I’m interested in purchasing a two-horse bumper pull trailer with a side ramp. I’ve seen the Kingston and Hawk models and am curious for opinions on either, both the brands and the specific models (Kingston is a good bit pricier). I’m a bit concerned about the slanted wall to accommodate the side ramp in the Hawk. Does this make the side ramp less functional? And the dressings room too small to be functional? Any opinions/experiences would be appreciated!
My first trailer was a Kingston and having grown up in towns near the company, lots of experiences seeing & using other people’s Kingstons over the years. I have my second Balanced Ride now, which is by Hawk (first one was a GN, now have a shorter BP.)
I think the quality is comparable. Kingstons are now all aluminum, Hawk aluminum on steel frame. Both of them sell like hotcakes new, and from my stalking used trailer pages, seem to hold their value (+ then some) equally & sell fast when sold second hand.
I think you’ll find the side ramp and dressing room wall to be a matter of preference. My current BP is the 3rd side ramp trailer I’ve had (first 2 were goosenecks) but the first I’ve had with a dressing room. I find the straight wall makes me feel claustrophobic, and I’m very happy with the length of my trailer that accommodates the large dimensions in the horse area & the dressing room on a slant. I recently saw a Kingston side ramp that was so nice & spacious in the front, but was just overall longer.
I have a Kingston and will never buy another brand. They’re awesome.
I have the Hawk BP with side ramp. The slanted wall, in my opinion, doesn’t make a difference in either the horse space or the dressing room space.
I went with Hawk over Kingston because I like their ramps better. They aren’t at such a steep angle as the Kingstons.
I have a Hawk GN with side ramp. I actually like the slant wall in the dressing room fine…it allows me to put my large vertical tack trunk in front of the horse on the right. It’s sort of like one of the Burlington ones but wood and a little larger. Then when I get to the show, I basically just have to drag that thing to the front of my stall (which is not fun, TBH) but voila, all my tack is right where it should be.
The ramp is long enough that it’s not that hard to roll the Giant Thing into the trailer from the side.
