sure about TG but labour costs will be lower wherever the majority of work is completed.

I would agree that these saddles don't have a particularly flat tree (even the cob ones!)
 
The TGs aren't that flat in the scheme of things, if they fit your horse there's nowt wrong with them, and it is true that other components will make up a bigger % of the cost. So they're not super flat, and the headplates are some of the narrowest at the top, which means they're the opposite of a hoop tree, semi hoop or hoop shapes being needed for many XW+ fittings.
 
I’ve just bought one and I love it. It’s got the perfect combination of close contact with support and my horse loves it even though he is a difficult fit. Would recommend (so far anyway!!)
 
I've got a dressage Fairfax, I love it! Very comfortable and supportive, and can be easily adjusted with weight fluctuations.
 
I didn't realise they had the same tree as the thorowgood and Kent & masters, it really shows what a difference the rest of the saddle makes and how the tree is just one component. I really do not get on with the K & M jump saddle but I loved the fairfax and felt very secure in it.

Edit just realised this is a zombie thread
 
Britestar said:
My friend lusted after a Gareth, but once she saw it in RL and sat it on her horse, it was sent packing!
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This is why this saddle thing is so difficult, I have a Fairfax Gareth and think it's great! I've had it for 2 years now and my horse has changed shape a wee bit but the saddle still suits him. We did go from Medium/Wide to Wide. I also hack in the saddle quite comfortably...this coming from someone that has ridden in a jump saddle her entire life for everything until the past 3 years or so.

I did try other Fairfax models that the saddler brought, and did NOT like them, so you really have to sit in them.

I sat in a K&M dressage and immediately said, NOPE. Not for me. Even though I would've rather that price! But I've ridden in a friends GP K&M and it suits me well enough.


Ahh, zombie thread...still could be useful to someone I suppose!
 
Just spotted its an old thread but having recently bought a fairfax I was interested in how other people found them. I have the gareth and love it. My horse is difficult to fit and lets you know very quickly that he doesn't like a saddle. We tried loads and this was the only one that he liked!! I loved it too which was fortunate!
 
I sat/jumped in a Fairfax jump mono and hated it - the twist is really wide for a start so I felt completely unstable in it though the horse went ok in it. I was told I was a good enough rider to learn to get on with it, but I was just fighting with it the whole time. Whereas with the continental saddles which I much prefer they work with the rider.
 
I had a Fairfax jump and I also hated it. I was very unstable and it was so heavy! My leg used to fly backwards over a jump and if my horse did anything unexpected I'd be unseated (granted, I probably also had to work on my riding!). Switched to a different saddle and haven't had a problem since.
 
Thanks all for this - even though is an old thread very useful. I am sitting looking at second-hand Fairfax jump saddles without any options to trial them and think I'll wait... I love my prestige Paris mono and feel so secure, after a nob hack today I know if I was in most other saddles I'd probably have hit the deck before 8am this morning! The prestige and other similar saddles pinch him on the shoulders, and I can't find the perfect compromise yet (this will be our fourth saddle to try and find something that suits us both!!!)
 
GeeBee said:
Thanks all for this - even though is an old thread very useful. I am sitting looking at second-hand Fairfax jump saddles without any options to trial them and think I'll wait... I love my prestige Paris mono and feel so secure, after a nob hack today I know if I was in most other saddles I'd probably have hit the deck before 8am this morning! The prestige and other similar saddles pinch him on the shoulders, and I can't find the perfect compromise yet (this will be our fourth saddle to try and find something that suits us both!!!)
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Get Helen Milner out from HM performance saddles. If you have a prestige she will be able to sort you with something that will work for you. Specialises in Amerigo and Equipe. I think she is wonderful and I am super fussy and awkward to fit! I don't buy brand new either.
 
If the Prestige doesn't work, the other Italian brands may not either and some fit similar I noticed. Just my observations when trying dressage saddles. They didn't work with my horse's shape. Kind of pinched and sat odd on his withers/not enough space for his withers from a width perspective. But if you can try some, I suppose why not.
 
CanteringCarrot said:
If the Prestige doesn't work, the other Italian brands may not either and some fit similar I noticed. Just my observations when trying dressage saddles. They didn't work with my horse's shape. Kind of pinched and sat odd on his withers/not enough space for his withers from a width perspective. But if you can try some, I suppose why not.
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They do seem to mostly have quite narrow/curved rails, you may need a flatter rail which is more likely to be found on wooden trees, though far from all. Some are incredibly narrow in the head (pommel) too, which is what you're seeing.
 
Thank you! would she come out to Essex do you think?
LEC said:
Get Helen Milner out from HM performance saddles. If you have a prestige she will be able to sort you with something that will work for you. Specialises in Amerigo and Equipe. I think she is wonderful and I am super fussy and awkward to fit! I don't buy brand new either.
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sbloom said:
They do seem to mostly have quite narrow/curved rails, you may need a flatter rail which is more likely to be found on wooden trees, though far from all. Some are incredibly narrow in the head (pommel) too, which is what you're seeing.
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Thanks - yes this is what I've found so far... We've tried with our saddler all sorts of shims etc. So far with no luck. I remember years ago o tried an ancient and knackered looking Amerigo on a wooden tree and it is the only thing before and since where I fitted it and he did. Alas I think it was easily 20 years old and I can't find another...
 
I had a fairfax jump as it was the only make to fit my horse, so the saddler claimed. Anyway I never liked it and neither did anyone who rode my horse. It was just uncomfortable. I changed saddler and got a different make
 
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