Hello,
I recently purchased a Cardanel Profile dressage saddle, it’s lovely and comfortable has short flaps for my little legs (I’m 5’1"), a generous spine channel and slightly cut back shoulder. I am currently awaiting my saddlefitter to come and check it out for my Haflinger. It’s in need of reflock I know that, but I feel something other than the need for flocking is off in the fit. I have been through saddle fitting woes with my haffy who has gone up several tree sizes in the 3 years I’ve owned him and have good general knowledge on fitting. I feel the rigging is the issue, specifically the point billet. Saddle features a point billet and a V billet. It’s lifting in the back a little bit even though I’ve added some padding up front to compensate for the need for flocking. I feel like it’s definitely billet placement. Is it possible to have a straight billet placed even though it came without the nylon webbing? Is it worth it? Will it alter the fit terribly? I have also written in to Cardanel with a serial # inquiry but they never responded, does anyone know how to decipher their #s? Serial # 618010801
Could anyone share some knowledge? 
Thank you for any and all help.
Are you asking if you can have a rear billet straight down instead of a v billet. That shouldn’t be an issue but the panel would need to be dropped in order to do it so it’s more of a job than just restitching. Sometimes a v billet can be manipulated with stitches. Ask your fitter.
I’ve gone the other way (had a point billet added to a saddle that didn’t have one) so if the saddle fitter agrees it would help the issue, they should be able to do it. IIRC (I no longer have the saddle), she left everything in place from the original billet configuration when she added the new one, so if I ever needed to switch billet placements again it would be a much cheaper/easier job.
I had several other things fixed or altered on the saddle at the same time, so I don’t remember what the total cost was, but it wasn’t unreasonable.
Just be aware that if you move the point billet back the saddle may get pulled forward if your adorable Sherman has the round pony barrel.
I have a horse with the well sprung Arab ribcage and a forward girth groove. He needs the point billet as one of the small army of measures I take to keep the saddle back from his eject button. When his saddle is too wide over his withers the back bounces.
Which is to say, if the saddle fittter can flock the saddle to fit adorable Sherman there may not be a bounce to worry about. 
Edited to add: I could use my other horse’s saddle on the one I mentioned above until he built a bit of muscle. At which point the back of the saddle bounced, and there was nothing I could do to make it fit properly with bits of padding.
The photo is too small for me to see detail but a “balance strap”, one which is at the rear of the saddle helps with stability of the saddle, laterally and longitudinally, as long as the general fit is good. Dropping the panel means that the stitching is undone at the front and rear of the saddle between the panel and the tree so that a web or billet can be affixed to the tree itself. It’s a common thing to do and most fitters should be able to do that. It may not need that, depending on the set up but as I said, I couldn’t see it.
Just to give you all an update after meeting with my fitter- turns out the saddle is just too wide for Sherman. I now have an Ideal Jessica dressage coming on trial. I don’t know anything about Ideals or that model. The Cardanel is a 17.5" XW tree with 16" flaps, now for sale. If you know anyone looking send them my way
