I’m interested to hear what others experience has been regarding saddles that have adjustable gullets and eventing. I feel eventers tend to spend more hours in the saddle and am concerned about durability, longevity, horse’s comfort etc. I am specifically looking at saddles that are also wool flocked so I have a bit more wiggle room as far as fit goes. I have two OTTBs, one off the track a few years and another only a few months. I had a saddle that fit the older OTTB 6mos off the track but fast forward two years, the fit is no longer the best. Thanks!
I unintentionally ended up with an adjustable gullet. I didn’t buy it with the intention of swapping between different sized horses - it’s just the saddle my fussy Morgan happened to like best! If it helps, I needed a MW with WIDE rails in the back, as my horse isn’t big, but gets very broad backed towards the end of his spine. I ended up with the Hastilow Concept. It is wool flocked, and has a warranty on the tree. We’ve only had it for 8 months or so, so I can’t speak to the longevity yet.
As I said, my princess and the pea horse chose this one. Fortunately for me, it also happens to feel like sitting on a cloud 
I have two adjustable gullet saddles that are well over 15 years old and still look good and are in daily use. One is a Wintec Isabell and one is the bates Isabel. The bates one is a type of textured leather they no longer offer (and I got a good deal on it as a demo as it never really caught on) that has worn like absolute iron and looks practically new. I’ve had saddle fitters check the trees of both every year or two make sure nothing is giving way or showing bad wear and have had no issues.
I’ve been beating the life out of a Pessoa Legacy Event XP with an adjustable gullet for about 6 years now and other than the leather being faded from the elements and use and the wool needing some expected maintenance, it’s held up super.
I am pro-adjustable because I ride a revolving population of young TBs and they have been practical workhorses for me. But I don’t love any of the current ones on the market. I have a Bates Eventer saddle that must be over 20 years old and still ticking. It isn’t a very comfy ride for me (HARD seat) but that bleeding saddle wears like iron and will… not… die… The leather doesn’t even wear or fade, it’s quite weird. Mine is wool flocked; I dislike the panel design intensely yet none of the horses I’ve ridden it in have shown the slightest hint of objection. I also have a Wintec Pro Dressage that I ride uber-greenies in, and that sucker looks as good today as it did the day I purchased it used at least 10 years ago. Well, to the extent you can say any Wintec looks good. Sorry for that diss, Weatherbeeta - I am frequently very grateful for the high coefficient of friction you offer. 
I wish some other brands would make adjustable saddles, as none of the current off-the-rack ones suit me or the horses I ride. Most have sad thin panels of a shape that sux for TB-type horses. Pessoa is probably closest with their various ABS panel options, but the seats/geometry don’t work for me. The Hastilow looks pretty nice by comparison, and I assume for that price it comes with some degree of semi-customization? I tried a Kent and Masters jump saddle at one point, and was terribly unimpressed in so many ways. Fairfax has one also - never seen it in person, though.
Overall, while I have great appreciation for the merits of adjustable saddles in green/training horses they would not be my choice for permanent tack in a non-green horse simply because fixed-tree saddles offer a much wider array of choices for both horse and rider.
I tried Bates a long time ago, but it just did not fit my horse right and it pitched me forward. I really like the Thorowgoods. They fit TBs very well and are adjustable & wool flocked to boot. My leg is not right for their jump model, so I ended up going with a used higher end saddle which is what I should have done from day one. The price point is very nice too and they have the Kent & Masters if you want a nicer still product.
I have(had) a Toulouse with the Genesis system. After owing it for only three years, the dang thing broke on me two weeks ago! This is a saddle that has NEVER been mistreated and asked to work only minimally. It was purchased to be used on a young horse who never really did more than putz around the ring and go on an occasional walking trail ride or two. Hardly the demand that really eventing would make on a saddle! Well, the tree gave out while I was simply cantering around the ring. Heard/felt a pop and the pommel dropped out from under me! Toulouse has a 10 year warranty on their tree. However good luck getting their customer service rep to email you back! I would highly suggest NEVER buying a Toulouse product. It seems like a good idea, but is not worth the hassle!
Hastilow are custom saddles. You can get different types of leather, blocks, flap length, ect. Fairfax are great saddles with nice leather. That has been my customer complaints about the Kent and Masters is the leather not feeling that nice. However, that is one of the ways that they keep the prices down and you are not paying $3000+ for them. The Hastilows fit more of a straighter back like the Kent and Master Original Series and the S-Series and the Fairfax are a bit more curved. For adjustable saddles, these are my favorite as a saddle fitter which is why I sell them.
By adjustable, I assume you mean like the what you can get with Wintec, Bates, down Pessoas, and Toulouses, yes? Not the trees in some brands that can be adjusted by a rep.
Here are a couple of my thoughts on them, having ridden in a few and dealt with a lot:
- tree fit boils down to a lot more than a inch wide plate in the head of the tree. While having that adjustability can help in some circumstances, if the panels are the wrong shape, etc, it really isn’t going to be worth it.
- “easy change” is a complete farce. While the process isn’t complicated, I have gotten legit workouts trying to change the plate in more than a few saddles (of a variety of brands, not just one in particular). It’s easier with two people, but the whole idea that you can quickly change gullets between horses is ludicrous. Nice concept for changing horses as they grow and develop ir if you tend to buy horses to flip. But then again, see my first thought. (I have less knowledge on the systems that you use a tool to crank the tree open or closed, but that mechanism makes me nervous…too many moving parts).
- horses change A LOT. Particularly off the track. No shock here that your custom fit saddle that was fit to your horse at 6 months off the track no longer fits. I bought my horse as 7 year old, three years off the track. He has changed TONS in the five years since, going through yearly cycles, even, as his body adjusts to more or less work, cold or hot weather, and career changes. Saddle fitting really is an ongoing process (why I have lots of pads as well as getting my saddle checked fairly regularly).
I’m not against these various saddles, but their claims should be taken with a grain (or a whole shaker’s worth) of salt. If they fit and they work, excellent. Just don’t expect them to solve all your problems.
[QUOTE=sheltona01;8807090]
Hastilow are custom saddles. You can get different types of leather, blocks, flap length, ect. Fairfax are great saddles with nice leather. That has been my customer complaints about the Kent and Masters is the leather not feeling that nice. However, that is one of the ways that they keep the prices down and you are not paying $3000+ for them. The Hastilows fit more of a straighter back like the Kent and Master Original Series and the S-Series and the Fairfax are a bit more curved. For adjustable saddles, these are my favorite as a saddle fitter which is why I sell them.[/QUOTE]
Thanks for this response, can you clarify what you mean by straighter back versus curved back?
I am struggling to find a saddle for my 3 year old, I thought my old stand-by Passier would work (the barn owner and I have 8 we can try in different sizes and widths) but his shoulders push the saddle back and then the pommel sits low. It would be nice if I do buy a saddle to have some adjustability because I can only guess that he will be changing shape with the seasons and with muscling etc.
When I hear straight back I also think flat back- a saw horse would be an example of a straight back- each thoracic vertebrae is the same “altitude” as it’s neighbor. When she said curved back it means that there’s more of a U shape to the back from withers through where the panels of the saddle sit (a sway back would be a crazy extreme version of a curved back )
Duramax, you are correct. There is more to it than that, but that is the basics of it.
I have a WOW saddle that I love. Just going around the lower levels right now, so it’s being used for both dressage and jumping (my Passier dressage saddle is collecting dust while it awaits me to send it out to be reflocked).
I’ve spent a lot of time in it and find it very comfortable. My trainer doesn’t really care for it, but that’s only because I have the XC seat on it which is FLAT.
Been riding in my Pessoa for about 7 years now. Has held up great. Love the option to change the gullet out as I ride young ponies and horses. Comes in handy!
