Tents: Hi dollar vs budget

I've used the emergency foil blankets under my tents for years as a ground cloth. Cost $1 typically. Tyvek is good too if you have some.

I have never been one to haul around tarps for camping, but some tarps now come with a reflective side that helps radiate heat. One of my friends cut one to the size of his tent footprint and claims it has increased the warmth factor inside his tent in cold weather. A small tarp can come in handy for sorting gear on muddy or a rocky and rough ground surface. As far as using a tarp for extra tent protection, if you have room and don't mind the additional hassle of setup, I guess it might be a fix for a leaky tent, or provide shade for hot afternoons. I've seen people car camping with that kind of overhead tarp setup, and it always ends up looking like the forts my friends and I built in the woods when we were kids. Just buy a good brand, decent-quality, moderately-expensive tent with a footprint for under $200 and fagidabowdit. Happy trails.

I think what he is saying is you wont know what you want until you have spent a few nights in a tent. If this is your (not you, but generalization) first you dont know come here from sic'm about what features work for you and what dont.

Like me, I pretty much detest a rain fly to the ground, I know this because I have sweated my ass off on a hot drizzling night. Sure the higher fly isnt as rain proof, but it lets in a shit load more air.

I always used Cheapy tents (From Canadain Tire but I'm sure thye are pretty much the same wherever you get them from.)

As long as the weather was fairly decent I generally didn't have much for issues but didn't really expect much out of them.

A few years ago I was tenting overnight at a fly-in. It rained and I woke with several inches of water inside the tent. Now, I think that better setup and taking more time to think about where I was pitching my tent would have avoided much of the water, but it did leak. I hated that I might get went so started looking at "better" tents.

To make a long story short I ended up getting a three man Eureka El Capitan. It happend to be on sale when I bought it so it was less than $170 here in expensive Canada.

What I have found compared to the cheapy tents is:

It simply doesn't leak. The bathtub floor combined with the two layers on top means water doesn't get into it. My first use of it was in torrential downpours one summer night, I had all the vents open and not a drop got in.

I have also slept down to -16c and been completely comfortable in the tent with little condensation, and in temps in the 80's the venting was still fairly decent inside and I was comfy.

Even though it is three man vs two man and has two vestibules, it packs much smaller than my cheapy two man. It is lighter and, if I wanted to, I could put it in one of my my Givi Sidecases. (I rarely use the sidecases so that doesn't realy mean much to me.)

The tent poles are aluminum, and I am sure that I would have boken fiberglass poles in some of the things I did. They really are a lot stronger.

The way the doors and screen works is marvellous! I never get zippers caught and always seemed to get them caught in the cheapies.

In june I had it setup at my brother's camp/trailer park. My gf and I slept in it the first night but couldn't resist the offer of a cabin the second night. The morning after the cabin a windstorm came through and had knocked trees and branches down. My tent was at the edge of a river and had a clear blast from the wind. When I set it up I did not do up the guylines but set it up free standing. Even though the wind was pushing the tent down and flattening it the poles just flexed and no water was in the tent. I'm sure if the guylines were done up it would have stood up failry nicely.

I think there is nothing wrong with the cheapy tents, but if you shop carefuly and look at what you get for the money you might see some good value in a more expensive tent.

..Tom

Boy, I hear all of the comments about inexpensive (cheap) tents and all of the alarms cited but my experience with them is just the opposite, in all of the hot/cold/wet/dry conditions over a lifetime of camping. Call me lucky, I think not, think the conditions mild, I know not; think they have leaked like a sieve, only some minor leaks once in a while; think they have blown away in only moderate wind conditions, never has happend. Me thinkst some anticipate problems and use that to rationalize why they buy what they do. That's great, not being critical of that, but I love my low budget super tents!

Much like everything else, people need to justify to themselves spending insane amounts of money on gear they'll use for a couple weekends in mild weather each year at best.

My Walmart Ozark Trail 7x7 tent was cheap and a relatively good tent for the $30 I paid for it. It never leaked in a couple decent rains, kept the bugs out, and set up quick and easy. Helped remind me why I like freestanding tents too. I wish it had an awning over the door/window so I could leave the window's flap down in the rain to help ventilate, but otherwise it was a comfortable and dry place to sleep. The fiberglass poles have yet to break but the couplers are starting to get corroded badly and very loose. There are a few pinholes in the heavy duty tarp plastic floor (never used a ground cloth), and the zipper on the main door are getting sticky.

I've tried a couple tents in the $100-200 range as well. Had a Sierra Designs LightYear1 (packed tiny, probably great for backpacking, but no place for me and my gear inside), a Eureka Timberline 2 (used for about a decade when I was in boy scouts, but packs too large for my tastes to use on the bike), tried hanging with Hennessy Hammocks (great for traveling, not so good for basecamping or camping in areas without trees; also can be a pain to find correctly spaced trees in established 'improved' campgrounds where the trees have been cut back for tent users, also a no-go in areas without trees or big enough trees). Mainly found that in this price range you're getting better materials and stronger poles than the cheapo tents. You can find some relatively lightweight tents in this range, you can find some bombproof heavy duty (and heavy) tents in this range... and you can find complete piles of garbage in this range that aren't any better or different than the $30 tents except for the box it came in and labeling.

I have had one $400+ tent... a Go-Lite Shangri-La 5. Packed tiny, very lightweight for the space, and an absolute palace for a solo rider. Wish it was free standing, still might reconsider it now that Go-Lite has slashed their prices. Its light weight was also its biggest hindrance as the sil-nylon its made out of its fragile compared to the cheaper heavier duty and heavier tents in the $100-200 range. Still... if I was going on an extended tour again and knew I was going to be dedicated to sleeping outside most of the time rain or shine, this would probably be the tent I'd want for a couple months on the road.

But for most of my travels, I'm not bothering to set my tent up in the rain, especially if I've been riding in the rain all day and have a pile of gear and me that wants to get dried out and comfortable as fast as possible. So for me, I'd rather spend the extra couple hundred bucks on gasoline and the occasional hotel room over a pricey tent and keep making do with a $30 tent on those nice clear spring/summer/fall nights where you really just want bug protection, privacy for changing, and protection from overnight rain storms.

I can't rationalize my hi dollar tent.






Damn vestibules are too small, at at 6lbs, she weighs a ton.



One thing to consider with the higher end tents is the typical lifetime warranty. I had to put it to use after about 4 years of ownership of my Mountain Hardware skyledge. The Silnylon fly started delaminating. Seam tape, and seam sealer stopped sticking. Since MH didn't make the tent anymore, I got a full value credit toward any tent, or any combination of tent and gear that I wanted. For me MH has been very good with their warranty. They've also replaced a 7 year old Rain Shell for me.

I've also taken advantage of the warranty offered by Northface and Sierra Designs, all to good results. Sierra designs replaced for free a set of tent poles that got all bowed out of shape after some drunk guy at bread and puppet thought my tent was something solid to lean against. Flattened it to the ground. Surprisingly didn't break a pole.

it's a given that you cannot compare features until you've experienced it. that's why it's much better to start with the right tent to begin with.

saves $$ buying a tent twice. if you buy a high end tent on closeout and don't like it. post it on flea and quickly get most if not all your $$ back. NO way that would happen with a low end tent.

perfect example is the North Face free standing two man tent purchased for $100 shipped on flea market. if that tent didn't suit me, odds of getting all my $$ back is pretty darn good.

price difference between say $100 North Face vs $60 for a mid-grade Coleman is not enough to stop anyone that truly wants world class gear.

the main catch is knowing which tents are acceptable to buy. that's the beauty of being able to bounce your choice off of folks with lots of tent buying experience.

Sorry (well not really, trying with capital T, but...), but couldn't bother reading 7 pages of dribble as to the answer to your question!!!

You answered your question in the first sentence!!!

If you only camp 4-5 days a year, why the hell are you worried about camping??? Get the hotel you want and call it good, the price is not really an issue. Sounds more like a troll post than anything else!!!

I never understand why people get all uppity about other people asking about or relaying stories about “good gear” it seems if you’re not climbing Mount Everest or riding around the world that all your shopping should be done at Wal-Mart. Why is that? Ride your own ride, camp the way you want to camp. <?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-comfficeffice" /><o></o>

Well, it took 5 pages but the fun police are here. Sorry, guys, you shouldn't be reading this thread if the topic bothers you. Personally, I like hearing people with different viewpoints discuss their gear, gives me a broader perscpective.

I’m the “fun police” how so? <?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-comfficeffice" /><o></o>

Well, don't tell us what to post or not, tell about your tent equipment, your experience.


BTW: I was telling a co-worker I was researching tents and he thought I said "tits". He was very impressed.

http://www.advrider.com/forums/showpost.php?p=19192496&postcount=34
http://www.advrider.com/forums/showpost.php?p=19194503&postcount=38

Those are my totally objective posts about the topic you started. My last post was simply a response to all the responses about how it&#8217;s dumb to have good gear just because.

One can buy "good" gear without spending several hundred $. If the "inexpensive" gear meets someones needs so be it. No one is saying its dumb, except you. Buy what you want and so will I. That's been said by others too. You must be one a dem rich guys with a $20000+ bike, so no wonder you don't get it.

My apologies (bows)

Anybody using a high dollar hammock?

I'm so tempted to buy a double layer warbonnet black bird, but I just can't wrap my head around paying $175 for what is basically 2 hemmed pieces of nylon with some no-seeum mesh sewn to a zipper.





That's $175 for just the hammock, no rain fly.

I'm not the "fun police" either. But the guy did answer his own question...

But related to the topic at hand. I have multi purpose equipment, climbing, hiking, backpacking, motorcycle/car camping: tent in this case. I have used a bivy sack for the last 5+ years, made by Mountain Hardware. Absolutely love it!!! Yes, I have used it in the rain and snow. I do have a pre-Black Diamond Bibler I-tent that is absolutely incredible! Literally 2-4 minutes to put up! Black Diamond has a lighter more 3-season version called the Firstlight tent that I have checked out personally and seems pretty usable and lighter than a lot of others. For motorcycle use, seems like a winner. I prefer not to buy cheap stuff as the old adage states, 'you get what you pay for'. I have learned from others mishaps that cheap means functionality is compromised, longevity is not there, and could fail when you don't want it to. But then again, I do not shy away from the cold or inclement weather. Some people that is not for them. After 20+ years in the outdoors, I could offer this (FWIW): figure out your budget, intended purpose, and how much you may use said gear.

Last year I had a garage sale and reluctantly donated my late dad's old Kelty tent. That tent was 30+ years old and still Very usable. It made it through 2 BWCA trips, countless backpacking trips with the BSA, family, me and my friends, darn near every Province in Canada, winter camping, car camping, canoe trips, etc.... I guess my point I'm trying to make with this paragraph, is this: quality products will last a long time. Especially with diligence of their care and storage, ie.... don't pack a wet tent and store it, unless you want mold and holes to eventually form.

Mi dos centavos...

i've got a high zoot hammock and couple of super light down top quilts and under quilts plus a neaw $200 tarp. Tents are cheap compared to hammocks

i never said buying "inexpensive gear" was dumb. it is what it is. if that&#8217;s all you can or want to spend so be it. i don't like when people get butt hurt and throw stones about someone buying a "good" piece of kit because there not going to use it to its "full potential", that&#8217;s dumb. If they can and want to spend that much then so be it as well.<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-comfficeffice" /><o></o>

And both my bikes ad up to a little less 8 grand all in. but even if I was rocking some clapped out POS I&#8217;m pretty sure I could afford my little $150 REI 2 man, 3 season, fly to the ground, 2 pole, waterproof as fuck tent. Just about everyone on this site uses motorcycling as a means of escape from the daily grind. That means they have to have a grind to get away from. And if you have a grind I bet you got some extra coin in your pocket because let&#8217;s face it, even clapped out POS bikes cost more than sitting at home on the weekend. <o></o>