Hello,

It is with fear and trepidation I make this post. I went to the Equine Affaire last month and enjoyed the horse trailer looking as always. I have long admired the Brenderup trailers and am on the verge of splurging for the Baron TC. Right now I have an older Suburban which gets such terrible mileage I don't even try to figure out how bad it is because I don't want to know! I would like to replace the vehicle with a nice dual purpose vehicle for commuting and hauling. Those of you who would like to offer useful suggestions, I would like to hear your comments. I will not be worried about makeup mirrors etc...

Thanks

I'm looking at smaller 2 horse setups as well. My wife and I looked at all the brands represented at the Equine Affair held in Springfield Ma.  Prior to the show we were real hot on the Brenderup - We got the video and agreed with the conclusions...  Then I saw them in person.  I think they serve a real niche market - Keeping in mind that no vehicle's tow capacity can be exceeded - even with a Brenderup style trailer - We rapidly both came to the same conclusion... Cool idea - Way too much money though.  The B-Up really didn't weigh much less than several top line all aluminum trailers - and I shopped the dollar range we were looking at for the Top O' the line B-Up ($14,500 to $16,000) we had moved into truly stellar traditional brands of trailers... Jamco - Elite - and many other brands I can't recall.  Honestly, they were so much more trailer for the same money we just couldn't justify the cost of the B-Up. 

Brenderup is expanding their production capacity - and is also hoping to expand their dealer network.  In theory - if there are more B-Up trailers available, and through more dealers, perhaps the price will drop to a more reasonable level.

Opinions and suggestions are interesting things - and not always too useful if they don't tell us what we want to hear.  But for our dollars - Brenderup wasn't the answer.  We seem to be leaning more towards a "beefy" 1/2 ton truck, and a more traditional trailer design.  If you were absolutely convinced that a Brenderup is your choice - then you certainly can look at SUV's and smaller pick-ups - but please keep that tow rating in mind. 

Our math didn't work - the Brenderup Baron was around 2100 lbs - add in 2000lbs of horse and another couple hundred miscellaneous pounds - and I was at my 5000lb tow rating.  So regardless of what trailer we looked at - none of them, including Brenderup would allow me to safely tow with my 4Runner.  So we were forced into a heavier vehicle regardless - with your Suburban you certainly must have a higher tow rating than I do...

Well those are some of the criteria we've used to include/exclude certain brands.  No matter what though - when I saw in person what they were offering for 16k - There wasn't any way I could see that it was worth that much money.  There just isn't that much material or technology at work there to justify the cost.  If it was around $8 or $9, like many other "average" 2 horse trailers, then we might have considered it more seriously.

Good Luck with your shopping and trailer setup - What works for you will certainly be something different than what works for us -

Steve

I have a 1997 Baron TC. I love it! If anything were to happen to it, I would replace it with another. It still looks like it is new. They do not rust. The maintenance on them is virtually nothing. I also like the fact that you do not have to put a brake controller in your tow vehicle. I pull it with a Cadillac SRX or a Chevy Avalanche. Before these, I pulled it with an Acura MDX. The Chevy Avalanche is a good versatile vehicle. I almost think as much of it as I do the Brenderup. If you haven't already, I would suggest you contact Brenderup and ask for their video on the trailers.

Howdy!

I actually joined this forum recently to make this very same post, so if you do a search you can find out a few more answers.  I myself am looking for a Brenderup.  After doing the research, I'm convinced that this is the trailer I want to try.  I'm going to be looking for a one horse Baron model myself in order to stay within my vehicle's towing limits.  I am hoping to find a used one (anyone looking to sell?).  The resale on these trailers is fabulous-not nearly the depreciation that you see on other brands.  I have not been able to find a single person who has actually owned one to say something bad about them-the only naysayers seem to be people who haven't owned them and just don't like the way they look.  (I've been calling this trailer racism.)  Good luck!

I agree you'll find basically two types of folks those that own and love them and those that haven't and don't like them because they are different.

I personally think that the person making the payments gets to pick!  If you and your horse like them then go for it!  They say you can haul them with just about anything...I mean all of Europe can't be wrong, right?

Sometimes we need to think out of the box and get over ourselves.

If you are looking for the Brend to increase your MPG I think that you might be wrong but if you are looking for a better MPG vehicle to tow with then just about any SUV or crossover should work.

I hope my comments don't come off that way.  My wife and I were quite drawn to them "being different" I think the approach Brenderup takes is fine - We just found the price of entry quite steep for what we perceived the trailer to be.  I like their aerodynamics, and I'd like to see other brands make more effort in that area.

Thanks All.

If you do some research there are other 2-horse trailers that are just as lightweight and just as well made (check out Circle J Lightening models and Merhow for starters. The only difference is that you won't get the surge breaks like the Brenderup has. But after towing trailers w/ both kinds of breaks (surge and conventional electric) I can honestly say there really isn't enough of a difference to really matter.

In my opinion the surge breaks are somewhat of a pain because if you are towing the Brenderup empty the breaks will go on and off constantly when you hit bumps causing your trailer and towing vehicle to "surge" and jerk like crazy.

We've also owned two older model Merhow 2-horse trailers and LOVED both of them, the Merhow's pull like a DREAM and they've been in business for a long time so you can find older, used models for sale (check this site and eBay).

In fact we just purchased a 1994 Merhow Verylight 2-horse for only $3500.00. This trailer weighs ONLY 1900 lbs. and is in PERFECT condition except for the paint (and it's not that bad). When we purchased it the previous owner had gone through and redone everything (she was the orig. owner) prior to selling it. I just posted that I was looking for a place to refurbish it but all I really need is paint.

So I guess what I'm saying is that unless you are Bill Gates and have tons of $$$$ to spend on a trailer I would do more research, there are other lightweight trailers out there that haul just as well as the Brenderup.

Good luck!

Phil & Deirdre

Dallas, TX

dmarr@tx.rr.com

I wasn't going to chime in on this thread but I couldn't help it.  I've owned three Brenderups and never has any of my trailers jerked when empty.  I'm guessing something was wrong with the previous posters trailer.  Yes, the Brenderup is expensive but anyone that has had one and sold it, the resale is over the top.  I've never lost money on a resale and have sold both my previous trailers within minutes of posting.  I purchased my first Brenderup through this web site.  I'm in California and the trailer was in Virgina.  It was tricky getting the trailer here but even after shipping costs, I made money when I sold the trailer.  I have a friend in Maui that has had a Brenderup for five years and even with the salt air it looks like new.   There is little maintenance reguired to keep the Brenderup in top shape.  There are expensive cars and less expensive cars, they both drive, they both get  you where you want to go, just have some different options.  I would never get down on someone with a big beautiful rig, live in quarters, lovely large truck but I can't afford that and would never attempt to compare my trailer to theirs.  Just based on phenolic resin, which is what the Brenderups are made of, there is no way to compare the trailer to other two horse trailer on  the market. 

So if you like the Brenderup buy it, if not, don't.  If  you do, be ready to turn heads.

We have purchased 2 Brenderups brand new from the factory in Midland, TX. We ended up selling both.

Unfortunately we didn't have the great luck on re-sell that the CA poster had. Neither of our trailers sold within "minutes' of being posted and we lost money on both sales even though both trailers were virtually brand new (less then 6 mos. old, one had NEVER had a horse in it and the other one had had horses in it 3 times).

My Merhow is made of an extremely strong FRP resin that is similar to the Brenderup.

I'm not bashing Brenderups, I'm just saying that for the money there are other options out there, esp. if all you need is a SAFE, lightweight, 2-horse, bumper-pull trailer. I am just as happy (even more so because of the $$$$$ I saved) with my 13 yr. old, $3500.00 Merhow as I was w/ my brand new, $16,000.00+ Brenderups.

This forum is a place for all of us to express our opinions and experiences and there are no 'right or wrong' opinions.

Of course there are expensive trailers, cheap trailers and those that are priced somewhere in-between (and I wouldn't exactly call Merhow trailers cheap).

If an older trailer of any brand fits my needs for roughly $13,000.00 less then the brand new Brenderup I had, I say more power to me! I don't know of anyone who wouldn't rather keep thousand's of dollars of their hard earned money in their pocket!!50

Wow, Merhow.  I have heard them but had not heard of the material they were made of.  I stand corrected, I thought only trailer in the us that was made of a resin was the Brenderup.  I'm going to the Sacramento Horse Expo in June and will check out the Merhow.  You purchased your Merhow new?  What model is it?  Weight and toung weigh?  I'm going to check out their website.

Seriously, it would have been worth the trip to sell you trailer in CA.  I guess it might be because the factory is in Texas and maybe there are more of them out there.  I sold a 1997 Baron SL in 2001 and made $2,000 more than I paid after the shipping costs to get the trailer here.  I sold my 2001 trailer last summer and got what I paid for it.  I guess I'm doing OK.  No problems at all with my trailer.

Thanks for the info on the Merhow!

Oh, and I never said you were bashing.  Just wanted to clarify that my Brenderups never jerked when empty.

I found my trailer on eBay after months of looking, I was lucky enough to purchase it from the orig. owner who took excellent care of it. She gave me all service records.

I looked at the Merhow site also and it doesn't appear that they are using the FRP anymore, you might give them a call and ask about used models that were made with the resin.

Then if you don't mind an older trailer just keep looking on this site and eBay and you'll be able to find one.

Good Luck!

Deirdre

Why would you buy a trailer and then sell it without using it?

Sounds like a logical question to me! After all, this is a place to ask questions and share information. Oh well!!!!!!!!!!!!

                                                  Ardly

Deirdre

No need to get wound up!!

I only asked because it didn't make sense.  Especially since you said you bought one, sold it without using it, bought another one, used it 3 times and then sold it.  You should expect to loose money if you buy a new trailer (or car/truck) and then turn right around and sell it.  They start depreciating as soon as they leave the lot.