Treeless saddles - info and advice please!

[saltires]

I am looking at buying a treeless saddle for my chunky welsh A mare who is typical barrel shaped with little wither shape.
Money is a bit tight at the moment so the more expensive treeless saddles are completely out of the question (even a second hand one!) but the Libra Trek and Trail are within budget -
has anyone used one of these? I don't know anyone locally who has and so can't 'have a go' on one, so to speak, so any advice would be very gratefully received.
Also, does anyone know the difference between the Trek and the Trail?
Many thanks in advance!

 

[welsh_monster]

It's completely up to you and your horse which saddle you get! Get your local saddler to come out and see what type fits best. I have a treeless personally as nothing conventional would actually fit my brick outhouse of a Welsh D, so had a treeless made especially for her shape.

As for "having a go on one" your saddler should bring a variety of saddles to try out if they are satisfied it fits correctly. Although you may struggle to find a saddler who is willing to supply treelesses, I don't know many!

Never, ever buy a saddle until you are completely satisifed it fits and your pony is comfortable in it. Even treeless have to be fitted, they are not one size fits all as a lot of people I know think!!!

 

[Kenzo]

I've used the Torsion and the Solutions Saddles treeless and both were very good, both comfortable, expect the the Solutions one is far better looking, some treeless saddles are extremely ugly looking!

Having said that, looks are not important, what is, is knowing that it fits your horse/pony. Some people will not touch them with a barge pole and quite rightly so, as they can do as much damage as an ill fitting tree'd saddle...in fact long term damage to the spine, not just pressure points which can be caused by an ill fitting tradition saddle with a tree.

The only good advice anyone can offer is with any saddle get it checked out by a qualified saddle fitter and then get it checked out again by another saddle fitter...and again by a pro until you are totally satisfied by all three parties that it fits!

Treeless saddles do not bridge your horses spine so it is very important that you spend your money on a good treeless pad and on a saddle that comes with the options to change the fitting.

You also need to be a light and well balanced rider for a treeless and be lets say a little more considerate with your horses back, I wouldn't recommend one for heavy use but that is just my opinion.

They are brilliant if they fit and it might be worth taking your pony to a treeless demonstration to learn more about them, learn about your pony's back and what would suit him shape.

Also riding in a treeless is like riding bare back but with stirrups so you can't ride well bare back without stirrups and be in a safe and blanced position then I would not go there otherwise you will be in for a big shock!

You should not be put under any pressure to buy one as some of it is just sales talk, which is not going to help your pony!

Some saddlers are more open minded, some hate them, so I think your best off going to a saddler who fits and supplies both.

Hope that helps

 

[saltires]

Thank you for that WM, interesting to hear that (contrary to how they are portrayed) that they must still be fitted.

Unfortunately, my saddler doesn't have any but I've found a website which will allow a trial so I think I'll go for that and arrange for saddler to be there to see what he thinks.

How do you find riding on one? And more importantly, what does your horse think? Would you go back to a treed saddle on any other horse?
I'll post the outcome of which way I end up going - the perfect saddle is out there somewhere for my mare!

 

[concino]

I have an SBS Enlightened Equitation saddle and it puts you in a very good position. I have ( in over 40 years) never sat in a more comfortable saddle. This saddle would fit both my 16 HH + horses and the Welsh D. Yes, it is always preferable to try a saddle first, particularly for a horse/pony known to be a difficult shape but the saddle mentioned, seemed to suit my very different shaped horses very well.

 

[hpenn]

Hey y'all!

I don't know if you'all have heard of Hilason saddles. They are very comfortable and pricing is very convinient. They dont cost much and the product is superb. I bought 3 saddles from them so far and everytime I am a happy customer. Honestly, the great thing about treeless saddles is that it fits almost every type of horse comfortably. The gullet area is very flexible for these saddles as well. I highly recommend these saddles

 

[Tinypony]

I've used a lot of treeless saddles, and sadly my experience has been that you get what you pay for. I know a lot of people rave about the cheaper ones, but I've seen a lot of them in use and have reservations. Also best to get any treeless fitted.