Saddle Fitters, how did you find yours?

[Belmont]

I really don’t want to work with a brand rep, because I am looking to buy a used saddle with my income tax money. I just can’t afford new, but I really want to get my horse fitted and make sure I won’t be struggling with the constant problem of ill fitted saddle just because I got a good deal.

How did you find your saddle fitter? Did they charge a ton to come out just to fit one horse?

I live in South/Central Texas (between Austin/San Antonio), and I can’t find much other than people who want to do two day fitting clinics for $350 a pop!

[jn4jenny]

There’s various ways to do it, but the easiest way is to just ask some saddle geeks. Some other tactics:

1. Look them up through a reputable saddle-fitting organization, like the Society of Master Saddlers.
2. Look up brand reps for various brands. Obviously, this is a dicey business as you may get a biased perspective and training varies widely. But some brand reps are very good fitters.
3. Google “Saddle Fitter” and your nearest major city. (For the record, no, that is not how I produced the name below. I had heard good things about her from other folks, including “clients” and other saddle fitters.)

Try Carol Patty. She’s based in Austin. http://www.capstonesaddlery.com/

[jn4jenny]

Edited to add: You will rarely find a fitter, even an independent fitter, who doesn’t at least offer a few brands of saddles for sale. It’s just not practical to be a fitter who has nothing to offer clients who want to buy new/custom saddles. But I distinguish that from a brand rep whose training and loyalty are entirely within one brand and they can only sell you one brand. Generally, a fitter who reps for two or three or four brands is a good sign.

Depending on your budget, you may also find it cheaper or more effective to work at a distance with fitters/used tack vendors who carry tack within your budget. Without knowing your budget and more about your needs, it would be impossible to pinpoint one that might work well. But there are several very good ones.

[Belmont]

Dumb question (not being snarky at all, first time buying saddle by myself) how do I work at a distance with a fitter/used dealer when I don’t know the size or fit I need for my horse?

[jn4jenny]

[QUOTE=Belmont;7373028]
Dumb question (not being snarky at all, first time buying saddle by myself) how do I work at a distance with a fitter/used dealer when I don’t know the size or fit I need for my horse?[/QUOTE]

That’s like saying “How can I possibly hire a farrier when I don’t know what kind of trim or shoe is best for my horse?” You’re paying an equine professional to know what you don’t know.

Good distance fitters ask for appropriate pictures of horse (and rider, if possible) + snail-mailed wither tracings of the horse. From that, they can discern the saddles that are likely to fit your horse.

[Kitt]

Long-distance fitting is doable - it just requires accurate info and clear communication, and the willingness to do some work! Here’s a blog post covering the basics of long-distance work: http://www.saddlefitter.blogspot.com/2013/07/fitting-from-afar.html (the first part is a bit of a rant, but the last 4 paragraphs will give you an idea of what you’ll need to do).

If a good distance fitter has a conformation shot of your horse and an accurate template (video tutorial at http://pantherrunsaddlery.com/?page_id=434), knows your budget, your discipline, your preferences and your seat size (or your height, weight and inseam), they can make some pretty accurate recommendations and/or send you some likely saddles to try. And be sure you can really try the saddle in real-time - you can’t make an informed decision based on a 10 minute walk around the arena with a loose girth and your leathers wrapped in cellophane.

Equestrian Imports, Panther Run Saddlery and Hastilow USA all have years of experience and success in distance fitting, they all have used saddles and all offer a one-week trial policy.

[Beam_Me_Up]

I posted my location on here and got a resounding, unanimous response. I also asked a few local friends, who had all used the same guy recommended here. Actually, finding him was the easiest part.

I can only speak from personal experience, but mine was very useful in helping me understand why my existing saddle was hopeless in terms of fit, what to look for, gave me a long list of possible saddles to try.

The hard part for me was finding those saddles, with trial period, affordably, to try. I tried some of the online resources suggested on COTH but none was a single-stop shop for me. Some I found but they didn’t work. Some I bought on eBay and then resold, etc.

[Frivian]

[QUOTE=Beam Me Up;7374154]
I posted my location on here and got a resounding, unanimous response. I also asked a few local friends, who had all used the same guy recommended here. Actually, finding him was the easiest part.

I can only speak from personal experience, but mine was very useful in helping me understand why my existing saddle was hopeless in terms of fit, what to look for, gave me a long list of possible saddles to try.

The hard part for me was finding those saddles, with trial period, affordably, to try. I tried some of the online resources suggested on COTH but none was a single-stop shop for me. Some I found but they didn’t work. Some I bought on eBay and then resold, etc.[/QUOTE]

I’m having a very similar experience. I found my local saddle fitter through various recommendations made on COTH, and had her look at my horse, etc. I’ve tried multiple saddles on trial, but none of them have worked. I have given up trying to buy online and am actually going with Kitt’s recommendation to send her a wither template and have her help find a saddle for me.

[Jo]

Also local to you is Tess Wheat. She was literally a God-send to me when I was dealing with my Schleese saddle nightmare. I’m actually trying to schedule with her again when she is in the Dallas area just for a “check up.”

http://www.wheatdressage.com/contact/contact.htm

ETA: She rides dressage but fits all types of saddles. I had her work with me on making sure my Beval was properly fitted as well.

[inne]

My saddle fitter was known as the most amazing fitter in the area so our whole barn decided to use him over a weekend. He was great- he drew up charts of our horses, watched all of us ride, adjusted the saddle, then watched us ride again and re-adjusted over and over until it was perfect. But he was really expensive - I was a bit shocked when I got the bill and it was $350. It did make a big difference, though, so it was worth it for sure - my horse and I both have the same weakness on the right and he flocked the saddle to make it easier on both of us. It’s just not something I can do every few months.

[Kitt]

[QUOTE=inne;7377013]
My saddle fitter was known as the most amazing fitter in the area so our whole barn decided to use him over a weekend. He was great- he drew up charts of our horses, watched all of us ride, adjusted the saddle, then watched us ride again and re-adjusted over and over until it was perfect. But he was really expensive - I was a bit shocked when I got the bill and it was $350. It did make a big difference, though, so it was worth it for sure - my horse and I both have the same weakness on the right and he flocked the saddle to make it easier on both of us. It’s just not something I can do every few months.[/QUOTE]

$350 just for you, or for the whole group? Did he do only flocking, or did he adjust the tree? How much time did he spend with you? $350 for a single client sounds a bit on the high side unless there was a tree adjustment in the mix (I think the max I’ve ever charged for an active flocking adjustment was $160 plus a portion of the barn call charge), but hard to say w/o knowing the particulars.