Custom Saddle Pad

[wendlynne]

Oh, and P.S.

Invest in a USB microscope (about 70-90 dollars on amazon) and learn how to do a burn test on your wool. There are testing facilities in textile labs for a reason, manufacturers lie about fiber content more than you'd like to imagine. What you're THINKING is 90% wool might be closer to 70%. What are supposed to be carded fibers may be infinitely shorter. The only way to know is to get in there, pull the fibers apart, and evaluate it yourself. That's the only way you'll get a sense of what is really going on with that fabric. A loop with 15x magnification just won't cut it.

[Thor]

wendlynne, thank you so much for your input. You brought up some things I haven't thought of yet. Microscope isn't an issue as I have a very good relationship with my vet and her input is invaluable to me. Further the felt will be custom made to my specs, once the series rolls. I found a great manufacturer after some thorough market research. Till then there's still a lot of research to be done.

Regarding a wither cutout one has to know that this can cause pressure points if it's not matching the horse (wither area) and saddle. So a general one-fits-all cutout doesn't really work. Due to various breeds and body shapes the contoured pad is a bit tricky for me, but I'm working on it and may have to come up with a pad suitable for that and that breed...

Anyhow I'm getting there. Thanks again for your input.

[wendlynne]

My pleasure!

That's the fun of the equine industry, right? So so many opinions, nearly all of them subjective and qualitative. Based upon our experiences with the animals and observation, but very difficult to test and put numbers to. Personally, I think that most clinicians and vets I trust say that there should be as little pressure as possible in the whither area, weight is only ideally distributed along the bars. Specifically this is an issue with length in western saddles, I've had a lot of issues with two geldings in particular who have had pelvic issues exactly like schleiss describes from the bar length. For me, if I have pressure in the whither area or shoulder at all? You're doing it wrong. Therefore a cutout only serves to alleviate pressure potential from shifts and the horses movement, and is nowhere near the bar area where pressure should be distributed. But again, without a sensor under the saddle pad (those ARE pretty cool, but 300 a day to rent) it's just qualitative data. Three horse people in a room, not a single opinion will align perfectly.

All the best, you're headed into a hotly contested area in equine development. I do highly encourage you to learn a bit about fibers and length/quality and do your own examination under a microscope, as your vet will have no experience visually identifying them. Burn testing as well. Sadly, even the best of textile converters have to work with their own suppliers, I would be asking a LOT of questions about their lab, QA process, whether they use independent external labs to test their suppliers or whether they test at ALL. I have walked the floor of a few labs, and I can assure you that most companies rely on trust and aren't testing their fibers. Most apparel companies have been forced to set up their own internal labs to QA, as the converters simply don't and the fibers change from lot to lot, and consequently the quality. If Patagonia and Nike can't trust their suppliers and/or find any that test to their satisfaction, well in my opinion neither should you.

Good luck out there!