Have you guys ever had equifit boots? I love the look of them and how they have memory foam on the inside. But before I bought them, what are your reviews on them? Do they cause splint marks or rub anywhere? If i do get them I will get the Velcro ones
This is an unpopular opinion but I really dislike them - they don’t seem to conform to the horse’s legs and they get really hot. I much prefer Eskadron’s Flexisoft Air boots. I seriously heart these boots and many people at my barn have switched over to them from Equifits.
I have seen many of the back boots destroyed - white stitching quickly rubbed apart and the blue foam showing. Even when properly fitted it looks like horse that brush behind are wrecking these boots quickly.
https://www.smartpakequine.com/equifit-tboot-original-open-front-boots--velcro-brand-closures-2416p
Here are a few dozen reviews. I have 3 different styles of equifits. However, I use to use eskadrons in the winter, because the foam is stiff in the cold. Heated tack room solves that issue! For a while, they were the only boots that didn’t bother my horse’s broken splint bones because they molded around them.
I won’t buy another set. The blue foam is beginning to show through the lining material on the front boots. The back ankle boots stretched a crazy amount and now footing gets trapped between them and the horse’s shin. They were used 3-4 times a week for a year and a half. I felt I should have been able to get more use out of them.
I like the look and ventilation of Veredus. I might get them next.
I have both Equifit (fronts only) and Veredus, as they are the only ones I’ve found that come big enough for my horse. I have found myself using the Equifit’s less and less and I actually haven’t used them since sometime in the summer, I definitely prefer my Veredus boots.
The other consideration for me, is that the Equifit’s are just a plain PITA to use in the winter (of which we have >6 months) when the memory foam gets cold and takes ages to warm up and conform.
I solved the stiff memory foam issue by setting my boots on the heater for 5-10 minutes while grooming.
I love my equifit luxes. I bought them about 5 years ago and they still have the original liners and going strong. However, neither horse that I’ve had them on interferes so that could be part of it. The only drawbacks are that I’m paranoid about overheating legs and the memory foam does trap a lot of heat (and sand). The memory foam doesn’t bother me as they are always kept in a warm tack room. Any boots I’m using come off as soon as I’m done riding so the heat isn’t a huge issue.
Side note: I’m actually interested in those eskadrons now 
the vents look really nice!
For me, the memory foam wasn’t the stiffness issue with my Equifits. It was the shape of the hard shell of the boots that didn’t allow the memory foam to conform properly. I had this issue with several horses I tried them on, YMMV.
But the Eskadron flexisoft airs. HEART EYE EMOJI.
Very good idea about getting the Velcro ones! Wish I bought them with the Velcro before. Had Equifit hind boots without the Velcro before and one of them came undone in the middle of a course at a show and scared the horse and ruined the round. Switched to the Velcro Eskadrons after that day!
They never look like they fit properly. Generally speaking, they always look too small, like it never conformed to the leg properly.
I was helping a girl untack and when I removed her equifits, the horse’s legs were covered in sweat. This was on a 15 degree celsius day. I’ve made a mental note to avoid the Equifit boots.
I used mine twice. The XL was tight on my mare’s leg and hit a bit high, irritating her legs. So I went back to my Eskadron open front boots. $220 wasted.
I used them for a number of years. The horse in question traveled close behind so we got the blue show-through pretty fast. A zig-zag stitch on a sewing machine and a black Sharpie solved most of that. I liked the button closure better than the velcro. After awhile the velcro weakened and since the shell is pretty stiff, the velcro attachments just popped off. I retired that horse and used his assortment of cast-offs with the new horse. New horse got laid up for a year and I splurged and bought Veredus boots for the very large lesson horse I’m riding, in large part because they were one of the few that came in XL. I rather like them. If the lay-up horse stays sound I will probably buy him some.
My horse interferes too much to make them my daily schooling boot, but they’re good for shows.
I do like my Equi-Fits (I have the Originals with velcro), but the memory foam will definitely hold water. That being the case, I also bought a pair of Veredus open fronts (ProLights) to use on wet days… and then (I hate to admit this, given how long/how badly I wanted the T-Boots) I found myself pretty much always reaching for the Veredus rather than the T-Boots. Between that and the fact that my horses don’t interfere much, my EquiFits still look almost new (even through the time they were getting used more frequently). They were purchased in 2009.
The T-Boots definitely fit on the snug side, but they fit my horses pretty well - sizing up would make them too tall for my horses.
The other posters who mentioned cold temperatures being a problem are definitely right… it may or may not be possible to actually break the memory foam if you try to manipulate them too much when it’s cold (just ask me how I know :uhoh:).
I recently bought a new pair of boots that I think might be winners over the EquiFit, at least for schooling - the Majyk Equipe Series Two boots:
http://www.majykequipe.com/shop-online.html
These are not my preferred style for showing (I also don’t like Eskadrons), but that’s a whole 'nother story. These still have the same inherent problems (but also benefits!) of memory foam, but they seem like they might hold up better over time than the EquiFits would, especially if you have a horse that interferes quite a bit. The lower price is an added bonus.
