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Elite Veteran
Posts: 736
Location: Western WA | I'm just curious as to what everybody's favorite feature of their trailer is, hopefully something that is unique to that brand. Lots of questions about what is the best brand floating around, but the real question is what is the best feature and which brands have them? Hoping to not hear "my trailer is white" or "it hauls all three horses". For example, I have a Logan and my favorite feature is they come standard with drop down windows on the butt side as well as the head side. |
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Veteran
Posts: 190
Location: Texas | I value the ice chest the most. All the other features I expect. That one is the extra that I really appreciate. |
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Veteran
Posts: 189
Location: nashville, In. | My American Spirit has mangers. Where the wall would be between the rear tack and under the managers is open so if I have something long (tent poles, etc.) I can slide them in there.
Also there are emergency latches on the inside of the manger door so if a child would happen to climb inside they could get out.
I also like my outside water faucet that comes standard on this brand of trailer. |
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Expert
Posts: 1283
Location: Home of Wild Turkey Whiskey | I think the best feature of any trailer is the awning, that's where you spend all your time. I put as big of an awning on my trailers as they will hold. Last one was 22 feet long.
Edited by HWBar 2007-07-31 5:38 AM
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Veteran
Posts: 129
Location: Northwest Ohio | |
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Veteran
Posts: 129
Location: Northwest Ohio | We bought our LQ used so we didn't choose what we wanted or didn't want as options. We do lots of dry camping so a toilet and shower were musts for us. But as far as features on our trailer, I love the solar panel battery charger. We can make it an entire weekend with no battery issues if we conserve on the lights and water pump. We also have mangers and under the mangers is a built-in 35-gallon water tank so we can carry water for the horses too. These are items we didn't have on our "must" list but they are awesome now that we have them.
Edited by Candy girl 2007-08-03 10:26 AM
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Expert
Posts: 1205
Location: Arkansas | Love the awning, the generator with remote start and mangers on an 8 wide. Electric jacks a plus, too The hay rack and it's water storage..Stud partition so hay etc can be in there for when just I am on the road.. Plenty of room for the horses and a 20 gal fuel tank for the generator, makes life nice....
Edited by flyinghfarm 2007-07-31 12:32 PM
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 648
Location: Coconut Creek, FL | hydraulic jack is wonderful!!!! and that my trailer doesn't leak. (so many others do) |
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Veteran
Posts: 134
Location: Coarsegold, CA | Mangers with storage.
Hay rack with water tank.
Being lifted and skid plate over plumbing.
A real oven, not just a Microwave.
Being 8' Wide.
"Stud Wall" on first stall for "STUFF"
And of course, my Cushion EZ Clean floor!
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 736
Location: Western WA | I should have mentioned the skid plate over the dump valves on my Logan too. That is definitely one of my favorite features! |
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Regular
Posts: 60
Location: Ky | Your own air conditioned bathroom. I suppose that's two things, but, without the AC, the bathroom is useless. |
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Expert
Posts: 2954
Location: North Carolina | Butt side drop down windows for each horse. Allows a lot of ventilation while on the road. Or stopped, with both front and butt drops down, the trailer is just like a run in shed. Haven't seen any other Sundowner with this feature. It must have been a special order. ( I bought it used) |
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Expert
Posts: 2828
Location: Southern New Mexico | The favorite part of my trailer is..... its paid off!! Now I can start adding stuff. |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 333
| My favorite part of my straight load trailer is the tubed head piece that goes between the horses. Lets in more light and keeps the horses from fussing too much.. also they like seeing eachother better. Before they would always put up their heads to see if they could see the other horse. Now they don't need to. :-) Jbsny |
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Member
Posts: 12
Location: Sanhills, Nebraska | The side tack......when I feel like 4 wheeling or need to haul mowers, etc you can load them all. |
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Regular
Posts: 71
Location: Northern CA | I added a water pump and some outside plumbing to the water tank and now I have the ability to attach a hose and rinse the horses off after riding/showing with pressurized water. It saves time and effort and CA is so hot during the summer, it comes in handy. |
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Expert
Posts: 3853
Location: Vermont | My favorite feature is when my trailer is paid off... |
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Veteran
Posts: 148
Location: columbia tn | my favorites refrig/freezer no more ice chest..propane furnace it warms up quick,day night shades,polished alum slat sides all the way down (less white to contend with cleaning) hydrawlic jack for sure no more cranking,drop downs on both sides are great did not order them just happened to be on this one, hay rack could not do without one and the thing that gets the most remarks is the alum wheels, no rusting (so far that is) they really make the trailer... by far the best thing would be for it to be paid in full and that will be awhile... happy trails.. |
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Regular
Posts: 97
| I'm not real fond of our trailer at all. However, it is paid for. YEAH!!! |
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Expert
Posts: 2828
Location: Southern New Mexico | My favorite part of my straight load trailer is the tubed head piece that goes between the horses. That is on my list of changes. |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 379
Location: Columbia, TN | 10 -4 on the hydralic jack!!!! |
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New User
Posts: 3
| i just heard american spirit is going out of buisness.I wonder who will do all the warranty work on them. |
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Member
Posts: 44
Location: Odessa, MO | Last trailer leaked!! Next one better not leak!!!!! |
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 736
Location: Western WA | Lots of people have shared some great (and not so great - leaking) features. What are the brands that go along with these features? I started the tread thinking it would be a good source of info for those who are trying to compare trailer brands when shopping. We get alot of questions about specific brands on this board, I thought it would be interesting to share a different perspective and talk about specific brand features. |
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Veteran
Posts: 189
Location: nashville, In. | I've heard that rumor too. But they just added another dealer in west-central IN. so I don't think that true. |
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Expert
Posts: 2453
Location: Northern Utah | Head hunter I also have a new Logan XT Platinum version. I like the Drop down windows on ALL window, Head and Butt Built in 30 gallon horse water tank. Awning & Electric jack Lots of Lights, Load lights, lights on both sides and up under the GN. Managers and Storage under managers. Escape door in 1st stall. I use the first stall as a Mud room in bad weather. HITies that I added to the trailer. Things I dislike about it. Saddle rack is set low for shorter people to get saddles on. This leaves the bottom or 4th saddle almost right on the floor. I'd love the option to raise the saddle rack a foot higher. Plenty of room above to lift it. And a tall person like could easily reach it. It's heavy. Loaded with 4 horses, gear etc it's 16,000lbs |
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Veteran
Posts: 282
Location: southcentral pennsylvania | There are several things I love about my trailer. First, it is extra tall and wide (7'6" tall, and I forgot the width.) I find this provides great air circulation on hot days, and a more inviting opening for the horses. It is a gooseneck straight load, and I had a bus window with a screen added in front of each horse. The dressing room also has a top vent, side bus windows, as well as one on the dressing room door. With all of these open, it provides nice indirect air flow to the front of the horses. Of course, I also have side and rear bus windows for the horses and overhead vents. Brenda |
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Member
Posts: 38
Location: Howard Cty, MD | 2005 Dream Coach, Silver Edition, 2+1 straight load gooseneck. Insulated horse stall area (keeps the horses cooler in the summer & warmer in the winter); rumber flooring (easy to power wash after trips, no mats to lift, great traction); 4 built in fans (keeps air moving when parked, just wish I had a power hookup from the truck so I could run them while driving instead of just off the batteries); loading lights (2 pointing rearward plus one on passenger side @ rear pointing forward to illuminate the whole side of trailer); lighted grab handles at dressing room door & escape door on curb side (looks neat at night, easy to ID our trailer and makes getting in/out easier - something to grab hold of); fold down steps on DR & escape door (makes getting in and out easier); 8 ft 'box stall area for extra storage space in front of the horse stalls (can load extra hay, grain, saddles, space for camp stove, generator, and even the ATV!); electric/hydraulic jack (what a back saver); 8 foot dressing room (lots of space to spread out, should have made it 10' so I would have more room when it's converted to LQ); removable saddle rack with adjustable racks (racks adjust so I can put stuff under the saddles or stack 2 saddles on one rack, etc); added 48 gal water tank (lots of water for the horses & people); 8 ft wide (those extra 6 inches in trailer width make a lot of difference in the DR, and horses have a bit more room to move about in the stalls); LED running & brake lights (very bright without drawing a lot of power from the truck); two part ' Dutch' doors at head of horse area (makes getting to the horses easier and ensures that they don't try to bolt forward when you open the upper bar door part, while the lower solid door keeps the extra stuff stored in the 'box stall' area from sliding under their feet) also the doors are hinged on the left side (looking forward) so both doors are functional to unload the horses down the side ramp if needed [some dealers hinge both doors from the center post so the curbside door is not useable for unloading the left horse using the streetside side ramp]; 5' wide side ramp (can load the ATV after the horses, great for going in/out of horse area without disturbing the horses, can remove wet gear without going into DR, etc); Pass thru door with window to horse area (easy in/out of DR when raining, or to check horses); extra windows in DR (added windows on each side for future LQ conversion); rooftop A/C (makes those hot days and nights bearable); windows on rear panels above rear ramp (allows for more air flow while driving without latching the panels open); V gooseneck nose (less drag & stainless steel makes cleaning off the dead bugs easier); spare tire under gooseneck (out of the way, yet convenient to get at); locks on the latches (makes it nice to use just one key to lock the trailer when on the trail or in storage); night lights outside the DR & escape doors (you can see at night without illuminating the entire area); and finally I love the overall quality of the construction and welds of this trailer! Dream Coach added a 5" wide U channel on the front wall of the gooseneck beside the jack which sticks out about 9" or so. I thought it was a mistake & someone forgot to cut off the end of an under carriage support. However, I use that 'step' every time I have to crawl into the bed of the truck to hook up or get something out of the back. I've never seen anything like it on any other trailer, before or since. http://www.horsetrailerworld.com/forum/get-attachment.asp?attachmentid=112 love/hate the 7200 # axles - love the extra weight carrying capacity, hate the squeal when brakes are applied. To see some pics, search for Dream Coach. or http://www.horsetrailerworld.com/forum/thread-view.asp?threadid=4127 Steve |
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 824
Location: Kansas | 1997 Liberty Softouch. My favorite feature is that it's paid for! |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 303
Location: Grapeland, Texas | Originally written by TXAggie on 2007-08-15 1:36 PM
Dream Coach added a 5" wide U channel on the front wall of the gooseneck beside the jack which sticks out about 9" or so. I thought it was a mistake & someone forgot to cut off the end of an under carriage support. However, I use that 'step' every time I have to crawl into the bed of the truck to hook up or get something out of the back. I've never seen anything like it on any other trailer, before or since.
I would almost bet that is a support for a battery box, or shelf for propane bottles to sit on.
Edited by longearsrule 2007-08-16 11:33 AM
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Member
Posts: 23
Location: Indianapolis, IN | overit 2007 We heard that last year after congress when everyone in the office left(GM, production, purchasing, sales). I got rid of mine( less than one year old) It was starting to rust and I didn't want to get stuck with a trailer that I couldn't get fixed. But I think they are still their.
Edited by jmprgirl 2007-08-16 4:08 PM
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Member
Posts: 6
Location: Lone Star State | I love everything about our Stidham trailer! The absolute BEST in quality. It has a hay pod for covered hay storage and also a hay rack in front of that for the portable panels. Has side tack and rear tack and mangers. The swing out escape door also has manger storage. There is so much storage in this trailer. It also has werm flooring. I like the fact that everything LOCKS on this trailer, all the windows, doors, hydr. jack, etc. I feel more secure when it is left at an arena. I am sold on Stidham and will never own anything else. |
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Regular
Posts: 85
| Kiefer Built, 2 horse straight load with mangers. Favorite things drop down windows, camper door with screen in dressing room plus 2 windows in tack room and best of all, slide in/out saddle racks under the mangers in the tack room. |
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Veteran
Posts: 274
Location: MO in woods | Sundowner Siesta has Larger/bigger windows great escape but more for air flow while camping/sleeping.Not many lqs trailers have bigger windows.Even though we have ac and generator we love fresh air w/larger windows was GREAT plus we looked for.Also has alot options we use in less amount floor space etc. The screen door love leaving door open for air etc. Paid for and will last many years is quality made trailer. |
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 736
Location: Western WA | I have always thought Sundowner had a good design with those louvered windows in the gooseneck/sleeping area of LQ trailers. I have sliding windows, and I bet the airflow is better with the louvers, and you would still get air in when the blinds are down (as they usually are when you are sleeping). |
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Regular
Posts: 50
| I think your "step" is the rack for your gas tanks when you do the conversion! |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 456
Location: south of Cowtown, TEXAS | My Silver Star: fully insulated ceiling - tip to tail large drop downs swing out saddle rack. But most of all the outside water spigot to water and wash and the horses off! My trailer is the community wash rack. |
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Expert
Posts: 2614
| I bet this gets another negative Exiss thread going,so,here goes. Our Exiss Event 3H 12'SW with LQ by Sierra.Double hydraulic jacks,dropdown windows with handles to keep short people from knocking their heads off when they are lowered,bars on windows (if that sounds minor you haven't had an expensive trailer with windows either up,or down and completely open.)Collapsible rear tack,easy slam latches that are simple to work,insulated walls in horse area,stud divider,camper step at escape door.Mangers with lighted storage beneath. The best part is the LQ.The trailer is 8'W,7'6" tall.We have a built in flat screen TV,and a pullout one in the GN area.A large upholstered sofa,and 2 huge closets,one besides the 6Cuft refrigerator/freezer,and one in the bathroom.The lights come on in them when the doors are opened.Another smaller hanging closet is below the TV.There are lots of beautiful oak cabinets.A real vanity and sink that you can stand at with room,not wedged in behind the toilet.Radial shower with skylight.(Good for getting scratched by tree limbs,incidentally.)Ducted air.Several levels of lighting,above the window valances,spotlights in the GN area,and overhead lights in bath and living.We added a really nice feature: a MAXX Air vent in the bathroom with variable speed control.The best feature of all is: I can sit up in the GN bed without knocking myself out on the ceiling as I almost did in our Platinum before.Unless you've done this you haven't lived.Now you guys know why I say,I LOVE my Exiss. THis sounds too much like bragging,to me.The very best part would be if it were paid for!!! |
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Member
Posts: 6
Location: Southeast | Everything!! We just got our custom built 2008 Keifer Evolution with 9' LQ, 4 horse slant, 7'6" tall 8' wide, stud wall, drop downs both sides with drop down bars also, air flow dividers, 2 step awning, rumbar floor, dinette, beautiful LQ conversion, mangers with storage, padding on all dividers, escape door, Diamond plate that lines the lower part of trailer to protect it as well as Diamond plate accents elsewhere, stainless nose, electric jack, rear tack, etc, etc. It is just an awesome trailer!!!! Keifer did a beautiful job!!! And so did Conversions LLC. |
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