Budget saddles

[soloudinhere]

[QUOTE=Scribbler;8936577]
The best saddle is the saddle that fits your horse best. Some brands will just never work for some horses, because of the shape of the tree.

After that, it has to put you in a decent balance, which involves the depth and placement of the seat versus where the stirrup bars sit, and the configuration of the panels.

Some people luck out with their very low budget saddles, and love their synthetic thoroughgoods. On the other hand, some people think their saddles (low budget or high budget) fit really well, but they don’t.

I prefer to buy used high-quality tack, but it is true that used high-quality tack is still more expensive than used budget tack! On the other hand, I think that the really high-quality saddles hold up longer, and can be fixed up, reflocked, etc., more effectively. When I look at my friend’s second hand as-new $500 Thoroughgood, though it may be technically flocked with wool or “wool” (ie, fibres not foam), I don’t see a way for the panels to be opened up and reflocked the way I did my second-hand, much older, “good used condition” $900 County.[/QUOTE]
Thorowgoods are flocked with 100% Jacobs wool, and typically new saddles are not shipped with flocking slits and they are cut by the saddler doing the fitting. I have two thorowgoods in the barn right now and both did come with two flocking adjustment slits, so I’m not sure there is a basis for your accusation that the thorowgoods are not flocked with “real wool” and can’t be adjusted. It’s not true.

[M_O_Connor]

My best advice to someone shopping a saddle on a budget is to buy the best USED saddle that you can afford in your price range!

And if you can bring yourself to ride in a flat as a pancake saddle, you can get a really, really nice used saddle for $300 or under. Some in super good shape (we have purchased 2 Crosby Sovereigns in the past few years, one for $250, one for $300. Neither had been used more than a few times, and were virtually new, the $300 one had never even been oiled and still had the factory wax on it (for years, apparently…).

[Hunter_Mom]

[QUOTE=Winding Down;8936130]
I would get a Pessoa, made in England. I got one for around $600 a few years ago, medium tree. It is comfortable, fits lots of horses, and my go-to saddle for just about all of the horses I ride. I do have a custom saddle for one horse but that is because I need the extra forward flap for eventing.

Here is a picture of the saddle:

http://www.myaushorse.com/uploads/1466231578-IMG_20160504_194518.jpg

Seriously wears like iron, has excellent balance, and very comfortable for almost any horse that isn’t excessively wide.

I also have bought and sold saddles through Middleburg Tack Exchange, mostly because I live down the road. I just scored a super little Stubben Rex pony saddle for $350 that is great for my no wither flat backed large pony.[/QUOTE]

If I’m not mistaken, that’s an N. Pessoa - pretty much the awesomest saddle ever. My trainer has one of these that fit my horse. She basically told me I’d have to pry it from her cold, dead hands. Thankfully, she did allow me to use it until we found a different one that fit Mare.