Losing will to live with saddle fit! Flat tress, straightness and back lift!

Stubbens are designed, like many continental style saddles, to curve up away from the back but that looks way beyond how it whoudl be. Second saddle is better though slightly pommel low in that photo - do check properly from the side that it is level, hard to see from that photo. I must say though that lifting the back of a saddle tells you nothing, pressing on the front and seeing if the back pops up imitates you in rising trot or two point, with weight towards the front of the saddle. If the cantle lifts then the tree is probably too wide or too curvy, or the panel might be wrong.
 
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That stubben looks very very wrong!

Have you tried looking at the saddles direct website? You could at least try out different makes/models from there for the price of a saddlers visit...
 
sbloom said:
Second saddle is better though slightly pommel low in that photo - do check properly from the side that it is level, hard to see from that photo.
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Yes sbloom the photo of that 2nd saddle isn't great and the surface is probaly not totally level so it may be a bit misleading. I have a lesson booked this evening so thought it was a good opportunity to have aproper play in it and also see what my instructor thinks.

Your other advice about the back lift is interesting - It does lift at the back when ridden - I appreciate that it wouldn't be as extreme as in that photo though. Thanks for the tip about pressing on the front.

Thanks KatB - I'll post an update later.... :o)

Wench - thanks for the suggestion. I'll bear it in mind as a reserve but I've spent a fair amount of money on a brand new saddle from this saddler 8 months ago so would like to try and find a solutioin with them if poss.
 
I ride a very similarly shaped horse and am having the same issue with saddles lifting at the back - as soon as the girth is done up the back lifts dramatically :rolleyes:
currently my kieffer is a super fit - really comfy dressage saddle and the horse works well. I have had superb service from kieffer and if I see a 2nd hand gp/jump for sale I'd definitely try it.
Kieffer may work for your horse too(?) I tried a Barnsby John Whitaker yesterday but it did the dramatic lift at the back when girthed <sigh>
 
eatmoremincepies said:
You are very close to Kay Humphries who I'd highly recommend, she is now based in Wheatley near Oxford. She is streets ahead of most saddle fitters, you will only need to buy a saddle once and it should last you for years (with regular checks & reflocks etc of course) - this has been my experience and that of many of my clients.

Competely different to the usual rigmarole of saddles that seem to fit, then mysteriously don't fit a couple of months later. Also she has a range of saddle to fit different pockets from a couple of hundred £s to m2m at £1500ish. Number is 01494 676 583, nortonandnewby.co.uk . I honestly wouldn't go to anyone else.
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After reading lots of good reviews about Kay, I was very excited to have her fitting my mare. However, the saddle she fitted to my mare wasn't a good fit at all. She only considered the width behind the wither and didn't take into account that since my mare is high withered she also need a higher gullet at the back (typical thoroughbred back shape that goes up towards the rump). I kept the saddle for a 1 month trial, which was very generous from Kay, but my mare kept bucking when transitionning to canter. She did look to collect properly but with hindsight it's clearly because the saddle was putting too much pressure at the back. She didn't have any saddle that costed a coupled of hundred, the least expensive one she had for me is the one I tried and it was £1400 (second hand and not flex tree).
I spent a lot of moneys into trying to get the best saddle for my mare, I tried the Reactor Panel which really caused my mare problems, I also tried treeless. In the end, a basic well fitted Thorowgood at £399 did the trick, it was all about the fitter not the saddle (his experience and his ability to correctly adjust the flocking on site to fit my mare).
 
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Native pony saddle is a good idea. You could also try an Arab saddle but they are designed for rounder ribs so may or may not work...

I'd recommend a Wow in this situation just because there are so many panel fits to match your horses back, then air to tweak them further.

I'm no expert on them (just have the one!) but I think you'd want a "DD" panel which means Double Deep or some such, i.e. for dippy backs! You can have them with a variety of width gullets too, which might help...
 
OP - if you speak to Kay perhaps there is a brand of saddle your saddler can supply that she approves of construction-wise and can alter to fit. Lovatt & Ricketts is one I think. Usually she can alter the older Saddle Company ones to fit, they are £2-300 second hand. Sorry to hear you had trouble Palindrome, did you go back to Kay and what did she suggest? Can't say I/clients/friends have ever had an issue she couldn't sort, just my experience.
 
If your current saddler stocks ideal ask to sit in one with a highland and cob tree.

They are fitting close contact saddles with small gussets in the hope that they way they curve away at the back will suit a croup high horse. Unfortunately all of those trees are too curved in front hence the back lift.

Your horse does have muscle watage or rather he has no topline. I would fit the saddle to what his withers whould look like and use a sheepskin to pad out.
 
Hi there > feel your saddle fitting pain.

I have a very similar looking (skewbald) flat backed 6 year old. My saddler is ordering in a flat tree K2 jump saddle to try. I'm also trying a Black Country Vinici dressage as they have very wide flat panels at back. Early days as only got saddle to trial last Friday but my boy seems happier. Hope you managed to resolve.

:confused:
 
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