Yesterday I rode in an Albion SLK Ultima, MW 17 1/2". It was divine. It was almost as great as Mike's Regal. I didn't have quite the soft, cemented seat that I did in the Regal, but it was pretty close.
So the ranking is now, well, it doesn't matter - Albion and Regal are basically neck and neck.
The downside I'm seeing with the Regal is that the used ones are almost impossible to find, and since they are all custom, would need to be adjusted and might not feel like Mike's, depending on the specifications of the person who first bought it. And the Albion is cheaper new than a custom-made Regal, but about the same price and almost as hard to find used.
There are some lower Albions - the Ultima I think is the grippy leather, and the SLK is another feature, so it might be interesting to try to find some of the other Albions and see how they compare.
Of the three Washington tack stores, there are only a handful of 17.5, MW, and none in the Albion and no Regals at all.
This could be a long, long process.
Charlie with the long sought after cooler
Spring NWEC 2013 Novice
3 comments:
Check out http://www.used-devoucoux.com
When I bought my super nice h/j saddle I went through them and was thrilled by the service. And the condition of the saddle was fantastic. Like you, I knew exactly what I wanted and I emailed them with the information and they found one for me very quickly.
Check out the BC tack stores and bulletin boards (HCBC, HTBC classifieds) too - since Regal is local they are a bit more popular here. I've seen a couple of Regals show up at the Dog and Pony in Ladner. Also try www.thesaddledoctor.ca as she deals with a lot of high end used saddles (and is an ex-eventer, now dressage rider) and may know of one or two. Kevin did some work on an old favorite saddle of mine and did an excellent job - I'd highly recommend him. I also really like county saddles - they have so many options they would be worth considering.
Just checked HTBC site they have a brand new add for a used Regal
http://www.horsetrialsbc.com/index.php?item=66654b5b17aa4afd5
Good luck in your search!
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