I had a pony with HUGE shoulders who went nicely in my Stubben which technically did not fit him great, and hated anything that seemed to fit “correctly” to the point where he’d just plant his feet and not move forward. The shape of the headplate & tree points on the Stubben gave him more room in the shoulder than any of the other saddles I tried — he made it pretty clear that shoulder clearance was his main priority. I think some of them just cannot tolerate the feeling of their shoulders being restricted.
3 Likes
What general area are you in? What’s the stamp on your trainer’s saddle?
I’m in NC, my trainers CWD is a 705 RT+ with a 3C flap. I have to have the 3C for my own body type! My horse is also good in a 705 205 RT+.
If you have any leads on a similar one please reach out privately, I feel like I’ve searched every online used saddle shop in the US, Canada, and even some overseas shops.
If you are looking at CWD and go that route- make sure you buy the same year. My horse was comfortable in a 2019 model of the SE02, but hated the 2020 version. My understanding is there are slight variations between paneling/trees even year to year.
Along with this advice, you might want to get a used saddle that’s close and have the panels modified since you are also particular about size and flap for your fit.
So you find the same vintage and style as far as panels and tree but say it’s a ST RT panel. Send it in to have the front shaved to make it a 705 RT+. You’d still wind up paying less than new. Or if it’s an older 2Gs model, you might come across the popular 705 205 305 RT panel they used to push as their pro panel. Get the back and scapula area shaved down and now it’s 705 205 RT+.
My late mare was like this. She’d flat out refuse to leave the mounting block with saddles that looked amazing. Go softly and lightly, and beautifully over her back in a saddle that just made me shake my head.
Listen to your horse!
5 Likes
That is currently what we are trying to do with my existing CWD, it hasn’t quite worked out yet. Going for its 2nd adjustment in the next few weeks but the first adjustment was unfortunately a bust and after about a week my horse wasn’t having it.
Is it the same year as your trainer’s? They have changed the tree and panel designs over the years. My 2015 one doesn’t fit at all like the new ones.
I have a horse with wide shoulders. He really likes his Stubben Ascend. It has a very wide gullet. Mine has extra forward flaps. My independent saddle fitter also has me use the girth on the middle and back billets for extra room for his shoulders. I originally went with a Stubben rep to buy the saddle. We tried maybe 7 Stubben jump models. Levi was quick to tell me what he did and didn’t like.
I did one free follow-up fitting with the rep. But the rep is a rep as a side job to her corporate job. I did my next fitting with an independent saddle fitter I have used for 15 years. She is also an equine massage therapist. He did okay with the original fit but better with the changes made with the independent fitter.
1 Like
Nope, mine is a 2015 and the trainer’s is either a 22 or 23, I can’t remember. I’ve had CWD come look at mine for adjustments, they aren’t just trying to fit it into the box of 705 or 205 but seeing what works given that the 2015 tree and panels are very different from the newer models.
Interesting, I’ve never tried or been told to try using different billets. Something to keep in mind! Thanks!
The first couple of weeks I kept using the 1st and 3rd and would have to redo. It was a weird learning curve. The Voltaires in the barn only have 2 billets. If I remember this appears to be an option to add a 3rd or maybe move one.
So I think you could find a newer one used and get the panels tweaked if you can’t find one with all the exact specs you need, and that’s pretty likely to wind up fitting similar to the one the horse likes compared to your saddle which is a totally different design from the newer ones. So if you can find a ST RT panel in a newer saddle in your size, you can easily adjust that to 705 RT+ that will fit like your trainer’s saddle by taking some foam away. You’d have to send it to CWD and pay some more for that, but I’d bet you’d still be way cheaper than a new one.
