Wrapping leathers to try new saddle?

[rolypolypony]

I have a new saddle coming in in the next week or so, and for the initial test to make sure it fits my lease and my leg, I'm supposed to wrap the leathers so that if it doesn't fit, I can return it for a full refund and not get 10% taken off for scuff marks or what have you

Comments

[k7point5]

get a cheap pair of tall socks, or use an old pair that are on their way out ;) and cut the toes off, so it's just a tube (almost spelled that toob...must be Friday). Slide the tube sock up past the stirrups so that the sock is around the stirrup leathers. wa-lah! They will stay up once your foot is in the stirrup.

[rolypolypony]

They really will stay up? I guess they would - your leg and the weight in the stirrup would keep the leather against the saddle, thereby keeping the sock up?

Thanks! :)

[k7point5]

exactly - your leg against the stirrup leather and your heel pushing everything down keeps them in place.

you can also wrap with vet wrap, but IMO vet wrap can damage the saddle flap because it's a bit abrasive and sticky.

[rolypolypony]

Yeah, someone on COTH mentioned vet wrap (and saran wrap) and the vet wrap seemed like the stickiness would cause more problems.

I'll go with the socks - how much damage could I do in a few minutes? ;) Famous last words...

[belle7067]

Personally, when I was going through saddle fitting fun this summer, I just tried things without stirrups. A good workout for me, and no risk of damaging the saddle! Then I can at least assess the general fit and feel and see if I care enough to wrap the leathers. I also recommend working with places that allow you to just put your stirrup leathers on, as wrapping can change the feel. SmartPak has trial saddles that they are ok with you doing that with, and Trumbull Mt Tack lets you test ride for like a week with stirrup leathers or whatever you want.

[rolypolypony]

Well, I already have the saddle coming from Dover and they didn't have ay in stock in their trial saddle program, which is their "ride as you normally would" deal. So a new-new one it is.

The stirrupless thing makes sense, however the main issue I might have with the saddle is my knee hanging off the flap when my stirrups are at jumping length, so I kinda need to try it with the stirrups for that!

[alittledffrnt]

The Saran Wrap works and it is thin enough that it doesn't make you feel weird. Socks can be slippery especially on a new saddle that hasn't been used as a demo before and make the saddle feel unbalanced if they slip and slide you around. You can just wrap one layer of Saran spiraling down the leather - making sure you cover all the leather on the stirrup leather- and you'll be good.

[rolypolypony]

Thanks! I've been curious about how well the Saran Wrap Idea works!

[rckmeamadeus]

I've always just used vetwrap

[emidala]

Just put the leathers UNDER the flap. That's how most Icelandic saddles look anyway, and I know tons of people who have Childeric saddles (they cost 4-6,000 euros) who ride like that on a permanent basis. Personally, I am flabbergasted that not more people do it since scuff marks is the number one reason why saddles lose value when you try to sell them.

Obviously, doing this on a jump saddle is perhaps unadvisable but for flat work or dressage, it's the way to go.

[rolypolypony]

But you can't do that on all saddles - my current saddle you can't because there's leather sewn under the stirrup bar, and I'm 99% sure it's the same on this. We'll find out - it's coming today! If I'm wrong, that's what I'll do!

[emidala]

Oh, I'm sure you can't do it on all saddles! But if the saddle is not a monoflap, most of the time you can.

It is a really great way (at least in a dressage saddle, not so sure how safe it is when jumping!) to "save" the saddle and make sure you don't lose a ton of money when your horse has grown out of it and you want to sell it. I mean, I would be happy to pay $2,000 for a saddle that fits my horse but if I have to choose between two identical used saddles, I'm obviously going to pick the one that looks newer.