Saddle beware

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budatiger

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I have discovered something rather enlightening, but disturbing, about my saddle. It is a very well known brand (endorsed by top dressage riders), looks very quality and well made, fitted by a master saddler. I had decided to replace the saddle and replace with a holistic type saddle after witnessing excellent results with them on another sensitive horse and noting that my horses back muscles were in a poor state. Saddler encouraged me to run my fingers between the stuffing of the panels and the tree. Basically, the tree of the saddle has huge great hard protrusions on each side about halfway along it, very obvious even when I ran my hands hard down the panels. I feel so awful for subjecting my little horse to this for the last 18 months and am really quite disgusted. Out of curiousity, I nosed around at a couple of other saddles of this brand at the yard - they are the same. So, please check your saddles - appearances can be very deceptive, as can the price tag and endorsement by successful riders! I was told the best place for the saddle was on the fire...sadly I will have to sell in order to help pay for the new one. Buyer beware!
 
is it Cair or Flair, out of interest? can you give us a clue as to what make, or pls could you pm me, just for my personal database of what to avoid and what to go for... i have my suspicions of what it might well be though.
thankyou!
 
Your message is a bit strange, buyer beware but I am going to sell this dodgy saddle to some other sucker regardless!
 
I think I know the make - makes up the last part of the football team West bromwich ------ and if that is the answer i am not suprised, I have come across a few with this as a serious problem.
 
Try the manufacturer and if no joy try trading standards.
Any goods should be suitable for purpose and your saddle clearly is not.

Under European law you have longer than a year or two guarantee to sort things out.
 
if it is who I think it is you will get no joy whatsoever from the manufacturer, you will get no help from the society of Master Saddlers and little joy with trading standards as the SMS will not go against the member I think this is and you will struggle to get any member of the SMS to write an independent report.
 
Theres another well known make which is very popular and that has a similar problem. The panel compresses over time (in some cases not that long) and so the front arch of the tree ends up very close to the horses back and digging in. You can actually feel the dents in the panel at the front.
 
teddyt said:
Theres another well known make which is very popular and that has a similar problem. The panel compresses over time (in some cases not that long) and so the front arch of the tree ends up very close to the horses back and digging in. You can actually feel the dents in the panel at the front.
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Please could you PM me the make of both saddles that you know are like this. I am going through absolute saddle hell, to the point of tears, and i cannot bear to be ripped off again!! :( thanks x
 
Bosworth said:
I think I know the make - makes up the last part of the football team West bromwich ------ and if that is the answer i am not suprised, I have come across a few with this as a serious problem.
Click to expand...

I have a saddle from the football club name and I've got to say mine isn't like that and it's the best saddle I've ever had. I had one with Flair and it was the worst saddle I'd ever had. Think it would be difficult for one company to satisfy everyone all the time.

I do agree that the SMS is good for logging a complaint although they don't seem to want to do anything else. Getting the right saddle for you and your horse can be a lengthy and costly process
 
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