Trailers
Personally, I’ve been dreaming of a Merhow ever since I was told they never come up used. So I finally got one new - two horse with dressing room bumper pull. They really hold their value and are very well made, well thought out.
4-star is only an option if you’re interested in all-aluminum construction. Many are not, so for that reason they are not the “best”.
Anyone have a rough estimate on how much a 3 horse gooseneck horse trailer from 4 Star usually costs?
Thanks all…so far 4-Star seems to be winning.
There is a fairly new company in Ocala, Shadow, that is owned by the original founder of Sundowner that I am considering. It seems to be a little more reasonable (perhaps because I would be buying from the dealer /manufacturer…plus for service, I’d be right there!
They’ll make it to any specifications.
The only negative that has been pointed out to me so far is because the name isn’t as known, the resale wouldn’t be as high,. However, I’m planning to keep it for a long time!!!
I still think you should at least talk to the Sidekick folks in Milton, Fla. They have recently been bought by a company that makes fire trucks, so their quality should remain high. They were named Pro-Lite before Sidekick.
Far as I can tell, they don’t do an all aluminum trailer; I decided years ago that all aluminum wasn’t an option for me, as repairs are much more expensive and welds more difficult than with a steel or mixed trailer. Get one drunk worker doing aluminum welds one day, and you’ve got a disaster of a trailer.
4-Star here …if you want an all aluminum trailer
I have 2 sitting next to the barn. I love my trailer and am sooo happy I was led in that direction when first searching for a GN. My 2000 was my forever trailer until seeing a like-new 2003, identical but larger in my area. Without even a question I bought it …now to pass on the other one to someone who will appreciate it.
Another thing to think on is that aside from superior construction and appearance, they retain their resell value. Anyone who has ever owned one will never have another brand.
We just bought a sundowner…anything wrong with them???
It was an excellent price, large enough for our horses… thought they were good ones?!?
Squish, I have just bought my second Sundowner and love it. Excellent quality and excellent customer service. The first one I had was a 3 horse slant and this one is a 2 + 1 with a side off ramp.
http://community.webshots.com/user/ballyduff
I vote for the Jamco. There have been several threads just recently about people thanking their lucky stars to have had a Jamco due to an accident. I don’t know what Jamco Horsehaulin was looking at, but we did a lot of research and the Jamco is an incredibly well-built trailer - no comparison to and Equilite or a Trailet. Ours is SOLID, quiet and a breeze to haul. I would never own anything bu a Jamco.
Well that sure sounds great coming from a pro! :yes:
I got my 4-Star in 1996 and it still looks & hauls like brand-new.
Granted I haven’t put nearly the miles on it that you guys do, but still nice to hear the endorsement.
We were 50/50 on either a 4 star 3 horse warmblood size slant with full living quarters or a Sooner.
We drove both, checked every spec we could find and looked over both those trailers with a fine tooth comb. In the end we chose Sooner and could not be happier.
There is nothing wrong with the 4 star, it looked nice, seemed well built and towed like a dream but the price difference (almost $6,000.00 more for the comparable trailer) and the aweful interior selection for the LQ made up our minds pretty quickly. Nothing against a western motif but the hairy fake cow pillows pretty much did it for me. And I don’t like little stars plastered on everything…makes me think I am living in Texas. Not quite right for a dressage princess from Southern Ontario, Canada. 
Anyway both good trailers, both pretty expensive (if I dare say so) and both comparably equipped. I was not totally convinced to go with a full aluminum trailer but the added weight of the full living quarters decided that factor for us.
what about cimerron? We saw them at a show and were impressed but have not met anyone who owns one?
[QUOTE=vineyridge;2105901]
I decided years ago that all aluminum wasn’t an option for me, as repairs are much more expensive and welds more difficult than with a steel or mixed trailer. Get one drunk worker doing aluminum welds one day, and you’ve got a disaster of a trailer.[/QUOTE]
Not to mention the safety issue - somehow, I would rather have my horses protected by a steel frame in case of accident, as have several friends who have been in horse-trailer accidents. I don’t know what the weight difference is (between all-aluminum, and steel-framed aluminum), but personally think it’s worth it.
JMO. I am very happy with my Kingston!
There was a dealer here in PA that stopped carrying the 4-Star trailers since the 4-Star was bad about reimbursing the dealer for warranty repairs.
Just something to keep in mind that warranty work may be an issue. This was about 5 years ago so they may have gotten better.
I have a 3 horse slant load aluminum gooseneck made by Adam. They are manufactured in VA and I LOVE mine. It comes with many standard features like full padding, extra lights, window in dressing room, removable saddle rack, etc that you have to pay extra for with other trailers. It pulls great and has never given me a moments trouble - and it was reasonably priced!
Everybody I know who has a 4 star loves it–personally I’m another one who won’t have an aluminum frame trailer, for the reasons vineyrigde mentioned. There is also not a signifcant weight advantage to aluminum when your looking a two horse trailers.
I have a 2h Gn Trail-et. I don’t know if it’s the “best” trailer out there, but it was one of the few choices readily available and reasonably priced in my area that had every single feature I was looking for. I use it often and have been very happy with it.
Instead of picking a brand, I’d recommend deciding which features are important to you then finding out which brands offer those features.
This book http://www.amazon.com/Complete-Maintaining-Servicing-Trailer-Reference/dp/0876056869/sr=1-1/qid=1170710684/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/002-4517656-4371250?ie=UTF8&s=books does a great job of discussing the pros and cons of different features.
i have been told that there is a serious problem with the powder coating on the steel frames of the new sundowners. apparently they are rusting badly and falling apart because the powder coating isn’t done right?
i’m just the messenger, though… that’s all the info i’ve got!
trailer brand
Sorry 4 Star supporters. I own a 4 Star and a C&C. 4 Star is nice but C&C is way better built.
I just recently finished a long trailer search. I just simply could not afford the 4 Star, Eby, Jamco class. I did look at the Jamcos for comparison and those things seemed extremely solid. I looked at the Featherlites and was unpleasantly surprised at how ‘Featherlite’ they seemed. I talked to a dealer that sold many different brands and his feeling on the Sundowners (and he sells them) is that they are still good quality trailers but no where near what they used to be. He said they have dropped the quality of their trailers but they have such a great name that it will take a while for it to catch up with them. I think the best thing to do is go and look at all the trailers that are accessible to you to see what you personally like. I looked at the Kingstons and although everyone raves about them, they had some features I really didn’t like. I ended up with a Kiefer. It was in my budget and I loved the features (and yes, I already checked out the doors and they are fine). I think it is all personal preference and there is a lot of information on these boards about different trailers. I think you will find that for every trailer brand out there, there are 100 different opinions on them!
It is somewhat of a regional thing!!
Around here I think Sundowners are the best. I’ve had two, loved both.
