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saddle shopping

3K views 11 replies 7 participants last post by  cheval noir 
#1 ·
It gets very confusing saddle shopping. I am looking for a shorter flap approx 16"for my round Friesian cross which is 15H and I do not have long legs but I ran across a bargain on a Hans Biglajzer saddle with longer flaps. I am waiting on the measurement to know for sure but is flap length important? I have not ridden this horse before as she is just coming 4 and I have never ridden dressage except for a few lessons last winter
 
#9 ·
Did you actually sit in it to determine if it was right for your conformation? There are a few different models of Albions. Some models have a narrow twist, some a wide twist. If you need a narrow twist and get a wide one, it will be horrible. Likewise if you need a wide one and get a narrow twist it will also be horrible. Because of your seat in a dressage saddle it matters more than other styles of riding.
 
#10 ·
Regarding the flap length, if you have really short legs and have a normal or long lenght flap, it will be way down under you calf and interfer with your ability to put your lower leg. I think that the correct length is no lower than mid calf at lowest.
Albion makes a very nice saddle. I love a narrow twist. I heard once that women with kind of "chunky" upper thighs will be happier in a narrow twist and viceversa for the lanky gals. Don't know if that is a fact, but it sure suits me.
 
#11 ·
I have not found a narrow twist on the wider trees. Is it possible that they are more on the narrower trees. I have not sat in one but some I can get on trial. There are not any tack shops that have dressage saddles for several hundred miles to even sit in something new. This is my starter saddle and they seem to have good resale so maybe in a few yrs I will switch to something else.
 
#12 ·
From personal experience I know that the SLK model has a narrow twist in the wide tree.

And if you like the saddle and it fits you, fits your horse and looks good enough if you want to show what more could you want? Just because someone else has a "better" or custom saddle doesn't mean it would be better for *you.*
 
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