Downsizing horsebox

[Gossip Girl]

Having had a 7.5t box all my life, I now need something smaller for my old age.
Would people share their experience with some that I am considering before I go out looking.
Boss. Kevin Parker Bloomfields. Roughan. Alexanders Smith
Part ex facility would be great and is really the reason I would look at Alexanders.

 

[LynH]

I had a look at a few of those you mentioned. I ruled out Boss as ramp on driver's side which means the horse had to load onto the nearest edge so turning before fully in the box. Alexander's I liked but heard too many negative stories about and too far from me if I had an issue. Bloomfields had a very long wait list and I did like the look of it. I also looked at I.C.E and Equihunter. Of them all I would choose the Equihunter but I ended up going for a 6.5t as in the end I felt unnerved by the bulkhead issue. They all say they are the only one who makes a decent bulkhead which made me doubt them all. I also as told the horse stands on the frame of the body not the chassis and that they just extend the length of the body for a 4.5t whereas the weight is supported on the chassis of a 6.5t. No idea what is true or not true or how to check which had the best safety record so I just went for a local builder I know well and several friends have bought boxes from with no issue. Sorry not to be more help, it just seemed a minefield and a fine balance of a small payload vs strength of materials.

 

[Nevergrewup]

I've heard only goid things about Kevin Parker, Boss and Bloomfields smaller boxes. I've been to Alexanders twice and was totally unimpressed on both occasions, not only by the hard sell and heavy ramps, but also the incredibly low payloads that the salespeople glossed over "just travel with 1/4 tank of fuel and no water and you'll be fine", "you won't get fined for being 10℅ overloaded" - no consideration that an overloaded box is an unsafe one!

 

[ROG]

3.5 tonners tend to be more expensive as they can be driven on a post 1996 licence with no extra test needed so perhaps look for one between 4 and 6 tonne

 

[Bernster]

I've been keeping track of horse box threads on here as have considered doing the opposite, and up sizing. All those you mention seem to get a fairly good review from people on here, although not heard of Roughan before . Also Freddie Gover and Peper Harow do those mid size boxes as well as 3.5t.

I went from a 7.5t to a 3.5t that I got uprated to a 3.9t so it has 1.4t payload. The payload in the smaller Lorries is an issue, so the fewer extras the better for weight.

Also look at ones with collapsible breast bar or solid partition so no horse access to the grooms area, and/or a big enough back door to get the horse out in an emergency.

I got mine from foxy twin and would recommend, love my little blue box! Very easy to drive.

 

[Goldenstar]

I have an Alexander's 6.5 ton with a slide out .
I love the truck it's well laid out and easy to use and Alexabders quickly fitted the issue with the slide out when it occurred ( my fault for not using it enough ) .

 

[turnbuckle]

Just an idea....you'll already be used to the size, so why not think about keeping yours and fitting a power ramp?

You could even (depending on model) retrofit an auto gearbox...

 

[Goldenstar]

Having had a 7.5t box all my life, I now need something smaller for my old age.
Would people share their experience with some that I am considering before I go out looking.
Boss. Kevin Parker Bloomfields. Roughan. Alexanders Smith
Part ex facility would be great and is really the reason I would look at Alexanders.

Should have added Alexanders sold my old truck. I had not committed to buy at that stage .
They sold it quickly ( a day and a half ) and sent me the money at once .

 

[FfionWinnie]

I've been looking at the big companies for a while and when I go for it I reckon it will be Bloomfields and it will be an auto box and something around 4-5 tonne. If you are on FB like all the pages of the big companies you like and keep an eye on comments and reviews as I think those are very telling!

 

[Rlister89]

I have a Boss 3.5 horsebox and love it. Ramp is on drivers side but both my horses travel behind passenger side no issue, I think that is how they have designed it to be used. I only ever travel one so have moved the partition so they have a bit more space. Lockers etc all really well thought out and build quality is amazing. When my older horse reared in the box and went on top of the locker (due to a bee sting) the breast bar collapsed and he was absolutely fine, as was the horsebox and I was really impressed with how stable it felt and how he hasn't broken/damaged anything. It's also really easy to do everything on your own and they are so helpful with answering any questions and showing you how it is actually built which made me feel really comfortable about buying from them.

 

[Nevergrewup]

I got mine from foxy twin and would r inecommend, love my little blue box! Very easy to drive.

After a disappointing experience with Foxy I wouldn't recommend them.

 

[PeterNatt]

Don't forget that Oakleys build some nice 3.5 Ton the racehorse one has the horses facing forward. I believe build time is about 6 - 8 weeks and the race horse ones are almost always in stock.

 

[Gossip Girl]

I actually will most likely go for an upgraded weight, haven't yet driven a small truck am a bit worried about how they feel compared to a 7.5t, but a lot of my friends are buzzing round in all shapes and sizes and love them. Some also have HGV trucks as well.

 

[pyepony]

Would also vouch for Boss! Ours is amazing for all of the previous mentioned reasons but also because of the storage: it has more room than anything else we looked at and more than many bigger lorries. It has a massive tack locker, horse shower locker, spare locker & luton which we struggled to find elsewhere with 3.5t and even with bigger lorries. Plus the living is separate from horses which is also great and hard to find- otherwise the living area is just full of hay etc. Ours even has a bed behind the cab. All the horses travel great and it drives like a car!

 

[Gossip Girl]

Do you travel 2 in it?

 

[pyepony]

Yes we've had a full up 16.2 & 17.0 in it together and they travel just fine. although we have only 1 now so didn't upgrade the weight.

 

[Newlands]

I have a Boss XL and its a fantastic box. I love the ramp being on the drivers side, I'm mostly always out on my own and find it so much easier and can easily tack up on board. It always gets lots of compliments and people love having a look around it and are surprised at the space available. We have the 5 seater cab with the back row opening out to a bed. Me and a friend camped in it very comfortably for three nights (in the horse area with two camp beds) removed the breast bar so we could easily walk through to the small living. It is a one horse box, unless you had two very small ponies but it is perfect for me. I absolutely love it and have it curtesy of another HHO member so was very lucky to get it practically nearly new. Bloomfield and Freddie Gover are other makes I would go with. I had a Foxy Twin before and there is no comparison.