FAQs
Please read our fitting guides and how to take a template - both are important to attain the best fit for your new HM Saddle.
We also have many testimonials, usually with pictures, from some our happy customers.
We have answered more frequently asked questions, but if you require further help please contact us.
Our Saddle Range
Introducing the Pad-dle, a cross between a pony pad and a treeless saddle. Built on a tree shaped leather base, incorporating the sweat flap, the Pad-dle has been designed with children in mind on wide, flat ponies, and it will suit adults no heavier than 10.5 stones on similarly wide, flat cobs. Heavier riders should look at our FlexEE leather treed range which can take riders up to 14.5 stones. The Pad-dle is made from soft top quality hide, and has open end E stirrup bars, so safety stirrups are not needed. For small children though, we would still advise safety stirrups be used, on any saddle. The Pad-dle is fully acceptable in the show ring, giving a very traditional look, and also ensuring a very correct position with set back stirrup bars to allow easy achievement of the ear/shoulder/hip/heel line of balance. The Pad-dle has velcroed ‘EVA’Cushion’ foam panels, and is available with either half panel, especially suited to the real ‘table top’ pony, or with full panels for those that need a little more shoulder support. These can also be bought separately.
The Pad-dle with knee blocks velcroed on the flap, the ‘Pad-dle Extra’, gives a small child the extra support needed when moving to a normal saddle from those designed for very small children with very large supports front and rear, like a basket saddle for instance. Having the knee blocks on the top of the flap and velcroed, means they can be moved to accommodate the leg length. But, a leather cover is supplied with the Pad-dle, that covers the Velcro knee pad, and transforms it to a ‘normal’ saddle for showing. The Pad-dle is made in sizes 14” to 16”, and can also have longer flaps and a higher cantle if the buyer requires, but there will be an extra charge for customising.
There seems to be a particular shortage of well designed saddles for children. We hope that the Pad-dle will help to fill this void, and assist children to sit in a position that will stand them in good stead for the rest of their riding lives. Available in dressage/show, and GP models, in black and Havana, priced at £450.
The Pad-dle is very easy to fit, and can be adjusted with padding to fit several different ponies of similar size and shape. If the pony despite being wide and flat, still has some wither, please do not hesitate to contact our customer services and help will be given by email. Our HM saddle fitters will also be selling the Pad-dle and there is a list of fitters here on the site.
The HM Vogue is HM Saddles flagship model. The SoftTree is a revolutionary design unlike any other saddle on the market. Vogue saddles have no rigid parts, other than a small cantle support, which cannot be felt by either horse or rider. It is not like fully treeless saddles that are very thin and do not provide a ‘twist’ for the rider, instead our saddles allow the thighs to drop and legs and hips do not feel straddled. The SoftTree enables the saddle to flex with the horse's back, giving great freedom of movement, with no restriction of the horse's shoulders or back. Prices start from £1799.
The HM FlexEE Finale saddle is a high-quality saddle at an amazing price! It is built on a leather ‘tree’, a very old method of making a flexible saddle. The FlexEE Finale, as with all Heather Moffett saddles, is ergonomically designed to allow the rider, even a total beginner, to sit in the correct ear/shoulder/hip/heel alignment with ease. The Finale is made with the finest soft European hide and the panels are flocked with pure Jacob's wool. The price is from £899 and each saddle comes with a full set of gullet plates, now including up to 4x.
The FlexEE is a hand-made saddle, including the leather tree. Unlike a ready-made wooden or plastic tree, the leather tree takes up half the manufacturing time to make, so adds considerably to the saddlers time taken to make a saddle from start to finish. A leather tree also takes more skill to incorporate into a saddle, as unlike wood or plastic which is solid, leather being flexible, moves the whole time the saddle is being made, adding greatly to the difficulty. The lead time can also vary as we are sometimes waiting on materials imported from the UK which can get held up in customs either end. We hope that you will bear with us, as our manufacturer and ourselves, can only do our best in the face of import and export challenges, and that occasionally lead times will be extended in the case of such events.
The HM FlexEE Synthetic is a high-quality saddle at an amazing price! It is a synthetic saddle built on a leather ‘tree’, a very old method of making a flexible saddle. The FlexEE Synthetic, as with all Heather Moffett saddles, is ergonomically designed to allow the rider, even a total beginner, to sit in the correct ear/shoulder/hip/heel alignment with ease. The price is £599 and each saddle comes with a full set of gullet plates.
HM Saddles also carries a range of products that complement the saddles - stirrup leathers, wide-tread stirrup irons, girths, saddlecloths and pads, and much more. We also have a range of DVDs and books, including the best-selling "Enlightened Equitation" by Heather Moffett.
British Equestrian Trade Association Retail Member, shop with confidence wherever you see this sign. Equestrian Concepts Ltd t/a HM Saddles/Enlightened Equitation.