littleshetland
Well-Known Member
I'd never heard of these before. Has anyone used one and was it helpful? Did it prompt anyone to get the saddler out sooner rather than later?
Port Lewis Impression Pads
- Thread starter littleshetland
- Start date
MiJodsR2BlinkinTite
Well-Known Member
They are VERY useful as they will tell you if there are any pressure points where the saddle sits on your horse's back. I seem to remember we hired one once. Think it was on the "Better Saddles" website?? Not sure, but you could try there.
littleshetland
Well-Known Member
They certainly look very useful...I'm starting to have my suspicions about my saddle, even tho it's been given the 'all clear' by my saddler - or am I just looking for an excuse to hire one out...lol! It does seem to be a very simple but effective idea.
Celtic Fringe
Well-Known Member
We borrowed one several years ago as an instructor thought a saddle wasn't fitting the horse correctly. Interestingly the Port Lewis pad didn't show any pressure points - the saddle wasn't the issue but the horse did have mild arthritic changes in his hocks and was compensating by moving slightly oddly. Once his hocks were injected he was much better.
I would definitely use a Port Lewis pad again but as a rough guide I also look at the grubby patches on the underside of saddle cloths after the horse has worked to see if they are even. The saddle on my old cob started to 'bridge' and this was obvious by looking at his saddle cloth.
(Note to self - more grooming would be a very good idea!)
I would definitely use a Port Lewis pad again but as a rough guide I also look at the grubby patches on the underside of saddle cloths after the horse has worked to see if they are even. The saddle on my old cob started to 'bridge' and this was obvious by looking at his saddle cloth.
(Note to self - more grooming would be a very good idea!)
poiuytrewq
Well-Known Member
I do want to try one. I know someone who bought one but can’t find it 
Nb- I had no idea they had one and hadn’t asked to borrow it or anything before it went missing
I didn’t know you could hire though so am definitely going to look that up.
Nb- I had no idea they had one and hadn’t asked to borrow it or anything before it went missing
I didn’t know you could hire though so am definitely going to look that up.
sbloom
Well-Known Member
I'm not a fan, I used one once at a fitting, it tipped the saddle back initially and caused it to slip. The saddle was stable and in perfect balance without it.
I would ask your fitter (some fitters are also saddlers, but it's our role as saddle fitters that is the one you're talking about
) to show you how to monitor the fit of your saddle, much better idea.
I would ask your fitter (some fitters are also saddlers, but it's our role as saddle fitters that is the one you're talking about
) to show you how to monitor the fit of your saddle, much better idea.
Last edited:
Red-1
I used to be decisive, now I'm not so sure...
I bought one when I had a suspicion about a saddle (horse told me) but saddler didn't agree. It clearly showed pressure along the edge of the spine. Saddler still didn't believe me, but then I went to be part of a study with the hugely expensive mat type real time pressure mapping, using computers, cameras etc, and that showed the same LOL.
I sold it again as I decided to just trust the horse in future.
It was a big and clumsy piece of equipment.
Some pressure marking is inevitable anyway, however good the saddle IMO. The results are hard to quantify. I think it can confirm a suspicion but is not exactly a diagnostic tool in itself.
Hence, it is sold!
I sold it again as I decided to just trust the horse in future.
It was a big and clumsy piece of equipment.
Some pressure marking is inevitable anyway, however good the saddle IMO. The results are hard to quantify. I think it can confirm a suspicion but is not exactly a diagnostic tool in itself.
Hence, it is sold!
sbloom
Well-Known Member
Pretty much, though how that would manifest with the PL pad I don't know. We are not meant to ride horses, they are poorly designed to carry us, and GOOD saddle fitting can only ever be mitigation, especially when there is so much poor training based on poor understanding of the horse's very nature and biomechanics.