Without quality pictures of your horse, it’s impossible (and irresponsible!) for any of us to suggest a saddle for you. We can tell you which brands we’ve liked, what has fit (or not fit!) different horses, but without seeing the horse that the saddle needs to fit, our opinions are just clutter for your mind. First and foremost, saddles must fit the horse. Then they must fit the rider. Style and popularity are much farther down on the list.
I was a lesson kid/working student for many years. I had been riding nearly 15 years (including leasing several horses) before I bought my own. And even then it didn’t fit the horse I bought it for and I lost money trying to resell it.
FWIW, I recently bought a Wintec to fit my leased mare. On the advice of TWO saddle fitters. Mare had been out of work for several years and over 6 months, her shape changed so much that the Wintec that had been recommended, no longer fit. I swapped gullet plates. I had the CAIR panels converted to wool and custom flocked for the mare. I bought a shimmable half pad. Still no luck. I was able to resell the saddle on FB fairly easily, but I lost $100+ on the whole transaction and that’s with finding a steal of a deal initially. I’m currently saddle shopping again for her, but I’m very aware that as she continues to get fitter, we may be selling/re-shopping again in the future. I’m prepared to take a loss on each purchase, each time I have the saddle fitter out. Buying a saddle seems really easy (and it is), but what most people don’t tell you is how easy it is to buy yourself a problem instead of a solution.
