MrTruck's Annual Horse Trailer Buyers Guide and Accessory Tips

As horse owners, having a dependable trailer is a must, whether you need to haul your ride to the vet, or the event and as trail riders it becomes more important to get your crew to the trail. Borrowing a trailer gets old, and it strains relationships with the borrowee. I have always enjoyed towing trailers, might be a moncho thing, but it just makes my truck complete to have a side kick following behind. I could give you my opinion on which trailer to get, but that's just my opinion which may not be your best option.

Folks become very loyal to their truck brands and trailer brands, kind of like religion and politics. So gather lots of opinions from friends and folks you see at events about their trailers but sort threw the noise with logic and common since. And you know about sales people, they are just trying to feed their families and have their bias too. If this is your first trailer, you may want to start with a 6 or 7 ft wide trailer as they have better visibility. If you first trailer is 8 ft wide, it may intimidate you. But if you have the big horses, you may need a 8 wide to get a large enough stall.

You want your trailer to look good today and 2 decades from today. This is a 2 horse slant load conventional (tag-along, bumper pull) Cimarron aluminum trailer.

 Do yourself a favor and tow several trailers to get a feel for what your comfortable with. Of course if your first trailer is a Living Quarters, you'll have to learn quickly about wide trailers. There is a safety side to trailering, learning how to adjust your trailer brake controller and knowing how to use it independently in an emergency as well as controlling your trailer in severe weather that you didn't expect. There is an ice and snow trailer course in Steamboat CO each year sponsored by Bridgestone that is an excellent hands on school. Yes I passed.

Before you get into trailer judging 101, don't forget to evaluate how much trailer your truck or SUV can handle. You should research Gross Vehicle Weight Rating of your tow vehicle, axle rating, tow rating and Gross Combined Weight Rating. The GCWR has to include the loaded weight of your truck and trailer. Your trucks towing rating needs to at least equal the GVWR of your trailer.  What we'll try to do here is go over how to judge a trailer for what you need. In a used trailer, you could be looking at over 200 brands. Learning to judge horse trailers includes narrowing down the type such as slant or straight load, hitch type, gooseneck or conventional and construction type. Try to find a 5 year old trailer of your short list and see how they are holding up.

You can go super big 8 horse triple axle Sundowner, left or small 2 horse Bee, right.

Gooseneck or Conventional, First Decide Hitch Type

Conventional trailer, bumper pull, tag-long all say the same thing. It connects to the rear bumper or generally now they connect to the rear receiver hitch that connects to the truck or SUV frame. Bumper pulls as I've called them for many decades, are basically cheaper than gooseneck trailers. They allow you to use your truck bed which you might need for a camper or hay. Because they attach to the rear of the tow vehicle, they have more leverage on the truck, which can make them sway more than a gooseneck. Gooseneck trailers attach closer to the center of gravity of a truck, thus have less effect on truck movement. With less sway it takes less steering effort and goosenecks back up easier,  because the pivot movement is less. But goosenecks take a wider turn because of the pivot point which gives it a tighter turning circle but do watch the mail box and gates.

With a good weight distributing hitch with sway control, a conventional trailer can be very controllable and safe. Goosenecks are just generally easier handling and the best choice when you get over the 4 horse size towed with a pickup truck.

Brenderup trailers are in class of their own as a conventional trailer. In a one or two horse straight-load configuration, Brenderup built in Denmark and assembled in Texas, uses European design.  In Europe, trailers must have less than a 4% tongue weight verses 10 to 15% in the US. To get to such a low tongue weight, Brenderup balances the horses weight over the axles. Then because in Europe, horse trailers are towed with cars and SUV's, the trailers are light, have more steering angle called toe-in to keep the trailer straight and not sway and the shape of Brenderup deflects air with little vacuum on the rear for less effect when a semi-truck passes you. These are the easiest towing trailers I've seen without a weight distributing hitch and the trailer brakes are self contained and controlled, no brake controller needed.

Aluminum, Steel or Composite

Most trailers are some kind of a composite or combination of steel, aluminum, fiberglass etc. Even the all aluminum trailers have steel axle trolleys and usually steel gooseneck frames. The majority of steel frame trailers now offer aluminum skin. Generally aluminum gooseneck trailers are lighter than steel, not always. In conventional pull, two and three horse trailers, aluminum, composite and steel trailers are very close in weight. Aluminum trailers cost more, corrode less than steel and have better resale value. There are some steel trailers that look great in 20 years, but there are more aluminum trailers that look great in 20 years, like a jet from the sixties, still shiny. But composite trailers with aluminum skin can have the same good look down the road. I looked at a steel framed, aluminum skinned Crownline LQ this year built in the seventies. I was amazed at this 30 year old trailer didn't look a day over 10 years.

Trailer judging 101, where you can see how the corners are braced, look at the gusset and fish plate reinforcing the corners. The rear opening is especially important to be well braced.  This corner is on an aluminum Hart trailer.

In steel trailers whether just the frame or the whole trailer is steel, the steel needs to be galvanized. Most cars and pickup trucks are made of steel sheet metal. You just don't see rust on cars anymore, and that's the zinc coating called galvanized. But there are still a few steel trailers out there that don't galvanize their steel or not all of it. One of those things to put on your list of questions for a steel or composite trailer, is what is galvanized or stainless steel and what's not. Some trailer manufactures powder coat their frames or use a sprayed on bedliner type of application.

Check out the electrical box for fuses, wiring diagram . You want this to be easy to get to, wiring is the most common problems trailers have. This fuse box is in a Hawk trailer.

After you decide your trailers construction type then you can judge what trailers in that category is built best. Quality construction is important 1rst for your horse's safety, your safety, maintenance, and resale value.  I look at hinges, doors, rear opening bracing, floor, roof, axles etc. So to make it easier to narrow it down, compare brands in those categories. If you can afford the top tier trailers, this is the top aluminum class. They have less corrosion, will look better in twenty years, thus better resale value. In this class compare the hinges, floors, doors etc to Hart, 4-Star, Cimarron, Integrity and Platinum Coach to name a few. In the Composite class compare your list to Logan Coach, Hawk and Sundowner as examples. Check out fit and finish, welds, paint, and unprotected wires. Lift of the rubber mats and examine the floor.

Cimarron drop down doors left. In the top tier group, you see heavy duty hinges, doors, window frames and drop down feed doors grill. Top aluminum trailers use extrusions where the frame work goes together like lego's. Hart floor right. Check the kick wall to see where it flexes. It should be reinforced where hoofs can contact it. You'll see another difference between the top tier and mid tier where the majority of trailers fit.

 The floors in aluminum trailers are aluminum with support built in as extrusions. When you go to a major horse show or expo in the trailer exhibit some dealers will have cut outs models of their floor and walls that will help understand the construction.  Look at the welds on a top tier trailer, then compare to a midline or entry level trailer. Top class trailers will also have custom built doors on dressing room and LQ. Mid class will have pre-built RV type doors. Same for manger doors.

Some trailer manufactures make both aluminum and composite such as Merhow and Sundowner. Composite trailers generally have fiberglass or aluminum fenders. Check to see how hard replacing fenders is on any trailer. That's usually the first casualty with a trailer, the fenders.

The last category I call "Entry Level." Good trailers for a "light" budget or to start with. This class has some good trailers, but you get what you pay for. These trailers will vary more and need inspected more than the top tier that are more uniform. They can be aluminum, but more are steel. In this class compare to Bison, Ponderosa, and Chaparral.

Top Tier trailers have protect wiring with conduit and junction boxes at axles for brake wires like this picture of a Hart.

Straight, Slant, Box, Reverse Slant

Brenderup and Hawk have windows in front of the horses on a straight load conventional pull. I think the horses load easier when they can see there is something ahead of them, not just a wall.

.Slant-loads with a half door work fine for horses you load often. If you haul new horses or different horses, the one-piece wide door is easy to lead a horse into a slant stall or box stall as in combo trailer. Even with a wide door backing the horse out is often best even though it's tempting to turn the horse around and lead out. Seeing open spaces may make your horse want to leave the trailer faster than you can get out of the way.

Slant loads are very popular today, they take less room in trailer length verses straight load, which gives you more room for tack, dressing room or LQ. I've videoed horses in a slant load and they seem to be comfortable. I've seen video's of horses that only calmed down in a box stall. So there is no wrong answer, slants are the most popular now, box stalls work will with mare and colt and in the West I see a lot of horses happy in open stock trailers. You'll hear about horses needing to lower their head to clear their nose and they do but I haven't had problems using mangers which restrict movement.

Hooked up 4 camera's on a 5 yr old Paint mare in a slant load. Two camera's on head for eating and drinking and 2 camera's on feet. She had no problems standing and bracing. I've heard slant load compared to standing on a moving hay trailer and stabilizing yourself sideways and front ways to see how it's easer to steady yourself. But I'd probably sit down like a Llama. Maybe a Llama can teach my Paint to sit down in a trailer and buckle in.

Reverse slant is logical for a horse bracing their butt against the wall instead of a shoulder for braking but they take up more space on a trailer with a loading area part of the trailer instead of the ground at the rear. I'd say reverse slant load trailers are the highest cost per horse for a trailer.  Straight loads have been around forever. These generally are the least expensive trailers. Straight loads make good starter trailers in an entry level trailer all the way up to very elaborate with all the bells and whistles. Again you can get opinions, try your horse in different load types and settle on what works for you. My horses have to load in whatever trailer I'm reviewing that month and they do well in them all. I'm a fan of ramps, but it took longer for my horses to adapt to them because they all started on slants. But I've seen horses take to a straight load ramp trailer without hesitation that were always hauled in stock trailers.

Elaborate dividers on Featherlite Medalist Series trailer with stud wall in front, covers roof  to the floor. Keeps the commotion down on the trip with married couples.

 Trailer Types

Most horse trailers are open or enclosed. Open trailers are like stock trailers that I grew up with, a divider gate and walls, you're in business. Combination trailers are tall stock trailers that can have dividers and a tack room. Enclosed trailers are the cats meow, with two or three skins thick walls, insulation, padded stall dividers, roof vents, dressing room and drop down feed doors. And that's just the basics. You can have metal mangers with storage, drop down doors on both sides, front and rear tack rooms, rubber floor mats and cool graphics. Enclosed trailers are the answer to hauling in severe weather. We've come along ways from backing my truck in a ditch and loading my horse in the stock racks.

Axle suspension, leaf, torsion or air.

Leaf springs were in the beginning. Shackle or slipper leaf springs work better on a flatbed trailer than on a horse trailer. All the axles work together with equalizers between the axles to spread out the weight better. But if you look at semi trailers with air ride axles, they are independent. We used to recommend using leaf springs for rough roads, pastures and crossing high crowned rail road tracks, but torsion axles are doing it all now.

Torsion axles give you around 3 inches of wheel travel. They have 3 or 4 rubber ropes running along side the axle in the axle housing. When the tire goes up and down, the solid axle squeezes the rubber and springs back. Torsion axles are independent like air axles on a semi trailer. Torsion gives a great ride compared to the leaf springs. Most are independent side to side also. Important in conventional trailers, leaf springs can build up energy in an extreme swaying emergency and actually make the trailer sway more from the leaf spring unloading energy. Torsion axles will have less sway in a bumper pull trailer than leaf springs.

This Bison is typical of a long tall trailer, horses get used to stepping up in the long gooseneck trailers.

Air ride axles can have 5 inches of movement and are the expensive ones. These are seen on the larger LQ's. A little softer than torsion, they can also be lowered manually by letting the air out. This lowers the trailer for easier loading and even walking into the LQ.

EZ lube axles are great, the problem is since they have an external grease zerk, they get greased too often. This fills the brakes shoes with grease and renders them useless. I've seen this on so many new trailers, and several brands of axles that will be over greased at the factory. If you dealer doesn't test them on a Road Simulator or pull the drums to inspect, you could be a risk even with new trailer, new brakes.

Stiff sidewall bias-ply tires used to by the rule just like leaf springs. Radials that are load rated not "P" passenger rated, are the standard now. Steel belted radials have a softer ride and are dramatically more resistant to nails and other road hazards. The front axle tires like to throw nails at their rear axle neighbors. I usually have around 20 nails in my tires before a flat. Smaller conventional trailers will start with a 6 ply (C rating) going all the way up to 14 ply (G rating) on large Living Quarters. Trailer manufactures will match the tire rating to GVWR, they label the trailer with. I'm surprised that almost none of the horse trailer manufactures balance trailer tires on new trailers. They need it as much as your truck, but horses don't say much about the vibration. Take your brother-in law with you when you go trailer judging and let him ride in the trailer and report on vibration, noise, over all ride comfort. Just don't tie his halter too high if he needs to clear his.....

Most trailers will have electrical magnet drum brakes. One of my vices. The larger Living Quarters with 10,000 lb axles could have hydraulic drum or disc brakes. Electric over hydraulic disc brakes are gaining popularity because of dramatic shorter stopping distances. Like galvanized sheet metal, all new cars and most trucks have disc brakes, 20 years later maybe trailers will too. Spend the time to research good trailer brake controllers. The newer trailer brake controller will work with the newer hydraulic actuator for hydraulic disc brakes.

Floors

With aluminum trailers you get aluminum floors. Composite and steel trailers can have aluminum, wood or Rumber. Rumber is rebuilt rubber formed in tongue and groove planks. They need extra bracing compared to wood. Can last decades. Generally no need for rubber mats. But it can be slick with urine, works well with wood shavings.

Hawk Trailers have their LQ or dressing room higher than the horse floor to keep urine out. Also in the picture is Rumber flooring.

This is a Logan Coach floor with steel frame, aluminum runners coated with a bedliner coating. The aluminum floor is spaced to let fluids exit. A rubber mats goes on top.

Wood floor usually yellow pine, oak or fir can last decades if they are kept dry.

Ribbed aluminum floor helps keep the rubber mat from slipping.

Rear Tack, Side Tack, Dressing Room Tack

Tack rooms have grown, go to the All American Quarter Horse Congress in Ohio and see the largest selection of horse trailers in one place. Each year it looks like a contest for the largest tack rooms. I expect them to be large enough for the golf cart this year. It is nice to have room to organize your tack. Should make the kids closet a tack room and see if they organize it. Right.

Hart Bloomer Bloomer Hart

Collapsible rear tack even with mangers can open of the trailer rear and be inviting to a new to trailer horse.

Solid or Jailhouse Dividers

Front stall is for studs in this Logan Coach with a divider all the way down. I like jail house open stalls for ventilation. Other folks like solid dividers for less playing (socializing). The more open the stall the cooler the stall in summer. 

 

This open jailhouse stud divider on a Merhow trailer also has a gradual slope on the inside fender. And important feature on the wide 8 ft. trailers.

Several trailer companies are spraying a bedliner material on the inside walls. This does protect the wall from urine and such but doesn't absorb the impact of a kick like a thick rubber pad.

Insulation, compare between trailer brands especially important on LQ but for hot weather, insulation is a good thing everywhere with double and triple walls. This helps with extreme temperatures and noise.

Do the springs on the ramp look adequate, are there grease zerks on hinges? Keep adding what features stand out to you to your list.

  Can you reach the latch on the drop down feed doors? Unique latch on Logan Coach's door goes to the bottom of the window.

Look for padding any where your horse is. Besides on the stall dividers, managers and front wall, look above the door or anywhere the horse might swing a leg. Look at the rubber sill bumper in the rear of the trailer floor, be sure it covers any dangerous metal.

This Cimarron conventional trailer is low to the ground for easy loading. It's hard to find a large gooseneck trailer that's low to the ground. Higher capacity axles and tires raise the trailer floor. Air ride axles can lower the trailer for loading.

Lower tongue weight than most. Makes it a candidate for a truck camper application. Brenderup straight load from Denmark through Texas. 

I'm a fan of ramps, check to see if they lift easy and the springs need to be out of the way.

I'm a big fan of double LED taillights  and loading lights. You just can't have too many lights as seen on this Featherlite Medalist.

Enclosed trailers need vents and  windows on each end of the horse. A fiberglass roof is 10-20 degrees cooler than aluminum or steel. It's not easy to build a fiberglass roof and they're not all made the same. Ask conversion companies which roofs they can walk on carrying an AC unit without worrying.

Living Quarters.

We covered LQ's in the previous issue, only briefly here.

This is the most popular configuration in a LQ gooseneck, the 3 horse with slide-out, mangers, escape door and what I think all large LQ's should have, twin landing gear jacks. This is a Merhow, one of the few trailer companies that stayed in business over 50 years. Another thing to look at, how long has the manufacture and dealer been in business?

What to Ask When Buying Your Horse Trailer, Bring your List

Bring your tape measure. Stalls are not all the same width. Some trailer have a larger front or rear stall in a slant load. If your horse is taller or wider than most, you may want to size the trailer to your horse just like a saddle. We have a saddle dealer in my town that lets you bring your horse to the store for a correct fit. Why not trailers.

Warranty is important, get all the details and compare. Look at the fine print to see how leaks are covered. Water leaks in an LQ can be very annoying. Tires, most dealers and manufactures match the trailer to the load rating of the trailer. Is the Living Quarter warranted with the dealer or do you have to take it somewhere else?

Is your truck or SUV enough for your new trailer? Talk to folks about their trailers and look at older trailers. With tall, high center of gravity tail swishing Equines, I'd recommend staying 20% under the truck towing capacity. If you are hauling hay, it's a different story.

Trailer Accessories for the Trail Rider

Saddlematic: It gets tiresome and dangerous lifting 50 lb saddles over your head. You know the problem, saddles scattered on the floor of your trailer, bad back, the kids can't reach the top saddles in the rack, having to touchup those expensive show saddles each time they go into your trailer. Truth is a lot of folks can't, won't or get tired of using the top racks of their factory saddle rack. Then the fancy show saddles get thrown on the floor on top of each other. I have some saddles like that, getting out the boot polish to cover all the scuffs. The Saddlematic is all aluminum, to make it light and beautiful. It only takes about an hour to install and is quick attach like the factory saddle racks with spring loaded pins top and bottom. They go up and down at the touch of a button, your back is worth it. http://saddlematic.com/

Cushion EZ Clean, my #1 dread, pulling the rubber mats out and cleaning the trailer floor. All you need is a garden hose and that dreaded trailer cleaning chore disappears. Who wants to lift those heavy rubber mats out of their trailer. Your horse will love Cushion EZ Clean's shock absorbing feature. Save your back and preserve the resale value of your trailer. Floors, fenders and hinges tell the age of your trailer. They can help keep your trailer floor looking like the day it rolled out the factory. Eliminate the risk of your horse tripping on rubber mats and sliding under the mats. Horse safety is the key, ride in the back of your trailer and then ride in mine.  http://www.cushionezclean.com/

Popup Gooseneck Cushion with 9 inch extension for short-bed trucks. Before you knockout your rear truck window, extend your gooseneck and cushion your LQ protecting cabinets and mirrors. It absorbs up to 59% of the bumps, jolts and jars that make towing hard on you, hard on your cargo and hard on your trailer. Simply swap it out with the coupler on your gooseneck now and ride better. Trailers keep getting larger with more weight on your truck. You need a buffer between your truck and trailer.

The CC 2 Cushion Coupler costs hundreds less than air-bag style couplers and maintenance-free. The smooth ride comes from a patented system that uses Timbren cushions. http://popuphitch.com/

Kodiak hydraulic disk brakes dramatically decreases stopping distance. We'll have the results of our test here soon. Your car and truck have disc brakes because they brake better, reduce heat buildup and brake dust. Back in the day on my farm, I went to dually trucks just to have better braking. I gave up on depending on the magnet type electric drum brakes. The new electric over hydraulic brake actuators work with most trailer brake controllers. http://www.kodiaktrailer.com/

Equal-i-zer Weight Distributing Hitch:  I relate most of my towing experiences with going up and down hills. We have some tall hills in Colorado with snow still on them in the summer. Going down hill with a trailer pushing you and trying to steer you can get spooky. You will see semi-trucks adjust their weight with sliding 5th wheel hitches and sometimes sliding trailer axles. This is a good idea with your trailer also. Being able to adjust where the weight is distributed on your truck and trailer can give you the trailer capacity of a gooseneck or 5th wheel. If you are pulling a bumper type trailer (conventional, tag-a-long) having a Weight Distributing Hitch will improve your trailer sway, weight distribution and stress for trailer safety. Most RV travel trailers have WDH's on them for decades, it's time for the horse industry to catch up on this trailer safety product. http://equalizerhitch.com/

  Flare Alert for those roadside emergencies when you want your rig to be seen and not hit. I like them better than flares. They are flashing or solid amber or red LED lights. Magnetic base, I use them on gates and displays. They are super bright, water and crush resistant. Battery operated, you can get them individually or in a storage bag of three. You want to be seen while you're changing a flat or waiting for the tow truck from across the state. http://www.keystonegroupusa.com/flarealert/

Pressure Pro Blowouts are not fun. And even whipping your trailer doesn't let you see the rear axle in a safe way or at night. Pick your reason, the cost of tires, safety, calm horses, or just the pain in the @!& it is to change a tire in the middle of the rain or freeway during rush hour. I have been waiting for something like Pressure Pro to help me monitor tires on the fly. Tires are something we constantly worry about on trips.  If your trailer tire blows it can take your bumper off as well. http://www.advantagepressurepro.com/

Enkay Rock Tamer mudflaps: Any mudflaps can protect your trailers from mud, that's a slow speed problem. But the damage comes from the little rocks and gravel that are on the roads from wind and snow plows. And those little rocks get propelled when you're going Interstate speeds. The new model is a thick rubber flap with vertical ribs which keep the mudflaps pointing down at 70 mph +. These are the most heavy duty, adjustable mudflaps I've found, and I look hard. They won't sail down the road, but stay in place and now they look like a bling, bling accessory that makes your truck look cooler. Function and beauty, just like me. http://mudflaps.com/

Mobile Roof Loading Systems, new and so cool, this is awesome, climbing up a little ladder is why most folks don't use their hay racks. This ladder is strong enough to carry bales as you step to the top. It is OSHA approved. With hand rails it's like boarding a plane. It folds up neat attaching to the rear door. Now you can have tailgate parties on your hay rack or set up your umbrella and watch the rodeo.  http://fourquartercircle.com

Centramatic wheel balancers can give you 25 -50% longer tire life. I have only found one horse trailer manufacture that balancers their tires. And trailers need it just like you car or truck. Over the road truckers have used Centramatics for decades. Centramatic wheel balancers will also balance your wheel bearings, brakes and even the spindles that may not be welded on the axle perfect. These onboard balancers keep your tires balanced automatically as you drive. http://centramatic.com/

These are my opinions, no harm intended. Make your own choices with your research. This article intended as a guide only. Trailer brands are used for illustration not criticism. 

Choice of MrTruck photos Terri, yes he rides on trails sometimes on horses bigger than him sometimes not.

  MrTruck