Synthetic saddles, Wintec or Thorowgood

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ljwatt

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Jul 15, 2008
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Need help, have a young Cob (he's 6!) with quite a flat back, been recommended to go for a synthetic saddle with the panel system. Thought about buying the Wintec, but should i go for the GP one, or the wide one? Also a friend of a friend spoke to a saddle fitter who recommended the Thorowgood, anybody have any thoughts about which are better? Also should I buy a dedicated cob saddle? HELP!!!!!!!
 
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i wouldnt reccomend a normal wintec for a cob i had one and it slipped all the way round and i fell off!!:eek:

never tried a wintec wide but they are supposed to be made for cobs so would be a better fit than a normal gp one!

hope that helps!:)
 
Thorowgoods for cobs are made on a much flatter tree than are Wintecs.

Wintec wides aren't specifically made for northern European cobs, but for wide Australian horses, and have much more of a curve in the tree than is suited to most UK and NW European cobs and native-types. The term 'wide' - as far as I am aware - refers only to the width between the points of the tree, and bears no relation to the curve of the tree along its length.

Of course this is a gross generalisation and what you need to get is the saddle that fits the horse best - however, like all generalisations it is a useful guide.
 
I’ve had both wintec and thorowgood.

Did have a wintec wide for a cob with flat back and no withers. Saddle was great for him and I had no moans!

Was told how wintecs ruin horses backs – mainly due to tree shape, I personally haven’t experienced that. One thing I have witnessed is problems arising with Cair and one panel being smaller then the other when using one sided elastic girth. Sadly Cair and Flair in general but flocked not had issues.
I sold all my wintecs after being advised by a saddle fitter they were not suitable and opted for a saddle co saddle instead. Had had my wintecs fitted by two saddle fitters before who were ok but I did have a worry and wanted them checked again. My worry was minimal tho and probably not cause for concern just over paranoid mum - on the odd occasion my boy would sometimes turn away when entering his stable with tack. I assumed it was a tack issue.

Anyways long story short – saddle co saddles I bought never fitted. Too wide too low and over stuffed. Caused mounting issues, rearing, bucking the lot. One very happy horse turned very sour after my slight concern I actually caused myself major issues.

I gave up on saddle co after numerous fittings and went and got a T6 thorowgood and a Wintec again in replace as I couldn’t afford a leather due to wasted money on saddle co. I now have a horse that lets me mount, walks trots and canters and jumps forward and free, no bucking no rearing no issues. So as much as wintecs are put down in my experience I can’t fault them as my experience has shown otherwise but I used to believe the slating they got. I will be aware more of their general maintenance and checks which I probably never gave regard for before. That experience sadly has taught me a great lot about fitting!

But as said - what fits your horse is what to buy
 
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I had a wintec dressage saddle for an interim period where my leather saddle didn't fit due to lack of muscle. It fitted my TB well as it had quite a curved tree - therefore maybe less likely to fit flat backed cob??
I sold mine also on the advice of my saddler - she was horrifed I would even consider using one?! That could be a traditionalist saddler point of view though. Providing it fits ok & horse is comfortable I don't have a problem with them.
 
My saddler recommended Thorowgood (hi wither in my case and a cob one for my firend), they are supposed to have much better pressure test results than the Wintec which according to my saddler tend to move more on the horses back (bounce). I can only say that I really like my Thorowgood, even though I was prepared not too and Belle goes very well in it. My friend has the cob one for her conny as he seems very happy too.
 
I have had both Wintec and Thorowgood saddles. But I found with my very wide, no withered, broad backed Icelandic's, the Thorowgood fit nigh on perfect. The Wintec didn't fit at all.
Think the Thorowgood was designed for those broad Native ponies.

So it just depends on the conformation of your horse.
 
Wintec saddles

Hi, i'm having probs with my wintec saddle :( I have a wintec wide with Cair and a wintec 500 gp with flock. I have a lovely Gypsy cob m/w-h/w with a very wide back n not much wither.
The wintec wide seems to slip to the right, but this down to rider failure but 3 different people have ridden him in it n it does the same. So maybe it's to do the the Cair system? My friend rode him the other day n used the wintec 500 n said it didn't slip at all. But I thought the saddle looked to high on his back. i've tried getting a saddler fitter to come out but they say i'm out their area or will only come if i'm buying a saddle from them.
I'm thinking of trying an Australian stock saddle or maybe western but not really sure what to do atm.
 
The Wintec Wide i have is Cair and it also slips to the right! The shape of one side of the cushioning is a different shape (flatter) than the other, so making it slip. So when riding i need to move the saddle back and its not good for the horse.
 
Thats very interesting!! wonder how many more ppl are having same prob with wintec wide with Cair that slips to the right? Anyone else out there with this prob please let us know.
I did contact wintec abt the prob n they were very un helpful! just said go to the retailer you got it from. ( that doesn't help ppl who buy 2nd hand) Not 1bit of concern abt the prob :/
 
amylou_84 said:
The Wintec Wide i have is Cair and it also slips to the right! The shape of one side of the cushioning is a different shape (flatter) than the other, so making it slip. So when riding i need to move the saddle back and its not good for the horse.
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Was it used with a girth that is elastic at one end ?

Found that’s what happened to my saddles before. Elastic at one side of the girth relieves that side while the other has more pressure
 
wintec slip!

Yes I do use girth with elastic 1 side. Now there a thort! thanks for that I will try it later with a different girth n see what happens! will let you know :)
 
Nope mines not elastic. There is a definate difference in the two sides of the saddle. Also the space between the pommel and the horses back is more than a hands width! So its to high on him.
 
Davi said:
Yes I do use girth with elastic 1 side. Now there a thort! thanks for that I will try it later with a different girth n see what happens! will let you know :)
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I couldn’t say if it would stop the saddle slipping but I have heard and assume why past panels on my saddles after time have been different shapes (one smaller then the other) due to one side having pressure release compared to the other and the flatter panel coinciding with the side the elastic wasn’t on.

Have new saddle now and have girth with no elastic in it – going to see how it goes and if it does make a difference

I have to admit never used to think of getting my saddles a regular check but will be now - main problem is finding someone that can - hardly any good fitters around
 
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Thorowgood because I find some of the wintecs really cut forward.
However I do like the wintec 2000's they are really nice to ride in
 
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