2+1 Gooseneck horse trailers - 4 star vs Cimarron vs Hawk

[CanteringCarrot]

I don’t know much about Cimarron at all, and I can’t recall seeing one in person. I have a 2H gooseneck EquiSpirit (made by Hawk). I prefer Hawk over 4-Star generally, but if I were equally open to both, I’d just go for the best bang for my buck. Both build nice trailers and have been around for quite awhile. The folks at EquiSpirit are great to deal with, IME.

I have heard a few things about newer 4-Star trailers not being as well made as some of the older models, but I am not sure if that’s model or year dependant. The only consistent thing I’ve seen with EquiSpirit and Hawk is peeling paint on the fiberglass roof. Some of the issues with a fiberglass roof comes from people just not caring for or not knowing how to care for fiberglass. I like the fiberglass roof because it does keep the trailer cooler in warm temps, in my experience.

I love the 2+1 design, but this time around I didn’t need the extra.

[ReReRider]

I will be hauling 2 most of the time, but envision transitioning to 2 box stalls once I arrive to any particular location (lessons/shows), where the horse could hang out for hrs at a time without feeling as cramped as in a trailer stall.

[ReReRider]

what type of care goes into fiberglass roof maintenance?

[Horsehusband]

Just bought a Cimarron 2+2 and thrilled with it. Looked heavily at both 4 Star and Cimarron and ended up going with the Cimarron as the dealer was easier to work with and both felt high quality.

Will say all dealers I talked to advised against WERM flooring.

[ReReRider]

Oh interesting. What reasons were given not to use WERM?

[kaya842]

I have a Brenderup not Hawk but they both have the fiberglass roof. For cleaning the inside, I use a mold and mildew spray made for boats and for the outside (shiny part) I use the same and follow it up with a wash on wax. Probably could do with a true wax n buff but I’m not very tall and not trying to do that from a ladder. My trailer is a 2008. I love the fiberglass roof and believe it makes a huge difference in the heat.

[NaturallyHappy]

@ReReRider

Oh interesting. What reasons were given not to use WERM?

I’ve not heard that from a dealer. I don’t like it, though. The 4 Star I had before the one I have now had WERM flooring. My horse scrambled on that turning into my driveway. He never scrambled before and he doesn’t scramble now with regular rubber mats in my new 4 Star. I think it’s hard and slippery, personally. I use fat gorilla tape over the seams in the regular rubber mats.

[Phean]

I know you want a comparison, but here is where I asked about the 2+1. I got great responses and people shared some nice photos which might help.

[Cowgirl]

I recently bought a Balanced Ride 2+1 (horses face backwards, but mine is reversible), made by Hawk. I looked at 4-Star and Cimmaron, but prefer Hawk as I had my last Hawk trailer for 20 years and sold it for what I paid for it. The company is fantastic to work with and their delivery guy went out of the way for me (made some repairs to my old Hawk before I sold it). My horses love this trailer SO MUCH that the first ride I took them on, they both peed! They have never peed in a trailer before. When I peeled back the mats to clean it, I found my wood floor was enamel paint coated! The dealer convinced me to go with wood over WERM.