My New Mirage

hoov165x · Nov 13, 2014

It's not a $40k special, but it should do the job!

I think Mirage is doing a pretty good job of hitting a price point with these trailers. They are not the quality of my Charmacs but they are considerably less money, comparably equipped. Some things drive me crazy, like the door flanges, seals, some of the trim looks good from a distance, but up close is a little cheesy. The diamond plate kick panels could use some 3/4 plywood backing as well, or maybe Mirage could use the same material they used on the floor. I guess I could have requested that as I had this built....... All in all, a satisfied customer so far. Good bang for the buck.

Cmpdman · Nov 14, 2014

Very nice. Congrats!

bjd68 · Nov 14, 2014

Congrats sweet looking trailer!

christopher · Nov 14, 2014

You are off and running!!

hoov165x · Nov 14, 2014

christopher said:
You are off and running!!

Unlike you..... Sorry to hear about your truck issues. I live near Bend- I would have put you up for the night and helped out. Hope you get back on the road soon!

Snowmow · Nov 14, 2014

hoov165x said:
Unlike you..... Sorry to hear about your truck issues. I live near Bend- I would have put you up for the night and helped out. Hope you get back on the road soon!

Musta been a ford!!

Stevoreno · Nov 15, 2014

hoov165x, I'm in the market for a similar trailer. You mind giving size/features and cost on this?

Thanks,
Steve

christopher · Nov 15, 2014

hoov165x said:
Unlike you..... Sorry to hear about your truck issues. I live near Bend- I would have put you up for the night and helped out. Hope you get back on the road soon!

Its all good.
Great lesson for my daughter on why to NEVER travel in the winter without proper cold weather clothing!!

hoov165x · Nov 15, 2014

Stevoreno said:
hoov165x, I'm in the market for a similar trailer. You mind giving size/features and cost on this?

Thanks,
Steve

$10,600. Insulated walls and ceiling, propane heater with two bottles, VHB adhesive instead of screws for skin, two powered roof vents, three interior LED lights, helmet cabinet, bench, storage rack, etc.... 22' long since I don't often carry four sleds. It will take four 155's loaded from the front. Haven't tried from the back.

Stevoreno · Nov 16, 2014

hoov165x said:
$10,600. Insulated walls and ceiling, propane heater with two bottles, VHB adhesive instead of screws for skin, two powered roof vents, three interior LED lights, helmet cabinet, bench, storage rack, etc.... 22' long since I don't often carry four sleds. It will take four 155's loaded from the front. Haven't tried from the back.

Thanks for the answer. Assume this was the Steel Frame? Is that a 22ft box plus the nose? Where'd you buy it from?

hoov165x · Nov 16, 2014

Stevoreno said:
Thanks for the answer. Assume this was the Steel Frame? Is that a 22ft box plus the nose? Where'd you buy it from?

18' box with a 4' vee nose. Steel frame. Couldn't justify the expense of an aluminum trailer, especially since I have a Duramax.

See: bendtrailers.com

Pro-8250 · Nov 17, 2014

Nice! Looks great!!:face-icon-small-coo

hoov165x · Feb 15, 2015

Update on my trailer. Got some miles on it now and I like the way it pulls. Two things: 1) I would not waste the money on the radiant heater, it just doesn't put out enough heat. Instead, I would opt for the forced air furnace. 2) one big disappointment with the trailer is the lack of being airtight. I specifically deleted the flow through venting as I like my gear and sleds to stay clean. Unfortunately, the trailer leaks a lot of air- specifically at the rear, where there is a low pressure area. It just sucks the dust right in. Right now it is pretty dry out and the sand they lay on the roads for traction creates dust. When I got home tonight I was a little irritated to see a pretty heavy layer of dust at the rear interior of the trailer. On the sidewalls extending about 2' forward of the rear door (the white paneling is now brown), along the diamond plate kick panels and floor extending about 4' forward of the rear door, and of course a light layer of dust on most everything inside the trailer. There is also an area at the v nose where you can see light down towards the bottom.

Not sure about everyone else on here, but the reason I have an enclosed is to keep all my stuff clean and dry. If I wanted my stuff to be filthy I would save $ and just buy an open trailer.

I think this is my 9th or 10th enclosed trailer and most definitely the only one that has leaked to this degree. I am a little disappointed. I guess I will have to spend some time this summer tearing the trim off and finding all the leaks and repairing them.

Mirage has a little ways to go in the quality, fit, and finish department for sure.

adamg · Feb 16, 2015

Could it be as simple as an intake vent in the front to pressurize the trailer?

hoov165x · Feb 16, 2015

adamg said:
Could it be as simple as an intake vent in the front to pressurize the trailer?

Possibly, if the pressure created is enough to overcome the vacuum pulled at the rear of the trailer. But this would just be a Band-Aid and if it is not balanced the dirt could enter from the front.

The real fix is to get it sealed up tight- which is going to take a little work.:face-icon-small-fro

noob · Feb 16, 2015

My mirage sucked snow in like crazy too. Espe silly around the rear ramp door area. Would have snow about 2-3 foot in on the floor and 1/4" thick. Let us know if you get the leak area fixed.

swikertrob · Feb 16, 2015

hoov165x said:
Update on my trailer. Got some miles on it now and I like the way it pulls. Two things: 1) I would not waste the money on the radiant heater, it just doesn't put out enough heat. Instead, I would opt for the forced air furnace. 2) one big disappointment with the trailer is the lack of being airtight. I specifically deleted the flow through venting as I like my gear and sleds to stay clean. Unfortunately, the trailer leaks a lot of air- specifically at the rear, where there is a low pressure area. It just sucks the dust right in. Right now it is pretty dry out and the sand they lay on the roads for traction creates dust. When I got home tonight I was a little irritated to see a pretty heavy layer of dust at the rear interior of the trailer. On the sidewalls extending about 2' forward of the rear door (the white paneling is now brown), along the diamond plate kick panels and floor extending about 4' forward of the rear door, and of course a light layer of dust on most everything inside the trailer. There is also an area at the v nose where you can see light down towards the bottom.

Not sure about everyone else on here, but the reason I have an enclosed is to keep all my stuff clean and dry. If I wanted my stuff to be filthy I would save $ and just buy an open trailer.

I think this is my 9th or 10th enclosed trailer and most definitely the only one that has leaked to this degree. I am a little disappointed. I guess I will have to spend some time this summer tearing the trim off and finding all the leaks and repairing them.

Mirage has a little ways to go in the quality, fit, and finish department for sure.

Crack your roof vents a bit to relieve the low pressure inside the unit. Deleting the side wall vents and closing the roof vents creates excessive low pressure in the trailer and pulls dust in from the outside.

Please remember no trailer is airtight nor should it be.
Please let me know how it goes.

Rob

meathooker · Feb 16, 2015

hoov165x said:
Update on my trailer. Got some miles on it now and I like the way it pulls. Two things: 1) I would not waste the money on the radiant heater, it just doesn't put out enough heat. Instead, I would opt for the forced air furnace. 2) one big disappointment with the trailer is the lack of being airtight. I specifically deleted the flow through venting as I like my gear and sleds to stay clean. Unfortunately, the trailer leaks a lot of air- specifically at the rear, where there is a low pressure area. It just sucks the dust right in. Right now it is pretty dry out and the sand they lay on the roads for traction creates dust. When I got home tonight I was a little irritated to see a pretty heavy layer of dust at the rear interior of the trailer. On the sidewalls extending about 2' forward of the rear door (the white paneling is now brown), along the diamond plate kick panels and floor extending about 4' forward of the rear door, and of course a light layer of dust on most everything inside the trailer. There is also an area at the v nose where you can see light down towards the bottom.

Not sure about everyone else on here, but the reason I have an enclosed is to keep all my stuff clean and dry. If I wanted my stuff to be filthy I would save $ and just buy an open trailer.

I think this is my 9th or 10th enclosed trailer and most definitely the only one that has leaked to this degree. I am a little disappointed. I guess I will have to spend some time this summer tearing the trim off and finding all the leaks and repairing them.

Mirage has a little ways to go in the quality, fit, and finish department for sure.

my trailswest leaked a TON as well. Vents open, vents closed it leaked. My carmac doesnt leak at all.

i just picked up a 7x14' mirage and pulled it 1200 miles to montana going 75-85 and it didnt leak at ALL. we have the sidewall vents in it, might want to try it.

Xrider · Feb 16, 2015

That's weird. My cheap Look enclosed 2 place doesn't leak a drop and I use it in the summer too on dusty roads. I'm with you, the reason for the enclosed is to keep road crap off the toys.

hoov165x · Feb 16, 2015

swikertrob said:
Crack your roof vents a bit to relieve the low pressure inside the unit. Deleting the side wall vents and closing the roof vents creates excessive low pressure in the trailer and pulls dust in from the outside.

Please remember no trailer is airtight nor should it be.
Please let me know how it goes.

Rob

Rob,

Sorry but that is bunk. I have had many trailers that didn't leak at all- and I have never had flow through venting, or left my roof vents open. If I installed the flow through vents I would be sucking dust from the rigs in front of me. The amount of dirt in this thing after a 200 mile trip, and only about 50 miles of that were in dusty conditions, is unacceptable. I think most of us understand Bernoulli's Law, however the low pressure behind a vehicle or trailer will not contribute to infiltration of dust or snow if the vehicle or trailer is built tight.

I think your trailer building philosophy is a bit off if you think it is OK to build a leaky trailer. I see a lot of instances here on SnoWest where Christopher is stating you folks want to be a premier manufacturer, and I took that at face value, even though you folks have not had the best reputation for quality in the past. If you truly want to produce a quality product, you need to pay a little more attention to the details.

That said, there are things about the trailer I like, such as the way it pulls, and I love the floor material. The bonded sides are great too, as well as the LED lights- they are MUCH better than I expected.

Still, I expect a little more quality in my trailers- and fewer short cuts.

Mike

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