Surcingle longe lines, requires the use of a surcingle to thread the longe lines through the rings. Compared to a saddle, a surcingle allows more precise adjustment of side reins due to the placement of additional rings. While a saddle only provides one height to attach the rings (the girth buckles), and can be uneven or at the wrong position, a training surcingle places rings at more appropriate locations for ground work. Many surcingle designs allow the side reins to be attached at several different heights along the sides of the horse. When used without a saddle, a surcingle sits just
Harness saddle shafts from beneath. For display, a saddle pad may be placed beneath the saddle; historically in England a saddle pad, also called "housing" or "saddle cloth", was shaped to match the contour of the saddle, in the manner of an English numnah today. For heavy use, the saddle may be six or more inches long, front to back. For very light use, saddle and girth may be replaced by a surcingle. The harness saddle has at least two lines of evolution, both departures from the very ancient throat-and-girth harness . One line was developed as a refinement of that harness