We’ll be comparing the Jay Feather Micro 171BH travel trailer to the Apex Nano 194BHS. Now, the Apex Nano 185BH is actually more similar to the floor plan that we have in the 171BH. They both have the single bunks and no slide, but the reason why I will instead be comparing our 171BH to the 194BHS is because that is the trailer that my parents just purchased. So I was able to get firsthand experience how our trailer feels versus theirs, and got to do a really thorough comparison.
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Previously, I went through and gave my first impressions of the Apex Nano. But now, I want to get into a few more details and really compare how the 171BH from the Jay Feather Micro line compares to the Apex Nano 194BHS. So first we’ll compare a few specs like the length, weight, and tanks, and then we’ll start comparing some of the features to each other.
Length
So first, let’s talk about length. So the length of our trailer, the Jay Feather Micro is just over 20 feet at 20 feet, two inches. The length of the Apex Nano is over 22 feet at 22 feet, seven inches. So the Apex Nano is more than two feet longer than the Jay Feather Micro.
Because we like to camp at campgrounds that can only accommodate smaller trailers, I always give the win in this category to whichever trailer is the shortest. But to be fair, the ideal length is under 24 feet.
That is the restriction that we come across at most California State Parks. So that’s really the length that I want it to be under, and both of these trailers are under 24 feet.
But, because the Jay Feather Micro is two feet shorter, I will give the win for the length to the Jay Feather Micro.
Weight
Okay, now let’s talk about the weight of the trailer. And for this I was able to pull the exact weight off of our two trailers, so our Jay Feather Micro and my parents’ Apex Nano. So these are the weights with all the options and the way that we have it configured.
The dry weight of the Jay Feather Micro is 4,025 pounds. It can hold 970 pounds of cargo, so it has a max weight of 4,995 pounds, so just under 5,000. Now the Apex Nano has a dry weight of 3,805 pounds.
The Apex Nano can hold 857 pounds of cargo, so it has a max weight of 4,662 pounds.
So I was surprised by this. The max weight of the Apex Nano is actually less than the max weight of the Jay Feather Micro. The Apex Nano is lighter than the Jay Feather Micro. Even though it’s two feet longer and it has a slide, it is still lighter. I thought that was really interesting.
The Jay Feather Micro can hold a little bit more cargo. It can hold about a hundred pounds more cargo than the Apex Nano.
So the Apex Nano is lighter, but the Jay Feather Micro can hold more. So for this category I’m going to give it a tie. The numbers are really close and there are pros and cons to each. So this one is a tie.
Tanks
Okay, now let’s talk about tanks. So in the Jay Feather Micro, our freshwater tank is 55 gallons and then our black and our gray tanks are 30.5 gallons each. In the Apex Nano, their freshwater tank is 50 gallons and the black and the gray tanks are each 30 gallons.
So this is really, really similar. I mean I think we could argue the black and the gray tanks, let’s just call that the same. Half of a gallon is not a big deal.
And the freshwater is only a five gallon difference. There aren’t too many trailers that come with a 50 gallon fresh tank or larger. So I’m going to call this a tie. I think 50 gallons is awesome. Both of these trailers have great tank setups.
Okay, now let’s start digging into some of the features and compare the features on these.
Front Bed
So the first, let’s talk about the front bed. Here on the Jay Feather Micro this front bed is considered a Full XL. It’s the same length as a queen bed, 80 inches, but the width is the same width as a full bed, 54 inches. The bed is 54 by 80 inches.
Now in the Apex Nano the front bed there is a queen bed. It is an actual queen mattress. So just like ours, it’s 80 inches in length, but then 60 inches in width, so it’s 80 by 60.
So since the mattress in the Apex Nano has six inches extra in width, the Apex Nano wins this category.
TV
Now let’s talk about the TV. So in the Jay Feather Micro, our trailer came with a 12 volt 32 inch TV and that’s really awesome because that means that we can use that while the trailer is not plugged in. You can use it while dry camping and while you do not have shore power.
In the Apex Nano, it did not come with a TV, my parent’s added a 24 inch TV in their trailer. And because the TV is above the window, that’s about as large of a TV that you could put there.
Now when my kids saw that, and granted they loved everything about the trailer, but when they saw the TV they said “you should get rid of that window and put in a bigger TV,” which obviously they’re not going to do.
Now I personally feel like having a window there would be very nice. So they have a smaller TV, but they have a window. My kids would definitely opt for a bigger TV and no window. I personally feel having a smaller TV to have a window there is worth it. When we first got our trailer, we didn’t even want a TV, but now we use it all the time. So I guess my opinion has shifted on that.
But anyways, I’m going to have to give this one a tie because it is nice that ours came with a 12 volt, 32 inch TV, but they have a window there and you’re camping. The focus is more on being able to be out with nature, not to watch TV. So this is just going to come down to personal preference, so I’m marking it as a tie.
Kitchen Sink
Next, let’s talk about the sink. So the sink in the Apex Nano is huge. It’s all one piece, but it’s easily the size of a double basin sink. Our sink is much smaller and I really haven’t had an issue with the size of it, but of course that larger sink definitely has to win. It would be way easier to wash dishes in and I think it’s super cool that you could use part of it as a drying rack because you just have so much space. So the win for this one goes to the Apex Nano.
Stove Hood
Next, let’s talk about the hood over the stove. So in the Jay Feather Micro, we have a hood over the stove and it has a light, it has a vent. Whenever we’re using the stove, we always turn that vent on to keep any steam out of the trailer. It’s also nice because it’s metal, so we can put a magnetic paper towel holder right there and that’s been super convenient.
In the Apex Nano, they don’t have a hood. There is a ceiling vent fan not too far away, and so it’s designed so you turn that on when you use the stove.
I’m not sure how much of a benefit it is for us to have a hood right over the stove, but I do like it. I think it’s nice to have. And so I am going to give the win to the Jay Feather Micro for this one.
Stove
Next, let’s talk about the stove itself. So the stove on the Jay Feather Micro is a three burner stove. It has a recessed top, so when you’re not using it, you can use that surface like a countertop. And then it has three burners, which I’ve said before. That is nice, but it just doesn’t feel that necessary. I really normally use one. I feel like two burners would be totally fine.
Now the Apex Nano similar to our trailer has a recessed stove. So same thing, it’s flat when you’re not using it and you can use it like extra counter space. But when you’re using the stove, they only have two burners, which like I just said, two burners is fine, but if you have two burners, I like when they turn it so they’re front and back instead of side by side. And then you have extra real counter space.
I know I can use the top of the stove like a counter, but I still would rather not. I would like if there is more regular counter space. So I don’t think that the downside is that there’s two burners. I just think it’s a missed opportunity that it isn’t the two burners that are front and back to give more counter space.
And then the other kind of downside about the stove in the Apex Nano is it doesn’t have an igniter on it, so you just take lighter and you use the lighter to light the stove, just turn on the gas and then have a lighter there and it turns on and that’s totally fine, but it’s just a nice convenience to have the igniter built in, which we do in the Jay Feather Micro.
So I’m going to give the win for the stove to the Jay Feather Micro.
Refrigerator
Next I want to talk about the refrigerators. So we have the dual gas electric fridge and in my parents’ Apex Nano, they have a 12 volt fridge. They did have an option of gas electric and they went with the 12 volt.
And I just wanted to talk about this for just a minute because I always give the win for refrigerator to the gas electric when it’s between gas electric and 12 volt because I like being able to use our propane for the fridge. It’s really efficient, it doesn’t use very much, and that way we can use our batteries for other things.
Now they have the 12 volt fridge, which is my first hands-on experience with the 12 volt fridge. So that’s why I wanted to talk about it for just a minute. I did want to say that the 12 volt fridge seemed really awesome.
Just a minor thing, but I liked that it had a swiveling little latch that you can hook the doors into so that the fridge and freezer can dry out when you’re not using it. We have the old fashioned clips that you put in there and they always fall out and they work, but they’re kind of a pain.
Anyways, there’s just a couple little things like that that I thought it was pretty nice. I am giving this category a tie. They didn’t have any issues with the 12 volt taking too much of their power while we were camping. It’s nice that it cools down faster. It doesn’t have to be level. I still love our gas electric fridge. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with it and it doesn’t take very much propane to keep it going.
So I guess what I’m saying is I’ve finally come to the conclusion that 12 volt fridge, gas, electric fridge, it’s a tie. They’re both good options. They are different, but both great.
Dinette
Okay, now let’s talk about the dinette. So the Apex Nano has a slide. Our Jay Feather Micro does not have a slide. The Apex Nano has the dinette on the slide.
I, in every trailer video argue that our dinette even without a slide, is still a good size and we could fit our family of four. But I really wanted to measure this out and see exactly how much bigger that dinette is on a slide versus our no slide dinette. Sitting there I could tell it definitely was bigger, but again, how much?
So in the Jay Feather Micro, our dinette is 36 inches wide. In the Apex Nano with the slide, the dinette is 42 inches wide. So the dinette is six inches wider in the Apex Nano than it is in the Jay Feather Micro. And if you’re wondering from bench to bench, those are pretty similar. The micro was 68 inches and the Apex Nano was 70 inches.
So in the Jay Feather Micro two adults, two kids fit fine. The Apex Nano, it is definitely more comfortable for four adults. Four of us have sat there and had a lunch and it was no problem. So the win for the dinette is going to go to the Apex Nano.
Light Switches
Next, let’s talk about light switches. So in the Jay Feather Micro when you first walk in, we have some master switches that includes light switch for the entire trailer. And then in our bathroom we have more switches. We have two switches on the wall for the fan and the bathroom light. In the trailer there are also buttons on every single light and you could turn any light on and off individually.
Now in the Apex Nano they have the same puck lights where they all have buttons on the light and you could turn each light on and off individually, but there’s no overall light switch. So even in the bathroom there’s no light switch on the wall for the bathroom light or bathroom fan, you just click the buttons on the ceiling.
Now as long as you can reach, that’s not a big deal, but for kids that could be really difficult. Specifically the bathroom light, it’s really convenient for my five-year-old to be able to turn the light on in the bathroom on her own.
So for this one I’m going to give the win to the Jay Feather Micro.
Bunk Storage
Next, let’s talk about bunk storage. So both of these trailers have the single wide bunk houses, but in the Jay Feather Micro underneath our bunk we have space to store things. There’s a storage door that we get access from the outside or we can access it inside just right underneath the bunk. And we use this area a lot. We do store a bunch of stuff in there.
It’s also where our dog sleeps. It’s kind of like a triple bunk bed.
Now in the Apex Nano, the area underneath the bunk is not accessible from the inside. Instead outside that area has an outdoor kitchen. So there’s a storage door that you could open up and you can pull out your griddle. There’s a little bit of countertop and there’s even a small refrigerator out there and I think that’s a really awesome setup.
So for this category, I’m going to give it a tie because these are just such different things. The storage is nice, the outdoor kitchen is also nice. So this is another just personal preference. It just depends on your needs and what you want to do with the camper. So this category gets a tie.
Outdoor Kitchen
Next, let’s talk about the outdoor kitchen. We already started, so let’s talk about it a little bit more.
So in the Apex Nano, like we were just saying, there is an outdoor kitchen. You can pull out a griddle, it comes with a suburban griddle and there is also a fridge. That fridge does require shore power to work, but I think it’s awesome to have some dedicated space there.
Now in our trailer in the Jay Feather Micro, that outdoor kitchen is on what they call a Jay Port. So it’s a stand that hooks into the side of our trailer and then a Blackstone griddle sits on top of that. So it’s not the kind of thing that’s there all the time and we just pull out. We keep the shelf in the trailer pass through and then the griddle in the back of the truck and we take a few minutes and just kind of put it together and it’s no big deal. We love this system and we really love using the Blackstone.
And one of the things that we really like about this is it came with 17 inch, but it was set up to also upgrade to a 22 inch Blackstone. So we now have a large 22 inch Blackstone on this same setup that’s right on the side of our trailer. For a family of four a 22 inch Blackstone is just so much nicer cook on than the 17. It’s great to have that extra space.
So moving back to the Apex Nano, I think that’s the one downside of the outdoor kitchen setup. I haven’t measured that suburban griddle, but I would guess that it’s around a 17 inch. And the way that that system is set up, you can’t just upgrade it to a 22 inch. Of course you still have that space and you could figure out something unique to do with it if you really want it to.
But even if you can’t upgrade to a larger girdle if you need it, I still think it’s really awesome that the outdoor kitchen is right there and so easy to pull in and out. And so I’m going to give the win for this one to the Apex Nano.
But I really love my 22 inch Blackstone. So I don’t know, maybe a tie. I don’t know. What do you think? Share with me in the comments. What’s better, having that outdoor kitchen there all the time or having a system that’s a little bit easier to upgrade to a larger griddle?
Tongue Jack
Next, let’s talk about the tongue jack. So the Jay Feather Micro comes with a power tongue jack, which is awesome. The Apex Nano comes with a manual tongue jack. My parents actually upgraded their trailer. They had the dealership replace out the manual tongue jack with a power tongue jack. So they have a power tongue jack, but the trailer actually comes with a manual tongue jack.
So since the Jay Feather Micro comes standard with the power tongue jack, I’m going to give the win for this category to the Jay Feather Micro.
Slide
Okay, next let’s talk about the slide. So the Jay Feather Micro does not have a slide and the Apex Nano does have a slide. And my parent’s wanted a slide. That was important to them because they wanted to have that extra space inside the trailer.
When we were looking for trailers like three years ago now, we didn’t care if the trailer had a slide or didn’t have a slide. That wasn’t one of the things that we were looking at. We were more concerned about different features like the floor plan and how it was prepped for dry camping. So the slide wasn’t a factor, but now that we don’t have a slide, I feel like it’s very nice because we don’t have to maintain it. And I’ve just heard so many horror stories of people having issues with their slide. So since we have our trailer, it doesn’t have a slide. We haven’t had any of those issues. I felt like that was a big win and I don’t feel like this space in here is cramped.
Now that I’ve been in the Apex Nano and it has a slide, it has a very large slide. I will say it adds a ton of space. It’s really a night and day difference going between ours and there’s, there is far more space with the slide than there is in ours. And even when their slide is closed, you can still access everything. That was another thing that makes me not a huge fan of slides is we like to stop on our travel days and go into the trailer to have some lunch. And I want to be able to access the trailer if we’re in a spot that we can’t pull the slide out and in their trailer, you definitely can. You still have a walkway, the bathroom and everything is still accessible while you’re in road mode. The walkway is more narrow, but it’s not difficult to get through.
So the slide seems to add a lot of value. It adds a ton of space and it doesn’t really take away from anything if it can’t be used. They also put a slide topper on theirs so they can close it and not have to go up there first and clean it off. Any leaves or anything, you should just roll off. And I think that’s really nice and just one less thing that needs to be done on a pack up day.
So having a slide or not having a slide, I think that this is another one that’s just going to come down to personal preference. I’m marking this as a tie because it just depends on what you want. I don’t think our trailer needs a slide and it’s nice not to have any extra work in the trailer. They wanted the extra space, which the slide definitely provides, and so that makes sense for their needs. So it just depends on what you need and what you want to do with the trailer.
Price
Okay, next, let’s talk about price. How do the price of these trailers compare? I think that both of these trailers can be found for around $30,000. Of course, the prices can vary depending on your location and the options on the trailer, but in general, I think the prices of these are pretty similar.
Conclusion
So that was it. And honestly, the two trailers are pretty comparable. I feel like I did more ties in this post than I have done before in my other trailer comparisons. And honestly, I just don’t think there’s a bad choice. I think they’re both great trailers. Our trailer works well for our needs. Their trailer works well for their needs.
Any trailer is going to have pros and cons. And it just comes down to what makes the most sense for your style, for your family, and for your type of camping.
