how much does your saddle weigh.........

[The Fuzzy Furry]

Just weighed the 2 saddles in the house that I can get to and get used, will do the one in the car later.
Both with girth guards on but without pedals, irons and girths.

7 yr old 17" Wintec wide came in at 5.1 kg
Older Native Pony Saddle (model is Fen - a whp make, made just before they split and Andrea became AH saddles) 16.5" weighed 6.1kg

I tend to work on a 12% overall weight, particularly as others lie....
My current weight on a %age is 13.4% dressed to ride in winter, inc BP, hat, hi vis thick coat and layers under, Grasmere boots on etc and holding tack.
I used to keep a set of scales at the yard when I had others coming in to ride my gang I had back then.

 

[Tiddlypom]

Three saddles weighed stripped down, so no stirrups etc.

Ideal Event GP type saddle (leather) 18" MW 6.9kg

Fairfax Classic GPD saddle (leather) 17.5" MW gullet plate 6.8kg

Equipe Expression monoflap jump saddle (leather) 17" M 5.3kg

Also, weighed separately - pair of Sprenger Bow Balance stirrups and leathers 1.4kg

 

[ycbm]

To clarify, the 1½lbs per square inch rule is to avoid damage to the skin and fascia immediately beneath the skin. The 15 or 20% rule is to avoid damage to the back and the joints and the tendons/ligaments/muscles.

The two are separate rules and both apply at the same time.
.

 

[MrsMyope]

I remember Len Brown talking about the 11/2 lbs per square inch rule when I bought an orthoflex saddle 30 years ago. He has since said that the man who told him this has admitted that he made it up!

 

[Shysmum]

Barefoot Cheyenne drytex, extremely light.

 

[TTK]

I do not want to argue but just to say that an English master saddler fitted one of my western horses who was 16 for an English saddle and said he had never seen such a perfect undamaged back. The western saddle must have been doing something right despite its weight.

 

[ycbm]

I do not want to argue but just to say that an English master saddler fitted one of my western horses who was 16 for an English saddle and said he had never seen such a perfect undamaged back. The western saddle must have been doing something right despite its weight.

Nobody is saying western saddles are bad, provided they don't make the weight the horse is carrying as a whole too high. They are great for spreading weight.

 

[Tiddlypom]

Western saddles need to fit the horse, too. A badly fitted Western saddle will damage the horse as much as a badly fitted English saddle would.

 

[ycbm]

I remember Len Brown talking about the 11/2 lbs per square inch rule when I bought an orthoflex saddle 30 years ago. He has since said that the man who told him this has admitted that he made it up!

Small numbers in this study, but I'm not sure that's correct. We could do with more research on this and total weight.

https://www.rodnikkel.com/content/s...and-desk/finally-pressure-research-on-horses/

 

[TPO]

Western saddles need to fit the horse, too. A badly fitted Western saddle will damage the horse as much as a badly fitted English saddle would.

Don't you know that one size fits all in western? If its cheap/from ebay in no way is it a badly made, back damaging Indian or Mexican saddle, people just claim that to do you out of money...

Tongue firmly in cheek. Some fb ads make me shudder

 

[tda]

My 20yr old Ideal Classic GP saddle 5.4kg, thought it might be lighter
I also have a Freeform treeless that I can't get off the high rack that is lighter

 

[sbloom]

I think we still have a ton to learn.

First thing though - the difference in weight between heavy and light saddles is so often more than we can fluctuate in our weight - rider weight is much more significant in the vast majority of cases and only if you're approaching 20% should you worry about saddle weight. Fit is WAY more important.

Spreading weight - yeah I'm not sure about pressure occluding blood flow, some report that peak pressures of a moving saddle are fine and that it's overall pressure (perhaps more evident statically) that's the issue, others say not. Hence we have a long way to go.

What we forget about is how the weight is spread - if you have a truly great fitting saddle then the rider weight is down the inner thighs first, then the seatbones, then the pubic arch, with weight spread across all. If you can't sit properly on your pubic arch you'll overweight the seatbones, this places too much weight under them and generally across the back of the saddle and, considering there are a million other reasons why there may be too much weight on the back of the saddle, this can be a real issue.

Yes, heavy weights overall will cause the back to drop, not just localised pressure issues, but unless you get the weight forwards in the saddle through correct saddle balance and rider optimisation then you're still on a road to postural problems. A very good reason to become super hot on knowing if your own saddle is in correct balance from day to day, and if you're not 100% then to have a regular programme of saddle check appointments booked.