My New KEEPER Saddle!
Posted by Mikki on Dec 17 2007 at 06:27 pm | Tagged as: Tack, Product Reviews
I forgot to tell you all - I got something really cool a few weeks ago. I think I mentioned that I had been using my friend Shari’s saddle for trail riding. It is just the nicest, most comfortable saddle you could ask for, but I couldn’t keep using hers because she kind of wanted to use it too. So I thought I’d check on eBay for Eli Miller saddles, and I found a few. One of them just happened to be near where we live, so that’s the one I went for, and I got it!
If you’ve never heard of Eli Miller saddles, you are missing out. Eli Miller is an Amish leather crafter who made saddles and other tack until he retired and his nephew Henry took over the business, using the same techniques and quality craftsmanship and materials as Eli - they’re now sold under the Henry Miller name. These saddles are made on a solid wood tree with a coating of fiberglass and a material called “Rhino” that helps make the tree more durable. They are covered in buttery soft leather and the seat is a “suspended” seat (it doesn’t rest directly on the tree) with a gel cushion. Mine is just heavenly to ride - I have ridden for hours with no pain or discomfort caused by the saddle. It is also really beautiful - rich chestnut leather with a darker seat, and simple, elegant tooling along the edges. There are also other matching tack pieces - bridles, breast collars, etc. (Gee, I sure hope I get something like that for Christmas. 
)
After doing some internet research, I believe my saddle is a “Buena Vista” (model #104). While it wasn’t as inexpensive as my World’s Longest Yard Sale saddle at $60, I still got a really good deal. The saddle retails for about $800 and I got it for $400, and the seller delivered it to me. (She was very, very nice, and we may go trail riding together sometime. She also knows my friend Shari - small world!)
So if you’re in the market for a really good saddle you intend to keep for a while, I highly recommend an Eli Miller/Henry Miller. I’ve seen them in our local tack shops and several online stores. And don’t forget eBay!
Thats one gorgeous saddle! And it looks lightweight, easy to heft up and down, and probably easy to ‘feel’ and translate signals to your horse, too.
Hmm…..Ok, I’m drooling.
The saddle you got looks great! I bet it is the best thing to ride in. I need to look Eli Miller saddles. They look really comfortable. Is it lightweight for Valentine and Moonshine?
is this a saddle that is good to use with gaited horses?
Thanks, you guys! It really is a pretty saddle. The picture doesn’t do it justice.
It weighs about 24 pounds, which is apparently pretty light. It feels pretty light! Lighter than my other one, and lighter than Bill’s.
Katie, it supposedly is good for gaited horses because it has a lot of room to move through the withers. I have yet to learn to ride my horse as a gaited horse, so I’ll have to get back to you on how it works for Valentine.
How are you enjoying your saddle now? I’m in the market for a new saddle now because I just bought my first horse!! Whooeeee!
I get sore easily in my lower back, hips and legs and have trouble lifting heavy leather saddles up onto a horse’s back, so the Eli Miller sounds like it would be a good choice for me.
Let me know how you’re still feeling about it, ok?
Lisa, I love, love, love it. It is SO comfortable. It’s light to lift, and doesn’t bother my back, hips or legs (or my bumpy, as my great-grandma so delicately called it). My knees still bother me after a long ride but I’m pretty sure that’s because my legs are short and my horse is wide!
There’s another maker out there I’ve heard good things about, but I can’t remember the name at the moment. When I think of it, I’ll let you know.
Don’t forget that Eli Miller is now Henry Miller. I know you can still find used Eli Millers out there, but the new saddles will be Henry.
i am mite get a new horse soon and we think its an english saddle
Mikki!
I just bought my very first saddle…for my very first horse….and guess what??
It’s a Henry Miller Saddle!!! Thanks to you and your recommendation, I waited until I was ready and finally bought the most perfect saddle in the entire world! haha
I already love it and haven’t even rode with it yet. It’s so beautiful, buttery soft, lightweight and the seat is so….cushy!!
Wahoo!
Thanks again!!
I have a saddle just like yours,This saddle is great, I use this on my walking horse, it work really good. Once you ride in one youre never have any thing else.
Hey Mikki,
I rode a friend’s horse today and used her regular old western saddle. And boy, did I miss my Henry Miller saddle so much! My Henry Miller makes me feel like I’m riding on air.
Thanks again for the recommendation!