My horse continued to grow (see pic of Bubba) and I was in a real dilemma about a saddle, I bought an Ansür saddle and it worked great please visit the Ansür Saddle web site for another pic of Bubba with his Ansür saddle and a whole story about my journey to finding a great 'custom' saddle.

Thanks, Mindy

"FEI Level Trainers & Judges find the Ansür "

I did a wither tracing on my mare to look for the right saddle for her. I also bought a Thornhill. Its the JC Vienna model 18" and 34cm width. Waiting for it to arrive to check fit on my shire mare.

I'd strongly suggest you do a wither tracing too when shopping so you wont get stuck with the wrong saddle. What I did was take a 20" piece of baling wire and mark with wire cutters where the centerline of my mare's back should be, then I "molded" the wire to her about 2" behind her shoulder (where the saddle would sit) letting about 10" hang on each side.

Then, I took the wire and traced into onto white construction paper I brought beforehand. I cut off the top part "mimicking" my mares back (I used the cut away part to check against her back for correctnes) and used it a a measuring tool when I looked at saddles. You can also fax the wither tracing to a saddler and she can give you an idea of the width you'll need.

You can also try the "treeless" english saddle, Ansür. Its expensive though ($2000) and there have been issues raised on other horseboards from buyers regarding the quality of the workmanship. Also, you must BUY the saddle to try it on your horse or borrow one from a distributor in your area, if there is one and if you can get them to call you back.

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Posted by Leslie on March 08, 2001 at 07:46:14

We have ordered two of the Ansür jumping saddles and look forward to trying them. One can't be returned as it has long flaps but we can return the other if not satisfied. I did see a new Ansür saddle and I do believe they are overpriced considering a one year guarantee only; however, we have difficult to fit horses and would have to go custom otherwise. I found it hard to comprehend there aren't any demos floating around for trial. However, the individual at Ansür was very helpful and polite.

The quality was okay, I am not sure how long the saddle will hold up with regular use. I found the Circle Y Bob Marshall saddles wore quickly with the suede seat and the suede stretched and saddle twisted.

For the last four years, I have been riding in the treeless Circle Y Bob Marshall saddles and the Ansür I tried, felt identical in the seat. Our horses move considerably better in the treeless; therefore, that's why we ordered the jumping saddles.

Bottom line, the treeless fits a variety of horses, they move better, aren't sore, therefore, is the $2000 price tag too much?

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Posted by Maya on March 07, 2001 at 21:24:58

You can also try the "treeless" english saddle, Ansür. Its expensive though ($2000) and there have been issues raised on other horseboards from buyers regarding the quality of the workmanship. Also, you must BUY the saddle to try it on your horse or borrow one from a distributor in your area, if there is one and if you can get them to call you back.

I would love to know where you got this information. As the Ansür distributor who spent quite a bit of time e-mailing you on the saddle, and gave you some very real and fair options for trying it out. I would really like to know where people are questioning the quality of workmanship. The only posts that I have seen are legitimate questions regarding longevity since the saddle haven't been around long enough to find out. And I have also seen non-horsepeople praising the quality of workmanship and quality of leather. As a person who has been in the tack business for quite a while I will (and did) honestly tell you that the craftsmanship is superior to most of the higher priced saddles on the market. I personally believe that the saddle will last forever, but how can you know when the saddle hasn't been on the market for a long period of time? Well you look at the leather used and the quality of the craftsmanship which again is far superior to most saddles. The leather used is reknowned for it's longevity and for how it stands up to long term use, ask any old time cowboy who has a 30 year old saddle that is still in working condition. I just wish that these saddles were developed earlier.

Please use correct information when advising other people.

Maya Edelson

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There is also the "reactor panel" and the "schleese" brand of english saddles ranging in the $3000 area that are modified trees/treeless. I got my Thornhill for under $600 used amnd tried to stay under $1000 overall. A good english saddler for wide backed horses in the $1000-$1600 price range is Berney.

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Did you buy a thornhill dressage????

Posted by Alice S on March 07, 2001 at 13:42:56

I think Thornhills are one of the few saddles that are made to fit some of the wider horses. I think this may be so because they use English trees, and in england they have those really wide, flat-backed ponies. I have been very happy with my all purpose, but it has seen some wear. It is however in overall good, used condition.

I just bought my Thornhill dressage saddle which is the ultra-wide (36, not 34) from e-bay, and am hoping it fits my girl. If it doesn't, well, we'll see.

I hope you love your new saddle!!!!

Alice S.

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I have a new Thorowgood Cob A/P in a 17" that is designed for extra wide horses. Check out their webpage. www.thorowgood.com.

I just bought a Thornhill dressage saddle, and have a redundant Thornhill a/p 18 inch 34 width used saddle. My percheron mare is flat backed, but when she was a touch thinner this saddle fit her beautifully. I have tried a Wintec on her, to no avail, nothing is wide enough.

If my a/p might be of interest to you, e-mail me. I would be looking for around $400 out of it, and it has been a nice saddle for this hard to fit mare.

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Posted by Alice S on March 07, 2001 at 14:08:15

My saddle is one of these, probably at the lower price end of the spectrum. I'll look at it tonight and see if it has a name brand other than Thornhill on the inside.

If you go to the Thornhill site, at the following address:

http://www.thornhillusa.com/journal.html#anchor1306242

you'll find the Michael Plumb write-up on the Thornhill event saddles. They are good saddles.

If you decide to buy new, I can recommend these saddles. They are well priced, and they are good workhorse kind of saddles. And they seem to fit horses and people quite well, even Michael Plumb recommends them for those reasons.

Good luck on finding just what you want. . . . Alice S.

     Thornhill Multi-Purpose / Event Saddles

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We have a wonderful saddler here in Oklahoma. He takes repairs by mail as well. Contact Larry through his website below and I'm sure he can give you a fair estimate on the work.

Good saddlers are hard to find! Well, around these parts anyway. Our good ones are always really busy.

I've had leather billets replaced (at another shop before I found Larry)for about $15 per billet which included parts and labor. And these were higher quality billets that I had specially requested for my Stubben.

Good luck!

Ellen "tallchik"

* English Saddler

Wetzel's English Saddlery and Saddle Repair
Larry Wetzel is a professional saddler who specializes in English saddle fitting, repairs, and flocking.