I tried out N2 saddles for the first time this weekend and fell in love with the Vincitore with a long block. My horse seemed to like it as well, but I’m hesitant to make the plunge as the price tag was pretty high ($4,500…)
Has anyone else tried them?
That’s fairly standard pricing for a custom saddle, so the question is how much you like it vs other saddles. (Or if you have options to try used saddles to get one which fits you.) Riding in a saddle which fits both my horse and me just right makes it worth paying a pretty large amount to get that fit, but if you have options to try used saddles and large numbers of other brands, I recommend doing that to see if you are able to find a match at a lower price. We don’t have independent saddle fitters here, so unfortunately we can only go by brand reps, and Sue and Graham (owners of N2) are two of the fitters who come by who I would allow to fit my horse, but I just find the trees uncomfortable for me, so went with a different brand.
I absolutely love mine!! So does my horse! I was/ am a strong believer in a different brand, however I opted for the same model after 2 rides in it! Highly recommend!
I would never work with Graham.
Right horse at the right time, do you mind elaborating through the forum or possibly through PM?
sure - will send you a PM if I can figure out the new website 
sent!
I have heard similar. Basically sold saddles and wouldn’t make time to service them
Does Graham travel with a little dog and have an accent by chance? I was in a friend’s barn and her fitter was there last winter and whoever he was told me it was impossible to buy a decent used saddle in my $1,500 price point goal (very normal shaped horse).
So I didn’t tell him about the custom Seffan’s advantage (the buffalo one) I picked up for $1,000 and used for years on a different horse with great success. Obviously I am not the target client!
I have N2 saddles for both of my horses and the majority of my barn mates have them too. I have the Vincintorie and love it! I nor the other clients in the barn have never had a problem getting our saddles adjusted or reflocked. I have worked with both Graham and Sue with no complaints. They actually traded me out of a saddle that wasn’t working for my horse at the time. So I can say I am happy with their products but recognize that others may have had different experiences.
I’ve heard some pretty sketchy things about Graham, but no personal experience. I think he was punted from Custom Saddlery…interesting how his saddle offering looks SO MUCH like Custom’s designs.
I have nothing but good things to say about both Sue and Graham. I have a Vincitore (LOVE IT!), and others in our barn have purchase saddles from them or have just had their current saddles checked an/or reflockeded. I really appreciate the fact that they have at times checked the saddles for just a share of the trip charge and not pushed for flocking or a major purchase.
A rider at our barn bought the “Jeremy” when it first came out, and she loves it. I don’t know what she had before.
I bought a new saddle from Graham when he was with Custom several years ago with no complaints and had him refit (widen the tree) of the same Custom saddle a few months ago, again with no complaints. Saddle fitting is part art and part science. It seems every few years a Custom rep gets thrown under the bus…one of his replacements is currently falling out of favor in these parts.
Thank you for all of the feedback! I am planning on trying Custom saddles on my mare as well, and am also going to do another trial ride in the N2 before I decide.
Yeah, I liked how Graham fit my saddles. As an engineer who gets taken as caustic when I think I’m being realistic, I can see why he sometimes is disliked (he’s also an engineer by schooling)… sometimes our brains just don’t seem to work right to seem anything but obnoxious to others even if we don’t mean it that way! I have heard of situations which I don’t know if they were Graham or Custom - I tend to suspect a combination of the two as their relationship to each other was ending. Certainly reasons I can understand disgruntled former customers. Hopefully as an owner of his own company those issues are now gone, though. There will, of course, always be personality conflicts with others just because those happen no matter who you are.
I ordered a brand new saddle. Came in and caused me pain…well chronicled four years ago on this forum. When I questioned it in a text that night and said I was at dinner and couldn’t talk but wanted to talk to him before he left town because I wasn’t happy, he called me during my dinner specifically ignoring what I said that I wasn’t available. He proceeded to yell and tell me that I was wrong. I won’t go into specifics but he attempted to be very intimidating.
He came back with his wife and she remedied the situation and I tried about 6 saddles and got one with different design that worked better for my very long femur. He should have known that the saddle I ordered would not have worked.
I I paid for custom Custom but got one off the rack.
I asked for pony panels and was told I didn’t need them. Turns out I did.
Last straw was when he came out to check my saddle maybe two years ago and didn’t say that he had been fired by Custom. Had he worked on my saddle this would have voided the warranty. As a former fitter for them, he knew this.
I won’t go into the other financial complaints I have about seeng multiple people in one barn.
I would not work with him again. Ever.
Update:
Thanks to a tip from another COTH member (Thanks again!!) I was able to purchase a used N2 Vincitore and have it fit by LimeLite to fit my mare perfectly. I liked it so much, I also found a used N2 Cardhu as well for my gelding.
Thank you for all of the positive (and negative!) feedback about this newer company, I am glad I took the risk with these used saddles as they are working out great so far.
Now to sell my other saddles… 
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