Saddles...which do you love?

[Lucyad]

I love my VSD GFS - surprisingly, as I do not do dressage! I tried a few when I bought it and despite finding it immediately comfortable was dubious about the straight cut, but tried jumping in it and it is fine for the heights I do (under 1m).

 

[peanut]

I'm very happy with my Wintec 2000 GP and Isabelle dressage - they fit my horse really well and I find them comfortable to ride in.

 

[Hannahgb]

I don't find WOW any different for comfort for different riders than any other saddle. Don't we all buy the saddle that fits us best which also fits the horse? So other people may not find it as comfy as we do.

Personally I loathe Stubben and Jaguar/Harry Dabbs. One doesn't suit an unpadded bum and the other doesn't suit a narrow pelvis. But I have friends who find them great, just as I have friends who wouldn't choose to ride in my WOWs.

What I would do, though, is ride in anything, no matter how uncomfortable I felt, before I would ever put a horse in a saddle with a fixed front arch again.

Ive got to say, I got the mens seat on my Harry Dabbs as I found I fitted that better with a narrow pelvis.

 

[pansymouse]

I love Lauriche (sadly no longer made) - I have three. My favourite is a 30 year old GP which has been fitted by Kay Humphries and rebuilt underneath with a serge panels by Barrie Swain (well Graham who works for Barrie and made the saddle in the first place). Barrie Swaine saddles are very similar to Lauriche and if I was buying new they would be the only ones I would consider.

 

[Mince Pie]

Two saddles I've loved over the years have been my collegiate GP, and my thorogood maxim (weirdly enough!)

 

[Billyboo]

I absolutely adore my two Maxflex saddles. They are a german brand that make a beautiful range of saddles. They have fully flexible trees that move with the horse, fit a variety of shapes (also have changeable gullet) evenly distribute weight and look just like traditional saddles!!! They also have lots of different models in dressage, gp, jumping. My boys movement is so much more free, he used to pin his ears back with his previous saddle, no more of that. He rounds his back much more and overall, he is so much happier. I have the emilio dressage model and the Valetin gp. They aren't cheap but they are no where near as expensive as some saddles. Both of mine were about 1500 which I think is excellent value. Have fun saddle shopping!

 

[FfionWinnie]

Oh gosh, so many options my mind is boggling! I had a look at the solutions as so many people have said they have transformed their horses, which is what the pony and I need (his canter is awful and whilst he does have some SI issues the physio and vet feel his current saddle is not only putting me in a bad position but is also jamming into his shoulder, he can fake pretty movement in the walk and trot but canter finds him out, I was shocked how tight it was at the front when she showed me as I was sure i'd checked it plenty of times and it had seemed fine, hang my head in shame) But then I saw the Solution price tag and felt a little queasy! I really want the best for him and it's hard to then put a price cap on what he deserves. It's so hard to commit to something as expensive as a saddle without really knowing if it works for him so i'd love to be able to trial them, but I know that's a big financial risk for the saddler. I could try hiring one for a month and if he is completely transformed i would know I had to find the money to buy one.

Having a solution fitter out is not at all binding. I was told by mine if I wanted to get second hand after the fitting or the trial that was fine and HQ will also provide any info about age and suitability from the serial numbers they can. Second hand they are under a grand for fairly new saddles. I didn't want to wait and I also wanted a fairly new model so I bought the one I had on trial. 10% discount if you buy in one payment or you can have it on 0% for various lengths of time. I paid by 0% credit card which I took out for the purpose so gained the 10% discount, 9 months to pay it up and buyer protection because you should always buy a saddle with a credit card (insert bitter experience face here!).

 

[Street_Skill]

Having a solution fitter out is not at all binding. I was told by mine if I wanted to get second hand after the fitting or the trial that was fine and HQ will also provide any info about age and suitability from the serial numbers they can. Second hand they are under a grand for fairly new saddles. I didn't want to wait and I also wanted a fairly new model so I bought the one I had on trial. 10% discount if you buy in one payment or you can have it on 0% for various lengths of time. I paid by 0% credit card which I took out for the purpose so gained the 10% discount, 9 months to pay it up and buyer protection because you should always buy a saddle with a credit card (insert bitter experience face here!).

I echo what FfionWinnie says. I love my Solutions, and having ridden in them for 6 years or so I was so impressed by the product, the ethos of the company and the amount of research and development that goes into the saddles that I decided to become an advisor. I now have a dressage and a jump saddle, my horse has never gone better and I really enjoy being involved with the company. There is no obligation to buy if you have a fitting, and there is no financial cost to the fitter as Head Office have a stock of demo saddles that they send out for trials. If you want any more information I'm more than happy for you to PM me, or get in touch with the office and they will be more than happy to help. Keep checking the Solution website because there are sometimes some cracking offers on ex-demo saddles!

 

[stencilface]

Always loved Albion but my saddler slagged them off and my last horse had a Jeffries saddle which was very comfy.

This is me too now, turns out my k2 mw does not fit my horse at all ( I've had it fitted by someone else) and actually he needs am xw. So I'm heading for a kent and masters as they're adjustable and wide throughout the gullet, unlike albion.

So I need to sell that and my barefoot London as apparently that contributed to my horses SI issues that I'm now working through. Oops. I've had them both longer than 7 years, and realistically my horse has been lame on and off for the last 5!

 

[Tiddlypom]

Loving my new (to me) Ideal Event 18" MW. Very comfy for me and and new horse, it was a punt from Saddles Direct as I needed something that would do to get started with, but reckon it's a keeper.

I like the sound of Solution saddles, won't rule out looking at them later. I like Kent and Masters too, but sadly they don't suit the new horse.

 

[CrazyMare]

Albion. Every single time.

My ex loved Prestige saddles but I hated them - felt to me like sitting on a plank and like the pommel was always trying to climb up my foof!!

Albions however are little sitting on clouds!!

Haha, I hate Albions and adore Prestige!!!

Have two older Barnsbys too, very flat seat, one with no blocks, one with minimal blocks.