A friend of mine is looking for a saddle that she could ride around in for all around and practice...she saw this one on Statelinetack...I have never owned a Circle P or ridden in one she was asking me what I think...has anybody ever owned one or ridden in one.  What are they like? Are they good quality?  You can see a picture of it here...

http://www.statelinetack.com/itemdy00.asp?T1=SLT734570%201500%20CAR

Well, the description claims to be all leather.  But it only weighs 23 lbs.  That means that the tree is probably made of plaster wrapped in rawhide (not a good thing).  The rigging will most likely be just a piece of rawhide folded over that ring that is showing then nailed into the tree.  (also not a good thing). 

IMO, that saddle is a piece of junk.  The leather is crappy, the rigging will most probably fall off after a season of riding.  Fot the money they are asking for it your friend could do some looking and find a good used one for the same price. 

If you want more info on this particular saddle just google it.

 

I have to agree w/ JourneyGirl, this saddle looks like a POS.  It looks very cheaply made.  I would find a used older saddle that would last much longer than this one.

Good Luck!

Yes by the looks of it, it just looks cheap, I have always owned leather saddles...but I have ridden in some cordura saddles which are comfortable, but I kind of feel bad to say that I think it is a piece of junk....but I told her maybe she could just find a good quality used saddle...Im kind of thinking that because its cheap and it is for practice it doesnt matter..but she really needs to consider her horse and probably the fact it is cheap but may not hold out for her....

I am pretty sure that saddle is a synthetic like a wintec.  That’s why its so light.  If its the same, I saw one at at a Stateline when they were still in the petsmarts   I was considering one myself when I was looking for a work saddle.  I ended getting a traditional roughout saddle.  It has a equitation style seat, which I liked, but I would really only consider it for trail riding or working at home.  You should google it like was suggested and you may other reviews (and/or a better price) for it.

I have to say that saddle just looks fake, like a piece of crap. If you want a good for almost anything saddle get a WINTEC. They're simply the best out there and very affordable. They're also light, easy to care for and showy enough for basic showing if you need it. If you want to get them cheaper go on ebay. I got mine virtaully unused for half the catalog price. you can reasearch this one but I don't think it's good.

I didnt' see anywhere in the description where it said all leather.  Where'd you see that?

 

It IS synthetic.  We used to sell this saddle in our shop when we had a tack business.  It is the ONLY synthetic I'd carry.  It is built on a true equitation tree similar to what you'd find in the Circle Y eq saddles.  It wears well.  It rides very nice.  It actually puts you in the correct position for eq and most judged western events. 

 firststringfarm is right. It doesn't say it's leather in the descriptions that I have read. it specificly says synthetic on the Jeffers site. About the quality I'm not sure. It does look fake.

The quality is very good.  In my opinion it is by far the best made synthetic saddle out there.  Far better than Wintec or Abetta.

Oh really? I guess now I am hearing it is a good saddle.....I guess i kinda got into the realm of thinking synthetic=cheap/bad

A good quality leather saddle is always better than the best made synthetic saddle.

But for synthetics, this is by far the best one available and one that even I would use - and I am a die hard high quality leather saddle person. 

For those that are saying it looks fake and cheap - IT IS!  What do you want for $350?  It's synthetic, so therefore it is fake.  It is only $350 new so it is cheap.

But for the money, it can't be beat.  You can NOT find a new leather saddle of the same quality for anywhere near the price. 

The Circle P is the best synthetic on the market and as good as a good quality leather saddle (note that I did not say high quality leather saddle).  I would buy a Circle P before I'd buy an Alamo or American saddle.

I have never ridden in a synthetic saddle I liked (english or western). They seem very uncomfortlbe to me. My western saddle is a textan that I bought used, but in exc. condtion it fits my horse well and is well made. If your friend wants a good everyday saddle try an aussie saddle. They are very comfortable, they conform to the shape of the horse's back and they are not expensive. Even though I show western. I prefer to use my aussie saddle for everyday training and riding because I don't get sore after riding for long periods of time and it seems to handle wear and tear well. I've had mine for three years and it still looks like new. on top of that, every horse I've ever ridden in it excepts it easily.