I’m in the process right now of having several PH saddles sent to my for trial in Indiana by ART2RIDE saddlery. Karen is incredible to work with. I just sent her my last saddle fit tracings, photos and videos of my 3 horses and she is working with me through her online saddle fit site. I’ve heard nothing but great things about his saddles. I’m in the market for two or three. Karen is incredibly knowledgeable and speaks highly of the small family business which is PH. I have had terrible fitted saddles from County, Albion and several others. Technology has made it possible to really gage now what the effects of saddle fit really have on our horses. Looking forward to testing these out! I’ll post more next week when I receive them in!
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Reviving this thread to see if any of the previous posters can add to their experience. I took a PH on trial really loved it but I’m waiting to sit in the mono flap version before deciding. I’m a bit concerned the flap will not be forward enough for the short stirrups needed on XC.
Bumping this up - are there any new reviews of PH saddles? Candidly, never heard of them until a local fitter/rep mentioned it as a possibility for my hard to fit gelding. She’s coming out in a few weeks - so haven’t actually seen/tried one yet. @PNWjumper & @Kilarney_Farm- it’s been a few years, did you guys end up buying one, and if so, how’s it going?
I just bought one for my mare - she immediately went better in the Horobin saddle than in my previous saddle (a wool-flocked saddle as well). The twist is wider than my old saddle, but that makes it fit her better. It’s a beautiful saddle and the tree has a lifetime guarantee. I used a saddle fitter here in the midwest/south and she did a wonderful job. Highly recommend so far! I’ve only had it for two months, but even my chiropractor noticed a big difference in my mare after just 2 weeks.
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I’m sure you’ve already made your saddle purchase but I wanted to respond. 
I have two of the PH saddles now and a two clients each with one. I also have an Elite monoflap on order. My horses all LOVE these saddles. I will never ride in anything else. If you research the tree, it’s shape and material you will be impressed. Finally a company that puts the horses well-being first.
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I have a Peter Horobin dressage. They’re pretty common here in Australia as this is where they are made! It was custom made for my mare a decade ago now, so it’s a model I don’t think they make anymore, but I love it. Peter was in my area for a fitting so he got to see the horse in person, saddle arrived some 12 weeks later and fitted perfectly from the get go. Just had it reflocked a few months ago which was definitely overdue!
I got lucky in that it fits my young horse too, she just also gets a half pad with shims so we can easily adjust as she develops.
It’s a simple saddle with little by way of blocks etc, but that’s just how I like it. Pictured on young horse last year, I think this was when she had less than 10 rides on her.
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I would like to bump this convo up as it looks like it’s done several times before. I’m considering purchasing a PH saddle and am wondering how everyone is still liking theirs.
I’m currently trialing a used CWD Se02 (semi deep seat) with brand new panels, and I feel the fit is wonderful for me, but not great for my horse as evidenced by the cantle bouncing at the trot. The CWD rep says she likes the fit on him (says that the panels are the kind that fit most horses), and that the bouncing should stop as the new panels “break in” (I have a difficult time believing this).
I opened a can of worms for myself when I started researching saddle fit, and came to the conclusion that I know very little.
So here are my questions:
If you have a PH saddle, do you still like it?
How has the customer service been for anything that needed to be adjusted?
Do you know which of the jumping saddles (there are only 3 shown on the website) would be considered a semi-deep seat?
Do you feel like their saddles help your position?
Thank you in advance!
Lauren
I’m calling this part out because I’ve ridden in quite a few on different horses, but I would say they don’t fit ME all that great. Caveat - I’ve never ordered one custom for myself, just ridden in a handful of very different models.
I find the big disk of the tree point digs into the bottom of my thigh, enough where I was concerned about wearing a hole in my breeches. It was worse on the wider trees, and I could feel it right under the skirt where my thigh lays at the top of the flap. I believe it’s the big tree “point”, which is quite wide and round and set far back vs traditional saddles, but it could also be something about the stirrup bar and rails. FWIW I’m kind of a stick, and have NEVER felt this on any other saddle.
Also, the stirrup bars were all quite forward. That said, I am taller than a lot of women and stirrup bar placement is a major issue for me on LOTS of saddles! My CWD, Pessoa, Tad Coffin, and a friend’s Voltaire all fit ME much better. Definitely trial a bunch of models if you’re used to a French style saddle.
The horses generally went well in them, though I think like any saddle brand it’ll depend on how good the rep is.
Also, nope nope nope. Sorry, that’s nonsense. A foam saddle may soften up a bit and settle “down” around the withers (basically settling to be a bit wider), but if it’s popping up in the back it flat out doesn’t fit your horse.
Thanks for the insight! Good to know about the disc on the tree. I wonder if I’ll feel it…I have a saddle fitter that doesn’t represent any particular brand but has quite a few saddles for me to try out (including some PH saddles), so I’m really excited for that appointment.
Did you feel it supported your leg at all while going over jumps? I’ve been riding in a stubben roxanne and it’s worked for YEARS but has never really helped support me in any way. The CWD saddle I’m trialing makes me feel SO SECURE, and now that I know that security exists, I don’t think I’ll buy a saddle without it.
About the stirrup bar placement…how tall are you? What feels off to you when the stirrup bars are too far forward?
It sounded like nonsense to me as well, but this was my first experience with foam paneling instead of wool flocking so for all I knew it was something specific to the foam haha. Glad to hear that my instincts were on point with that one.
They’re custom enough that you can put thigh blocks or what have you on. I find that a small knee and thigh block really helps stabilize the leg over fences, but really it’s ALL about how well the rest of the saddle fits you. If the seat, twist, stirrups bars, and flap don’t fit right, you’ll either be fighting the saddle or loose and sliding around up there. I ride a lot of different horses in a lot of different saddles, so I’m pretty good at “making it work”, but I’m locked in the best in my CWD and Pessoa. They make a huge difference vs anything else. They just don’t fit MY horse 
.
I’m 5’9” and all leg, including a long femur. I ride best in a long, slightly forward flap like a CWD 3L, and I prefer a narrow twist. I’m also a hunter/eq style rider so I’m in and out of a full seat as need demands, so it is really important to me to have a saddle that lets my leg stay still.
