Got the Freeform Liberty

[QHLUV]

It came in the mail today!! I waited all day long, pacing the floors.. But it finally arrived. Just in the nick of time too! The rain was starting to move in.. Of COURSE it only does that when I get a saddle to try.. What are they called saddle gnomes.. :cool:

Anyways first impressions were that it was REALLY well made. Love the leather, soft and buttery with a nice grip to it. Light weight!! Love that it is only 7 lbs.. I am a little leery of the sympanova, but was assured that it would hold up in the Florida heat!!

They sent me the wrong size seat, but that's ok, I can get the other seat shortly.. I thought it felt BIG for a 17.5, but it was an 18. Supper soft, and squishy.. Love the seat, it is really nice.. It is about the only treeless saddle that I have found to have a twist to it. My leg hung done really nicely, no charlie horses..

My horse LOVED it too. He was forward and happy, even with the weather rolling in. Rain storms tend to make him a little LOOPY.. He hates to get wet!! :p I could sit his trot well, and the canter was ooooo so dreamy.. He is very springy, and I found that the Liberty absorbed a lot of the concussion.

He can play a pretty good rendition of a PUFFERFISH!! so when I bent down to check the girth.. I could get a small cat thru it.. The saddle NEVER budged.. Thank God for all that Bareback riding..!!:D Tightened the girth back up, and away we went..

I LOVED the knee blocks.. They helped but did not hinder.. They were just kinda there. Which was really nice. I am going to see what happens if I move the seat up a little bit, then I can use the knee block a little more. That's a great option. Not only can you adjust the stirrups to where you want them, but you can move the seat up or back, about an inch!! Cool!!:D

The flap is a nice length for my petite self, even thought I have a long leg. I am kinda like Kermit the frog.. :rolleyes:

I give this saddle a totally THUMBS up!! and I am TOTALLY keeping it..

I have tried the London, Fhoenix, Sensation, Cheyenne( I still have the Cheyenne, and LOVE that one too) and now the Liberty!!

To date the Liberty is my favorite.

I will get pics tomorrow if the weather is permitting!!

[Showjumper]

Yay sounds awesome, can't wait for pictures!! :D

[QHLUV]

Well the saddle trail gnomes are still here!!:mad: It is supposed to rain AGAIN (80%), we need the rain, but COME ON!!

Ok with the seat. They sent me an 18, I am 5 foot 2, and weigh about 117 lbs. I have a long leg, but a very uhmn round bottom. I have a 32 inch inseam when I buy jeans..

What size seat should I get? The 18 is WAAAAAY too big, I can fit a hand and a half back there. Is it the same as a regular saddle, 4 fingers? Being that it is not as deep I am thinking I need a 17 inch. But will that look weird with the saddle base?

Maybe I will have them sent me both and try them!! That way I will know for sure, and not second guess myself.

Gosh I loved the wither clearance it gave him, moderately high witherd horse.. I could get 3 fingers in there.. That's Cool.. I can only get 1 finger in my Cheyenne. But I took out the hard pomel so that it would be soft and squishy..

Off to go and try and get a ride in..

[lor]

Great to hear you like it, I'm 5'5" and i'm getting 17" seat, i'm rather jelous of you having the liberty, i think its absolutly scrummy to look at. i was sort of hoping you were going to say it was poo! (not really)i'm waiting for my SB to arrive....................look forward to pics from you, for some reason i cant put a smiley face on so 'smiley face'!

[QHLUV]

I love it.. Though it is going to take a little getting used to!!:rolleyes: I am apparantly very balanced at the trot, but the canter... Uhmn I need to work on.. I am not sure if I got the girth tight enough,,,, but there was a little slippage today!! Nothing Horrible... More like something I am going to have to learn to get used too!!

My Cheyenne was like that too!!:p I am going to have to take the time it takes to get a little more balanced!! Maybe I need to have the girth tighter!! I don't know..

I also have to play with the seat a bit.. I think I have it on croocked!!:eek: That may be the problem.. HEHE

Well I will get it all sorted out hopefully, because it is about the MOST comfortablest thing I have ever SAT On..

Does anyone know of any draw backs to the Sympanova? Just wondering?? I don't know if I should stick with the sympanova or get the fleece underside? I like Fleece.. For some reason, the fleece seems to be a bit more Squishy!!

Ok Off to contemplate!!

[lor]

A friend of mine said she found her cheyenne a bit side slipping at first, she persisted and it stopped, she wasnt sure if it was she had become more balanced or whether it has bedded down. I dont know, i suppose a slightly tighter girth will help, plus putting your seat on straight, so long as horse is comfy, trial and error.

Is there an obvious guide as to how to put the seat on so that you know its central, or is it guess work?

I must say that when i rode in the freeform twice on my wiggly exmoor, she can turn on a sixpence and sometimes, before you know its happened, she may have turned and gone the other way, she did a few manouevers and my saddle didnt slip at all, hope this continues when i get my very own one.

Sorry, dont know anything about the base options, have gone for a leather base myself as do endurance and am hoping its cooler

Glad you like your liberty, keep us informed, we will all learn from the things you discover, i still cant put a smiley on!!! so CHEESY GRIN

[QHLUV]

Well then it is probably me.. I have a different girth that I can try, but I don't want to get the saddle so tight he can't breath!!:eek: Maybe I will give the other inserts a try, and see how that goes too! It maybe too much insert for the liking of the saddle. I can also give it a one time try with a regular pad. I know you are supposed to use the insert pads, but just to see if that is the issue!!

And again the slipping is minute, but I can feel it.. Plus it may be totally the **** eyed seat I have going on.. They should have sent me a USER manual for that thing.. But I will try to re-arrange the seat.. I need all the straightness I can get!!:D

I really love the saddle, Horsy is giving me some really nice soft collection. Which is AWESOME!! I have only felt this a few time with him in the last 6 years, so this is a MAJOR plus!! Now If I can get the Mini slippage under controll I will be in bizness....:D

Pics are on their way!!

[Showjumper]

Looking forward to the pics! :D

The first 3 pictures on this link show how to get the seat on straight :) http://sports.ph.groups.yahoo.com/group/treelesssaddles/photos/browse/6df5
What pad are you using with it, and what girth?

[QHLUV]

Here are the pics:

http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v165/atstable52/Freeform%20Liberty/

I am using the Christ treeless pad, with 3/4 inch laminated skito inserts, with shoulder shims.. And a Fleece girth. I switched the fleece girth out for my wintec neoprene girth and it went much better. I could get the girth tigher, and I had NO slipping problems.. I must not have had the girth done up tight enough yesterday!!

I LOVE this saddle it is very comfy!!

:D

[Showjumper]

Great pics! :) lol I was going to recommend trying a neoprene girth :)

[lor]

Glad you are getting it under control, great pics too, lovely horse, look comfy and soft, you look comfy too!

@showjumper, thanks for link to fitting the seat