I’m in the market for a cheap adjustable gullet saddle, mostly to be use for trails/pleasure, as a secondary/backup to my other saddles, as well as sharing with guests.
I have 3 wide backed, short Arabian/part Arabian horses. Any suggestions as to which of these brands/models would fit best?
Probably looking for a dressage saddle but could happily go AP as well. Prefer a not-very-deep seat.
Thorowgood tends to work better on the rounder backed horses than Wintec.
I have the Thorowgood T6 dressage. I LOVE it. It is secure, balanced and comfy without feeling trappy. Fits my horse great and is wearing like iron. I’ve had three different Wintec’s in the past and either they didn’t fit me or my horse. I found this one barely used on ebay a couple hundred less than Dover. You can find older nonadjustable models so cheep sometimes that you could buy a couple in different widths. Not that I am a crazy saddle hoarder and am recommending that 
I currently own a Wintec and have also owned a Kent and Masters (leather version of the Thorowgood). The Kent and Masters was the cob version and fit my broad backed and low withered mare like it was made for her. Sadly, the seat sizes run small and it didn’t fit me at all. Wintec has fit my mare up to just recently when she has outgrown the extra wide gullet. The trees are very flat and the panels are fairly broad. They are much easier to find than Thorowgood, and can usually be found cheaply. They are also an easier resell if it doesn’t work out.
I tried a Tekna S and hated it. Fit the horse fine but it was the most uncomfortable saddle I’ve ever sat in and I was fighting that thing tooth and nail to put myself in a proper position.
Yay, my first COTH forum post 
I recently purchased a Wintec 250 CAIR dressage saddle for a horse I just started leasing. The saddle is very light and comfortable, but the knee rolls are weird (they are removable–attached with velcro) so I never use them. I think a saddle like this would be fine as a backup or for pleasure/trail riding, but I don’t know if I’d recommend it for guests, unless they have some riding experience. I imagine that an inexperienced rider might feel uncomfortable in this saddle because the seat isn’t very deep and the velcro knee rolls are a joke. I can feel every single bounce and bump…while some riders might appreciate that, others might find it unsettling.
Personally, I like the close contact…especially for this horse, who hasn’t had much training. I find the saddle comfortable because I can relax into his movements and he is able to feel subtle cues from my leg. Also, I like the fact that I can adjust the width as my horse’s body starts to develop.
My horse likes the saddle as well. The default medium-wide tree fits him perfectly (he’s a young Warmblood) and he hasn’t given me any problems on the ground since I started using it. I plan to upgrade to something nicer once he’s further along in his training, but for now, the Wintec does the trick.
The Tekna is good for the short-backed horse, but is on a curvier tree, and has some angle to the panels. I can’t imagine it working well on an extremely flat backed horse.
Thorowgood T8 cob/broadback GP is a good all-around saddle choice
The Thorowgood gullet plates are easy to change (IMHO much easier than Wintecs). I find the “broadback/cob” model usually works well for short backed horses, which many Arabs are. The T8 GP is comfortable (real wool flocking), with not too deep a seat. A good all around saddle that is light and not super expensive. They wear well and have good options. :yes: They resell well. You don’t find too many used on eBay because they tend to get snatched up thru word of mouth.
Thorowgood’s dressage saddle has the same features as their GPs. Not too a deep seat, I’d call it a medium depth, however, in general I find that if you go to a dressage saddle you will probably find you need to go up a half or whole size to be comfortable. I find this to be true of most brands of dressage saddles.
Adjustable knee blocks using Velcro is quite common now. It allows you to move the block up or down to accommodate the rider’s leg…some brands even come with blocks of different sizes. Heavy duty Velcro is used. The only time I’ve seen one move is when it wasn’t fastened down properly.
I have an older Wintec 500 dressage saddle. I converted it from CAIR to wool and in my opinion it made the ride much better. Like Edith Piaffe, I could feel every little bounce with the CAIR…like an over inflated ball…hard and jarring, which my bad hips didn’t appreciate. :no: I can’t really complain about my Wintec now that it’s wool flocked. It fits my horses, doesn’t have too deep a seat so I can move around if needed and has held up well. You can get the Wintec with CAIR or wool.
As I got more serious into dressage I eventually went to a Duett Fidelio because it fit my horse and ME a bit better (I really needed a larger seat than an 18" for a deep seated dressage saddle). I can’t say much about Tekna…the only person I know who had one didn’t like it and sold it on after having it for six months. 
if you want leather the collegiate convertible has the same adjustible gullets that the wintec has, easy to change, but in leather. i got one when i was not sure what horse i was going to get, it easily adjustable, fairly comfortable, and runs true to size
Thanks for the replies, everyone. Super helpful. It seems the Thorowgood has quite a following!
What about withers? The broadback/cob model is appealing to me but the advertising copy for the broadback/cob talks about horses with low withers. I wouldn’t say any of my horses have high withers, but they are definitely not low either. Pretty normal arab withers. Will there be clearance there?
I’m also a Thorowgood fan! I have a very short backed horse. The best thing about Thorowgoods is that they have a wide array of “styles”.
They have cob, hi-wither and “compact” which is for horses with short backs. I didn’t get the compact for my horse, I got the regular T8 and I LOVE it! The saddle fitter (who usually fits expensive stuff) also said it was a great saddle. They are made in England and WOOL flocked, none of that hard “Cair” or foam stuff. The T8 models also have leather seat and knee area. No one at my farm could tell that my saddle wasn’t leather! I love that a quick wipe down has it looking like new. I like it so much that I am soon going to purchase the T8 Jump!
I had a Wintec and it never fit my horse quite right. If you have a look at the Wintec gullet plate in comparison to the Thorowgood, you will notice that the Wintec has a “kink” about 1/2 way down. That kink creates a pressure point that the horse (if sensitive like mine) really notices! That’s why I don’t like Wintecs.
I can’t say anything for Tekna as I’ve never seen one in real life.
Edit to add: I didn’t get the “hi-wither” as my horse has regular withers. The channel is so nice and wide, it sits no where near his spine and the wither clearance on all of their saddles are great. No matter which model, you will have room for sure!
Following.
My comadre (BFF) just bought a Wintec all-purpose for her half-Arab (Quarab). She’s having a lot of problems getting the saddle to fit correctly. She just ordered the XXX-Wide gullet set, so we’ll see how well that works. I rode in her saddle and just could not get my balance at all.
I have my first dressage lesson this evening (It’s back to the lunge line for me!) so I’m also looking for cheap dressage saddle.
I saved up and bought a good endurance saddle (Len Brown Patriot IV) last September, so my very thrifty stereotypical New Englander husband will keel over dead if I announce that I want to spent a lot of money on another saddle.
I really like the looks of the Thorowgood T8 saddles. I have two short-backed Arabians, both with average withers and oil-barrel ribs. And the price is very reasonable, too.
Mr. Len told me that he is coming out with a dressage saddle soon, so if I do invest in a dressage saddle, it will be his. He’s a lovely older gentleman and is somewhat local to me.
The Thorowgood comes in 3 tree shapes–high withered (or TB), average, and Cob tree. Each shape is still adjustable width-wise. Of the three brands, Thorowgood, in my opinion, has the most horse-friendly tree shapes available.
I’ve only ridden in the Kent & Masters (leather version), but they are very comfortable.
[QUOTE=Costa06;8089968]
The Thorowgood comes in 3 tree shapes–high withered (or TB), average, and Cob tree. Each shape is still adjustable width-wise. Of the three brands, Thorowgood, in my opinion, has the most horse-friendly tree shapes available.
I’ve only ridden in the Kent & Masters (leather version), but they are very comfortable.[/QUOTE]
There used to be only two trees. The cob tree was shallower and had a square cantle. There was no difference between the regular and the hi-wither tree, they just had different panels.
Now you can get cob panels on that same tree, which is nice because the cob dressage and cob AP had really stupid seat designs, IMO.
For Arab or Arab crosses I would definitely recommend the Thorowgood Broadback (aka Cob) saddles. I tried many (many!) saddles before I discover the TG BB - and now someone will have to pry it from my cold dead hands if they ever want to get it away from me.
Thorowgood is a great way to go on a budget. I have a bn t8 Thorowgood low profile dressage, which is a new model and I believe it replaced the broad back cob. It has a better seat in it than the square cantle had. They also make a comparable gp saddle if you aren’t sold on the dressage model.
I used to own a Kent and Masters broad back cob dressage saddle. I had a wide and wither less Lipizzan gelding at the time, and it really fit him so well you would have thought it was a custom for him. It had the square cantle which provides a more open seat, and that is why I didn’t care for it.
If you go with a changeable gullet I would vote for Thorowgood for many reasons, gullet shape is straight, panels fit well generally, rider comfort, and they wear well.
Good Luck!
Thanks for all the great input! I am definitely sold on the Thorowgood! Now I just wish I could find an 18" T4 or T6 Cob used…they are rare on the used market. I may just need to bite the bullet and buy new (which admittedly, is still pretty economical in the realm of saddle pricing.)
Grea
Here is an a/p….
55 Gallon Drum
My DD has a Thorowgood for her mare, who is as wide as a 55 gallon drum with no withers. I bought it for her for Christmas quite a few years ago, before they became quite popular. She loves, loves, loves this saddle. There is not enough money in the world to buy it off her!
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