Quality of trailer brands (new trailer)

It’s been a long time since I’ve posted on here and even longer since I’ve bought a new trailer (2004), but I can’t think of a better place for quality opinions on new trailers and I am sure some are better and some are worse than they were then.

I currently have a Kingston Brunswick which I have run all over the US for 13 years. Sadly, while it will get us through the summer, it is time for new one.

I would like like something similar, though not any longer (the New Brunswick seems to be longer as it’s now officially a 2+1). I like a roomy stall for the horses and enough room they can stretch down. I am not against a slant load, but it must meet that criteria.

I like my 2014 Sundowner. It is spacious and well designed. I would not buy a used Sundowner from the years that had a metal incompatibility issue.

Super safe, easy to customize and plenty of room. http://www.equispirit.com/

2 Likes

Another vote for Equispirit.

1 Like

Elite, 4Star, and Platinum are all very well built and safe. Elite and 4Star will do full custom work. Platinum has more limitation I believe. None is cheap though, lol

2 Likes

We bought an Eby last year and find it excellent. Eby does make customizations easy. I have heard of Eby making the odd production error (ours leaked over the tack door) but they will fix it well if you give them the opportunity.

2 Likes

Four Star has a fabulous and affordable 2 + 1. I took the plunge this year and bought one. I think that the trailers are very well made. I looked at other Featherlite (I own one already) and I was just not impressed compared against the Four Star.

4 Likes

Adam is an excellent more affordable option, I’ve owned several over the past 15 years and have never once had an issue. Just bought a used 2008 2-horse that is in mint condition and ordered a new 2016 24’ stock last year. I’d say I’ve had about 6-8 in the past 15 years (lol-horses, cows, change my mind a lot on configurations, nothing wrong with the trailers I sold or traded)

Thanks everyone. I will definitely check them out. I almost bought a 4star before I ended up with the Kingston. I also did some more checking and apparently Kingston offers 2 versions of the Brunswick; the original and the 2+1. I am excited to go shopping.

I really love my Hawk trailer.

4 Likes

Cotner, Cotner and absolutely Cotner. My first trailer was 19 years old before going onto a barn that continued to use it and my second one is now 14 years old. I haul enough that I am actually wear tires out. I learned about them when I was getting paid to take other people’s trailers down to Florida.

Definitely the best pulling and I love the combination of steel frame with aluminium skin and fiberglass roof. they make anything you want. They have followed through with amazing service for customization and repairs ( for example, overnighting a tire and rim when I ruined two and I was on the road and couldn’t get a replacement). If my mechanic needed parts, they would ship them up which saved me incredible money. Small company but the best trailer for my money.

2 Likes

I’ve never seen the quality and attention to detail that I saw in the Merhow I crawled around a couple weeks ago. I was beginning to think my expectations were just too high. I was somewhat horrified by the weld quality on all of the aluminum trailers I’ve been looking at, including the highly rated Eby and 4 Stars.

I know what I’m buying next!

2 Likes

Our first Hawk we kept for 18 years and are now on the second that we’ve had for four years. I’m not sure, since it went to an out of state buyer, but the first Hawk I believe is still in use. I sold the first Hawk for 60% of its original purchase price.

They make a great trailer.

3 Likes

If you can find one in your area, I highly recommend Gore. A bit pricey, but fantastic workmanship.

1 Like

Merhow. Great trailer, great customer service. Sent me a key for free when we lost the one to the 15 year old trailer! All they needed was a VIN number –

1 Like

I almost bought a 4 star last time around, but the Kingston fit my needs better. I have seen some Hawk trailers and will definitely look into them. Nice to hear they’re a quality trailer. I think I will go shopping at Equine Affaire in November and maybe I will be able to look at a Merhow and Cotner also. I have never seen them, that I know of.

We bought a slightly used Cimarron 2 horse straight-load WB edition a couple years ago and love it. Great quality trailers and really smart design. We looked at several less expensive brands (like Sundowner, Exiss, etc) and the differences were obvious when you actually got to looking at them up close.

We also have a Cherokee 4 horse slant with LQ. It’s our second Cherokee actually- we just needed another horse stall, so we upgraded, but stuck with the same brand because we loved our first trailer so much. It’s similar to a 4Star, Cimarron, etc. All aluminum and really smartly built. High quality trailers, I cannot recommend them enough. Everything from the latches they use, to the welding, to the divider and window mechanisms- all so smartly designed. The owners of Cherokee just retired, so they will no longer be made, and they didn’t want to sell their brand to someone who won’t keep up the quality, but they are out there, and I would highly recommend taking a look at them! When we sold our first Cherokee, the people who came to look at it wanted to shop around at some other trailers after looking at ours, and we told them to go ahead and look at other trailers and compare, and they came back to buy our Cherokee after shopping around, because of all the little high end nuances and finishes that Cherokee uses. Just can’t say enough good about Cherokee.

1 Like

Another vote for Adam. I bought a slightly used 2010 customized 2H GN, and it is a champ. Hauls great, well designed, the horse rides well in it, looks great and like new.

1 Like

TrailersUSA is another brand to consider along with Cotner.

1 Like

I had a Cotner that I loved, but had to upgrade to a trailer with a tack room when I started hauling 2 horses. So I would highly recommend. My current trailer is a Trail-et, which they don’t make any more, but is similar to a Hawk (I think somebody from Trail-et started Hawk). 4-stars are awesome if you have the cash.

1 Like