New Aussie Saddle! I've got questions.

[spookhorse]

@Auventera Two;2805652

So why do you have to do this awling on an aussie saddle? English saddles don’t have this done. Obviously they don’t have felted wool panels like the aussies do, but I’m thinking there’s some deeper reason. lol

I remember reading somewhere that the saddles were designed so that the owner could do regular maintenance on their saddle since historically in the outback, finding a saddle maker to reflock saddles could be hard. Aussie saddles are working saddles designed for maximum comfort for both horse and rider, to be used in the rugged outback conditions, and they might not see a town for 6 months or more.

I’ve owned traditional style aussie saddles for early 9 years and can tell you that they can compress a lot if you don’t awl them, then the saddle will become uncomfortable for the horse as it starts pressing down on their back and withers. An awling when needed puts the saddle right back to where it should be

[spookhorse]

@sublimequine;2805847

Well I tried scooting the saddle up today… did the whole “put it up too high, then let it scoot back into the spot it wants to stop” thing, and it ended up being like 3 inches further up than how I had it before. :eek:

It fits quite a bit better now that it’s in the right spot. I feel like a real dunce, though! :lol:

We had a really nice ride. Rode outside, with the wind howling and the grasses blowing, she was being kinda silly and spooky, we had a few prance sessions, but I sure felt glued in with my poleys. :D:D:D

As I mentioned, I need to replace the girth. Any suggestions? Neoprene, leather, fleece-lined? Do they have ones with elastic ends like on english girths?

You can tell when you hit that sweet spot with the saddle! I totally dig my aussies for their security and comfort :yes:

As for girths, I have a web and leather one and a neoprene one. Either one works fine, but I think I have more slippage with the neoprene. Buddy certainly seems to sweat a lot under it, but he’s a sweater whereas Belle is not so much. I’ve not run across any girths with elastic ends, personally.

[sublimequine]

[QUOTE=Huntertwo;2807136]
Your girl is toooo cute and love your barn also. Love the nice wide aisle. Is her mane roached? Ohhh that saddle is so tempting and I’m so broke…;)[/QUOTE]

Oh, thanks so much! She’s my baby, gotta love that big wide blaze. And yep, her mane is roached, I usually roach it through the winter, although I might not let it grow out come spring, I’m getting pretty dang good at contouring the roaching to make her neck look better! :lol:

Yeah, I love my boarding barn. It was really designed nicely. The only complaint I have about the really wide aisles is you can’t have crossties. Ah well, as you can see from the photo, it gave me a chance to teach her how to groundtie properly.

If you wanna know more about the saddle, let me know. I’ve got hardly anything left in my checking account now so I know the broke thing very well. But dangit, it was a good buy. :winkgrin:

[sublimequine]

[QUOTE=spookhorse;2807375]
You can tell when you hit that sweet spot with the saddle! I totally dig my aussies for their security and comfort :yes:

As for girths, I have a web and leather one and a neoprene one. Either one works fine, but I think I have more slippage with the neoprene. Buddy certainly seems to sweat a lot under it, but he’s a sweater whereas Belle is not so much. I’ve not run across any girths with elastic ends, personally.[/QUOTE]

I like neoprene in that it’s easy to clean and doesn’t chafe (at least with her it doesn’t), but I like the other materials because in the winter they don’t get cold like neoprene can. I’ll have to see what I can find. Luckily there’s a tack store up by home (in college right now) that’s about 40 minutes away, that carries a small amount of Aussie stuff. It’s extremely uncommon around here, so I kinda have slim pickings. :no:

[sublimequine]

Hope folks don’t mind, but I’m bumping up this thread to see if anyone else has input about saddle fit. I have pics posted I think on the 2nd page of what it looks like on her, but I’m still not real sure. I’ve only ridden in it a handful of times, because I’m a little tentative to ride in it more if it doesn’t fit her perfectly. But then folks are saying it will fit perfectly ONCE I ride in it more and it conforms to her back, so I just don’t know. :lol:

Also, more pics of other horses in their aussies please! I love to see em!

[CoopsZippo]

A normal english girth may not fit your saddle due to the width of the leathers. I found out the hard way and I am still using the girth that came with my saddle even though I don’t like it til I find someone who sells girths made for my saddle.

Aussie saddle placement is different that other saddles. Typically, a saddle will find a natural position that is comfortable to horse and rider. This position is behind the withers with enough room to allow unrestricted shoulder movement. An Aussie saddle also tends to fit a bit higher and further forward on a horse then a Western saddle. To find the right position for the saddle, place the saddle up on the withers and, while putting downward pressure on the front of the saddle, move it back on the horse (towards the tail) until it stops. Do this a couple of times and you should see a consistent point at which the saddle seems to fit most naturally. The saddle being placed too far forward or too far back usually results in an uncomfortable and unhappy horse.

[sublimequine]

[QUOTE=CoopsZippo;2870015]
A normal english girth may not fit your saddle due to the width of the leathers. I found out the hard way and I am still using the girth that came with my saddle even though I don’t like it til I find someone who sells girths made for my saddle.

Aussie saddle placement is different that other saddles. Typically, a saddle will find a natural position that is comfortable to horse and rider. This position is behind the withers with enough room to allow unrestricted shoulder movement. An Aussie saddle also tends to fit a bit higher and further forward on a horse then a Western saddle. To find the right position for the saddle, place the saddle up on the withers and, while putting downward pressure on the front of the saddle, move it back on the horse (towards the tail) until it stops. Do this a couple of times and you should see a consistent point at which the saddle seems to fit most naturally. The saddle being placed too far forward or too far back usually results in an uncomfortable and unhappy horse.[/QUOTE]

Yeah, the english girths were a no-go. The buckles were too small. Right now I’m borrowing a friend’s, and have a new one on my x-mas list.

I think that might be a big part of me being unsure about the fit, is that it just sits so high on her, from being so puffy. I’m actually talking to a saddler right now through emails (Smith Worthington, BEST folks EVER for saddle fit stuff), and am going to try and get some photos of the saddle on the mare tomorrow, then they’re gonna let me know if they need to work on it, or if they can’t fix it, or if it actually does fit. I’m hoping for the latter. :lol:

I sure hope I can even get OUT to my horse tomorrow… we’re under a heavy snow advisory… 6-8 inches tonight! :eek:

[911Cowgirl]

Aussie Saddle

We use the neoprene girths on our Aussies (we have 6 in all). Try a google search for tack for australian saddles. Another thing that you might want to do to get the leather in soft and supple condition is use olive oil on it. We had our saddle maker turn us on to this tip and it works better and is better for the leather than neatfoot or other oils as it is not mixed with other petrolaum products. Get a small piece of sheepskin and use it.

We use our aussie saddles to work new horses that we have and when we start riding our youngsters.

Suzanna

[sublimequine]

[QUOTE=911Cowgirl;2870819]
We use the neoprene girths on our Aussies (we have 6 in all). Try a google search for tack for australian saddles. Another thing that you might want to do to get the leather in soft and supple condition is use olive oil on it. We had our saddle maker turn us on to this tip and it works better and is better for the leather than neatfoot or other oils as it is not mixed with other petrolaum products. Get a small piece of sheepskin and use it.

We use our aussie saddles to work new horses that we have and when we start riding our youngsters.

Suzanna[/QUOTE]

Huh, never heard the olive oil thing before. Interesting.

Have any pics of yours, or saddle fit tips?! :lol:

[911Cowgirl]

Aussie Saddle

Fit tips are we have six aussies, two with narrower trees for higher withered horses, for fitting we do what the other posters have said about starting forward and then coming back, no pictures thou. We also use the New Breed pads under them (along with using them under all other saddles) as they work really well. They make the New Breed in English/Aussie style but we use the reg Western style. We use neporene girths because with other types of girths you can pick up burrs and the neoprene has never chafed any horse that we have used it on and we have ridden those Aussie saddles for over 100 mile trail rides with no sores.

Suzanna