I am looking to get a new trail saddle for my arab. Just curious what the best fitting saddle you have used was. Looking for something inexpensive too. I feel like saddles fit my guy great and then over time no longer work well anymore.
I went treeless and my horse is a million times happier.
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I have a Stuebben AP, semi-custom for my high withered, round bodied “pear shaped” Arab. Works very well for us, no matter what we’re doing.
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I had an Abetta Arab tree saddle that fit my guy well. He was super particular and sensitive so to find a saddle that fit was not easy.
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Personally, bareback was so much smoother and more comfortable than any saddle on my broad backed (fat) Arab.
I did ride one Arab in a Jeffries saddle that was the best saddle I’ve ever ridden in on an Arab. It’s a hunt seat. I can’t find the model on the web, but I recall it had a blue colored button on it.
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Bob Marshall for my previous horse. It’s too roll-y on the Arab/QH so I bought a Big Horn Evolution.
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One of my Arabs goes in a Jeffries falcon hawk saddle, the other requires a hoop tree- so needed a black county saddle Equinox. One goes in a wintec Isabel, on in a thornhill Vienna II. I also have a crates FQHB trail that fit 3 of them quite well.
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I’m sure you must realize that there is no such thing as a saddle that fits all or even most Arabians. There are so many back types and shapes in this breed and any breed of equine. If you described your horses back conformation and length of saddle bearing area or even better, provide photos of your horse, then cothers could suggest saddles that MIGHT fit your horse.
Personally I switched to treeless saddles a long time ago as I found that a flexible saddle combined with a good insert pad lets me custom fit the saddle to the horse and make alterations to the fit as needed. I’ved tried a lot of treeless saddles and found a few that have worked best for me and my horses. I would never claim they would work for all horses or all people but I do prefer a saddle or saddle/pad that can be changed to fit the horse AND has a flexible base.
Bonnie
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I like the synthetic/leather combo big horn saddles. They can be picked up used for under $400 and come with a tree that fits most arabs (but not the whiskey barrel ones with table top backs). It is lightweight, has leather in the right wear places, you can swap them out to english rigging, and it provides plenty of security for when your horse spooks at a rock.
I am not a fan of the treeless saddles for arabs with withers.
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