What's inside the panels of an English Saddle?

Well it really depends on which brand and quality of the saddle.

Flock runs the gamut from high quality, long strand wool to carpet waste remmennts and every thing in between!

The finest quality flock is 100% long strand, white/yellow virgin wool. No the term "Virgin" does not refer to the celibate status of the sheep, but rather that the wool is first use and not reprocessed from another source. This type of wool molds and conforms to the horses back the best. When reflocking a saddle I always use this type of wool. It's the best hands down.

The most common type wool used today from flocked saddles coming out of England is "Jacob's Wool". This is a dark gray frizzy wool which is of a lower quality, thus reducing cost in producing the saddle. It does not conform as well and has a tendency to clump.

The next step down the line is acrylic fiber or acrylic fiber/wool blend. These will appear as multi colored fibers Use of these fibers in saddle panels is fairly common, and not just in the cheaper saddlery lines! Often times I find this mix in pricey saddles. Again it saves with manufacturing costs and adds to the company's bottom line.

Bottom of the barrel flocking is rag wool, carpet waste remmennts, and other assorted leftovers and waste material. This stuff is usually reserved for bottom line saddlery, but I have been surprised on finding it in supposed "higher quality saddles".

Understanding the function of the flocking gives an idea of it's importance. The flocking acts as a buffer between the hard tree, or skeleton of the saddle and the horses back.

It's purpose is to not only act as a cushioned buffer but to allow the saddle to conform or "set" to the horses back. The higher the quality of the flocking, the better the saddle will conform to the horses back!

On the underside of the panels of flocked saddles, between the tree and the panel, there are some small slits in the leather. Often times, most people when they come across these they think that the saddler did a shoddy job and forgot to sew these up.

Their purpose is actually there for a reason. The reason being, so that a saddle flocker can add more flocking to assist in adjusting the fit of the panel to the horse's back.

Dig around and find these slits. Pull a little of the flocking out and compare and see how your saddle measures up!