Posted 2012-06-18 1:56 PM (#144927) Subject: Report out on my weekender/new truck
Member
Posts: 21
Location: WA State
I appreciate all the advice I have read here. I had my first voyage in the Featherlight weekender with my new truck and LOVED it. I slept so much better then I did tenting or sleeping in the bed of my truck! We were at a primitive horse campground, no hookup, but I did use the propane powered cooktop and was living large! I am looking forward to my next trip, with a full hookup. I am thinking about getting a small generator since i do often "dry camp" but i don't like the noise so don't see myself running it all day long like so many campers seem to do.
I actually wound up with a 4Horse - I looked for a 3H, but buying used and in my price range, I went for the best trailer I could find and it was a 4H.
Anyway, my weekender opens to the first stall that has a cowboy shower. I plan to put in a little portapotty and use that first stall as sort of an extension of the living area.
Here is my question though, I am new to pulling goosenecks, but is it important how weight is loaded like it is with the bumper pulls? Is it okay that the horses are in the last stalls instead of up front? This trip I put hay and stuff in that first stall, since the other part of the campground did have showers, but i would actually rather keep it more people usable and put horse gear in the next stall back. I do have a rear tack, which has room for 4 saddles but of course not enough room for buckets, hay etc. So ideally, stall 1 would be the shower/potty/people stuff, second stall would be hay, horse gear and the last two stalls be for horses. I could of course put all that in the first stall, and move it, once we arrive, but I am looking for easy. I have stud walls on ALL dividers, and my thought was I could make a pallet type thing to keep the hay off the floor to keep it dry.
Curious how people have maximized the space and come up with a good setup. I just got the trailer, so really didn't have time to do anything except check all systems and load up before the trip!
Posted 2012-06-18 2:17 PM (#144928 - in reply to #144927) Subject: RE: Report out on my weekender/new truck
Veteran
Posts: 155 Location: North Salem, IN
It is best to keep the horses over the axles, as far as weight is concerned. I wouldn't put them all the way in the rear as that will lift weight off your truck and create a "loose" or unstable feeling while driving. I usually put my horse in the second stall and most of my "junk" in the first stall (also a 4 horse trailer). You do have a very nice advantage for storing things since you have stud dividers on all stalls. You can always throw your hay in the rear stall since you have the stud dividers.
Posted 2012-06-18 7:08 PM (#144933 - in reply to #144927) Subject: RE: Report out on my weekender/new truck
Extreme Veteran
Posts: 434 Location: Brooksville, Fl
I don't think you would have any major problems hauling in the rear stalls. When hauling one horse, I would go would load it in the 3rd stall but usually there's enough junk up front to make up for another beastie if you're anything like me :) Our trailer has a saddle rack that is removeable and the racks can be adjusted. I only carry 2 horses so I took the extra saddle rack off and moved the other two way up. This gives me a whole lot more room for stacking totes and buckets. You could still store your hay in the 2nd stall. We hauled in a 4 horse with totally open dividers and placed stuff/hay etc on the floor and it never once moved. Plus, stuff tends to move forwards, not back and hay is generally pretty stable. I was very careful to pack anything that might shift in and around the hay and feed (which I kept in Soft Store bags). Some trailers allow the dividers to fit in any slot. If that is the case for you, you could move your full divider over one to give you peace of mind. We have friends with a 4 horse and they always carry their horses in the two rear stalls although their trailer has a larger LQ than yours. A lot has to do with how big your horse is too. A smaller horse might be less of a problem in the rear than the big one. We actually carry our largest horse in the rear of our 3 horse because he has a little more room back there but we have a 12ft LQ too. No problems though with the weight distribution.
Glad you hear you had a nice trip and are enjoying your rig! Hope you have many more :)
Posted 2012-06-18 10:37 PM (#144938 - in reply to #144927) Subject: RE: Report out on my weekender/new truck
Expert
Posts: 5870 Location: western PA
You can load a single horse in the rear most stall without worrying about unloading the pin weight. With a 4H GN trailer, you have more than enough forward weight, to counter weight the rear most stall.
By storing your extras in the forward stalls, you can easily load and handle your horses in the rear stalls.
Posted 2012-06-19 5:32 AM (#144943 - in reply to #144927) Subject: RE: Report out on my weekender/new truck
Extreme Veteran
Posts: 430 Location: TN
I can highly recommend a Honda Handi 3000 generator for primitive camping. I bought one two weeks ago and used it last weekend. It was quiet and did the job! I can also manuver it by myself very easily and it fit nicely under my saddle rack in my rear tack.
Report out on my weekender/new truck
