[Sparky Boy]

Thinking of selling my 2010 Hawk BP for a GN. Seems like the GN offers a smoother ride. I have both a half ton p/u and F350 available to pull with. I like the look of the all aluminum trailers, with no white. They seem to clean up really well over the years.

Not sure about slant load or straight as I do have some taller and fatter horses Ramp or step up doesn't really matter to me, either is fine. I will generally not own more than 2 horses that I'd haul around so I'm thinking a 2 horse will do, but will consider a 3 horse as well.

I was also thinking a steel frame vs. aluminum sounds safer to me.

My boarder has a 3 horse Exiss that she likes a lot and I also like the "look" of it.

Any suggestions on Brands to look at or not? Exiss, Featherlight, Sundowner, Jamco, 4Star, Hawk?

[ChocoMare]

For the tall & wide, you can't go wrong with an EquiSpirit or their open trailer, the EquiBreeze. Both come in the 2 + 1 option. I have an EquiBreeze and adore it. Plus they've made some safety upgrades/changes in the 3 years since I bought mine that are terrific! Call Tom direct... he's a dreamboat!

[Simkie]

I have a Hart 2H straight load gooseneck, and I love it. It's a GREAT size and really easy to haul.

[Carolinadreamin']

Love my 2horse straight load GN Hawk.

[Herefordgirl]

I just bought an EBY 2H Gooseneck that I pull w/ a Toyota Tundra. I love it and I can't believe how much easier it is to hook up and it pulls like a dream. EBY is a great trailer and they stand behind their trailers. They were fantastic to deal with.

[Guilherme]

I'm on Featherlight No. 3; I vote with my dollars.

Slant vs. straight load is kind of like Coke vs. Pepsi or Miller vs. Bud. It's all in what you like. Mine is a slant (all previous trailer, including non-Featherlight) were straight load. I prefer the slant, but it's a 51-49 preference.

I don't like hauling in open boxes. Newton's Laws apply even if you've never studied Law or Newton. A horse in a trailer is traveling at the speed of the trailer. If you suddenly apply brakes or suffer a mishap the horse continues to travel at that speed until something stops it. Think of it as an 1000 pound missile. That's why I don't like boxes.

I also think the slant load allows them to "lean" against something for both stability and rest.

Ramps IME are more problematical than step ups. Others have different experiences.

Aluminum is not as strong as steel but is dramatically less expensive and time consuming to maintain. AL will have a modest gross weight advantage. Reserve some of your trailer budget for a shelter for the trailer. You will be glad you did!!!

Goose necks are much easier to maneuver than bumper pulls. I don't know that there's any significant difference in ride quality between them. That's pretty much dependent upon the suspension of the trailer. For either an air-ride system would be optimal. One for the tow vehicle, too.

Good luck in your search!

G.

[Sparky Boy]

I just bought an EBY 2H Gooseneck that I pull w/ a Toyota Tundra. I love it and I can't believe how much easier it is to hook up and it pulls like a dream. EBY is a great trailer and they stand behind their trailers. They were fantastic to deal with.

Interesting. I also have a tundra. Do you know what your trailer weighs? Wonder how the tundra would do pulling a 3h slant with only one horse loaded?

[RunningwaterWBs]

I'm in the process of making the switch from a 2h straight load BP w ramp to a 3h slant BP step up myself. When I researched (mostly here and at horsetrailerworld.com's forums) I found that there are some brands -- like Eby and 4star -- that are built to accommodate larger horses. Other brands have "extra tall and wide" or "wb" options. If you research carefully you should be fine.

Personally, I wanted to be able to haul more than two horses if I was going to shell out the money for the gooseneck and hitch, so I went for the 3h. I lucked into a 3h 4star for an unbelievable price because the owner was not Internet-savvy. I found it in a local newspaper and he snail mailed me photos! Even better, the hurricane didn't drop a tree on it. :-)

[RunningwaterWBs]

Do a search on here for Sundowners. Many had big problems with floors. I would stay away from them. Even if you find one with a good floor, I think the reputation issue would hurt resale.

[schneidepc]

In response to Sparky Boy's question: I also have a Toyota Tundra and it handles my Featherlite 2H SL GN very well. My trailer is all aluminum with a max weight of 7,000lbs loaded. For a GN that's about the max for a Tundra (payload is the limiting factor given the amount of weight that a GN transfers to the truck) so I think a 3H GN would really be pushing it for that truck. My Tundra pulls my trailer with one horse in it easily and handles hills well but if I ever get to the point of taking two horses long distances on a regular basis I'll probably upgrade the truck. But for now I love it.

[Sparky Boy]

Do you know the unloaded weight?

[Malmare]

Sparky, you will love a GN!
"They" have said that once you drive one you won't go back to a BP. "They" were right!!
I love my DreamCoach 2H GN w/DR.
And in my experience it gives a smoother ride for both the horses and the truck occupants. (I pull w/a F350)

As far as straight or slant, I think you have to measure the stalls width- and lengthwise in a slant to be sure your horses will have enough room to relax their necks and not always have their necks curled a bit. Manufacturers may measure diagonally from the front corner of the slant stall to the back/rear corner, not neccessarily from the center of the stall.
I also believe I read that a study somewhere showed more stress is placed on the horse's left front leg when travelling in a slant. FWIW some study shows that horses are most comfortable travelling backward if allowed to choose their own position.

I like Featherlites and 4Star trailers. . .

[countrygal]

After using mostly 2H straights I bought a Hawk 2H slant GN. I really love the slant and my horse hauls beautifully in it but it's really personal preference. I think Hawk makes an amazing trailer, all of the specific features that I required in a trailer led me straight to Hawk. They're all personal preferences but I felt strongly enough about them that they were must-haves.

GN
Trailer Height 7'6" minimum (for the giraffe horse)
Wood floor (cooler ride, less expensive to replace and on Hawks they have a lifetime warranty)
Fiberglass roof (cooler ride)
Steel frame, aluminum skin (best of both world for strength and appearance)
Stall of appropriate length and width for my horse

I had looked at just about every major trailer brand and wasn't happy with some of the details of workmanship or features in the price point we were shopping. In the end, as long as we're happy with our trailers as owners and they're safe for our horses it doesn't matter about the what's and how's.

Here is a pic of ours:
http://i75.photobucket.com/albums/i2...s/IMG_0700.jpg

And the floorplan:
http://i75.photobucket.com/albums/i2...rFloorplan.jpg

[Herefordgirl]

My EBY is 3800 lbs. My tundra is comfortable pulling it w/ 2 horses but I would not go any bigger. I have the 2H w/ dressing room so you might be able to do the 3H if you give up the dressing room. I have a 2010 tundra w/ the tow package. Plenty of engine but the suspension could use some beefing up.

[AKB]

My daughter wants a 2+1 Sundowner. We have had great luck with our 2h Sundowner bumper pulls, but a GN would be nice for longer trips.

[Sparky Boy]

My 2h BP with dressing room and front ramp weighs 4111 empty with a tongue weight about 680. It's heavy for a 2h.

Most trailer sites don't seem to list the empty weight.

Ideally, I'd like to be able to use the tundra to pull it with one horse. More than one horse and I use the F350.

[vxf111]

2+1 would be perfect for your situation. IMHO. Slants are fine if you only haul average sized horses but I wuld never buy one for larger horses.

Hawk makes 2+1 and extra tall/extra wide. I just have a 2H gooseneck straightload Hawk w/ dressing room but I adore it like there's no tomorrow. I bought it used so didn't pick the color, but I am pretty sure you can get plain white.

[schneidepc]

Do you know the unloaded weight?

I think the unloaded weight of my FL 2H SL GN is about 3,000 lbs. I have the standard size dressing room.

[countrygal]

My Hawk trailer (floorplan posted above, 2h GN with extended tack) weighs in at 5500 lbs.

[Sparky Boy]

Wow. That's a big weight difference between the Hawk and the Featherlight.