I bought a new western saddle today, and when I tried it on Flash, the back of the saddle pops up by about an inch when its cinched tight. All the measurements are correct, and it seems to fit in the shoulder area, and also has back clearance when someone is sitting in the saddle. Is it normal for new western saddles to do this until they're broken in?
My boy's the type of horse who will not move or listen to cues with a poor fitting saddle, and I rode him around at a walk, and also lunged him at a trot and canter. He moved great and listened to cues, so I know its not bugging him. The sweat distribution was also even. Once someone is sitting in the saddle, the back goes down like it should. You can also fit your hand in between the saddle and shoulder area when someone's sitting on him, so I know its not pinching. Does anyone know why it is doing this? Posted via Mobile Device
I am new to western saddles but I have been told that if the saddle is designed to have a back cinch it should be used. I recently bought a little western saddle for my granddaughters little pony and it fitted well, except it lifted at the back at the trot until I used the back cinch and it was fine! I love my western saddle! It's a Clinton Anderson designed one and fits my Arab very well!
A rear cinch is there for roping, not for holding the saddle down. If the saddle is full rigged, with the cinch all the way forward, it will sometimes lift some in the rear without weight on it. My Circle Y is set up so I can choose full rigged, 7/8 or 3/4 rigging. With 3/4 rigging, it doesn't lift in the back.
It can also be caused by a saddle that doesn't fit, and then the solution is a saddle that DOES fit.
It fits the same with the saddle pad off as well. Looks comfy in the shoulders, but lifts slightly in the back. I know if your tree's too wide it can do that, but the problem is that this tree seems to fit the shoulder area fine. I've tried tons of saddles on him, and this one seems to fit the best. If I went with a smaller tree, it would pinch his shoulders. Then I thought that maybe the back part was too curved, but when your sitting in it, he has plenty of back clearance- not too much mind you, but enough that its not touching his spine anywhere. I only found one saddle that seemed to fit him well and didn't lift up in the back, it was 40 years old but unfortunately its my BO's favorite saddle and she would never part with it. We took measurements off that saddle, and this one has those exact same measurements and fits exactly the same in the shoulder area. I'm stumped. Posted via Mobile Device
Just saw the above post. His front cinch is located at the line closest to the horn. It came with a leather for the rear since- not removable, but I've never used a rear since and didn't think it was needed for trail riding. Posted via Mobile Device
Not sure what brand it is- think it said Circle P or something (not a Circle Y though). The pad was very thin as I wanted to get a good feel of how it fit him. Posted via Mobile Device
Lol. Thats true. My large rear will certainly keep the back down. Its very comfy and secure to ride, and Flash seems to like it. I just want to make sure I'm not missing something in the fit that will cause problems down the road. I worry too much about him sometimes. Posted via Mobile Device
For normal trail riding, the rear cinch isn't necessary. Many horses have never used one so be careful if you use yours and try your horse in a round pen or lunge line at all gaits before climbing on board.
I would also go to a thicker pad if you are going to do a lot of trail riding. My saddle was custom made and fits my horse wonderfully but I still use a 1", 5 Star pad. I primarily trail ride and we go out for a few hours on a lot of diverse trails.
Circle P is a rather low end saddle that is sold quite a bit on line or through many of the mail order stores. It isn't a saddle that I would put a great deal of time on. If you are going to be riding regularly for a few hours, there are better saddles. It isn't one of the worse - such as the starter saddles off ebay - but it isn't a great deal better.
I don't ride that often\ for that long. Maybe three hours a week total. I'll have some pictures by tonight. I'll also try a thicker pad to see if that helps. Posted via Mobile Device
Ok, so I got some photos today- let me know what you think. I also tried a thicker pad, and that seemed to help a lot.
This one is when he's tightly cinched.
This one is with the thicker pad
And these ones are in the saddle
I couldn't get any without a saddle pad, as if the saddle gets dirty, I cannot return it.
It seems like if the cinch was back a bit more, it would fit much better.
Alrighty then. I'll take er back and keep looking. Unfortunately, its really hard to find something around here that's just that little bit narrower without getting something that's too small without getting one custom made (which is 2500 at least). There's a tack store 2 hrs away that I could take a run up to this weekend. May get lucky and find something about an inch narrower. Posted via Mobile Device
Unfortunately no, we only have one saddle maker in the area, and all his saddles are very expensive (cheapest at 2500). Mind you they are very nice saddles, but I don't have that kind of money right now. 1000 is my limit for a saddle. Posted via Mobile Device
You might try talking to one of the online stores. Some of them are decent about making recommendations. That one looks too wide (horizontal width) in the front. It also looks too far forward.
Buying new, the Abetta is pretty cheap and comes in a lot of different sizes. Another option would be to contact Steele. They make the trees for a lot of saddles (Dakota & Big Horn, for example). They can send you forms shaped to their trees, and you would then be able to tell someone who uses Steele trees what size tree you need for your horse.
Thanks for the links. I'll have to check them out. It doesn't help that his back is so flat either. I'm having one heck of a time finding something that fits properly. Posted via Mobile Device
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