MsElui

has anyone done a lot of camping in the UK and US and can offer an opinion on whether i would be better off trying to get a tent from the UK as it will be more heavy duty weather wise or just get a tent from the US. Friends of ours brought their tent from the UK and say every time they have used it here they get lots of comments from other campers about how heavy duty/weatherproof it is etc. Mind you they seem to only camp in florida in the summer at the moment so that skews it.

The reason i ask is that i will be going camping with my boy scout around the 22nd October and need to buy a tent. I need to decide what size tent i want for starters (ie something cheap just enough for me and the boyo for this trip or a family sized thing we can all use in the future) and then how heavy duty it should be (ie something suitable for florida might be a tad chilly in Ohio in fall).

any opinions/recomendations would be helpful.

(ps - i camped a lot in my youth back in blighty - so i am not a camping noob - just dont have any recent or local experience)

Manc

E.


I use an REI Camp Dome tent. It's great for 1 person and my stuff....... plus light enough for me to carry when trying to crack on with some decent miles.
http://www.rei.com/product/731378


Heavyduty sounds all fine and dandy, but not when you've got to lug it over hills.

Synthetic Fibres now can do the job in a thin 3 season tent with a rainfly that I really would look at weight as a hindrance than a positive.

Weatherproofings, well where ya going? The Arctic Circle or Hocking Hills?
Nikwax spray will weatherproof pretty much anything above and beyond what the manufacturer did and I use it mainly for the seams of my tent. But a 3 season tent should be fine for scout camp.

I would advise seriously a decent mattress though, sleeping on a thermarest pad or foam pad are just crap.
I advise a Big Agnes air core pad. it's pretty comfy.
http://www.rei.com/product/691240

another bloody yank

What size are you looking for, how much will you use it, what kind of weather might you use it in, will you be packing it (or taking it out of the truck and setting it up close by) and what's your budget?


Our large tent is a Eureka Equinox and it's bullet proof. Sleeps all four of us and a large dog with room to spare, has large diameter aluminum poles and can still be set up by one person in a pinch. It'll handle any storm short of a tornado, snow isn't a problem ( I know a guy that uses his for Elk hunting in Colorado in the winter). But it's way too big and heavy to pack any distance unless you've got a horse. http://store.eurekatent.com/products...Equinox_6_Tent





IMG_1805 by Matt Black, on Flickr





Our small tent is a Sierra Designs Meteor Light. Ours is the original version, they've since updated it. It's great for two people plus typical gear. Has a full rain fly with a handy vesitbule for boots and other gear. It sits fairly low and is very streamlined so if it's properly staked and the rainfly is zipped and lined out wind just moves right over it with very little annoying flapping around and shaking. It's very well made with aluminum poles and it's easy for one person to set up. It's not an Ultralight backpacking tent but I think it's worth the small weight penalty and it's still light and campact enough that packing it for shorter to medium hikes isn't an issue. http://www.sierradesigns.com/p-133-meteor-light-2.aspx






I heartily recommend either of these tents. We've had the Equinox for about 11 years and we did have to replace the zipper with a heavy duty one a year ago. No matter how many times we told our kids to pick up their feet and step over the sill instead of just opening the zipper enough to squeeze in and then tripping over it, they just couldn't grasp the concept.

The Meteor lite is probably older than that and just started getting heavier use in the past few years as my son and I started doing more camping with the Boy Scouts. I usually sleep in it and my son sleeps in one of the troop tents.

What I recommend you not do is buy a cheap one from Walmart etc... I have not had good experience with fiberglass poles and those woven tarp type floors. The rain flys don't cover the whole tent and the windows on some of those are designed in such a way that the catch water and funnel it into the tent. Don't be taken in by gadgets like huge tents with multiple rooms, electrical sockets and a/c hookups.

Rete

I echo the not buy in Walmart comment. Go to a sports store, i.e. Dick's, Sports Authority, etc. and purchase your tent there. I have found that you need to waterproof the seams before using. Had had the domed tents as well as a super large one that housed our cots, table, chairs and battery operated latern.

Bob

Might also want to have a look at LL Beans, if they have a deal, they've a great returns policy.

Folks had a tent, we used it on a trip and a zipper broke, ripped a bit of the tent seam at the bottom and the whole thing got replaced and it was about 5 years old.

Walmart/Target, stuff from those stores would only be good enough for camping in the back garden....they're utterly shite and a good fart will rip those apart...apparently...

lisa67

as an aside...when I went on the Mom and Me scouting camp with DS a few years back, it rained so hard we ended up sleeping in the car <sigh> the things we do for our kids eh??

lapin_windstar

You're in for a treat - tents and sleeping bags got much, much cheaper, lighter and better over the last fifteen years.

FWIW, I have an MSR 2-man tent and a Walmart 5-6 man tent which cost 20% as much and came with a whole bunch of other crap (lawn chairs, cutlery, something else). For camping in spring/summer/early fall and with a car, it's the Walmart tent that always gets taken even if there's only two of us. It doesn't let water in and it's been more than sturdy enough.

I don't camp in winter or when there are likely to be storms tbf. But then 90% of campers at NP campgrounds don't either.

TimNiceBut

Another vote for REI here - IME they've got pretty much anything you need for camping in good quality and the staff tends to be very knowledgable.

mellybrown

Im going camping today

We bought our 4 man tent last year in walmart (although we do use the spray waterproofing on it before we go away!!) We camped this time last year when Atlanta was hit by the crazy flooding, and apart from a small leak in the corner we stayed dry!! I actually think my house leaked more than the tent that weekend!!

Burn1911

We brought our tent in Sports Authority I think its a coleman one... it is lovely and big compared to the one we had in England, but I second the need to waterproof the seams... we brought a stick of stuff and just rubbed it over each seam and works a treat!

Have fun!!!

Octang Frye

I've been very happy with my Mountain Hardwear 3 man.

Be sure to buy a footprint.

kimilseung

The tents I own are not cheap by most peoples tent budgets (Hilleberg and Terra Nova) and I think tents of comparable quality would be cheaper to buy in America. (Not sure how it shakes out to actualy buy those brands in the states, what with the variables of shipping costs for buyer or store, taxes and ease of the 10% discount in UK for outdoor organization membership)

No tent will do everything, dont try to compromise too much, you will just end up with a tent that just doesnt really work in any conditions. Either buy a tent for you son for use in the scouts or buy a family one for car camps.

I would avoid the real cheap stuff, it will let you down and result in your son having a miserable weekend sometime. One low end brand I would avoid at all costs in the US is Glaciers Edge, they are cheap and very nasty (not worth if it is free, as you would need back up anyway). Glaciers Edge is the kind of stuff you find in stores like Walmart/Target

I have used an REI tent and have had a pole bend in wind, but that might be understandable given the wind and the mid-range of REI equipment. I think REI stuff is reasonable quality at a reasonable price. Mid range equipment should last quite a long time and see him getting lots of use out of it.

edit: Out of my own curiosity, I just compared Terra Nova and Hilleberg prices either side of the Atlantic and there was not enough in it to make a difference.

MsElui

well thanks all - there is some great advice in here. I had seen enough reviews of the ozark brand stuff (wallys worlds own brand) to know i didnt want to go there - but they do stock the coleman brand too - which used to be highly regarded back in the day in England. However some of the other brands you mention above sounf very worth looking into.

Strangely enough (my husband thinks hes got one over on me by me going instead of him) I am already really looking forward to it. Ive camped many many times as a teenager with girl guides and the St johns cadets and ended up quatermastering whole weekend camps on my own etc. We used group kit there generally so i didnt have to really get involved in tent choice - just put up/down and use lol.

and thanks to manc for the specific air bed recommendation. I knew i would need something but wasnt sure what to go for so if you recommend it that helps a lot!

Manc

what's that do, I see them in the store all the time but never really wondered the advantage of them.



how much was the 3 man MH?

kimilseung

Extend the life of the tent, base of a tent can get a lot of wear from rocks and twigs, using a footprint pushes that wear on to a cheapish and easily replaced item. Some people just use a tarp. On cheap tents a tarp/footprint can also help with dampness seeping in from the ground.