Thanks for checking that out. Yes I am looking at the 20 tbv. I will have one dirt bike alot of the time and up to four. I will dry camp for a few days at a time. I probably wont need 80 gal. of water most of the time or anywhere near the 38 gal. of fuel. In other words The trailer wont be fully loaded.
I have been looking at these trailers for a long time and trying to get the ***** to pull the trigger. This will be my first rv. I cant seem to find anyone online or anywhere else that has any personal experience with them.

 

Yeah I am kind of in the same boat on my TH. No one else, well could not find anyone else, has the model I have and Playmor made a short run of the Special Edition. I do like the looks of the trailer you are looking at and I like the fact it is a V-nose and they utalize that space for the closet. Wish mine was a v-nose.

Just look at the parts they use and pay attention to their craftsmanship. Look at the converter, AC, fridge, layout, etc.

May I ask what they are asking on those trailers? Just curious cause Toy haulers are going through the roof.

Hub

 

A 2008 20' with all options has a m.s.r.p. of around $32,000. I have read (as a general rule) that you should be able to negotiate 30-35% off of that. Not sure if that will apply to this model or not. I like that it has a welded steel frame for the wall construction. I like the layout and the enclosed heated underbelly.

 

Thanks. I have several more trips worth of pics that I dont have up or are from before I had a didgital camera. I figure why work 50-60 hours a week for the last 10 years if I cant go out and have some fun.

 

We have a 28' Balboa toy hauler. We have the same problem with excessive tongue weight. I have an '06 2500 and a load distributing hitch, but still had to add air bags. The air bags have been the best solution. The Mirage factory messed around with the trailer, but have had next to no luck reducing the tongue weight. The trailers are designed to work when guys put two big heavy snowmobiles in the back of the trailer. We haul four sport ATV's(total 1400 lbs) and they just aren't heavy enough to conterbalance the living quarters section located at the front of the trailer. Our water and waste tanks are located in front of the axles, as well as the appliances, generator, batteries, propane, furnace, and bathroom. We tried to get Mirage to move our back axle up in front of the front one (ours is a three axle), but they just won't do it. Our total trailer weight (loaded) is about 12,400 lbs, with a tongue weight of 1850 lbs.

Other than this issue, we love the trailer and the customer service that Mirage has provided.

 

You are the first person that I have found that owns a Balboa. I do not plan on hauling a lot of extra weight either. Only some dirt bikes. Would you say That as long as I have a weight distribution hitch and air bags the trailer will tow good? I should go look at a 20' again and see where the water tank is located. Where did you purchase yours? Did you custom order? Any advice on things that you would do different?

 

We bought ours from Nelson RV in Nampa, Idaho - the plant used to be in Nampa, but they have since moved to Payette, Idaho. We ordered it and toured the factory as they were making it. We discussed the axle location on the frame at that time, but the factory had rebuilt a trailer because the axles were too far forward. I believe when they compensated for that, they went too far the other way.

We have most of the options that were available in 2006, other than the insulation package. We usually ride around the sand dunes, so the AC is really all we needed - we weren't too worried about cold weather. We ordered the air compressor option, but it turned out to be a 12v air bag inflation compressor, but Balboa refunded that option price when we complained. I used the compressor once to air up the 6 trailer and 4 truck tires after riding at Pismo Beach and it took 50 minutes. I still need to add a 110v compressor, but I just haven't had a chance.

Like I said, we love everything about the trailer. We paid about $33,000 for it, but I don't remember what MSRP was for that model. Let me know if you have any further questions.

 

From what I've read, the Toy Hauler companies are notorious for UNDEr representing the true weight of their trailers. I bought a 26 ft Attitude TH and they claim its dry weight at 5835 lbs. I think its closer to 7k empty. I use the Equalizer WD/built in sway control hitch and am very happy with it.

 

On the last reply, I forgot to address that you should be fine with the stock receiver and air bags. I bought the 5000 lb airbags, with a single fill point at the receiver hitch. The compressor on the trailer does work well for filling the air bags, since it is such a small volume of air.

I will try to post a few pictures with this post. Please forgive the fact that the trailer is hooked to a Ford pickup in the photo.

 

michealeac, I'm guessing that you live in Idaho, since you bought from there and toured the factory? What beach are you on in that pic? looks cool. Are you happy enough that you would buy this product again?

I just called my local dealer in Reno, NV. and they are not dealing the Balboas anymore. It seems most people do not like the interior and the trailers don't sell real well from what I have seen. I like the no nonsense interior. In fact that is one of the big draws for me.

Do you think that Balboa is accurate on there claimed weights?

 

I have a 26ft front bedroom balboa. It is listed as having a 1125 lbs tongue wt. I use a eaz lift hitch with 1400 lbs distributing bars and have no problem keeping everything level.I don't travel with much water and the gas tank is in between the axles. I just haul my old shovelhead around with it. I like this trailer but my biggest problem has been screws breaking on the exterior. The factory just wants to send me more screws but if I am going to spend the time drilling them out I put rivets in. It would be nice if they did that at the factory. There are some other small things that they could do to improve quality. The trailer seems to ride smooth with the torsion axles.

Good luck,Vangasman

 

I used to live in Idaho, but am in California now. The beach in the photo is Pismo Beach - a great atv or dirt bike riding location.

We looked at Toy Haulers for almost a year and we always said that they were too much like a travel trailer. We stumbled across the Balboa at the dealer in Idaho and fell in love with it for just the reason you mentioned. It is a traveling garage. Very simple interior - easy to clean - well built structurally. The only wood in our trailer is some plywood in the nose closet. I liked working with the factory, as they were very flexible with layout changes and options. I believe any dealer can work pretty closely with the factory for you. We changed the front closet to give us shelves for riding boots etc. We added two cabinets in the back for helmets. Added a flat panel TV. My wife also designed the graphics for the side.

We will definitely buy from Balboa again. In fact, last time we took the trailer to the factory for the tongue weight issue, my wife saw their fifth wheel and decided we need that one next time. Since I will be paying on this one for a while, that will probably be quite some time down the road.

I would add that I agree with the last post about quality on some issues - for me it is the screws on the underside of the trailer. They are minor things, but you expect something pretty nice when you spend that much money. My buddy bought a similar Weekend Warrior at the about the same time that we bought our trailer. I feel our Balboa is as well made as the Weekend Warrior, hauls more ATV's, is easier to clean, pulls better, and is much stronger.

 

IF you are looking for that type of trailer there are a couple other options as well. Campmaster and Work and Play and I know Pace American builds a couple trailers along that line as well. Here is a link to a place taht carys the Campmaster and Work and play units. I just abought bought one as this place is abought 20 miles down the road from me but wound up with the one in my previouse post instead.

http://trailersforsale.com/