Saddle fit woes

Birker2020

Birker2020

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Basically I won a lovely GP saddle in a competition in October last year in a horse magazine competition. After many weeks mainly due to terrible weather (snow) I managed to get the saddler from the company to come out to do a template of my horse. Saddle was duly made but did not fit my horse correctly for whatever reason - whether this was due to the template not being correct in the first place or the ineptitude of the saddle fitter I will never know. Exactly a week after the saddle was made my horse (whose behaviour had become steadily worse during that week) bucked me off during a lesson and I ended up in A&E barely able to walk and with extensive bruising which lasted for many weeks. I was VERY fortunate not to have broken my back or aggrevate my already 1 and a half slipped discs!

When I was able to ride again I got the MD of the company out (smashing bloke) who basically saw me ride (my still bucky and unhappy horse) and agreed saddle was not right and was pushing down on his back when my weight was in my stirrups (i.e. during rising part of trot or whilst jumping - which it still does even now but not to the same extent). He took it away and reflocked it, and it fitted fine, horse has been going okay in it, jumping, dressaging in the saddle no problem.

He said 8-10 weeks and ring us to get it re checked/re-flocked. Finally managed to get someone else from his team to come out tomorrow (who is different to the original saddle fitter). However, I am very worried that they will not re-flock the saddle correctly (they do it on site).

Do you think I am unreasonable to ask the chap to watch me ride in the saddle before AND after flocking in case of any problems as I am due to compete the following day and do not want to end up being severely bucked of again as before? I need to know that this saddle fits properly. I cannot afford to go through the same problems as I did last time. When you get your new saddle reflocked with its supposedly first reflock, do you get them to watch you ride in it? Surely this should form the major part of a saddle reflock/check?? Or am I being over cautious?

I have already decided to get my other saddle reflocked (the one I had before I won this one as it needs it), just in case this new saddle causes me more problems and I have to sell it, so at least I will have something else to ride in.
 
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Well done on winning a saddle! It should fit and it's understandable you are being over cautious - because of the poor fit if the saddle you hurt yourself bad and hence have lost trust! Really undderstandable. I would feel the same. Just explain you've lost trust in them and its not the first time they have been out so it must fit. You say the only adjustment they did is re flock it. Have they said for sure that it fits or is it the whole shape of the saddle that's wrong and they just relocked it as to see to be doing something?
 
if the saddle does not 'fit' them my understanding is that reflocking just makes the best of a bad job.
in your shoes i would probably be asking an independantly saddle fitter i trust to come a look at the fit of the saddle to see what they think. oncei had their opinion i would either reflock (if it does fit and it is needed) or as the company that made the saddle to actually make one that does fit
 
If the horse goes well in the old one, I'd stick with that. I'm scarred about saddles though, have had a terrible experience with 'made to measure'. Take care of yourself and your horse xx
 
In answer to your original question - Saddle fitters have always watched me ride before & after flocking.
2nd the thought that if saddle was so bad your horse bucked are you sure its the right tree shape. Independent saddled might well be worth the cost.
 
I think this would be a case of of it ain't broke, go back to your old saddle and sell this one!
 
FIL fits saddles and used to fit saddles for Albion. He always says that you fit the saddle - to do this you get the rider to ride in it without a numnah - so you can see where/if anywhere it rugs or doesn't fit.

Said rider has it to ride in and then 6 weeks later he returns to fit again (possibly RE flock) as its settled now and may have moved.. /horse may have muscled out a bit.

Your not unreasonable and yes the saddler should watch you ride in it.
 
Just read that back, that sounds like he doesn't fit it before its ridden in. He does fit it and then the rider rides to see if it moves or anything..
 
Thanks so much guys.

I have decided to get the other one reflocked at the same time as the new one and I am going to try and 'demand' that the nice saddle fitter watches me ride in both or certainly the prize one anyway. I hope he cooperates, bless him, I am sure he will i may get him a box of choccies as a thank you.

You are right about the tree. Without giving away the name of the company/brand of the saddle it is one that you plug in to the mains, heat up the tree whilst at the same time manually adjusting it with a gadget. You can't do it yourself, you have to get them to do it for you. Please lets not name names on here though. The MD did all he could for me (even promising me a new fluffy girth - although it never did materialise) so I don't want to cause any problems or anything or get done for slander! Lol However if it does go pear shaped again I may go to the press :) :) :) (joke).

Anyway this type of saddle that you heat up is what I won. However I have not gone through this process of having it heated up, so I am kinda of losing hope that I ever will.

I am thinking I would be better of keeping my lovely Jefferies Falcon Event Saddle and getting shot of this one, (and my old wintec dressage saddle) and then buying a nice second hand dressage saddle with the proceeds of the sale and hopefully have enough money left over for a few lessons and a short break away somewhere. But I am only going to do this if it does resolve itself this time around.

I was told last time that my horse has large broad spinous processes which my physio has said was a load of c**p. Eeurgh why can nothing be straight foward! :(
 
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I always ride every horse after before and after refitting I would never expect it to be done any other way.
 
I would sell the saddle you won and go to a saddler who has a few different options for you to try. Even if the tree can be adjusted doesn't mean it will ever properly fit
 
app ecart14 said:
Without giving away the name of the company/brand of the saddle it is one that you plug in to the mains, heat up the tree whilst at the same time manually adjusting it with a gadget. You can't do it yourself, you have to get them to do it for you. Please lets not name names on here though.
Click to expand...

I'm really intrigued as to who this saddle company is! Ive never heard of a tree you plug in to the mains before! :/ ???
 
Regardless of reflocking, it might simply be the case that the saddle shape doesn't fit your horse, OP. It sounds like you've had lots of problems so TBH I would just sell the prize saddle and stick with the one you know does fit your horse.
 
Thinking about it, that tree is only available in a couple of shapes as far as I know currently, so they'd have been very limited in what they could choose from. There is a chance the tree just isn't right, it might even look perfect in terms of the "text book" but your horse doesn't like it. Adjusting the flock can help sometimes as you've found out, and sometimes a new saddle means a horse changes shape rapidly as it works differently so frequent adjustments ARE justified, but if something is fundamentally wrong with tree or panel shape then you're battling it a little.
 
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