Short tree points — which saddles have them?

My pony has a well fitting fairfax dressage saddle as well as a custom jump saddle. Despite being professionally fitted, she’s just that much happier in the jump and I think the shorter tree points are a big factor.

Ive had my eye turned by the bee Aviar saddles but would have to sell the pony to afford one :wink: what else has short tree points?

So annoyingly this is very hard to find out… excited to follow so maybe we can develop a list.

stubben genesis NL is the model I think I have that has short tree points. I’ll check today to confirm model

What jump saddle? Custom saddlery?

Smith Worthington Danzig specifically calls out short tree points.

Passier, Barnsby, most French saddles

I have Passier jump and dressage. Both independently fitted to my horse. She just somewhat prefers the jump saddle. I think she likes me riding in a bit more forward seat and the saddle is that much lighter.

I think some saddle brands make a big deal about having short points and exaggerate the length of their competitors points, when there isn’t much difference.

It’s like advertising fat free gluten free apples.

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It may also be the panel style around the shoulder. I know a few horses that are cool with any french style dressage saddle, but not others. They go in Voltaire, Devoucoux, and Antares saddles.

In terms of short tree points, Custom Saddlery advertises their Everest R as their shorter-point model, but you can see photos of each of the trees here. The angles of the points vary as well. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vqJJYlXse64

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I know for a fact that the Bates tree points are much shorter than the Fairfax since I own saddles from both lines (ok mine is a K&M but uses same gullets)… Oddly enough, I put my daughters Bates on my horse and he seemed to move much more freely thru his shoulder that day. I need to repeat that experiment to see if it was a fluke. If not, then I need to figure out if it was the shorter points, or the panel configuration over the shoulder that made the diff.

Here are a few I’ve come up with in searching for a saddle that won’t interfere with scapula, trapezius, spinalis:

  • Loxley (maybe others) by Bliss of London - points curve back to avoid the edge of scapula & resulting in shorter total depth
  • Sommer
  • WOW
  • Schleese (points bend back toward the seat, so the part that extends vertically is shortened)
  • Maxflex (the ones with exchangeable headplate)
Have you discovered what shape is the Aviar headplate? I couldn't find much detail at their website.

Eclectic, it had nothing to do with the brand, but the saddle fit of the horse.

Any saddle can interfere or not with with scapula, trapezius, spinalis depending on how it interacts with the horse. That are just marketing by those brands.

Most brands have models that have shorter tree points. I personally do not like tree points angled backwards . It is really hard to keep the saddles up off of the spinal processes. The angled backwards tree points kind of act like a rocking chair and tends to tip down if the horse has any wither

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Thanks very much!. I should say I’ve not been getting my information from saddle marketing. It comes from the specialists in the field of equine back health. The short points is just one feature I and my saddle fitter felt would be helpful for fitting my horse. Could you list some brands that have models with shorter points?

Granted it’s hard to get info about trees, so I don’t have definite knowledge of a huge range of brands, but I don’t know of any others that have tree points as long as Fairfax. Every other tree I know of has shorter points.

I ride in a Fairfax cob dressage saddle. I believe this is now discontinued, but you will find the same tree in the Kent & Masters/Thorowgood cob dressage saddles. These saddles take the Thorowgood/Kent & Masters/Fairfax “S” bars (adjustable gullet bars), which has shorter tree points than the “R” bar.

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Equipe

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Sommer Diplomat has short points, as well as shorter panels which work really well for my short backed, round Arab cross.

Custom, Ryder, Black Country, County, passier, frank baines, Ideal ect, all have models with shorter tree points.

Do you mine sharing your back specialist? They are fairly common in the uk but rare in the states.

yes, a custom saddlery Monte Carlo

Interesting! I thought they felt a bit long too but back when I purchased the saddle for her, it fit her like a glove and compared to all other dressage saddles, she went fantastic. It’s been over time I notice the preference for the jump saddle, even if I’m riding flat and not up and out of the tack