Trailer is for two TBs who are about 16’2 each and need a bigger trailer. 40" stall width would be ideal. 7’ tall also. Could be slant or straight load. Wanting to have a tack room up front for horse/camping gear. Good ventilation for the horses. Any suggestions?
Go to post #27 for 2016 version. Also wanting a straight load.
I would recommend a big straight load- I have an Exiss SS20RP, which is 7’8" tall, and has 40" stalls. It can haul the big horses. You can find similar dimensions in Featherlites, some of the Hawks, and I am sure several other manufacturers. I used to have a tall slant load, but it just was not big enough for my guys over 16 hands. The height wasn’t the problem, the stall length is. They were just squished in there even though it was considered extra large. Measure a few dividers in a few different slants, and then measure the stall length in a big straight. My slant was around 8 1/2 feet on the divider, in the straight it is a 10 foot stall length. And when they measure slants stall width, they frequently quote the measurement along the wall, which is not the same as the actual width the horse can use. Just make sure you take your measuring tape with you when you go looking, because many people like to call their trailers extra tall or warmblood sized, when they are not.
I have a 2-horse straight load featherlite. It’s an older trailer, so not quite as large as your specifications, but it has been a great way to go camping. Seems to have good ventilation, sturdy, hauls nicely, lots of space. A lot of course depends on your budget. (My trailer was $5000, and after about $600 of high-ties, shelving, hooks etc, is set up just the way I like it.)
A friend has a newer trailer (I cannot remember the brand) which is a wide straightload, with a walkthrough, and 2 exterior doors in the dressing room (one on either side of the trailer). This has been very handy when she trailers us somewhere, much easier access to the trailer. And while you lose some wall space it is nice to access from both sides, especially (at least where we go) when sometimes finding an easily accessible camping spot can be difficult.
If you go with the 8’ width and can get the storage along the sides over the wheels you’ll appreciate it. I thought I’d miss having fenders but I gained so much storage for bulky stuff like chairs, buckets, small tables, etc etc etc. I love that option.
Whatever you get, make sure the ‘tack room’ door is a nice, WIDE door. Some of the lower end trailers have narrow ‘camper’ width doors- you’ll tear up your knuckles and your saddle’s cantle.
For simple and relatively cheap, we had a Chaparral I loved and it pulled well. For pricier and pimped out, I do love my Merhow.
I love my Merhow. I have a fridge, stove, water (sink and cowboy shower), and some plugs. Mine is 8’ tall, but maybe not wide enough. I do love having water and a stove in my trailer - the fridge, hot water, and shower are okay, but not necessary for me. I have a portapotty that I very rarely pull out, but it’s nice for when I need it. I don’t want black water tanks, so no bathroom for me.
I love my Shadow. It’s 7’6" tall & Shadows come standard with insulated ceilings & walls which makes all the difference in the world in horse comfort down here in the south. They are tough trailers also. While I haven’t used my 2+1 living quarters much, my friends have hauled for several years in theirs & it looks like the day they bought it.
If you are going for a straight load (which I prefer) I wouldn’t do the 8’ wide due to horses normally not traveling well with fender wells beside them. That’s not such an issue on slant loads.
Thanks for all the replies. Sure appreciate it. Our first horse camping trip, for which we hope to have a trailer is the first weekend of July. But not sure that we will have something by then (in that case will rely on friends). Do hope to have something for the next horse camping trip in August. Budget wise, hoping to stay lower so hoping to find a nicer used trailer if we can.
I saw a Sundowner Charter SE at a horse expo a few weeks ago. It was really nice but it is too expensive new. It was roomy and had great ventilation. One of the models had a tack room with a door on each side!!! Wow did that look convenient. Also not sure what it weighs but we are hoping to find something lighter weight as the tow vehicle is a Toyota Tundra. A stock type trailer would probably work for us as well. Located in CA so certain makes are not readily available out here (e.g. Merhow, Hawk). We are still looking!
A Toyota Tundra and 2 large horses? The towing capacity for a Tundra is 4500 pounds with the V6 engine, 6600 with the V8. You probably have close to 3000 pounds of horses. A 2 horse trailer can weigh anything from 2000-5500 depending on length, width, height, how many doors and bells and whistles. You have a little bit of a math problem…
[QUOTE=Renae;7037526]
A Toyota Tundra and 2 large horses? The towing capacity for a Tundra is 4500 pounds with the V6 engine, 6600 with the V8. You probably have close to 3000 pounds of horses. A 2 horse trailer can weigh anything from 2000-5500 depending on length, width, height, how many doors and bells and whistles. You have a little bit of a math problem…[/QUOTE]
I don’t think the 2 horses are more than 2400 max- they are tall, but are TBs not WBs. We do need to be careful and find a lighter weight trailer. And down the road a heftier tow vehicle.
Then it looks like for now with the tow vehicle you have your safest bet would be a plain 2 horse stock trailer with no dressing room. Remember when thinking about how much your load will weigh to think about the weight of the horses, tack and equipment, feed, water if you have to haul in water, and your camping equipment and food. You can always trade the trailer in for something else when you have a heftier tow vehicle.
Define “camping.”
Do you mean “sleep on the ground” camping or are you more interested in LQ-based camping (even if the LQ is a very basic package)?
For the former you don’t need much more than the cubic feet necessary for your gear. A simple two horse, gooseneck would work very well (goosenecks make really great storage areas and don’t increase the overall size and weight of the trailer).
If you’re thinking of the later then your first problem is towing capacity of your truck. It will not be safe for the load you’re looking at with any kind of LQ, no matter how primitive. If you correctly answer the question on type of camping then you can pick the trailer you want then find a vehicle to tow it. This is the most efficient use of resources, as you’ll buy just enough (but neither too much nor too little trailer) and sufficient truck to safely handle it.
This is really a pretty dynamic question. Don’t be stampeded by the fact that you want to go out in less than three weeks. Haste makes waste, don’t you know!!! 
G.
Definitely not a LQ. Unfortunately, the tow capacity on the truck is 5000 lbs. I would have put this info in my original post if I had known it at the time. So we will be looking for the lightest weight trailer we can find.
I currently have a 2 horse BP and go on a couple of camping trips a year, one for a week. I camp in the back of the trailer. I don’t have a dressing room. Let me tell you, I am so done with camping in this tiny trailer. All of my friends can afford the Goosenecks with weekender packages or small LQ’s. Totally jealous. I will never be able to afford that. (darn my enter key is not working so I can’t start a new paragraph) Anyway, my ideal trailer is a 3 horse gooseneck slant, with a four foot dressing room with a walk through door from the dressing room to the horse area. This would be pretty large for me as I only usually bring 1 horse camping, sometimes 2 if a friend is going. But I have 3 horses at home and although we normally do not need to move 3 horses in the event of an emergency, I always think, what if? As small as my gelding is I couldn’t jam 3 horses into my BP if I had to. Another reason why I want the extra space is so I could have a stud wall put in the first stall and store my stuff like chairs, hay, fence posts etc during travel. And this sounds silly, but we were camping once and a microburst came through and there were loose horses, mine were some of them, and we ended up catching them and throwing them in a friends trailer because I sleep in the back of my two horse. I don’t ever want that to happen again. I want to be able to shove my horse in the trailer if I have to if severe weather comes up again. I would however settle for a 2 horse gooseneck with a large dressing room.
[QUOTE=Renae;7037526]
A Toyota Tundra and 2 large horses? The towing capacity for a Tundra is 4500 pounds with the V6 engine, 6600 with the V8. You probably have close to 3000 pounds of horses. A 2 horse trailer can weigh anything from 2000-5500 depending on length, width, height, how many doors and bells and whistles. You have a little bit of a math problem…[/QUOTE]
The truck in question is a 2000 Tundra V8 with towing package and heavy duty shocks. It’s my bf’s and he used to drive commercial trucks. Unfortunately, the tow capacity on this truck is 5000 : (. Some of the newer Tundras are 10,000! That’s not too bad. The trailer we are currently considering weighs 2000. I wish it were in the cards for us to get a heftier tow vehicle but this will need to work for now.
We ended up finding a used 2006 Circle J aluminum trailer that weighs 2000 pounds, both horses together weigh 2100. If I had unlimited funds we would get a heftier truck and heavier trailer but this is going to have to do for now. Just picked up the trailer today. Hope the horses like it.
Update. The future Mr. Mukluk has decided to upgrade to a 3/4 ton! Down the road, hoping to upgrade to a bigger trailer.
Gosh, coming to say our Brenderup would work for your situation, but you’ve got it all nailed down. Wonderful to camp w/ your ponies, and good on ya for having TB trail horses. Congrats to you and the future Mr. Mukluk.
Update!!! Fiance just got 2500 GMC sierra diesel (3/4 ton). Very awesome. Very happy!!!
Congratulations, you’ll love it and the camping. Definitely go gooseneck for your next trailer. I have a GN with large DR that we tricked out as a weekender with bed in goose, sink and cooler space (refrigerator in future), cabinets, couch over storage and tall closet. Don’t have a toilet but set up my “Luggable Loo” in the horse section, which is made more convenient by the walk-through door from DR.
Anyway, have a great time camping and, when you get to it, trailer shopping.
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