Wintec for Wide Horse?

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kate081

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Am thinking of saving up for a wintec dressage saddle (Isabell Werth). The idea is that I'd have a dressage saddle I can use on both horses (one is MW & the other is W).

So my questions:

Are synthetic saddles OK on wide horses (IDx)?
How easy is it to change the gullet?
If you have one, do you like it?

Thanks
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I have an Isabell and love it, the gullets are easy to change but you'd be better with the flock version if you're swopping between horses rather than the cair. Provided your horses both have a good wither then you shouldn't encounter much problems.
 
I have a Wintec VSD and fits both mine on the same gullet luckily. they are pretty simple to change though if your handy with a screw driver.
I love mine, its great.
 
TBH you'll be lucky to get it to fit both horses flocking-wise, even if you do change the gullet. It's a pain in the backside changing the gullet so you certainly don't want to be doing it every day unless you're completely and utterly skint! It might work though, so worth a go - get a professional saddler's opinion though.
My tip is - get it off eBay. There's a very good second-hand market for Wintecs and you will likely be able to pick one up cheap as chips on t'internet
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I tried one on Bodey, slipped so bad felt like I was going to roll off. Went for an Ideal Jessica in the end. Might fit your neds though!
 
well they both have gp saddles already so wouldn't be changing it everyday. I'd probably go for the cair one & get the saddler to tell me how to adjust it as one of them had her gp converted to flair already. I saw them on ebay - good idea. Need to get the seat size right though - currently rattling around in my 17.5" for some reason...!
 
The normal wintecs (the 500 and 2000 versions) are terrible fit on flat, wide horses. The tree is too curved (and gets more curved as you make it wider) and the panels are too cambred (so the outside edge digs in). They are a TB saddle and that's all they fit.

Isabella werth saddle is very different, with a different shaped tree and panels (hence making me cringe when someone say the 500 AND the IW saddle both fit their horse perfectly- it can't!!) and generally a good fit on wider warmbloody types (what it was designed for). If your horse is wide but not hugely flat backed, the IW would be worth trying.

I dislike cair intensely. If the panels are a perfect fit for the horse, they're great, but that's unlikely. If they aren't quite perfect they are horrid as they just don't mould. 'Moulding', where the panels compress to suit the horses back, takes pressure (and thus has pressure points). In a flocked saddle the flocking moulds quickly and STAYS moulded. The pressure points are only applied for a short while. However, with Cair the panels never mould and those pressure points are applied over and over and over again as the panel springs back into shape as weight is shifted. It's not really an issue in Flair, where the panels are so soft that the pressure required to deform the panels is tiny, but Cair panels are much harder. By 'pressure points' I don't mean 'lumps in the flocking' type bumps, rather a saddle that's slightly too curved (and rocks with pressure in the middle) or one that's too flat (and bridges with pressure front and back)

I'd def go for with flocked panels BUT it means swapping the saddle between horses isn't a good idea.
 
I used to have a wintec for my IDxTB who is incredibly wide. I had the white gullet in (the widest) and it still wasn't right- as previously said they just aren't designed for wide horses.
I now have the Wintec Wide saddle and its a perfect fit! I also find the gullets quite easy to change.
 
The Isabelle Werth saddle with a Medium Wide gullet fits my horse superbly. He has withers but a fairly cobby back. Unfortunately it belongs to my mother and she only lets me borrow it occasionally! I adore riding in the saddle as well.
Cassandra
 
thanks for that. Definitely got me thinking. I had also heard that the original wintecs weren't much good for wider horses.

So maybe my plan of 1 dressage saddle between the two of them won't work. I didn't realise Cair wasn't the same as Flair. I love my flair saddle - my albion had to be converted to flair to allow for differences in my mare's back muscles. If Cair still leaves pressure points then it'll be no good for her.

I might still consider it for my IDx.. If only money grew on trees!!
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I wouldn't get the Cair either if I were you - incorrectly filled Cair panels can be hard as concrete, and cannot be adjusted properly (only by putting pads etc. in under/around them, not by adjusting the actual panels). I have loved every Flair saddle I have sat in but I would buy flock over Cair any day!
 
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