I’ve had mine (SE01) for 7 years and it’s still going strong. You can get the pommel lowered as I did when I first had mine made back in 2008.
[QUOTE=IPEsq;8502091]
The rep will roll their eyes, but CWD can do their saddles in wool. I almost went with that myself.[/QUOTE]
True, but given the difficulty they seem to have getting the transaction right with more standard/stock orders-- I don’t think they’d be my go-to choice for something outside the norm from them. Their customer service is just too awful, too frequently. And that’s on EASY orders!
[QUOTE=Melk;8501081]
This one is used. But priced at 7,600 plus tax which I’ve come to see is quite high after comparing similar used models.[/QUOTE]
Considering they start at about 8000 new in the long run wouldn’t it be better to get a new one with all the customizable options to your liking?
I have also heard that their “pro panels” can be a little iffy on horses backs, making them sore ect. But that is ANY saddle that isn’t fitted correctly. Its a tough spot for trainers who need to ride a huge pool of horses per day and a half pad can only fix so much. I also looked at CWD’s when looking to get a “real” saddle for the first time and I came away with a used devocoux for a number of reasons including fit, the leather and some other things. I got a great deal at Rolex 3DE (I used to event before moving to the south) and would highly suggest to look there if interested. The show isnt half bad either 
Depending on where you are, there is a woman up here in Ontario who gets a large number of high end saddles for a steal of a deal. Take advantage of the low loonie. She’s on fb. Pm me if you’re interested in her name. She’s well known and ships all over North America.
[QUOTE=vxf111;8502318]
True, but given the difficulty they seem to have getting the transaction right with more standard/stock orders-- I don’t think they’d be my go-to choice for something outside the norm from them. Their customer service is just too awful, too frequently. And that’s on EASY orders![/QUOTE]
I’ve had pretty good luck with customer service, although I wish I hadn’t needed to use it. I had a faulty cheek piece on a bridle replaced, no questions, and other than dealing with some incompetence on getting a UPS label for the saddle repair, that was easy too. Now, I wish quality control was better so the things wouldn’t have broken in the first place. After all, all of my other tack is a minimum of 18 years old and in good shape. I have seen a couple of well done wool saddles of theirs. But there seems to be an art to writing up the sales ticket to get your customizations actually accounted for. The thing with the OP is that they could get wool in a fairly standard configuration at this stage and worry about re-fitting when the horse is older.
I love my CWD. It is about 7-8 years old now. I am just now having to contact the Rep to see about changing it up for my new horse. Fingers crossed this goes well. I personally would never buy an expensive saddle for a young horse. And whoever mentioned Black County above, I agree … I bought one for a lease horse for a quarter of the price of the CWD and really liked it.
We love our CWD saddles. Our rep has been wonderful and let me tell you I paid a lot less than that new in early 2015 for buffalo… I would look on Facebook into some of the saddle groups. There is one gal in particular who has great inventory and I did a trail with her on some equipment and she was more than fair.
[QUOTE=IPEsq;8502091]
The rep will roll their eyes, but CWD can do their saddles in wool. I almost went with that myself.[/QUOTE]
Have you had this done? My trainer moved away from CWD for this reason, they refused to do wool flocking. Another of her students had one re-flocked with wool by an independent saddle fitter because again, CWD refused to do it. Maybe it’s just my area, but I was under the impression that they would not use wool in their saddles.
[QUOTE=IPEsq;8502382]
I’ve had pretty good luck with customer service, although I wish I hadn’t needed to use it. I had a faulty cheek piece on a bridle replaced, no questions, and other than dealing with some incompetence on getting a UPS label for the saddle repair, that was easy too. Now, I wish quality control was better so the things wouldn’t have broken in the first place. After all, all of my other tack is a minimum of 18 years old and in good shape. I have seen a couple of well done wool saddles of theirs. But there seems to be an art to writing up the sales ticket to get your customizations actually accounted for. The thing with the OP is that they could get wool in a fairly standard configuration at this stage and worry about re-fitting when the horse is older.[/QUOTE]
The stories are legion and Sammicat’s really outragous experience involved the rep who would be my “local” rep.
[QUOTE=vxf111;8503195]
The stories are legion and Sammicat’s really outragous experience involved the rep who would be my “local” rep.[/QUOTE]
After reading some of the other custom stories, I feel very lucky that my custom order from CWD in 2014 showed up on time and exactly as ordered, and has been great. The rep has so much to do with the whole experience, too bad my rep who was based out of Florida apparently no longer works for them!
[QUOTE=vxf111;8503195]
The stories are legion and Sammicat’s really outragous experience involved the rep who would be my “local” rep.[/QUOTE]
I wound up dealing with the California office directly most of the time. My rep just gave me their number.
[QUOTE=one1horse;8503075]
Have you had this done? My trainer moved away from CWD for this reason, they refused to do wool flocking. Another of her students had one re-flocked with wool by an independent saddle fitter because again, CWD refused to do it. Maybe it’s just my area, but I was under the impression that they would not use wool in their saddles.[/QUOTE]
I decided to go with custom foam panels, but my rep said if I really wanted wool (insert eye roll here?), they would do it.
