I have to accept the fact that I no longer have a 14" butt and need to find a saddle with a larger seat. I bought my old saddle used for a song, which was great at the time but means I can’t afford the same saddle with a bigger seat :(.
What do you think about the fit of this Fallis saddle on my mare? She didn’t go any better or worse in it, and I quite like the feel of it. Thoughts?
Why do you have so much padding on her? It looks like that saddle fits decently without all of that.
[QUOTE=Dani;8899380]
Why do you have so much padding on her? It looks like that saddle fits decently without all of that.[/QUOTE]
I think it looks like more padding than it actully is. The felt is maybe 1/4" thick and the gel pad is pretty thin too. They’re definitely old and used hard though, which causes the edges to flare out a bit, making them look thicker than they are.
It looks pretty promising to me.
Ok, the way I saw the padding it looked like a pair of at least 1/2 inch pads. The saddle fit looks pretty good, how does it feel when you run your hand under it?
Personally I would ask my vet for help about saddle fit.
[QUOTE=Dani;8899677]
Ok, the way I saw the padding it looked like a pair of at least 1/2 inch pads. The saddle fit looks pretty good, how does it feel when you run your hand under it?[/QUOTE]
I think it feels pretty good? It feels like there’s a lot of room in the pocket behind the shoulder if that makes sense. Not sure if that’s a positive thing that allows for shoulder movement or a negative thing that indicates bridging…
Ugh, why are Western saddles so dang hard to fit? Out here, the rubric seems to simply be “If it doesn’t make the horse lame, it fits.”
That could be a sign of the saddle not properly fitting, it looks like you are placing it far enough back, so the weight distribution should be pretty even through the entire saddle.
[QUOTE=sirbeastmom;8899311]
What do you think about the fit of this Fallis saddle on my mare? She didn’t go any better or worse in it, and I quite like the feel of it. Thoughts?
https://goo.gl/photos/14aK9Tq7JhKzGXyF8[/QUOTE]
Can you post pictures WITHOUT the pads?
Personally, hard to tell for sure with the pads on.
[QUOTE=beau159;8902102]
Can you post pictures WITHOUT the pads?
Personally, hard to tell for sure with the pads on.[/QUOTE]
If you scroll down, there are a few pics without pads. I’ll be able to get some more photos sans pads tomorrow.
I LOVE my Fallis saddles!
That said, how old is this one? Because for awhile there, his trees were a bit narrow. The first one I got, I think late '04, didn’t fit my gelding I got in '08 - it was too narrow for him - when I contacted John about a new saddle he told me that back when the original one was made his tree guy was running narrow.
If you have a serial number on it you could contact John for more information on your saddle.
[QUOTE=Obsidian Fire;8902683]
I LOVE my Fallis saddles!
That said, how old is this one? Because for awhile there, his trees were a bit narrow. The first one I got, I think late '04, didn’t fit my gelding I got in '08 - it was too narrow for him - when I contacted John about a new saddle he told me that back when the original one was made his tree guy was running narrow.
If you have a serial number on it you could contact John for more information on your saddle.[/QUOTE]
So nice to meet another Fallis fan who is also nearby. So… are Fallis saddles like Crosby saddles, meaning that most of the old ones were built for narrower horses than are the modern breeds?
Also, if you have one, can I come sit in it some time? I want to see if I really want one still. I did 25 years ago. I’ll trade you an as-of-yet-unborn kitten for that ride, lol.
OP, in the shot of the saddle naked on your horse, looking straight down the gullet, I think the tree’s angle is wrong— too narrow at the top and a lot of flair (bottom edge of the tree comes up off the horse’s shoulder). Ideally, the front of the saddle’s skirt (and the tree inside it) should be parallel to the horse’s body where it sits. So if you have the saddle in the right place on the horse’s back, look for the saddle’s skirts to nicely follow the shape of the horse.** IIRC, this one might be too narrow at the top on the cantle side of things, too. Does it seem to have a steeper “roof line” at the top than your horse’s back and leave a gap there? Sometimes I think it’s helpful to think of horse backs and trees in the cantle section as being like rooflines-- each is somewhere on the continuum between and A-frame roof and a flat roof. Saddle and horse’s back should have the same degree of curve.
If this saddle is too narrow near the apex of the tree, it would make sense that it was too narrow behind, too. That would mean the tree-maker had an overall narrower horse in mind when he designed it.
** I take lots of this from fitting saddles in English world. I still put a Western saddle on a horse the way I would an English saddle. I place in on the horse’s back (naked) a tad ahead of where it will go and I slide it back. You know you have a pretty good fit if it stops sliding decisively in one spot; it sort of snaps into place. That means this is where the tree and the horse’s back match-- in all of their various curves. IMO, the more definitive and sure the stop, the better the fit.
The skirt of the saddle is ahead of the leading edge of the tree; it can have the back of the scapula slide under it a bit. I go with that “here’s where the saddle stops” metric. That’s because regardless of padding or placement or whathaveyou, this is where physics is going to have the saddle come to rest.
Hope this helps. Fallis saddles are great on the “top half” where the rider sits; I hope they are great at fitting horses, too.
[QUOTE=mvp;8902850]
So nice to meet another Fallis fan who is also nearby. So… are Fallis saddles like Crosby saddles, meaning that most of the old ones were built for narrower horses than are the modern breeds?
Also, if you have one, can I come sit in it some time? I want to see if I really want one still. I did 25 years ago. I’ll trade you an as-of-yet-unborn kitten for that ride, lol.
OP, in the shot of the saddle naked on your horse, looking straight down the gullet, I think the tree’s angle is wrong— too narrow at the top and a lot of flair (bottom edge of the tree comes up off the horse’s shoulder). Ideally, the front of the saddle’s skirt (and the tree inside it) should be parallel to the horse’s body where it sits. So if you have the saddle in the right place on the horse’s back, look for the saddle’s skirts to nicely follow the shape of the horse.** IIRC, this one might be too narrow at the top on the cantle side of things, too. Does it seem to have a steeper “roof line” at the top than your horse’s back and leave a gap there? Sometimes I think it’s helpful to think of horse backs and trees in the cantle section as being like rooflines-- each is somewhere on the continuum between and A-frame roof and a flat roof. Saddle and horse’s back should have the same degree of curve.
If this saddle is too narrow near the apex of the tree, it would make sense that it was too narrow behind, too. That would mean the tree-maker had an overall narrower horse in mind when he designed it.
** I take lots of this from fitting saddles in English world. I still put a Western saddle on a horse the way I would an English saddle. I place in on the horse’s back (naked) a tad ahead of where it will go and I slide it back. You know you have a pretty good fit if it stops sliding decisively in one spot; it sort of snaps into place. That means this is where the tree and the horse’s back match-- in all of their various curves. IMO, the more definitive and sure the stop, the better the fit.
The skirt of the saddle is ahead of the leading edge of the tree; it can have the back of the scapula slide under it a bit. I go with that “here’s where the saddle stops” metric. That’s because regardless of padding or placement or whathaveyou, this is where physics is going to have the saddle come to rest.
Hope this helps. Fallis saddles are great on the “top half” where the rider sits; I hope they are great at fitting horses, too.[/QUOTE]
MVP, if you really want to come try out my saddles… I’ll have to find a different horse… LOL. Because I’ve never put them on my current guy! But sure, you’d be welcome to try. And no, I already have 4 cats… no more, please!
Anyway, your comment about how the saddle should fit, about sliding into place, is exactly what John told me so I think you’re spot-on with that.
As for Fallis fit, my saddle that’s more narrow is NOT the norm for him. He had switched tree makers shortly before I ordered that saddle, and after finding out they were running narrower than normal, he quit using them. That one fit my mare just fine as she was small, but my gelding was a beefcake so it did not fit him! That one I special ordered using wither tracings.
I also know that depending on the fork you have, that can affect the fit too.
I should have scrolled farther; thanks!
There is just something “off” about the fit I can’t 100% put my finger on. It seems to look a little bit “perched” in front. Which would indicate the tree is a little too narrow on top.
[QUOTE=sirbeastmom;8902558]
I think it feels pretty good? It feels like there’s a lot of room in the pocket behind the shoulder if that makes sense. Not sure if that’s a positive thing that allows for shoulder movement or a negative thing that indicates bridging…[/QUOTE]
Nope, you should never have a “pocket”. The pressure from the tree should be even all along the horse’s back, with no spots of increased or decreased pressure.
If you are feeling an area where there is no pressure (in a “pocket”) behind the shoulder, it could be that the saddle is indeed narrow and it creating a pressure point at the front of the tree and then bridging in the center.
Yes, fitting Western saddles is hard!! 
Personally, I think they are harder to fit than English saddles because it is so much more difficult to actually tell what the tree is doing under the western saddle.
[QUOTE=beau159;8903769]
I should have scrolled farther; thanks!
There is just something “off” about the fit I can’t 100% put my finger on. It seems to look a little bit “perched” in front. Which would indicate the tree is a little too narrow on top.
Nope, you should never have a “pocket”. The pressure from the tree should be even all along the horse’s back, with no spots of increased or decreased pressure.
If you are feeling an area where there is no pressure (in a “pocket”) behind the shoulder, it could be that the saddle is indeed narrow and it creating a pressure point at the front of the tree and then bridging in the center.
Yes, fitting Western saddles is hard!! Personally, I think they are harder to fit than English saddles because it is so much more difficult to actually tell what the tree is doing under the western saddle.[/QUOTE]
I think they are harder to fit because they are better at distributing more of the horse’s weight over a considerably larger surface than English saddles, so there is that much more that has to fit.
There are trade-offs there, that being one of them.
Then, they have that fluffy sheepskin and pads to make up for some of that, within reason.
Consider also that, over a larger surface, as the horse moves, there are larger deviations on how the back fits the saddle to contend with, the rock of the bars then coming into play.
On the other hand, over long distances where the rider sits there, they do help the horse’s back by not putting pressure in only a few square inches, as English saddles do.
That is why, even if I use my English saddle much of the time to train and ride, if we are going to be trailing cattle slowly all day sitting there most of the time, I use a western saddle, is kinder on the horse’s back.
Decades ago, I think maybe later 1970’s, I had Fallis make me a ranch saddle, that fitted my horses and myself fine, was light compared with others.
The problem was, I used it extensively and within two years, it started falling apart.
Never before or since had a saddle do that, I let Fallis know, they shrugged and said I must be doing something wrong, send it back and they will restitch it, but I never did, had it repaired here and sold it to a local for light trail riding.
Since then heard of others that had similar experiences.
Saying that, if a saddle fits the rider or horse, no matter what kind it is, that is the right saddle for them, no matter what others may say.
I too am not sure just going by the pictures, will have to let other’s opinions weigh in there.
I think everyone who said it looks like it’s a little too narrow up top is correct. And the sweat marks seem to support this; the only sweaty area after our ride today was a band from her withers down her shoulders.
Dang. I really like the flat seat. Are there any makes/models/styles known for having flat seats, or do I just need to look around?
Thanks for all the eyeballs and insight!
[QUOTE=beau159;8903769]
I should have scrolled farther; thanks!
There is just something “off” about the fit I can’t 100% put my finger on. It seems to look a little bit “perched” in front. Which would indicate the tree is a little too narrow on top.
Nope, you should never have a “pocket”. The pressure from the tree should be even all along the horse’s back, with no spots of increased or decreased pressure. [/QUOTE]
I think the OP means that the very front of the tree widens out. At least that’s what I see. In DressageWorld, this kind of geometry is A New Thing. I think the idea is that the top of the scapulae are given more room to move. Meh, not sure if that’s so. But I would imagine that for a horse that wants to slide a saddle forward at.all., that design would be bad.
OP, when I was looking at your saddle’s pictures from the front, I paid lots of attention to the front of the skirt being parallel to your horse’s body where it was touching. As I said, I thought it was too narrow at the top, and a tad too wide at the bottom. Unless you have a downhill horse, I would worry less about that gap right under the swells than I would the parallel (or lack of parallel) fit.
All that said, the smart horseman lets the horse decide. You can learn to palpate your horse’s back to feel healthy- vs. hurt muscle, and you can learn to judge his behavior and way of going, too. If your horse is the same and good in these respects, before and after a ride (and also the next morning), the saddle’s fit might be good enough in his opinion.
I’m a big fan of palpating their back as I’m grooming 'em or around 'em. The muscles up there should always feel rubbery and alive. If they feel taut or thin, that’s the thin end of the wedge of a bigger problem. Keeping tabs on this is such a cheap and effective strategy!
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