[Skyedragon]

No sooner did I get done posting saying maybe I would just keep my collegiate than a Duett Rondo 2 popped up on my fairly local CL within my price range. I have heard good things about Duett saddles for wide horses, but am curious about quality? Looking at the pictures the leather looks kind of cheap/cardboard like... I have also heard that the twist on these saddles can be super wide, this one is just a standard wide tree, will the twist still be super wide? Will it fit a horse that also has withers and a slight curve to her back? Any info would be appreciated!

[kris0227]

I LOVE LOVE LOVE My Duett Saddle. I have the Fidelio. The leather is very nice, not at all cardboard or cheap like. The twist on the Rondo is pretty wide. The Fidelio is their only narrow twist dressage saddle which is why I have that one. For a horse with withers, I would suggest the Fidelio as it has more wither clearance than the other two models. Does it say what the tree size is?

[rizzodm]

I have the Fidelio too! I love this saddle! The leather is decent enough. This saddle fits my Haflinger like a glove so I am okay with not having the soft buttery buffalo leather.

[Skyedragon]

I LOVE LOVE LOVE My Duett Saddle. I have the Fidelio. The leather is very nice, not at all cardboard or cheap like. The twist on the Rondo is pretty wide. The Fidelio is their only narrow twist dressage saddle which is why I have that one. For a horse with withers, I would suggest the Fidelio as it has more wither clearance than the other two models. Does it say what the tree size is?

The ad just says that it is a wide tree, waiting to hear back. I am hoping that it is the 34. I don't think my mare will need anything wider than that. She goes in the wide gullet of my collegiate diploma. I like that the Rondo has the straighter flap for dressage, but that it is still forward enough that I could raise my stirrups and hop over some logs.

[Skyedragon]

I found the saddle's old listing on eBay, its a 32 cm tree, and a 19 inch seat, but I heard that the seats run small?

[kris0227]

It depends on the model. Oh, I was thinking the Rondo was one of the dressage models. Looking at it now, it has a deep seat (like the fidelio dressage). I'm not sure about the 19 inch seat, I think that depends on the length of your leg and size in general.

[Pocket Pony]

My husband has a Duett jumping saddle for my old QH that he used to ride. I use it on my mustang when I want to jump him. The seat is 19", so too big for me, but I can get away with it. The leather quality is okay - not fancy, but certainly durable and functional. When I was dressage saddle shopping for my mustang, I had it narrowed down to a Duett (ack, can't remember which one!) and a Frank Baines Capriole. I wanted to like the Duett better because of the price tag, but I looooovvvveeee the Frank Baines, so that's what I got. Honestly, though, if I didn't ride in one right after the other, I'm sure I would have been perfectly happy with the Duett.

Can you get it on trial? They are good saddles, especially for the rounder horse.

[jn4jenny]

The Rondo, like most of Duett's saddles, are built for a mutton-withered flat-toplined horses. It's straight as a board and has a big pointy gusset in the back that will dig right into a curvy topline. Ditto with its brother from another mother, the Thornhill Berlin.

Keep in mind that the Fidelio is built to a higher quality standard/price point than the Rondo 2, and the Fidelio therefore has better leather quality. The Rondo 2 is a serviceable and reasonably well-constructed saddle for the price, but it's definitely cardboard-y. Not unbearably so, but you'd prefer the leather on your Collegiate for sure.

[Skyedragon]

The Rondo, like most of Duett's saddles, are built for a mutton-withered flat-toplined horses. It's straight as a board and has a big pointy gusset in the back that will dig right into a curvy topline. Ditto with its brother from another mother, the Thornhill Berlin.

Keep in mind that the Fidelio is built to a higher quality standard/price point than the Rondo 2, and the Fidelio therefore has better leather quality. The Rondo 2 is a serviceable and reasonably well-constructed saddle for the price, but it's definitely cardboard-y. Not unbearably so, but you'd prefer the leather on your Collegiate for sure.

That is what I was concerned about, that the saddles are marketed toward the broad and flat so wouldn't accommodate the slight curve Skye has to her back. That's rather depressing as the saddle is almost new and well within my price range. The collegiate certainly isn't high end leather, but when I was looking at pictures of various duetts I kept thinking to myself that the leather on my collegiate looks better quality, more soft and subtle. I am eyeballing this saddle on ebay: http://www.ebay.com/itm/17-1-2-18-CO...item20cd1bbd7a

My very first saddle that I ever owned was a Collegiate Senior Event. I remember liking it, I just don't remember if the tree was super straight or had any amount of curve to it. The pictures of that saddle sure do make the tree look straight.

[leheath]

Duett sells three different dressage saddles and I purchased through Trumbull Mountain and they were very helpful recommended the right one based on photos of my horse and my personal preferences. I bought a Duett Largo and I was very happy with it. It was very comfortable for me, but I generally prefer a wider twist so YMMV. It fit my very wide shouldered, medium-withered, moderately curvy backed warmblood very well so it is definitely not just for the mutton withered, flat backed type. The quality was very decent and it seemed durable to me. Eventually, my young horse outgrew it and I had to sell it, but I would buy one again.

[chebeau]

Why not take tracings of your mare and send them to Trumbull Mountain? They are super helpful. I, also, recommend the The Horse's Pain-Free Back and Saddle-Fit Book by Joyce Harman. It can really help you think through saddle fit for your horse and yoourself. Get that and a flexicurve to start taking good tracings of your horse. You'll really get a better understanding of what you need. Then make a list of what you need and want in a saddle. This will help in the saddle hunt. Good luck! As someone with a Stinky Pony who is a princess and the pea when it comes to saddles, I feel your pain. Good luck and may the saddle fitting forces be with you!

Happy riding,
Jessie and the Stinky Pony aka Bosco

[Skyedragon]

Why not take tracings of your mare and send them to Trumbull Mountain? They are super helpful. I, also, recommend the The Horse's Pain-Free Back and Saddle-Fit Book by Joyce Harman. It can really help you think through saddle fit for your horse and yoourself. Get that and a flexicurve to start taking good tracings of your horse. You'll really get a better understanding of what you need. Then make a list of what you need and want in a saddle. This will help in the saddle hunt. Good luck! As someone with a Stinky Pony who is a princess and the pea when it comes to saddles, I feel your pain. Good luck and may the saddle fitting forces be with you!

Happy riding,
Jessie and the Stinky Pony aka Bosco

I am actually already discussing options with one of the ladies at Trumbull, though I feel a bit guilty because they have nothing within my price range right now, and I will likely have to take their advice and then buy elsewhere.

[islgrl]

I have the Duett Presto, which sadly I have to sell as it doesn't fit my new horse. I bought it as an affordable option for my jumping saddle. I was very pleasantly surprised at how nice it was for the price. I don't know if it would hold up for 30 years, but its comfortable, well made and nice looking so I have been happy with it.

[Skyedragon]

Well the lady that I talked to at Trumbull recommended the Thorowgood cob/broadback, or a Duett. I guess that helps me some, but it does have me scratching my head when I see pictures of the horses that fit well into those types and then comparing them to pictures of my own horse.

[kris0227]

Post the pictures here? Maybe she's thinking of a specific model of Duett. There are different shapes of them as well.

[Skyedragon]

We were discussing the Rondo and the Sonata. I found a couple of Thorowgoods that I like the looks of, one is a broadback dressage and the other appears to be the high wither dressage but had the wide gullet in it.

Here are the pictures that I sent her:

back

side

And here is what she looks like right now, a little bit on the fluffy side. I didn't send her this picture because it wasn't taken totally dead on:

current

[kris0227]

She's definitely not too curvy for a Duett. Here's a pic of my mare for comparison.

https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/phot...eat=directlink

And here's her in the Duett recently, the fleece half pad is because she'd lost weight but has since gained it back and we no longer use the fleece half pad. The saddle fits her like it was made for her and she's very happy in it!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/kris0227/7993060286/

The big thing about Duetts is that they're made for a wide back that's flatter side to side. The tree is an upside down U shape instead of the typical A shape of most saddle brands.

[Pocket Pony]

kris, your mare is adorable!!!