Roma sheepskin - BEWARE!

cptrayes

cptrayes

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I bought a Roma sheepskin saddle pad off eBay recently. When I went to use it I could feel a line in the fleece. I thought it was where it had been washed and not dried straight, but in case it was a scar/flaw in the skin I split the stitching to find out. What did I find!!!? The saddle patch was made of AT LEAST FOURTY pieces of sheepskin stitched together, each join with a seam you could feel, and so could your horse.

Considering that these pads are often bought by people whose horses have sensitive backs, this is dreadful. They may be cheap but they are very nasty.

The pad was second hand and there is a possibility that new ones are different - come on Roma, tell us you don't use such rubbish any more??
 
Ugh, nasty !
Its fortunate that you checked it. Have had to drag my sheepskins out as youngster is losing her winter coat and can't bear anything with seams which rub, so I sympathise. My youngster (aka, the princess and the pea) would be most offended.
 
Gosh, although I have never checked, I have always blindly thought that they would be out of one piece, or no more than two with a flat join safely out the way in the gullet.
That many pieces is mad, those joins would really cause discomfort over time, I know how annoying it is if I'm walking and I even have a small crease in my sock!
I always have nuumed because I like that it isn't sheepskin, but is wool, no chance of dodgy joins!
 
How strange! I have one I bought about 4years ago, I don't use it now as it's too big for my current saddle but it feels smooth enough...
 
A friend found her sensitive horse didn't like it.

Do you know which model it is.
They do two versions the sheepskin and the merino ones - far left and far right on this link.

http://www.equestrianclearance.com/index:search?kwd=sheepskin&keyword[nosearch]=true&resultsperpage=32&pg=1&category=&brand=Roma&x=0&y=0

if you got a black or white one they look pretty similar except one looks a bit better quality and I'd be curious to know if it applied to both.
 
I bought a shires one, cheapy but it felt soft and supple. Unfortunately it still managed to rub Gems back behind the saddle. :( I'd like a more expensive one now as my saddle is a tad wide now shes lost weight, im just concerned incase i spend even more to get the same results.
 
I have got 2 of the Merino wool ones of these and I find them brilliant, had them a few years now and they wash well and look new every time, no seams like you describe either.
Maybe they are making them different now?

I also like the fact that they are not to bulky like the Stephens ones and find they do not alter the fit of the saddle too much due to them being thinner.

Thanks for the warning though, will know what to look for if I buy another.
 
which type was it OP?

I have the merino saddlecloths and never had an issue with seams and mine are washed and brushed out regularly.
 
I used to sell these when I worked for an equestrian site and no one ever mentioned anything. I personally have a Merino one and there is no problems at all with that. It's very strange.
 
:mad:I have just had a close look at mine. I thought it was great, but since it got really sweaty yesterday and I was fluffing it up ready for washing, I noticed a really sharp corner inside the fleece. It was the join of 4 different pieces! Whilst really new, I hadn't noticed. So I dug my fingers into the fleece all over and found 3 other areas that were sharp to the feel and were the result of more joins. It cost me over £50 as was a merino one. I have thrown it in the skip. No way would I sell it on ebay knowing that.
 
I thought mine was lovely. Really couldn't feel the joins until it had a bit of wear. I think Bartl are a better make though so will take a look. One of my liveries has a Lemeuix which is lovely too.
 
bartl are great just looked at my roma which my tb hates and it has nasty seems too!!! I wash it and everything but never noticed properly... ahhhh into the bin that goes!
 
You'd be amazed, when we were looking at starting to make a sheepskin range we purchased 7 different brands of sheepskin numnahs to take apart to figure them out and I can tell you that every single one we took apart (including the most expensive) were made from multiple pieces (although 40 pieces sounds extraordinary, most were 8 or 9 bits). They are cleverly joined using a form of overlocking to give a flat seam and then the wool is carded to cover them). The seams are very flat on the good ones and take some finding from the outside, but much easier to find on some of the cheaper brands. The expensive makes typically had less seams.

NB not an advert, we no longer make them. We made them out of single pieces, but couldn't compete on the price and withdrew them.
 
I heard a while ago that this was why the Roma ones are cheaper, they are all the odds and ends sewn together! I have a Lemieux pro sorb that has been fine.
 
We use LeMieux products too and have never had any issues with them. Wonder if that Roma one was a counterfeit or if they do have quality issues?
 
I want t contact Roma to complain but cannot find an address or email anywhere! I paid £58 for my Merino saddle cloth so not a lot cheaper than the Lemieux at £70. My horse has a saddle phobia as it i which is why I bought him the sheepskin.
 
^ I always use Nuumed, apart from two half pads I have, one of them being Roma. I'll be going home this weekend and pulling the Roma one apart to see if mine's the same (sounds likely), and if it is, taking it down to Countrywide where I bought it and letting them know.
 
I took it off completely and it contains a minimum of SEVENTY pieces sewn together, some of them less than a 10p piece in size. If I had bought it new from a shop it would be going back as "not fit for purpose", because it's not.

I am astonished that even the expensive ones have joins too, when they cost £80 or more!!

I now use wool lined, not sheepskin, which also has the advantage that it washes without going hard.
 
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Yes to Nu med from me, too.
A good friend convinced me that they were too well researched and made for anyone not to use them - I've become a bit fanatical about backs, possibly because my own back is so dodgy, so i have stuck with Nu med wool since then.
 
You wouldn't find multiple bits in any Nuumed or any other wool/lambswool ones, it would be counter productive to join bits together. Its just sheepskin ones
 
Yes, have a Nuumed too. But it didn't feel as soft as the sheepskin ones. I may just buy another one of them though to be on the safe side.
 
feeling a bit retro here, the pony has a sheepskin under her saddle - it is what it says - a sheep skin - wool on one side and suede on the other - and one piece of skin.(can't be washed but gets powdered and brushed out)

Try it - at least you know what you are getting!
 
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