That used English saddle looks good, and it sure fit's your horse.  Here's what to look for:

An English saddle is much more delicate, and easily damaged than a western saddle. Stripped down, the bare tree weighs only little more than a pound.

THE GULLET - is wood (very little) reinforced underneath with a piece of malleable iron, fitted and riveted in place. This piece extends down both sides of the “legs”. Here is the most likely place to find a break, as the metal is rather brittle. Grasp the front of the saddle with both hands and check for any play or movement. A break here can be fixed, but it’s expensive as the whole saddle must be torn down. I can fiberglass these, but I don’t know how long the job would last. A new piece could be made by a blacksmith, or possibly ordered from the tree maker.

THE BARS - are also reinforced with metal, and the stirrup hanger’s rivet between the bar and the leg. Another place to check for any give, or looseness is the cantle. A broken cantle is not critical to safety, or the horse’s comfort, and can be more easily repaired than a broken gullet.  At this point, know there are many English saddles featuring a “flexible” tree. So if the saddle can be twisted right and left slightly or if there is some give when pushing the gullet and cantle together, that may not mean a broken tree.

THE BILLETS & WEBBING - they’re sewn to. If they’re stretched, cracked, or the holes are worn replacing them is not too bad a job, but good leather must be used.  After all, those skinny one-inch straps are all that’s holding the saddle on your horse. Also, that front billet is often just tacked to the wood part of the tree. The other two are sewn.

THE STITCHING - Often, on an older, or lower quality English saddle some of the stitching where the jockeys join the seat will be rotting out.  It may not be possible to do any neater job on this problem than a baseball stitch.

THE LACING - where the panels fasten to the seat and gullet may be pulling away.  It’s an easy job to re-lace them, and this is often done as part of installing new billets. Lastly, is the leather in the seat, panels, and skirts in good shape?  English leather is not as forgiving of abuse and exposure as is western-type leathers.  An “Australian” saddle is just and “English” saddle under the skin, except the tree is a bit heavier and stronger.

Click on the side buttons for more information on leather.