To good to be true? new saddle for £99???

china

china

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Just looking on ebay for a gp saddle for my mare and came across this!
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BROWN-LEA...Horse_Wear_Equipment&var=&hash=item746b754587
To good to be true? I have an albion dressage saddle and a wintec dressage also as she got abit on the large side early in the year and the albion was abit tight, but i am after a cheap and cheerfull Gp saddle for hacking a couple of times a week and some fun rides. I dont fancy doing a fun ride in a dressage saddle. When my money tree isnt so bare she will have a flat cut show/dressage saddle as this is what we will be mainly doing but untill then i need something cheap to tide me over.
 
Looks like one of those cheap and nasty, badly made indian import jobs.
Bargepole China.....Bargepole!

ETA what size are you looking for? There are loads on ebay that are used, but good quality and a lot go for less than £100
 
It wont be English leather, and unless you know the brand, I don't know how anyone can buy a random saddle online (especially one which can't be returned if it doesn't fit).

It's generally safe enough if you know that a certain brand and model saddle, in a certain size fits your horse, but every saddle brand fits differently.

By buying an obscure, imported saddle online, your'e more than likely going to be wasting your money. ;)
 
I'd never buy a saddle from an unknown make again. I paid over £400 for a new saddle on ebay, had had it just over a week when the girth straps snapped. Could have been very nasty.

I now only buy second hand but well known makes from saddlers I trust.
 
A friend of mine had some new ones with serge under that were not too expensive new. I'll see if I can find them for you on Internet as have forgotten the name atm.
 
joeanne said:
Looks like one of those cheap and nasty, badly made indian import jobs.
Bargepole China.....Bargepole!

ETA what size are you looking for? There are loads on ebay that are used, but good quality and a lot go for less than £100
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^^^^this would not touch with someone else's bargepole!
 
false economy, don't do it (speaking from experience :()

I had a really nice Wintec for sale for ages, only wanted £50 for it and couldn't shift it for love nor money :confused:

Managed to shift it now but just proves that there are branded saddles out there going for under £100.

Keep looking and if possible don't buy off internet, get a saddler out so you can try before hand.

You know it makes sense
 
Imported leather.Some better quality than others.I got one from ebay and wasnt impressed and sold it too my friend cheap. Now got a good second hand english leather saddle. Years ago I had a saddlemade from imported leather (not indian)and to be honest it was really well made (knew people who made it,here in UK) and it was soft and comfy.Payed £100.00 then in the late 80s.So you get what you pay for!!!!!
 
Its not just the leather and workmanship the tree's can be truly shocking on some of these very cheap saddles.
 
4x4 said:
The Saddle Company. Walsall.
Click to expand...

Fully recommend SC saddles. You can pick them up cheap on ebay. They're good as they're fully adjustable and can be adjusted continuously. I paid £1100 for mine new but had it custom made and it's a full leather one, they do part synthetic ones also, much cheaper and you can't tell as the seat and flaps are leather.
 
Forget what it looks like on the outside, if you're ever unlucky enough to see one of there piles of rubbish on the inside you wouldn't let them within 10ft of a horse!

The one I took to bits I removed over 60 carpet tacks. The wooden tree was from a pallet and sawn into share then had scrap metal welded across it for strength. Panels were flocked with the off-cuts from rug filling (bits of thread and scraps of rug material included). Panels were asymmetrical and sewn on squint.

There saddles are cheap for a reason. They're also badly designed and rarely fit well.

Makes me furious when owners only think of the outside appearance of the saddle, or how comfy it is for themselves to sit in: there cheap crap as not 'ok' by a long shot.
 
I bought a TB and he came with a saddle which I strongly suspected was a cheap import. Had it checked by a friend who is a SC saddle fitter who confirmed my thoughts but was pleasantly surprised to find it was one of the (rare!) better examples with straight and even tree/panels etc. Still took it away for a re-flock and this is a teeny example of some of what he found inside...

FLOCKING.jpg


:eek: :eek: :eek:
 
My advice - Do not compromise when it comes to a saddle as you can make it very uncomfortable for you and your horse, it could affect his performance (even happy hacking) and potentially damage his back. Get a decent second hand English one (there are plenty out there) and get someone to fit it if you don’t know how to.
 
Did an article about this a few years ago as we owned a tack company, pilewood trees and used swabs and bandages were found in cheap saddles.

Also how many people buy a saddle and know how to check if the tree is damaged or broken?
 
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