I recently acquired an older Nelson Pessoa saddle, and I just love it!! What are your thoughts on them? I really haven’t ridden in many different brands of saddles, so I don’t have much to compare it to.
I would say most people tend to like them as an all around, fit many horses type of saddle 
My hard to fit mare was easy to fit with my Pessoa (not super old, but not new either). I like riding in it despite my old barn owner saying I would probably slide off the back of it (flat compared to a lot of jump saddle) - which hasn’t happened obviously haha. But best of all the horse isn’t offended by it. Definitely not as cushy as some, but I don’t personally mind as I grew up riding in hard-as-a-board, barely-a-knee-roll type saddles.
I love mine ( and horse does, too)
I have an older with knee rolls Pessoa made in England. I swear it fits every horse I put it on. It is comfortable enough for me which is good enough since every horse seems to go well in it.
You could not pry it out of my cold dead hands.
I had an older one and loved it. I am sorry that I sold it, but I no longer ride and had no use for it. It always put my leg in a nice position and fit both my POA and our old Paint mare who was built funny.
I love mine. I have the A/O style. It has fit every horse I have tried it on.
I had a Don Nico model and would give my right pinky to get it back. I sold it and the owner won’t sell it back to me :grief:
I have my second Rodrigo still and its like an old broken in pair of sneakers. They are no longer fashionable, new or even decent looking, but fit like a glove and are like wearing pajamas :yes: I killed my first one (broke the tree), but it was under warranty so I got a brand new saddle after the older one was about 6 years old, and had been on about 4-7 horses a day during that time They soon changed their policy, but mine was grandfathered in. It’s a simple, useful and comfy saddle. I’ve worn my second one to bits (foam is showing everywhere!), and I don’t think they were quite made for the wear and tear that I put on it, but I still love the feel of it!
I do notice a huge difference with the leather on the french saddles ofcourse, but for my little old $1,200 investment that has now given me two brand new saddles, and about 15 years of wear, I can’t complain!
I think if you have a Nelson that is a 17.5 or 18 with knee rolls, they work best in a barn here in Kansas on a certain gray mare. I can fix that problem for you if you like. My trainer would LOVE it if I found my own instead of using hers.
