Do these change saddle fit at all?
My husbands saddle is ‘slightly’ wide - we were using a total of about 3/4" padding under it.
These sound interesting - but they also sound THICK!!!
So do they make saddles overtight if they are pretty close in fit?
I have two of the Woolbacks, and yes, they are thick. They will change saddle fit, although they do compress when you girth up the saddle and sit in it.
They’re very nice pads, however, and they last much longer than any other real wool pad (either sheepskin or real wool fleece) that I’ve had.
Yup, they are thick. I would really recommend that you get a normal thickness ( they also have a triple thick) with openings for the inserts, but not with inserts at first. I love mine- unfortunately too thick for my current saddle, but the last forever and I have never had it rub.
Toklat makes Woolback pads with two different length fleece, english fleece and western fllece. Shorter fleece and longer fleece. Less thick, more thick.
Chicamuxen
Even the English fleece will still change the fit of your saddle. For my horse, it works out great – due to his troublesome back conformation, he’s actually most comfortable in a saddle that’s technically too wide for him, but with the English fleece woolback underneath, it fits perfectly. The saddle fitter went :eek: when she saw the saddle on his back without the pad, but once I put the pad underneath, she said it made perfect sense what I was doing 
I have a coolback Toklat pad (the synthetic rather than wool one), its western fleece length, barrel racing cut. I use it under my jumping saddle for trail riding, and do not find that it alters the fit much (I use it with an ultra thinline pad).
I LOVE this pad, get really even sweat marks under it, seems to breathe well, washes great - and my horse stays very comfortable with it after hours out on the trails, I do not get any slipping even in steep terrain (from down here, to up there!)
Appsolute - how thick do you think it is when you sit on it an squoosh it?
I have the same pad Appsolute has, and use it in the same way (under my jumping saddle for trail riding, sometimes with a thinline pad - hey Appsolute, great minds think alike, lol!). I use this pad because it just seems to “set” the saddle so much better than any other pad. No billet straps or keepers, and yet everything stays nicely in place over hill and dale…AND YOU CAN PUT IT IN THE DRYER!
I do think the coolbacks are slightly less bulky than the woolbacks (having owned both). That being said, I generally use the same saddle with a fleeceworks wool pad for jumping, so the saddle fits her well with a thicker pad. I don’t think, however, that your saddle has to be monstrously wide for the pad to work. More like a good fit on the wide side…
I would say it smooshes down to about 1/2 an inch. My saddle is NOT too wide, and it fits fine with the coolback pad. My Mattes pad makes my saddle a bit too tight (especially if it is freshly washed and fluffy).
Generally I use a Dover knock off poly pad and the thin line - and then the cool back pad and thin line for trail riding.
And yes Karen - great minds do think a like! i really like the combo of pads - we did 12 miles on Sunday in steep terrain and my mare’s back was just perfect after.
I am looking for a pad, so I love this thread. In the online pictures, the Toklat pads appear to have a perfectly straight topline. Are they actually cut that way? The Mattes and Fleeceworks have a curve to them that appears would lie flatter with less pulling. How do the Toklats lie on a horse IRL?
[QUOTE=Snowdenfarm;7576074]
I am looking for a pad, so I love this thread. In the online pictures, the Toklat pads appear to have a perfectly straight topline. Are they actually cut that way? The Mattes and Fleeceworks have a curve to them that appears would lie flatter with less pulling. How do the Toklats lie on a horse IRL?[/QUOTE]
You can request a high wither cut – mine fits this back
Riding Warehouse / Long Riders Gear helped me with mine, their customer service is fantastic!
http://www.ridingwarehouse.com/Endurance_Horseback_Riding_Saddle_Pads/catpage-SBLANKET.html#TOKLATWOOL
BigHorseLittleHorse, thank you for the information. Exactly what I was looking for. Love your pony!
Tnx for the info, everybody! The coolbacks sound like a definite possibility…!
I rode with my coolback pad yesterday, and tried to estimate the saddled “squished-ness” - I would say a bit less than 1/2".
As for the top line - mine is cut straight, but I have no issue pulling up into the gullet (along with my thinline pad that is also cut straight). And it STAYS pulled up into the gullet, never creeps down on the withers (and my 16.2+ horse has decent ones) - my poly pad on the other hand will creep down onto the withers, but I NEVER have the same issue with my coolback pad. Its a bit stretchy almost.
My pad is shaped like this one (so it might be the endurance pad rather than the barrel pad - mine does have leather wear guards as well - but a longer topline - I bought mine used at a tack sale). Fits my english saddle like the new “cross country” pads - just a bit oversized from front to back (bottom of the pad fits perfectly with the bottom of the sweat flap of my saddle).
I used the woolbacks all thru my endurance riding days and loved them. They last for years. then I got a new horse and needed a new saddle. The pads I had didn’t fit the saddle very well so I bought a bigger woolback to fit the type of saddle that I have. I was disappointed in it. They are not making them like they did years ago. I don’t know how to explain it but they are just not the same. They are thick (I didn’t get the thickest they offer) but it was “bunchy”. I tried using it several rides and just didn’t like it. My husband is using my old woolbacks with his saddle and they fit well. I had him try mine and he hated it. So he even noticed it was different. So… I sold it and I bought a felt wool pad from the lady who made my saddle (Crestridge) and I LOVE that pad!!
hmmmm…morgan, you are not the first person I heard say that about the toklats. I was hoping that it was a ‘fluke’ with the others…
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