Having saddle remade onto a new tree?

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DirectorFury

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A slightly weird one...
I've got a dressage saddle that I love but that doesn't fit the horse very well due to the fact it has a cut back head and the panels are more of an A shape than an n shape. Despite this it does appear to be the correct width and the tree is flat enough front to back, just not side to side. The saddle was made by a company that has now gone under and it's going to be impossible for me to find one second hand with different panels as they weren't super popular.

Would it be possible to have it remade onto a tree with less upright rails? I'd like to keep the flaps and (if possible) the seat. Any saddler recommendations to have this done? I can provide a full back template of the horse and happy to post the saddle so they don't need to be local.
 
Not easy, most would fight shy of it , things stretch, move and block to shape.
So the materials used would have "blocked" (moulded) to that particular tree.
When I have rebuilt saddles even with using same materials on same tree things often don't tally up.
I have been given saddles to fix in the past with new trees that the points keep popping out of the pockets and saggy seats, panels that were wonky and this was with a new tree that was the same as the original.
Saying that , there are saddlers who will do it and probably do it better than I will but I for one wouldn't do another one, only had a few that it worked for.
Oz
 
I twisted my saddle tree after an accident last year. It was sent back to have a new one put in so I don't see why not.

However... it appears my saddle was sent back to me with the same broken tree. They had just put an extra girth strap on as I requested whilst it was in the menders. And it took 2 months to get it back. I won't name and shame them as they are due to put another tree in once I send it to them this week. If it comes back in the same damaged shape again, I will plaster their name all over the internet!! I took it to my saddler as I was convinced it was wonky because the panels weren't equal, the pins weren't remotely level and you could feel one of the rails far more in the gullet than the other, she took it apart and lo and behold, it was twisted. The reason we think its the same tree is that where you could see the rails in the gullet were wonky previously, they were wonky in exactly the same place and the creases on the seat were in exactly the same place. It was definitely a used tree as it had lots of old nail holes in it and also where it had foam stuck to it, there were remnants of old foam underneath. We worked out it was the old tree by deduction.
Really, really bad given they had 2 months to mend it and charged me a fair bit of money to replace the tree!!!
 
Oh dear @carolineb - that sounds dreadful!

As I understand it, it is standard practice to return the broken tree in the box along with the repaired saddle.

The only exception to this would be if the metal head plate is broken, as these can be professionally replaced.

I hope you have a better outcome with your next repair.
 
Baywonder said:
Oh dear @carolineb - that sounds dreadful!

As I understand it, it is standard practice to return the broken tree in the box along with the repaired saddle.

The only exception to this would be if the metal head plate is broken, as these can be professionally replaced.

I hope you have a better outcome with your next repair.
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I didn't know that but will ask that the tree is put in the box too then I will know its been done. I was so angry I can't tell you. Its been an absolute pain in the bum. And worse of all, its my horse that its affected having been ridden in it again when it was still broken. But TWO MONTHS to stick it back together with the same broken tree??!!!! Absolute b*stards!!!
 
carolineb said:
I didn't know that but will ask that the tree is put in the box too then I will know its been done. I was so angry I can't tell you. Its been an absolute pain in the bum. And worse of all, its my horse that its affected having been ridden in it again when it was still broken. But TWO MONTHS to stick it back together with the same broken tree??!!!! Absolute b*stards!!!
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Just plain fraudulent.. They obviously knew it should have been done if they billed you.
.
 
cobgoblin said:
Just plain fraudulent.. They obviously knew it should have been done if they billed you.
.
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The owner denied all knowledge of not knowing it hadn't been done. This is a reputable Walsall saddle makers. I can only hope that they do what they were originally supposed to do when it is sent back and then that's the end of it.
 
Baywonder said:
I can fully understand why you are so angry. It makes my blood boil too.

How old is your saddle @carolineb ?
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It was only a year old but did have an accident where it slipped round horse's tummy and went on a jolly round the farm so the tree was properly twisted. I sent it back for a new tree and to have an extra girth strap put on. It came back 2 months later with the same tree and new girth straps. I chased them and they kept saying oh it will be finished tomorrow etc. Absolutely appalling service. So I thought it was safe to put back on my horse. He was telling me it wasn't right. It very definitely wasn't right!!!
 
Oh dear - no wonder it ended up with a twisted tree. :( It still doesn't excuse the rubbish service you have received. Words really do fail me. :mad:
 
carolineb said:
I twisted my saddle tree after an accident last year. It was sent back to have a new one put in so I don't see why not.
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You were replacing the same shaped tree, the one the saddle was designed for. If I just say that our saddle maker stopped using one tree supplier because they all came in a few mm different in places and he was having to do a ton of extra work to alter each and every piece of leather that went onto it, and those were trees of the same model. I was surprised Oz wasn't even more against it, I have only ever heard "don't do it" apart from one company that says it can and will but I wouldn't touch their saddles with yours, iykwim.

What you possibly could do is have a bench saddler copy the flaps etc onto a tree and panel that does fit, I have had this done for a Devoucoux, this customer loved her Devoucouxs, but she had an XW horse that needed the flatter, wider rails and a much better tree shape. We took one of her saddles that she wasn't using, she ended up loving it more than any of her Ds lol! However it's a lot easier, and might even be cheaper, to go to a company known for flatter, wider rails and try their range, and sell your saddle.
 
sbloom said:
What you possibly could do is have a bench saddler copy the flaps etc onto a tree and panel that does fit, I have had this done for a Devoucoux, this customer loved her Devoucouxs, but she had an XW horse that needed the flatter, wider rails and a much better tree shape. We took one of her saddles that she wasn't using, she ended up loving it more than any of her Ds lol! However it's a lot easier, and might even be cheaper, to go to a company known for flatter, wider rails and try their range, and sell your saddle.
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Thanks sbloom, it's interesting that some companies are willing/able to copy flaps -- I'm guessing that was many thousands and in the price range of a brand new Devou?
I think getting a different saddle is the only way forward here, and I want brown so it'll likely have to be new :rolleyes:. There's a lack of saddle fitters and saddle ranges down here (they do the classic Albion/Jeffries/Wintec/Throwogood/K&M but not other brands) so it'll be on hold for a while.
 
We added way less than it really cost at the time, it would still now be cheaper than a new Devoucoux but a lot more than an off the peg from us and not sure the workshop would want to take on another one!
 
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