Ideal (Manufacturer) Saddles?

[Ellie]

Does anyone have any first-hand experience with Ideal saddles? I am finally accepting the fact that I'll need to have something made for my 14hh Connemara with a VERY short back, and my independent saddle fitter is recommending Albion, County and Ideal. I had a Custom Saddlery saddle for my last horse and so I appreciate the comfort aspect; meaning a cushy seat. We've tried many different manufacturers so see what might work for both of us, and have narrowed it down to these three. (I'd love a Dresch, but that's way out of my budget.) Because Ideal saddles are not super common in the US, I have not seen one, much less ridden in one. My concern is quality - at their price point I'm a bit skeptical. So, for those of you who are familiar with them, bring it on! The good, the bad and the ugly - please!

[silk]

From what I have seen, they are not quite Albion quality, but heading that direction (eg not crappy quality).
Here, they were initially rebranded NSC (National Saddle Centre) and given different model names, and now I believe the NSC models are actually different from the Ideal ones.

Beyond that, they have a lot of different fitting and adjustment options (in terms of seat size, twist width, etc) so it's possible to get a very good fit for a horse with an off-the-shelf saddle (eg not fully custom, just made to the specs that will suit the horse). A lot of females find that they like NSCs/Ideals if they hate many other saddles (twist and stirrup bar placement differs slightly from "normal", I believe)- I am the opposite, I couldn't stand the one I rode in once. But I love my Albions so I'm a happy camper and if they suit the rider then they're fab. Unsure if Ideal is the same as NSC in this respect but would pay to ask/trial one first.

[jaybird660]

We get some in on consignment in both jump and dressage. The dressage ones that we have all had a very open seat but decent saddles. Some have had deeper front panels and some have been more like hoop trees but have fit a variety of horses. We seem to have had an easier time fitting horses than riders with them but I have nothing bad to say about them.

[greenhorse]

I had a ridiculously difficult time finding a saddle to fit my short backed PRE. He finally picked (yes, he picked. He is not shy about expressing his opinions....) a Delgrange.

[tempi20017]

My daughter rides in the Detente H&C (Highlander and Cob) which is made by Ideal. It has very short panels for her short-backed opinionated Dutch Warmblood and a nice hoop tree. Ideal has purchased the patents to the now defunct Cliff Barnsby Saddlery and has started producing a few of their models. There are a few Detentes floating around, including the Argus and the Isis.
I found their quality about on par with Frank Baines.