Best Kind of Cinch?

Aaron wrote to ask about cinches. “My saddle tends to twist quite a bit on my paint gelding even when I tighten down so much that I think I may be hurting him. Do you have an opinion on the rubber cinches that are supposed to keep the saddle from tourquing to the side?”

Aaron, since you are writing you are obvious aware of the dangers of a loose saddle rolling onn the horse. Saw that on a high dollar horse and higher dollar saddle and it wasn't good for either. Sometimes a horse will hold air in his lungs or otherwise tense up a little as you saddle him up and once he relaxes the saddle will be a little loose. I always warm my horses up, usually in the round pen, then I’ll check the cinch and it always tends to need a little tightening. If this is not the case for your saddle rolling problem, then maybe it’s a saddle fit problem,.....too much (too thick) of a saddle blanket,.....bars of your saddle too narrow for your horse, or if you have a mutton withered horse, then maybe too wide of bars can all contribute to this.

As far as Neoprene cinches go, I don’t like them. However, alot of professionals I respect use them. I don’t use a Neoprene saddle pad either. I’m worried that the horse’s back or belly can’t breathe as well as other material. And as traditional as I’d like to be, I don’t use Mohair or cotton cinches either. I use a sheepskin lined cinch. I think it is more comfortable to the horse.

However, I would think that a Neoprene cinch would hold the saddle in place better than a traditional cincha or the sheepskin lined ones. I would also look into your saddle fit. See if they are any gall marks on the horse’s back such as spots where the hair is turning white as the saddle rotates and rubs. You can put white marks on a horse’s back even on one ride with an ill fitting saddle or even a saddle pad that has been caked with sweat and now has a sand paper type area that can run the horse raw. Good luck and safe journey.