Saddles for youngsters

dollface

dollface

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My horse is due to be backed next year and my friend and I were discussing saddles. The saddles I have am pretty sure won't fit him. I imagine I'm going to go through quite a few due to him still growing and developing. I wondered what others did, as was thinking maybe saddled would do some kind of lease scheme, where you could pay up front for saddles and part ex them as he changes. He's currently 16.2 and 3 next week, am just musing as obviously have another 12 months to go yet. Think it's gonna be a dear do!
 
I use a wintec adjustable. Got a saddler out to make sure it fit to start with.

To change the size myself however takes 5 minutes with a screwdriver.
 
doll face, i had the same situation nearly two years ago, i brought a kieffer VSD adjustable saddle, you turn an allen key to alter the width.(you can do it yourself without a saddler if you know when a saddle fits) my boy is now 5 and finally has developed some withers so i have now purchased a long term saddle, that fits me as well :) i have therefore now decided to sell my kieffer. i have it on ebay at present if you want more details then send me a pm. its finishing today with lots of watchers.
 
Thanks for your replies, looks like an adjustable gullet is the way towards. He's got no withers af all at the moment and has gone bum high again so doesn't look like he's stopped growing yet! I currently have 10 rugs that dont fit him that I need to sell. To think I was worried he wouldn't grow big enough!
 
I was unlucky and tried adjustable saddles on my 5yr old that was being brought back into work and going off for schooling. He is an extra wide and everything moved! So I had to bite the bullet and get a new saddle fitted! :-S but it was fitted by a native saddle company and the width of his can be altered up or down a size but only the saddler can do that. I have always used adjustable saddles, thorowgoods are by far better than wintecs!
 
I'm not a fan of synthetic saddles but as along as it fits him ok then that's a better option than going through lots of leather ones. I have a feeling he's going go be quite wide too.
 
dollface said:
I'm not a fan of synthetic saddles but as along as it fits him ok then that's a better option than going through lots of leather ones. I have a feeling he's going go be quite wide too.
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Same here, however the wintec and thorowgood ones are the only ones i'd use, there are the new teckna ones, but have no experience of these ones. I've got a big 3 year old and have a wintec which I'm planning on using on him until he is mature to take a fitted leather one. I will have a saddler to check the fit however to be certain.
 
I would get an adjustable if you can.

I also bought a dirt cheap second hand job from the market to throw around - It only cost 35 quid and i used to put it on my colts back and push it off him - He was so well behaved i was getting inventive with things to teach him so thought things falling off his back would be a good one!
 
He has a Wintec type saddle that he has had on just to get him used to it but it doesn't fit it. I was given it to play about with him and he's happy enough to have that on . I wouldn't sit in it though.
 
I had saddler out to initially fit a thorowgood t4 to my chap - it needs to be checked on a regular basis though as when first fitted we obviously weren't doing anything as he wasn't backed - ideally saddler needs to see it in walk trot and canter with a rider, and of course a young horse will change considerably muscle wise once work starts. The thorowgood t4 gpd is a lovely saddle and very comfortable to ride in and looks nice too and not expensive - £395 fully fitted.
 
I have a changeable gullet saddle to back my youngster. I will use it only for backing and until he can trot then I'll be buying a prestige or kieffer as my saddler can adjust them as required
 
I have two 5 year olds which i have had in wintec saddles since they were 3, upped the gullet change once, with a qualified saddler, I was looking to buy a new throwgood for them but was told the wintec fitted them much better as they have wide flat backs, both Ids, never had any back problems at all with the wintecs.
 
I have a Thorowgood for my 5 yr old, bought last year, my saddler did say that changing the gullet was only one part of making the saddle fit though, you also have to be able to adjust the flocking.
It makes sense, if you lift or lower the front end, you can see that the rest of the saddle would have to be changed to suit. I'm having him come out to check every 3 - 6 months depending on the amount of work we've been doing. (Nothing over the winter!)
 
Just to let you know there is a gfs adjustable 17.5 inch for sale on eBay for 250 pounds, I just saw it... Never knew gfs did adjustable saddles so I did a search to be nosey and there it was, I'm sticking with my wintec 2000 for Ben though :D
 
Find yourself a good saddle-fitter with a range of second-hand saddles - you'll be seeing a lot of them for a few years!! Youngsters change shape very quickly and often you will find that you may need a different shaped tree not just width.

With my youngsters I've found it best to find a reasonable second-hand leather saddle and then part exchange it for the next if it can't be reflocked (and the next, and the next.....). There's no cheap way to do it, just remind yourself that when he's about 8 or 9 and fully mature then he might just about get away with a 'lifetime' saddle if his work doesn't change.
 
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