Saddle fit and your new saddle - from a tree maker's view
We are no longer building saddle trees, but we have two videos about how Western saddles fit horses available on our westernsaddlefit.com website.
After a lot of thought, decision making, money and time, you finally have your brand new saddle! Congratulations!! However, it is important to recognize that it takes a few hours of riding to really work in a new saddle. In talking to saddle makers, they say 10 hours of actual riding is really a minimum to get the saddle fitting like it will for the rest of its working life, and one maker felt that things would still change for up to 100 hours. So just in case it doesn't feel like everything is perfect that first ride out, don't be too worried. Here's some hints to help you during that "breaking in" period.
The shearling needs to pack down.
It doesn't stay nice and thick and fluffy, but while it is in that brand new stage, it will affect how your saddle fits. The new shearling is basically acting like an thin, extra blanket, so the saddle will be sitting higher on the horse than it will when it is broken it. One saddle maker we know measured his new saddle over time and said it moved down almost an inch on the same horse with the same padding before it quit settling.
This also will make the saddle a bit less stable than it will be in the future. Just as using excess padding causes you to have to cinch tighter to keep the saddle from rolling, so the new shearling may allow the saddle to move around a bit more than it will after a few hours of riding. So if the saddle shifts a bit more than you would like, give it some time. If it fits your horse, that excess movement will change when the shape of the bar becomes more defined through the skirts as the shearling packs down.
Both the time it takes to settle and how much it finally packs down really depends on the type of shearling the saddle maker uses. There are different manufacturers of shearling and the saddle makers say they act differently. Some makers like one type and some like an other, so it isn’t necessarily a quality thing - just a “different” thing. (Note, this is for real shearling. We aren't talking synthetics here). You may find yourself needing a bit thinner padding at the start until the shearling settles in.
The leather will soften up a bit.
The same kind of thing goes for the leather as the shearling. If the skirts were well blocked and the saddle is well constructed, there shouldn't be a lot of changes in fit as the leather loosens up a bit. But it means that any stiff edges will soften a bit and conform more to the shape of the horse, letting the bar contact the horse more fully. If the shape of the tree matches the general shape of the horse, the more the saddle gets used, the better the fit will get.
Leave the breast collar off.
We strongly recommend (and would actually prefer that it be an absolute rule) that you don’t ride with a breast collar for at least the first 10 hours with a new saddle, and preferably longer. That way the saddle will be totally free to “find it’s own spot” on the horse where the shape of the tree best matches the shape of the back. By not using a breast collar you for sure won’t be holding the saddle in the wrong place. (Please see our Proper Position of a Western Saddle page for more information.) If the saddle is held too far forward with a breast collar, it not only creates real problems for the horse, but it also affects how the shearling and leather get broken in.
The other advantage to leaving the breast collar off is that you will get used to where this saddle puts you – a combination of the way the seat is built in the saddle and where the tree fits on the horse. It will probably feel different than your old saddle, and people can be tempted to hold the saddle out of place (rather than let it find its rightful place) in order to make things feel more like they are used to. If you ride for a few hours with the saddle in the proper place (because it will go to where it best fits if you let it unless you put it so far forward that it might as well go forward as back) you will be familiar with how this saddle feels by the time the break in period is over. Then if you do decide you want to use a breast collar, you’ll be adjusting it to where the saddle really fits on the horse rather than putting the saddle too far ahead and holding it there with the breast collar (which, as I believe you are aware by now, is one of my pet peeves!) And maybe you will decide you don't need one after all...
So hopefully these tips will help alleviate some possible concerns as well as help you learn the proper position for this saddle on your horse more quickly than you might have otherwise. But the best advice we can give you is - enjoy the ride!!
(And for any saddle makers reading this, please feel free to comment, adding to what we say or giving your opinion on it. We enjoy hearing what you have to say.)
