Trailers and travelling

[LHIS]

I’m on the cusp of looking to buy my first horse trailer, and I am not sure which models are good and which I should avoid. I have primarily browsed Ifor Williams trailers, and have looked for ones with the aluminium floor instead of wood. Bar that, I have no idea what I should be looking for.
I will be travelling 2 cobs, both 14.1, so had thought a 505/506 might suffice, but I wonder if getting a 510/511 would be better so they have a little more room.
There is a 505 for sale locally that has rear doors that split and can open like doors as well as ramp. I quite like the idea of this as the trailer will be used for collecting hay and straw too on occasion. I have no idea if this design has any downsides though?
Can anyone give me a steer on what to look for and what I should avoid? I am not heart set on an Ifor, they’re just the ones I know the most about (and at that, very little).

Secondly - once I have found said trailer I need to teach one of my boys to travel alone. He loads ok, can be a bit hesitant but walks on calmly with a bit of persuasion. However I don’t think he’s ever travelled alone, and hasn’t whilst I’ve had him. When I’ve travelled him in company in the past he has sweated a little on the journey, but arrives calm and seeming happy.
I would like to take him out in the box by himself so we can access bridlepaths nearby, but I will be travelling him alone so I need to know he is safe and happy. Can anyone offer any advice?

 

[Toby_Zaphod]

The trailer you are looking at should suit your purposes fine. The 505 should be all you need, the 510 etc will be taller as it's designed to take larger horses but you won't really need that. You could look at the Bateson 'Deauville', it's a light airy & welcoming trailer that rides fairly low & is very smooth. Those two makes are really some of the best. They are well build & the after sales service for information & parts is readily available. Personally I wouldn't have an Equitrek trailer or lorry as a gift. They are flimsey & after sales service is non existent, don't waste your money.

 

[Wheels]

I like Bockmann and Fautras trailers - very well made, great brakes and suspension and are less rattly than some of the others on the market

 

[ROG]

If you have a B+E on your licence then ignore this post

 

[LHIS]

If you have a B+E on your licence then ignore this post

I have just passed my B+E

 

[ROG]

I have just passed my B+E

 

[LHIS]

I like Bockmann and Fautras trailers - very well made, great brakes and suspension and are less rattly than some of the others on the market

Thank you I haven’t heard of either of those so will look them up!

 

[LHIS]

The trailer you are looking at should suit your purposes fine. The 505 should be all you need, the 510 etc will be taller as it's designed to take larger horses but you won't really need that. You could look at the Bateson 'Deauville', it's a light airy & welcoming trailer that rides fairly low & is very smooth. Those two makes are really some of the best. They are well build & the after sales service for information & parts is readily available. Personally I wouldn't have an Equitrek trailer or lorry as a gift. They are flimsey & after sales service is non existent, don't waste your money.

Thank you I will look the Bateson up!

 

[southerncomfort]

I like Bockmann and Fautras trailers - very well made, great brakes and suspension and are less rattly than some of the others on the market

I love my Fautras although they aren't easy to find these days. They are just about the most robust trailer on the market and very easy to tow.

 

[Batgirl]

Having the trailer doors open like doors is ace for cleaning out - makes sweeping the floor out so easy as you aren't picking it out of the ramp! (My Cheval Liberte does this and it is so useful! And as a safety feature should the ramp get damaged they can step down too!)

 

[Orangehorse]

I have a Bateson with double doors, would I again? Not sure. My horse has not learned to step in, even though everyone I spoke to said they never bothered with the little ramp, I have to (the only time he will willingly step up is in the pouring rain!

The only inconvenience is the occasional windy day, when the doors can slam shut, and having enough room on both sides of the trailer for the doors to open. It is quite handy to have the door shut on the horse's side and be able to walk in and out on the other side with stuff.

Bateson and Ifor Williams are british built and you can get spares easily. Fautras are French and although lovely, are expensive and the German ones the same. I saw lots of Fautras wizzing up and down French auto-routes when I was in France and I know someone who brought 4 horses over in a trailer from France to the UK towing with an old Land Rover.

 

[phizz4]

I can recommend Bockmann trailers but they are expensive. You get what you pay for though, the build quality and ride for the horses are second to none. Getting spares isn't a problem either as the German company ship to the UK and there is a dealer in Essex. We have towed Rice, Bateson, Wessex and Ifor Williams trailers and wouldn't go back to any of them having had a Bockmann for the last 14 years. The only drawback for some people is that they are (mostly) rear load/unload.

 

[Landcruiser]

You could look at Wessex Clubman, I just bought one secondhand, much cheaper than an Ifor in the same condition (as good as mint, barn stored, £1500). I haven't had a horse in it yet, but it's lighter than the older 505s and has aluminium panels rather than the wood ones that seem to commonly rot behind the wheel arches o the 505. I'm very impressed by it.

 

[MagicMelon]

I really like our Bateson Ascot, this is now our second one. They're lightweight, bright inside and well thought out. Ive never had a bad loader yet using it.

 

[rabatsa]

Cheval Liberte are good.

 

[LHIS]

Thanks everyone! I will look up all of these. Bateson are just round the corner from where I work