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Tell me all about... Mattes pads

Hufglocken has a %25 off plus free shipping sale right now.

If you don’t get sheepskin your custom pad would run you around $66.

Thanks! Unfortunately, I think, for my horse, sheepskin is the point.

Oohh thanks for the heads up. Just ordered Mattes half pad custom colors and tendon boots that I have been stalking online–with this discount pulled the trigger–saved a lot!! :slight_smile:

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Hmmmm - I wonder if Dover discontinued it’s sheepskin lined dressage pad. . … well. . . that tells you how long I’ve had mine. . . about a decade if I were to take a guess. If I were in the market for another sheepskin/sheepswool lined pad I’d probably to with the LeMieux brand. Or the Christ brand one.

I did find that TSC carries a Dover sheepskin pad. But not on the Dover site. But I found the Smartpak one at about the same time and ordered it as I had the $25 gift certificate from USEF. Or USDF…
Anyway, that pad has yet to arrive.

Hufglocken is a great option if you are not in a hurry. If you are, this site is great and prices are very reasonable. I’ve ordered several pads from them, shipping from Poland to California is somehow much faster than shipping for a Dover order from MA!

https://www.equishop.com/en/

A good website for the half pads, but Hufglocken offers the full pads in custom options.

Thanks for all info. Does anyone know what’s the difference between the dressage and AP Mattes half pads and which one is better to buy if one rides in dressage & jump saddles? TIA

The shaped dressage and jump pads are quite different. If you want one pad for both you can try an all purpose square pad (not eurofit).

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Thanks, but my Q was about the half pads.

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The dressage ones have longer points down the shoulder. Do you ride in dressage or jump saddle? If you had to pick one I would pick the dressage style unless your jump saddle has bulky front panels by the shoulder.

I can take pictures of the difference tonight to show you if you like?

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The dressage one is cut more straight in the front, the jump is cut the most forward and the AP is in between. The half pads have the same shape up front as the full size pads.

You will see some material in front of your dressage saddle if you use an AP or jump cut half pad. You’ll have the opposite issue if you use a dressage half pad under a jump saddle - it may not come all the way up under the panels.

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Thanks! I’ll be ordering the AP one then to fit both saddles.

I ordered a dressage one for shows and then the rest I ordered as AP pads for multi use.

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Oops!

My saddle fitter recommended a mattes pad for my dressage saddle. It has shims in four positions (two front and two back) so it’s adjustable. I wouldn’t have bought it if it were not recommended for saddle fit.

BTW, I have a County saddle, which is a flocked saddle. It was the County saddle fitter who recommended it.

I love the look, but I don’t use any half pad if it’s not recommended by saddle fitter for any of my saddles (jumping or dressage).

I power wash all my saddle pads. I have some Lemieux ones with no-slip on the top and bottom, as well as a couple of the fleece half lined and I find these all get a little chewed up in the washing machine. I do sometimes put it in the washer on the gentle spin cycle after I’ve power washed just to get most of the water out.

Some of my pads have been power washed weekly for years and still look great.

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One of my saddle fittting mentors used to always compare the feel of a half pad against a horse’s back to the feel of having an errant shoe-lace inside your shoe. Edges have no place under a saddle.
Personally, I’m not as opposed to them as she was, but I use a wool full pad for my own horses. Gullet Free HiWither Luxury Full Wool Numnah (GF NM02B DR) - Vale Brothers Ltd (nuumed.com)
It used to come in more colors, probably reduced due to covid-related material and labor shortages. Hopefully the color range will increase again in the future.
If you are checking out pads from the UK, remember that Pads are square and Numnahs are shaped. :nerd_face:

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They have a couple in house brand pads:
https://www.doversaddlery.com/circuit-sheepskin-crrctn-12pd/p/X1-190087
https://www.doversaddlery.com/circuit-sheepskin-half-pad/p/X1-19481/
https://www.doversaddlery.com/circuit-sheepskin-pad/p/X1-19478

@Scribbler The best way I’ve found, is to scrub the dingy side with a hard brush and stain remover, and then either hand wash or put in the washer.

You are onto something with the darker pads. I keep a rotation going, dark grey, black, purple. The white is reserved for shows or clinics.

My general care is the sheepskin gets curried and then brushed out if it got sweaty. The pad is hosed off if the whole thing is dripping in sweat. Flip over and hang to dry on a fence. I usually only use a pad for a few weeks before I rotate.

I agree that edges do NOT belong under saddles and am very careful to make sure no pad “ends” under the saddle.

I did get the Smartpak one in and it seems fine, although I can’t say my horse had any opinion on it. As a matter of fact, he was a little difficult yesterday - an unusual thing for him!

My trainer pointed out that my saddle was fitted with no pad, so some fancy pad should not be required or even recommended. It just seemed as if my guy reacted better to the Mattes. I may be all wet.

If my horse doesn’t care, then I may get a pretty Mattes pad in lovely colors, sans sheepskin on the flaps.

@beowulf, thanks for this. When I did a search of the Dover site, no Dover pads with sheepskin came up!