Ridding A Wade/slick Fork Vs. Swell Fork Seat Size

[oobuckshotz]

helllo, have never ridden in anything but swell for saddles....i like the tight fit of a 15" slick seat...and sometimes a 16" but am often told that the 15 is to tight for me...i diagree.....im a 5'10" 15lb guy and dont have twig legs and i got plenty of back side...

my question is for those of you who have ridden in both swell fork and slick fork is... do u feel there is a difference in seat size in the same size seat....ie does a slick fork saddle seam longer and roomier than a swell fork in length..

and second part is when deciding seat size do u need to take bucking rolls into account as they sit back further than the swell on swell forks...do u need a longer seat to accomidate this

maC

[Josh Ashman]

Mac,

Personally I like 16" seats in both slick fork and swell fork saddles. I'd say there's probably a little more room in a slick fork until you put bucking rolls on it then it may fit a little tighter than a swell fork but that's a very generalized statement. The size and shape of the swell or bucking roll would play a pretty big part as would the shape of the slick fork (short and stout like a more modern type wade or taller and leaner like an old time slick fork). I'm 6'-1 or so and try to keep under 210 lbs, I've been riding a saddle I built for about 2 years now it has a 15-1/2" finished seat and decent sized bucking rolls. There's things I wished I'd have done better on the saddle but I really like the size of the seat and the size and shape of the bucking rolls. I've been starting a 3 year old gelding this spring and he's a little bucky, nothing too hard to stick mostly straight ahead jumps and kicks but he moves around pretty good. I feel like my saddle helps me stay on top with him. Here's a picture of the horse and saddle,

I'm sure you'll get different opinions from somebody else, everybody's a little different.

Good luck,

Josh

[cowboy bowhunter]

If you use bucking rolls on your wade. You would want a 16". Im 5'10" i weight 150. I ride in 16" saddles 15" feels like i need a shoe horn to get into. If i ride a cutting saddle i like 16.5"