So I was looking for some new reins and came across Henry James saddlery over social media. Well these reins are fabulous. They are easy to grip and comfortable without gloves. (I am known for hardly ever wearing gloves even in the depths of winter)
Quick delivery and great communication about delivery time.
I don't compete, I just hack do the odd clinic and camp but after investing in these reins I’m looking into maybe changing the bridle at some point. You can’t beat good quality!!!!!
Horse loves his new headpiece, recommended by Ruth Fisher my bit fitting consultant, it has just the right amount of padding in the right place, shaped perfectly around his ears, not too bulky, like a lot of other "anatomical" bridles, beautiful leather, and came very nicely packaged, Also love that its compatible with the rest of my bridle, so my browband/noseband all fit and match nicely. (Now selling my very overpriced Fairfax which didn't fit his head/ears at all - brought by his previous owner! )
So impressed with these I have just purchased a second pair for my other saddle. I've got big moving Irish beast who favours one shoulder more than the other, and I was finding over time that my leathers would stretch unevenly, I had to keep swapping them to even them up, and then I ended up having to go up holes because they had stretched, ending up with a load of extra marks in the leathers which, whilst they don't make any difference to the functionality, they don't look quite as tidy. You can tell these have been really thoughtfully designed, they sit neatly, they don't stretch, and I have found a length that suits both me at 5'4 and my husband at 6'2 without me having to twist leathers. And just in case I haven't made it clear enough, they do not stretch and this is brilliant!
A really lovely, well thought out bridle. Brilliant to be able to mix and match extra sizing to achieve the perfect fit. Thank you so much to Dan for the advice at The National Equine show and on the phone! If I had to be super critical, I think you HJ studs on the leatherwork let it down a little bit…. Maybe something with more definition will compliment such a beautiful bridle a bit better!
This was a replacement noseband for me, as the first was stiff and the dye seemed to begin cracking after 2 months use. The second is much softer and is a better match with the headpiece. The secure a swap, I’ve contented with passive aggressive emails, had to chase replies 3 times (assume customer care were hoping I’d just go away?), been sent on a wild goose chase with a return QR code that didn’t work (no one acknowledged the wasted trip I’d had, let alone apologised) - the reply to my photo of the scanner screen not working was along the lines of ‘I’ve sent you a new code..’! Finally, when the courier had lost the return parcel, granted 4 weeks later I no longer had the paper receipt, I received no email reply (until chasing, because that seems to be the only want get a reply), but instead a new noseband arrived with no warning. While it’s good to have replaced it the lack of basic manners is astounding. If a customer is corresponding with you, it’s good manners to reply. The final email was curt to say the least.. ‘please note we have still not received the noseband’.. lovely. Bear in mind, I began this interaction having emailed in to say that I wasn’t that happy with the noseband but didn’t want to go ahead and leave a bad review without talking to the team and HJ first. Obviously that was a misstep on my part, instead what I’ve clearly done is deeply offend a company who can’t customer being unhappy with the quality of their products.