Hello out there.  I need some opinions - and help.  I am looking into purchasing a 3H slant load, (probably aluminum) horse trailer and I do not know much about them.  I am going to look at a couple of Sundowners.  I am also considering an S&H, 4Star, Double D, and CM.  I am aware of some problems Sundowner has had with older steel framed aluminum trailers.  I have two big mares and like the fact that Sundowner stalls are 42".  My girls are also used to loading into a stock trailer and double doors are important to me.  I trail ride and may camp a couple times a year.

I welcome your thoughts. 

Too answer your question troytexas; the Sundowner steel frame models will usually be fine if they have not been subjected to winter hauling in the north or northeastern areas of the country.  Simply inspect the underneath frame rails and floor supports.

The all aluminum Sundowners are some of the best constructed trailers in the industry; but if your wanting 42" stalls, stay with trailers built after '97.  Good luck to you on your trailer search.

That statement is NOT shared by everyone

I've been in your shoes so I can give you my two-cents worth. Until last year I hauled my horses with a stock trailer, I wasn't sure what I wanted to move up to, I wasn't sure how much I'd be willing to spend, and I wasn't sure if my horses would even like a slant load.

I was going to buy a used steel gooseneck slant load, but my husband talked me into getting aluminum mostly because we were tired of trailers rusting to death! The price of those were higher than i wanted to spend, though, so I really hemmed and hawed. Finally I decided that there was no use spending $10,000 on something that would be much more rusty 5 years down the road and worth half the price, so i did buy a used aluminum for $18,000 and being surprisingly happy even after spending all that money. What I got was a Featherlite. It wouldn't have had to be that brand, but it was one that is sold at a local dealership, they seem to have a decent reputation, they are well known enough that resale should be acceptable, and I liked the specific one i bought as it was in almost brand new shape.

When trailer shopping i decided what I wanted to do. Since I haul to weekend shows I had been either sleeping in my stock trailer (which wasn't very nice), having my husband haul the holiday trailer to shows as well as me coming with the stock trailer (which was a pain) or staying away from the show grounds (which made it tough to do all my horse care) So I decided that at the very least I wanted to sleep in my trailer, so I knew I wanted a gooseneck. I bought a simple 4' shortwall, all it came with was a mattress in the nose, and carpet on the floor, wall and neck. Then for a few hundred bucks I bought a bar fridge, tiny microwave and portable toilet. I used furniture I already had in the trailer - an old arm chair, a wooden TV tray and a dresser for storage. last year I spent several weekends in the trailer and liked it so much that this year I've decided to invest a couple thousand dollars more, and now we are insulating and lining our trailer, and ordered some cupboards. It won't be fancy, but for the cost I'm very, very happy.

You might be happy doing the same thing - buying a basic gooseneck with a nice clean dressing room, and seeing how it goes for you. If you are willing to do your own work you can keep the costs reasonable. Insulating cost me $100, paneling another $400, and the cupboards will be around $1000. I can afford that, and I'm certain that when i resell the trailer in the future it will be a good enough job that we'll get most of our money back, maybe even turn a profit since I was quoted $10,000 to do the front of my trailer professionally in my area.

As for your horses, I was shocked to discover that my horses prefer riding in the slant load compared to the stock trailer. I think it's because the horse trailer is quieter than the stock trailer. Also, being confined in the slant load seems to make them feel safe, they ride quiet and happier. In my case I allow my horses to ride untied, they then eat hay off the floor which works for them. My one tip is - make sure that any slant load you're looking at is long enough for your horse. My 15.2hh Paint mare isn't horribly wide, but she is fairly long. I found that the standard slant load that I have is almost too short for her if she's tied. When she's loose she then lowers her head to eat off the ground much of the time, this gives her alot more space. A horse that was slightly longer would not fit inthe standard slant load well. So I would suggest putting your horse in a trailer of the size you're looking at to see how it works in real life. The salespeople will tell you one thing, but checking it out will give you a better idea than all their advice!

Our 1100-1200#+ Walking Horses fit nicely in a 30" wide straight load stall. It's a 6 horse head to head. It's 3 stalls wide and each stall is about 30" in width X 10' long.  Trailer has a 96" inside width, 3-30" stalls and 2-3" wide dividers = 96". They'll ride standing there for 700-800 miles, 14-16 hours with no ill effects. I got one filly that likes to shift her butt back and forth in the slant load Silver Star (42" stalls). She stands quietly riding backwards in the 30" wide straight load stall.... No shifting her weight around, no dancing..... Go figure.

Silver Star drawing....

http://dandltrailers.com/silver_star/2000c.gif

 30" wide Cherokee Super Chief, straight load stall, (view from the horse's perspective.) below

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3-30" stalls with two 3" wide dividers total width 96". (Got the fans set up at a day show last summer, keeps it nice inside!!) below

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Originally written by crowleysridgegirl on 2010-03-01 10:18 PM

Man,looks like they've got it rough in there,Rentento!!

It was hot that day.... No shade trees, no clouds and 90 something plus degrees. I had the EF3000iseB Yamaha wound up tight. AC was running in the DR, six box fans on high, one 48" fan on wheels outside the trailer blowing up toward the side ramp, all the doors, roof vents and windows open. Part of the time we had to ask people to move out of the way. They would come and stand in the 10' long center area with all the breeze! You would have thought we were giving away shaved ice and Cisco wine coolers!!! Next show we went to at this farm, folks would park close and want to run a cord to my generator to run their fans.... Sorry no can do, I'm maxed out.