I’m in the market for a new saddle and I’m looking all over and seeing a range of prices. I know that style and condition matter… but if it were you, how much would you pay for a used X brand saddle?
for example:
I would pay $900 for a in good condition Prestige 2000D med. tree 17-18in seat saddle in black.
I would not buy a brown saddle, no matter what it is.
I would pay $400 for a used wintec pro in worn, but decent condition
I’m interested to see where the pricing is at now for you guys!
Well, I just bought a used but in fabulous condition Passier Grand Gilbert, regular seat, no gussets for $1,100 including shipping or maybe it was $1,000. I had to look long and hard because most of them were closer to $1,800 or more. Mine doesn’t look braaand new, but it really looks great, just slightly worn in spots you can’t see when I’m in it = )
I basically was looking for the best saddle I could get used at around $1,000 because that was really all I could afford. I loved the Passiers, so I looked until I found one that was priced right. I think there’s a wide range of prices going on in this market because of the large bid-ask spread between buyer and seller. The sellers are usually too hopeful, and the buyers just know they can get a better deal, haha.
The rule used to be that 1/2 the “new” price for a saddle in great shape was a good deal. Now, anything goes depending on how desparate someone is. I’ve seen several gorgeous used Schleese saddles going in the 1000 range lately.
So it’s a buyer’s market!
But cut the “new” price in half and go from there with the condition and popularity of the saddle.
[QUOTE=Quest52;4240871]
I’m in the market for a new saddle and I’m looking all over and seeing a range of prices. I know that style and condition matter… but if it were you, how much would you pay for a used X brand saddle?
for example:
I would pay $900 for a in good condition Prestige 2000D med. tree 17-18in seat saddle in black.
I would not buy a brown saddle, no matter what it is.
I would pay $400 for a used wintec pro in worn, but decent condition
I’m interested to see where the pricing is at now for you guys![/QUOTE]
Why are you willing to pay over half of new price for a used wintec, but only about a fourth of new price for a Prestige in good condition? 
Wintecs seem to be very popular right now… and that seems to be around what they are going for.
I’m a decent saddle finder… I’ve found Barnsby’s for under $400 in good condition, Albions for about $500 (not the “Original Comfort”)
I like the prestiges a lot… but I know if I were to search for a while I could prob. find one for 800… so thats what I’d pay.
I bought a used but in good condition (show worthy) Kieffer for $500.
Then I paid about $400 to have it completely reflocked(sp), everything taken out, good stuff put in, oiled and dyed a deeper black, and fitted to my pony.
When I was looking for a dressage saddle this winter I was trying to budget between $800 and $1,200. I got lucky however, and my Aunt’s Albion fit my horse, so I got a saddle for free. Try Saint Croix Saddlery they get new ones in all time and are really good about trials.
I pay what I think I could possibly resell for - and break even or not take too much of a loss - should it not work out.
I hope to report in a day or two that’s I’ve gotten a fabulous deal on a saddle that right now will remain nameless 
Hmm… not many answers here???
Play fill in the blank:
For a _______________ used dressage saddle in decent shape I would pay $_______ for it.
But I would not buy a ____________ used dressage saddle, even if it was a good price.
Does that help??
I paid $1500 for a gently used Custom Saddlery Peter’s Advantage. Doesn’t bug me to share–I think I got a good deal. Plust it included the fitter flocking the saddle to my horse who was at the show I bought it at.
[QUOTE=Quest52;4243288]
Hmm… not many answers here???
Play fill in the blank:
For a _______________ used dressage saddle in decent shape I would pay $_______ for it.
But I would not buy a ____________ used dressage saddle, even if it was a good price.
Does that help??[/QUOTE]
No, it doesn’t really help. There are so many factors that go into what someone is willing to pay for any given saddle. For example, “decent” means different things to different people. Someone buying a saddle as a spare/occasional saddle, or as a school saddle, often won’t pay as much as someone buying for a single specific horse and/or rider. There’s also the question of time; some people need a saddle immediately and others can afford to shop around for months.
everyone can insert their own facts with anything. Really I’m not trying to ask a super complex question. I’m just trying to get a general consensus, not a dichotomy of my question.
Play fill in the blank:
For a comfortable, fits me, fits my horse used dressage saddle in decent shape I would pay $ as much as I can afford for it.
But I would not buy a uncomfortable used dressage saddle, even if it was a good price.
way I see it, saddles are instruments and perform a task: they must fit my animal and be comfortable for him, fit me, help me ride better or at least not make riding any more difficult, be comfortable, easy on the eyes and pleasant to the touch, and able to withstand moderate abuse.
the value of these facets of function imho transcends the perceived worth of a brand, a la “prestiges are worth X but wintecs are worth Y”. Worth and value are subject to need and suitability, and thats very individual.
I recently sold and extremely nice and expensive saddle. To the person that bought it, it was worth what they paid because it was what they needed and will service them in comfort and style… but it had no value to me because it didn’t suit my horse or myself.
I frankly am so tired of trying to find cheap prices just for the thing to not work for me or my horse that i’ve given up and saving to buy new and custom.
A saddle is only worth what you will pay for. $900 to me for a GOOD CONDITION prestige seems low, though i did watch an older quite used one go for $670 the other day on ebay.
And personally, i could care less if it is black or brown and do not understand why brown saddles have a bad stigma and sell for less. I think they look very sharp on the right horses. But heck, i have a dark havana EXPENSIVE saddle that you cant even tell the thing is brown and no one will buy it or even look at it… Seems absolutely stupid to me, you all can buy your black saddles that will fade to brown one day… 
If it fits and it works, i’m to the point i would pay anything! Right now i’m paying to have horses i cant ride…
[QUOTE=buck22;4243428]
. To the person that bought it, it was worth what they paid because it was what they needed and will service them in comfort and style… but it had no value to me because it didn’t suit my horse or myself.[/QUOTE]
if it had no value to you, then why didn’t you just give it to them and not take money for it?
And to the poster above me… I just wouldn’t take a brown saddle because I have a black and white pinto at the time!
[QUOTE=Quest52;4243446]
if it had no value to you, then why didn’t you just give it to them and not take money for it? [/QUOTE]
actually, quite often, I do give away my tack, including saddles. In this particular case the sale of this saddle funded the purchase of another more suitable one, but if I don’t need an item or a replacement for it, I give my stuff away.
Well my last used jump saddle I paid $1,500 for it and it will need to be reflocked in a year or so, but it was also a Macel and those are hard to find and have to be custom ordered from France.
My friend bought a deep brown Albion Original Comfort and had some repairs done on it so total it was $600 and now she just wants to get what she stuck into out of it as it is to wide for her horse.
Paid $700 for my other used jump saddle about 7 years ago, and it is now 30 years old.
You couldn’t pay me enough to part with my Keiffer dressage saddle and that was my father’s so it is about 20-30 years old
It all boils down to does this fit me and my horses. I am hoping to buy a couple used wintecs or bates in the next few years due to the gullet system as all my horses are shaped differently.
Yeah, I don’t think you’re going to get the kind of answers you want. Unless people are actively shopping, they don’t think in those terms, and used saddle prices fluctuate constantly.
But right now I’d pay $0 for any saddle because I don’t have extra money to buy a saddle I don’t really need.
It depends on the retail value of the saddle and the type of saddle and condition of the saddle. Some saddles like Passier, holds its value incredibly well, as it holds its shape and function incredibly well. Most European made saddle fit into that category. Some saddles are generally harder to sell, and therefore cheaper, because there are more in the market or they fit fewer horses. Synthetic materials are not considered long lasting because it doesn’t age and break in like good leather, therefore depreciate faster.
How much you are willing to pay, and your preference for saddles, do not always reflect what the saddles sell for, unless your preferences map closely to what everything thinks. Work with a saddler when in doubt.
Everything has a price, you don’t need to pay more than you should, just because it fits you or your horse very well.
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