Well, I got this paint horse a few months back, and I had been using a saddle that belonged to the barn to ride with. Well I found a saddle that is full quarter horse bars, but I'm not sure how to tell if it fits my horse or not.

My horse is a 15.3 hh paint horse...do you know if that saddle will work ok with him?

Usually western saddles come in quarter horse bars or arabian bars.

Arabian bars are just closer together to fit the arab's more narrow back, and quarter bars are wider spaced to fit that quarter horses larger conformation.

So yes, your saddle should fit your horse fine. The only way to tell for sure is have a professional check the fit, or if you see signs of uneven wear on your horses back, i.e. spots with no sweat etc.

oh good... i bought the saddle last night and it is gorgous! i just havent been to the barn yet today

Atcually saddle come in many different sizes... and Arabian bars are about the same width (see measurments below) as fullQH bars the difference is in the pitch... Arabains have a flatter pitch making them atcually wider... you still would not want to get one for a QH or paint as they are round all the way down wheras arabians are narrow at top and get wider hense the flatter pitch... An arabian tree would gouge a QH or paint in the shoulder at the gullet not because its smaller, but because it does not slope with his shoulders/body correctly... hope that clarifies everything for everybody...

Regular quarter horse bars - gullet width: 5 3/4"
Semi-quarter horse bars - gullet width: 6"
Full-quarter horse bars - gullet width: 6 1/4"-6 1/2"
Extra-wide quarter horse bars - gullet width: 6 3/4"-7"
Arabian bars - gullet width: 6 1/4"-6 3/4" (has a flatter pitch than quarter horse bars)

Source: Sherer, Richard L. Horseman's Handbook of Western Saddles. Sherer Custom Saddles, 1988.