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Anyone Try a Kentaur Saddle??

I did a quick search and couldnt quite find what I was looking for. Currently I’m looking for a jumping saddle, prefered used as its not my main focus. I need a 16" with shorter flaps as I ride medium and large ponies and have a short leg.

I’m currently going to be trying a 16" used Antares custom saddle (2016 model) that has come in on a trade, but its a little more than I want to spend. But still doable…

I’m also interested and I’m trying to set up an appointment to try a Kentaur Kronos saddle, which is a fairly new line to them (2018)
https://www.exclusiveeq.com/product-page/kronos

The Kentaur saddle fitter does not have this model right now in a 16" so they are going to bring a 17.5" for me to sit in and a 16.5" Titan to try on my ponies (they don’t have any 16" right now). They are custom made, which is great since I can get it to fit me and my ponies, but since I can’t quite try the saddle I’m going to buy/get made, it worries me a little. I’m hoping someone has tried or heard of these saddles?

I have had the Antares rep come out a month ago to look at my ponies and fit us but she didnt have anything to fit at the time. I did ride in an older 16" saddle and I loved it, but for the price it didn’t quite make sense to me. I wanted to wait for something a bit newer and spend a little more $ to get more of something I liked. I currently have a 2013 Bruno and the 2002 Antares was selling for more than my Bruno. It just didn’t quite make $ sense to me so I’m waiting. Now they have a 2016 Antares but its about $1,000 more than I wanted to spend.

The Kentaur brand new, custom made will be a bit cheaper even than the Antares used saddle…But since I havent tried either of them yet (I have appt with both saddle makers next week) I was hoping to get some feedback from some people :slight_smile:

Thanks in advance!

I haven’t tried the Kentaurs, but what I HAVE seen is a bunch coming up for sale, nearly new, with phrases like “doesn’t fit horse” or “can’t be fitted to horse” or similar. I would be cautious because of this. I think there may be a rep in my general area, so maybe that’s why I see them come up, but I’d be worried about seeing so many new/nearly new saddles for sale due to this - and it’s not people buying new horses that the saddle doesn’t fit, it’s that the saddle can’t be made to fit the existing horse.

Thank you SolarFlare! This is the type of info I want to hear. I really know nothing about the Kentaurs as I don’t know anyone who has one. I also have a rep thats really close so I keep seeing things on facebook from her, but I have not heard any feedback from an actual customer.

I just took a quick look at the saddles online from one of the dealers in Ontario, as I wasn’t sure if they were flocked or foam. It appears you can order either way, but I saw this:

Once delivery is accepted there are no refunds on custom saddles.

I’m not sure what qualifies as “accepted” but personally I would want a qualified fitter and not a brand rep checking for fit - but I’m guessing if you take delivery of the saddle, then get a fitter out who says it does not fit, you’re out of luck. Maybe that’s what is happening and why we’re seeing them come up for sale?

I’ll say I haven’t seen many pop up lately, but not sure if that’s because less are selling or they are fitting better.

Kentaur is a mid range saddle, I believe Australian brand. The few I have seen, seemed to be built decently well.

@sheltona, I think they’re Czech?
http://www.kentaur.cz

Yes, Czech. I had a dressage saddle from them and it was a decent saddle for the price (IIRC they were pretty reasonable, like $1,200?). I tried a jump saddle but found the balance truly awful for me. We had a local gal that was selling them but she wasn’t a true saddle fitter - just had a few to try and you could buy those or order something but it was kind of up to you to decide what size and so on. If I happened upon one that I liked, I’d be willing to buy, but can’t say I’d be willing to order custom and take a chance it might not be right if they really won’t do refunds, as someone posted above.

Kentaur has serious quality control issues.

@Melissa.Van Doren - Thats not good to hear. Have you seen one or did someone tell you they have quality issues? What are the issues?

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I believe Melissa is connected with The Farmhouse, an excellent tack shop in SC. If she says it has quality control issues, I would pass that brand up.

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I’ve retired from the Farm House, but Yes… I’ve closely inspected/sat in both dressage and jump models. Among the most frequent problems were panels (on new saddles) that were not stuffed or stitched on symmetrically.

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Thank you Melissa! I had them come out yesterday and I tried out their new Kronos saddle. I loved the look of it and it was comfortable. Seemed to be well made but they didn’t have my size of saddle to try. They only had it in an 18" and I need a 16". So it was a bit dissapointing to not to be able to see what the right size would look like/feel like. It makes me really nervous to just buy one custom hoping it fits me and my ponies when its done.

I will be trying the used Antares on Wednesday, and if all goes well, I will be purchasing that saddle :slight_smile:

Thanks everyone for your help!

No experience with Kentaur saddles but I, as well as others, have had bad experiences with that company. I definitely do not recommend dealing with them.

Thank you everyone! I have decided to not go with Kentaur after listening to some of your reviews. I did purchase the 2016 Antares and so far I love it!! FIts me and my ponies really well :slight_smile:

I’m surprised by these posts. I have heard nothing but great things.

Is it possible you are thinking of Centaur, @Melissa.Van Doren ?

They’re easily confused… Centaur definitely has control issues - very low quality tack, my personal opinion having worked in Inventory/Quality Control for a tack store.

I must say the Kentur Kronos was a really nice quality saddle. I saw no flaws, it was comfy and I stuck to it like glue.

The issues I had with them is I really had to get it made/paid for and I would not have sat in anything before I purchased. They don’t tend to have small saddles for me to try, so they brought out an 18" which was huge for me and my pony. It was hard to tell if I would like it in a smaller size since I couldnt try one.

They took lots of photos and thought that a 16.5" would be perfect for us but I had to pay for it now. I was worried that I may not like it and the fit may not have been what I liked. It was a tough call.

So I decided to go with the saddle that I knew fit me and has a good reputation (not that Kentaur doesnt, they just arent as well known over here).

I do appreciate everyones comments on here, and though I did take the good and bad all in, my deciding factor just made the most sense to me in my situation :slight_smile:

Thanks again for everyone chiming in. I really do appreciate it!

No confusion.

I’ve ridden in a couple. Not my cup of tea, personally, as they have a wide twist. And, I felt my legs were in two different positions.

Aesthetically, the leather struck me as functionally sturdy, not soft, and very difficult to break in, always having that ‘is this really leather?’ look about it. (I want the saddle to mold to me…the Kentaur panels remained straight and stiff, even while the seat showed signed of wear).

Caveat…It’s been a couple of years since I’ve sat in one, so maybe they’ve changed.

Well, we had a fitter out and discovered our beautiful and comfortable Anatares has a crooked tree. Fitter said she has several clients that were found to have crooked trees on their Antares. Yes, it can happen with any brand. But the price you pay the even a used one leaves your mouth on the floor when you have been subjecting your horse to a crooked tree and a sore back as a result. :frowning:

Fitter pulled out a Kentaur which I had never seen and no knowledge of. It’s built with a wider tree and wool panels so easy to adjust on site. Our horse had the most beautiful transitions in the saddle which told us he was comfortable and that’s all that matters. It’s a demo, so new basically and will need oiled, but the horse’s movement tells the tale.
He is 17h wide but with a higher wither. This saddle will finally give him the clearance he needs so we can fill in the dip above his scapula. I loved the Antares but ultimately, even aside from crooked tree, it can’t be easily adjusted and that is hard to overlook. I am looking forward to no more sore back!!

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