The Thinline pad is nice (I have a Trifecta) but my horse moves freer through the back with the Invictus. Good luck!
Fordtraktor, how long is your invictus pad? It looks to be exactly what I need, but worried it would be too long? I’m a decent seamstress, any chance it can be shortened?
[QUOTE=beowulf;8498124]
“shoulder getting stuck” (or shoulder interference) is a very severe and serious saddle fit issue. i hope for your horse’s sake you address it rather than stuffing pads under it, which can make it worse…
take some time to google what happens to the shoulders when an improper saddle is impinging on them… not pretty.[/QUOTE]
Oops, just saw this! Horse in question has facet joint arthritis and a long high wither which makes him a saddle fitting nightmare. His shoulder issue was because the padding I was using to get the saddle off his mountain of a wither was too much at the shoulder which is why I switched to the Invictus. Trust me he is on his second custom saddle and is now the happiest he has been since the issues started that led to the diagnosis of his back issues.
I still love my Invictus pad and wanted to provide a link to a review I did on my blog. I did provide details on sizing of my saddle and there are pictures of how it looks with the pad for those worried about fit.
http://www.stampyandthebrain.com/2016/04/03/invictus-equality-half-pad-review/
How thick are these compared to Thinline and Ogilvy?
I broke down and bought one…I’ll let everyone know how the ‘princess and the pea’ likes it.
I have the chocolate brown one without shims, and I love it. I have a very large WB with very large withers. I ride him in an Amerigo CC which fits him well. So, I was not looking for fit correction, rather for shock absorption. This pad does the trick for us. I really love the thin profile of the pad, and the chocolate suede-like material that covers it. A+++++ from me.
Also - a big shout out to Malvern Saddlery for always finding the great new products first!
[QUOTE=kelsey97;8644666]
Fordtraktor, how long is your invictus pad? It looks to be exactly what I need, but worried it would be too long? I’m a decent seamstress, any chance it can be shortened?[/QUOTE]
The website can provide exact measurements – that saddle in the pic is an 18 inch which fits like a 17.5 for the most part. I don’t think it is a particularly large pad. it is shorter than my large size Thinline Trifecta and large Supracor, and longer than the small size of the Supracor was (that one was too small for my saddle).
Unfortunately, the website just says it will fit size 16-18" saddles. I guess I’ll find out how big it is when mine arrives!
Okay - fordtraktor’s review sucked me in. Figured listening to one of my “COTH twins” couldn’t lead me astray…so I’ll update with my Invictus experience (so far).
Sadly I had to get the white pad as I couldn’t find the chocolate in stock anywhere, so I’ll start by saying that I wish the default color that tack shops ordered/stocked was brown. I’m not a huge fan of the white.
But the pad itself is awesome! I feel like I go through 3 stages of saddle fit in between re-flockings with my saddles. First stage is the “thinline is perfect” stage. Then I hit an in between phase where I’m stacking two thinlines, and then I typically move to Ecogold or my Mattes pad.
I’m at the mid-point now, and the Invictus pad is great! Keeps my saddle off of my horses’ withers, but doesn’t add a bunch of bulk. Also, I LOVE that the center seam is elastic-y.
I’m dying to jump my big guy over some jumps to give it the real test. But he pulled a shoe the other day and we’re in the riding-in-a-duct-tape-boot routine, so no jumping til that shoe goes back on. I did jump my younger mare a bit and she felt no different than she does in her usual set-up, but that’s no surprise to me since she’s not particularly sensitive to what I put on her (as long as it fits). I will note that lately I’ve been noticing that my saddle is slipping back a bit more than usual on her and it did not budge at all with this pad.
In regard to thickness - I thought I read somewhere that the pad is 1cm thick (1 cm = 4/10ths of an inch if that’s easier to picture). It is a bit thicker than I was picturing. Though to that point I got the pad with the pockets for shims (the Equality), and the pockets give the illusion of a bit more bulk than there really is. Reminds me a lot of my SaddleRight pads, which I rode in for years and years. But I tried to go back to my SaddleRight for one of my horses recently and realized that my butt has gotten used to pads that absorb shock, which apparently the SR doesn’t do. It felt rigid and almost springy in comparison to my usual set (mentioned above). So I guess my summary of this pad is that it’s like a SaddleRight pad except that it gives the feeling of a memory foam pad.
Lengthwise I can’t be of much assistance as I’ve never had an issue with pads being too short. This one fits my 17" saddle just fine with maybe an inch or so of pad behind the saddle. It’s definitely not as long as some of my other pads - pretty similar to my regular-sized thinline pads.
Will be interesting to play around with it a bit more in the next few weeks.
In the meantime, thanks for the tip, fordtraktor (et al)! 
I am so glad you like it! I sort of consider myself your tack tester now, since I’ve talked you into the FreeJumps and the Invictus pad! Lol
I got mine Wednesday! 3 rides and I really love it, I’m a die hard Thinline user because they are so shock absorbing and thin. The Invictus feels the same as TL while riding, but the cushy underside is a bonus for my sensitive mare. I really like the sleek look of the pad under my saddle, very discreet. I did get the white one, hopefully it will wash well.
How does this compare in thickness and function to the Prolite pad? Looking for just a little something extra for a custom saddle, Thinline wont work.
Bump for any updates on anyone using the Invictus half pad? I’m in the market for a half pad, for an equitation horse, saddle fits well … want one for impact absorption and prevention of back soreness as he gets fitter.
[QUOTE=goodmorning;8655028]
How does this compare in thickness and function to the Prolite pad? Looking for just a little something extra for a custom saddle, Thinline wont work.[/QUOTE]
I have the prolite pad that takes shims and the Invictus is just slightly thicker than the prolite with no shims in it. The texture of the Invictus pad is definitely different though and my horse with back arthritis strongly prefers it.
I posted my review above, but will add that after a couple of months’ use, I like it enough that I purchased a second pad so that I don’t have to switch shims in and out at shows. Still a big fan!
I’ve been using mine for a couple months, my horses really like them and go very well in them. PNWjumpers review is spot on.
So I know this is an older thred but I wanted to ask those who have this pad where to buy it. It looks like only a few shops are carrying it especially in the US. Can we post some locations of where you can order this pad? I’d like to shop around see where I can get the best deal. Here is what I’m finding
http://marystack.com/invictus-necesse-saddle-pad/?gclid=CNGSnbmtwc8CFVKDfgodzIsFYA
http://m.tackroominc.com/item/3231353230?gclid=CIao-cutwc8CFQx_fgodISYK4g
http://malvernsaddlery.com/4792/invictus-half-pad-detail
So far looks like the best deal is through tackroominc.
Anyone found anyone better? I am going to ask for this for Christmas I have a barn mate who I suggested this pad to. She bought it and now several months into using it she said I should get it she loves it and has noticed a big difference in her horses back so has her massage therapist and our trainer who isn’t normally into any “gimmicky” stuff, she to is encouraging me to bite the bullet and get this pad.
Thanks for the ideas in advance.
I believe Beval offers a trial/rental of Invictus, in case that hasn’t come up already. Correction: IPEsq is right. BofB-- not Beval on the trial/rental.
[QUOTE=ewells;8874708]
So I know this is an older thred but I wanted to ask those who have this pad where to buy it. It looks like only a few shops are carrying it especially in the US. Can we post some locations of where you can order this pad? I’d like to shop around see where I can get the best deal. Here is what I’m finding
http://marystack.com/invictus-necesse-saddle-pad/?gclid=CNGSnbmtwc8CFVKDfgodzIsFYA
http://m.tackroominc.com/item/3231353230?gclid=CIao-cutwc8CFQx_fgodISYK4g
http://malvernsaddlery.com/4792/invictus-half-pad-detail
So far looks like the best deal is through tackroominc.
Anyone found anyone better? I am going to ask for this for Christmas I have a barn mate who I suggested this pad to. She bought it and now several months into using it she said I should get it she loves it and has noticed a big difference in her horses back so has her massage therapist and our trainer who isn’t normally into any “gimmicky” stuff, she to is encouraging me to bite the bullet and get this pad.
Thanks for the ideas in advance.[/QUOTE]
VTO typically has a 20% off Black Friday sale, so I’d wait for that.
I recently researched this pad and contacted the company. They directed me to Bit of Britain for a trial/rental.
