I looked at several brands before I also bought a Load Trail. (10K) . It has some details/features not always found on other brands and had heavier-construction in critical areas.
I totally agree, more features & strength for the same or less money.
When I bought mine, dealer had two, with exactly the same features. The one that was easy to access (he had about 80 trailers on hand) had a bolt broken off on the barn door latch. Dealer said no problem, we will just pull out the other one. Bought it & the dealer did all the paperwork; title, plates, etc and I took it home. The next day I was checking out my new toy, er, tool, and found the three way tailgate had a problem. The barn doors worked, the spreader gate worked, but the tailgate feature
would not fold down.
Called the dealer and he said bring it back. Checked it out and found the tailgate hinge had been welded on wrong at the factory. Dealer had not sent in the paperwork on trailer #1 yet, so he just shredded it and redid the paperwork for trailer #2. They replaced the bolt & got my on my way with no fuss at all, and were very apologetic for my trouble.
Mine lives in AZ, but in the high country, in the garage, so no real heat issues there.
I have had no problems at all with the trailer since, and have hauled 23 large loads of
pine needle/leaves/slash/logs to the forest service burn pit, an 8 mile round trip.
Should have bought it years ago.