Cinches: Definitely Not One Size Fits All
April 15, 2007 by Saddle Sense
Filed under Saddle Parts, Saddle Tips
One of my pet peeves in western riding is seeing people riding with the wrong size cinch for their horse. Whether it’s too big, or too small, it’s bad news.
There’s usually one of four reasons for this mistake:
1. They have no idea cinches have sizes
2. They don’t know how to determine the correct size for a horse
3. They chose a size based on "eyeballing" the horse.
4. They are being "thrifty" or lazy and using the same cinch on different sized horses.
Wrong sized cinches can gall your horse and compromise the job the cinch is supposed to do. Take the time to learn how to determine cinch size and get the right size for your horse. If you ride different sized horses, invest in a cinch that fits each. A cinch is not a particularly expensive part and your horse is worth it.
Related posts:
Cinch length is very important but you must also consider the cinch WIDTH. The number of strands determines width and there are definite rules about how many strands for which position rigging. See my discussion of this in the chapter entitled “Cinches” in my book SADDLE SAVVY. I am sure you will be glad you looked it up.