Tents Looking for Tent Recommendations

Freeholder

Freeholder

This too shall pass.
I'm planning to buy another tent shortly, and am looking for recommendations. I'm looking first for quality materials and construction, and durability. Easy to set up (and poles that don't break easily) is also important. I think probably we'll want a three-to-four person tent, at least 65 inches standing room, and with a 'front porch'. It needs to have a full fly, too, not just a partial one. And I have a definite preference for colors that don't stand out like a sore thumb. We don't back pack, so weight is not a huge consideration. This is primarily for emergency housing, if we had to evacuate (or if our house burned down), and for short car-camping trips.

I'm researching on Amazon right now, so if you have something to recommend, let me know!

Thanks!

Kathleen
 
P

Publius

TB Fanatic
So four person tent and how much are you willing to spend? There is much out there, but nothing thats sold today that cames with a front porch or screen room is worth the money they ask for it.

Most of the tents with 63 inch center hight are all in the 6 person catgory.
 
Last edited:
Freeholder

Freeholder

This too shall pass.
Publius said:
So four person tent and how much are you willing to spend? There is much out there, but nothing thats sold today that cames with a front porch or screen room is worth the money they ask for it.

Most of the tents with 63 inch center hight are all in the 6 person catgory.
Click to expand...

I'm not looking for a front porch or screen room, really, but a vestibule. I looked at the Cabela's Alaska Guide tent and I think I'm going to go that route, just have to save up a little more money. And you are right -- I'll have to go with a six man tent to get the ceiling height. Thankfully it isn't much heavier than the four man tent.

We don't really go camping anymore. The tent is planned mostly for emergency housing if we lost all our income and lost this place. Or for a vehicle-based bug-out, which isn't very likely to be necessary here EXCEPT for wildfire (quite possible -- we almost had to leave for that reason last summer, and I just bought an older horse trailer for hauling the livestock if we have to do it again) or volcanic activity (not so likely). So I need something sturdy and with a little room in it.

Thunderbird, thanks for the recommendation.

Kathleen
 
P

Publius

TB Fanatic
Personally I find the Cabela's dome tents of outstanding value for the money, it's hard to go wrong with the Alaska Guide series and people that do use them for guide service admit the fiberglass pole version is just as good as the aluminum pole guide tents, its just a little cheeper price for the fiberglass pole. If you can afford it get the 8 man, yeah it costs more but you will not regret it later.

The Cabela's 8 man Westwind I bought is also a good pick and its not made of the same heaver cloth that the guide series is made of, it has impressed me how well it stands up to high winds with heavy rain like 50 MPH gusts and stay intact and not one leak, just make sure you use all the tent pegs and tie-downs. The Cabela's Westwind's 8 is quite roomy and the built in vestibule it comes with is huge, I'm 5' 5" and can almost stand up in the vestibule. To give you idea of size young woman in the photo stand in the vesibule is almost as tall as me.
http://www.timebomb2000.com/vb/attachment.php?attachmentid=118566&stc=1&d=1429643870
 

Attachments

  • A-tent.jpg
    A-tent.jpg
    47.7 KB · Views: 133
Last edited:
Freeholder

Freeholder

This too shall pass.
Bringing this back up as I'm about ready to order -- on fiberglass poles vs. aluminum, the last tent we had had fiberglass poles, and the first time I put it up, one of them broke. Have you (any of you) ever had that happen, or was it a freak accident? I don't want to have to worry about poles breaking in an emergency situation. I splinted the broken pole with some scrap wire from cut-down cattle panels, and wrapped with duct tape, and it was usable, but I would really rather not have to deal with things like that. The aluminum poles ARE a lot more expensive, though, so if the fiberglass ones are going to hold up, I'll stick with them.

Kathleen

ETA: IIRC, the tent that had the pole break was a SwissGear tent (or something like that). Bought it locally at a department store. So did it just have cheap poles?
 
bsharp

bsharp

Veteran Member
The only part of my fiberglass poles that I've had an issue with is the bungee inside. DD, when much younger, pulled and kept pulling when the rest of the pole was stuck. Broke the bungee. I restrung it and tied a knot. Bungee is a little shorter but I've had absolutely no issues with it. We've used it several times this summer.
 
P

Publius

TB Fanatic
Defiantly lower hight than you were wanting earlier. I agree with keeping a lower profile with color and overall size.
Why most tent makers insistent on selling tents in such bright colors. In any public campground they are an eye sore on the landscape. I like earth tones and dull so's to blend into the background.

That Cabelas West Winds is not perfect, but it hides easier that I thought it would, just need enough cover in the foreground and it disappears from the minds eye. It fooled a game warden that patrols a campground! We picked an out of the way campsite in the pine trees and had some good brush cover in the foreground. It took two days before he knew we were there.


Do your self a favor! When you get the tent, set it up in the back yard. Now some think it childish to do these things, but you need to see if there is anything wrong with it and learn how it go's up and not be in any rush to learn it.
You may even learn the tent pegs that it comes with are not up to the job and have to go buy some better ones, and the tent pegs that come with "most" new tents today are very cheeply made.
My self, I will test equipment in my back yard to see if it works as advertised, and nothing like having a warm home to retreat to when a new sleeping bag fails to keep you warm as intened.
 
Last edited:
Freeholder

Freeholder

This too shall pass.
Publius said:
Defiantly lower hight than you were wanting earlier. I agree with keeping a lower profile with color and overall size.
Why most tent makers insistent on selling tents in such bright colors. In any public campground they are an eye sore on the landscape. I like earth tones and dull so's to blend into the background.

That Cabelas West Winds is not perfect, but it hides easier that I thought it would, just need enough cover in the foreground and it disappears from the minds eye. It fooled a game warden that patrols a campground! We picked an out of the way campsite in the pine trees and had some good brush cover in the foreground. It took two days before he knew we were there.


Do your self a favor! When you get the tent, set it up in the back yard. Now some think it childish to do these things, but you need to see if there is anything wrong with it and learn how it go's up and not be in any rush to learn it.
You may even learn the tent pegs that it comes with are not up to the job and have to go buy some better ones, and the tent pegs that come with "most" new tents today are very cheeply made.
My self, I will test equipment in my back yard to see if it works as advertised, and nothing like having a warm home to retreat to when a new sleeping bag fails to keep you warm as intened.
Click to expand...

I expect to have to replace the tent pegs unless they are a lot better quality than the ones I've used over the last few years. Wretched 'heavy wire' pegs aren't much use around here, where the ground is likely to consist of lava rock and/or hardpan!

Also a lot of places in this region there isn't much cover to help hide a tent. Right in our immediate area there's a lot of forest, but if we had to go farther east there's a whole lot of nothing but sagebrush, and some places not even much of that. I liked the subdued color of the tent and the overall low profile, as you said. It's tall enough to get up on our knees (I'm only 5'3" and my daughter is an inch shorter), so we will at least be able to change clothes inside. I have dressed and undressed in a little one-person backpacking tent before, but it would be a bit difficult to manage that with my daughter.

This tent also had good reviews; it sounds like it's well-made.

So, should be here soon, and if the weather isn't too nasty I will put it up right away. (I know, we could need to camp in it in nasty weather, but I don't want to have to put it away wet.)

Thank you for all the good advice, everyone who responded on this thread.

Kathleen
 
P

Publius

TB Fanatic
Sounds like my area we have some hard clay mix with a lot of shale and rock.
I find the Nail pegs work well and very affordable, for what they cost you can by a few extras.
I have not bent any to this date, just set them at a slight angle away like you most of the time so they can't pull back out and hammer away at them. The plastic thing may sooner of later get messed up or broken but it will still be serviceable for its intended job.
LINK: http://www.walmart.com/ip/Coleman-10-Tent-Stakes/13848624
 
Last edited:
Freeholder

Freeholder

This too shall pass.
I picked the new tent up from the P.O. today -- haven't set it up yet, as it was below zero last night and we have several inches of snow on the ground. But it fits in a carry bag that is about the same size as a sleeping bag, and isn't a lot heavier than a sleeping bag. Carry bag appears to be decent quality and has compression straps on it. There's a repair kit inside the bag. That's as far as I went today. Oh, and I looked at the instructions for setting it up -- it should be pretty easy even with just one person. So far so good!

Kathleen
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top