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Tent?

Polarbear

Polarbear
I am tent poor! Many in my storage and I still shop for the perfect one. I have been very close with my REI, small 1+ man tent(Bullfrog). Its getting old(25y) however and has been so faithful to my need. The Kelty Gunnison 2 sold at Aerostitch and perhaps other locales is in my sights. I want another VERY quick setup tent, bombproof as my REI has been. REI has not made mine anymore. Anybody know this tent mentioned by Kelty? I have seen it at rallies, but no input from owners. If I spend 5 minutes or "LESS" on tent setup, I'm very happy and very weatherproof. Never owned a Kelty product. Randy
 
I've been using my Eureka Timberline for nearly 20 years and it's still as good as new. Goes up quick, has been bone dry through every kind of weather, packs well, and is very comfortable as well.

I also have a Eureka Backcountry that I picked up (primarily for its pack size) on sale for next to nothing. Haven't used it much yet, as I just automatically go for the Timberline every time, but it works well and packs up small enough (including poles) to put in a side case on my RT.
 
I have a REI Half Dome that has been reliable. Pretty easy set up. Self supporting. Maybe a little more bulky than the newer tents.

My son has the Big Agness Fly Creek UL2 for back packing. Much lighter tent, packs smaller and has taken some pretty hard weather (wind and rain) and kept him dry. I think it is an Award winner in the last Backpacking magazine? It is a great one person tent. Pretty snug for two but doable.

Man, tents are tuff to choose. I think I own 5 tents of different sizes depending on what me or my family is doing. If you want some comfort, they get bigger and don't pack as well. When you go smaller and easy to pack, throw away the comfort. You will not be standing or sitting up very tall in the small tents!!

How big is the tent your replacing?
John
 
I really love my REI Quarterdome. Aside from packing down a bit smaller than a 2-liter bottle including ground cloth, it is truly well designed with adjustable vents in the rain fly, welded tub seams, and all mesh upper which is great for summer camping. It does set up in about three minutes, especially with the 3- in-1 pole design. Just unroll it and lay out the pole tree, hook the pole ends nto the corners, clip on the tent, and put on the rainfly. First time I set it up was at night in the rain, couldn't have been easier with everything color coded.

I have the 2-man, which is really 1-man with gear, but it has two doors each with big vestibules so there would be room for two if needed. Check out YouTube, there are a bunch of videos on it (including a funny one that shows why it is often faster to set up a tent by oneself rather than with helpers...)

Lastly, I got it brand new with the ground cloth at an REI members attic sale (where they sell returns) for $80, down from $250 or so.
 
I'll visit REI;

I'm a regular there and member too. Their newest tents have left me still looking. I am happy with no headroom tents, sitting is all I need to dress. I don't consider my tents walk arounds, but prefer very quick setups and sleep and good vestibule(s). Less poles are better. My current favorite(s) is a 3 pole unit REI and a 4 season Eureka, both are old now and still usable. Only reason to go new is I want two doors and two vestibules if possible. The Kelty Gunnison2 is that and 2 poles, very simple. I camped too in Timberline Eureka's for years and found better tents. Weather is not a strong suite for E.Timberlines. Strong Wind kills'em or mine. Thanks for input. Just finished the Sedalia Rally trip, camped 18 days straight, my new personal record for such. All was swell, slept good. REI 1man+ style, but its 25+ years old now and I look. Randy
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The simpler, the better. 2 poles, 6 stakes. Freestanding dome tents do it for me.

First tent was a Eureka Pinnacle Pass 2XTA and is still my favorite, however, it leaks now, so I replaced it with a Eureka 2XT, which is the same thing with fiberglass poles. Guess what, the aluminum poles from the old tent work great.

Easy up and easy teardown, packs to fit a sidecase.
 
I was just reading your reply and thinking about all of the tents that I purchased for the Boy Scout Troop while my sons were growing up. Firenailer had mentioned the Timberline. That Eureka Timberline is a good tent. We use to buy the Outfitter models. Those are tuff tents and very weather proof. We had some tents that were 20+ years old and were used and abused by the boys. Those tents had well over 200 nights of camping on them. They are more bulky than some tents but a very solid tent.

Wish I could help on the Kelty Tent. I have had other Kelty products (Backpack, sleeping pad) and it was all good stuff. I have to say that was 35 years ago. My guess is they still make good products?

John
 
Exped Venus II. Very quick setup (and teardown), but expensive and not the smallest packed size:

<iframe width="640" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/E4Bz2oMLamU" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

I like mine. I liked it even more once I removed the gear loft. If you are much taller than 6' it might be a bit short.
 
Learning;

Videos are always a plus. That looks very much like the Kelty G2 also. I have found the Kelty's come in PRO versions too, for extending abuse perhaps. I am still leaning at the Gunnison's by Kelty and see they come in 2, 3 nd 4 man, Pro and Regular versions. Must be a popular rig, having so many options in sizes. I dished the E.Timberlines, having owned a few and know Boy Scouts have used the same for generations. My last, most recent Timberline used in open country Wyoming, BLEW down, bending the poles in extreme bad weather. Its not an open country tent, imo, from experience. Very fine in protected forests and the like. May donate some of mine to the Scouts:). Randy:thumb
 
Take a look at the Marmot Limelight series, that is the one we have. I bought a 3-person for $200 and it comes with lifetime warranty.
 
Funny that you started this thread. My 5+ year old tent has seen better days. I had been limping along but the zipper finally gave up the ghost at the national rally and pushed me to start looking.

I focused on REI, because they offer a wide choice, high quality and decent prices. At the local store, I focused on the REI Half Dome Plus as it was simple to set up and very compact when folded. However, I settled on a REI Taj 3 Tent, which is listed on their outlet site. It is slightly bigger and taller than the basic two man Half Dome Plus and was available for only a couple of dollars more than the Half Dome.
 
My Kelty finally disintegrated after 25 years of use. My brother turned me on to this website and I found an Alps Mountaineering tent that has been great. Easy setup and very well constructed.

This site is a bit odd in that they only have one deal at a time, so you have to check them often to see when tents come up. They sell Kelty's too (along with many other top brands) If you have an iPhone they have an app. I have received some killers deals on camping etc stuff from this site. No affiliation, I just love the site:thumb


http://www.steepandcheap.com/
 
The simpler, the better. 2 poles, 6 stakes. Freestanding dome tents do it for me.

First tent was a Eureka Pinnacle Pass 2XTA and is still my favorite, however, it leaks now, so I replaced it with a Eureka 2XT, which is the same thing with fiberglass poles. Guess what, the aluminum poles from the old tent work great.

Easy up and easy teardown, packs to fit a sidecase.

+1 on Pinnacle Pass. Treat the seams with sealer once a year and it's holding up well. It even kept dry during Ernesto in 2006 at the Finger Lakes Rally.
 
+1 on Pinnacle Pass. Treat the seams with sealer once a year and it's holding up well. It even kept dry during Ernesto in 2006 at the Finger Lakes Rally.

This is true, but mine got sprayed with bug spray, destroying the fabric's ability to repel water. And yeah, I was the spraying culprit. :banghead
 
My Kelty came from the Sportsmans Guide at least 15 yrs ago. They sent me new pole clips free after all that time. Mine even floats with the in mattress in place. We were in National Pk in Virgin Islands and a tropical storm took us many yards down through the campground! It a little heavy for back packing unless you split poles from outer but perfect for 1 person on bike cause all your ATGATT goes beside you on queen air mattress & up off the ground. Cost was around $35-45. Campmor is my go to place for outdoor gear or ebay. Tent poor people & students turn them loose for not much.
 
Took my Catoma Switchback tent to Sedalia and bought a Redverz tent to replace it.
Both tents are easy to set up but the Redverz offers 6'4" of head room. The ability to stand up and dress/undress when in ones tent has become more and more important to me as I get older. Ease of set up and take down, vestibule/storage outside of sleeping area, are also important. Next year I should be able to give honest feedback on my choice. Ride Safe
 
Kelty 2 and Kelty 4

I am tent poor! Many in my storage and I still shop for the perfect one. I have been very close with my REI, small 1+ man tent(Bullfrog). Its getting old(25y) however and has been so faithful to my need. The Kelty Gunnison 2 sold at Aerostitch and perhaps other locales is in my sights. I want another VERY quick setup tent, bombproof as my REI has been. REI has not made mine anymore. Anybody know this tent mentioned by Kelty? I have seen it at rallies, but no input from owners. If I spend 5 minutes or "LESS" on tent setup, I'm very happy and very weatherproof. Never owned a Kelty product. Randy

Having used a Kelty 2 for three years, I have to say it has never let me down in some tremendous downpours, and the aluminum poles have survived some grand windstorms. The two vestibules with their own entrances are something I found out that I will never be without in a tent. I recommend it highly....

But...

I am six three, and decided that I just had to have more sitting headroom and storage area inside for the times I was going to stay put for more than a day or two of camping. So, I bought the Gunnison 4, the exact duplicate of the Gunnison 2, except that it is larger. I've used the Gunnison 4 for 4 years now. So, I have both and can decide which to use whenever I go off, but I always use the large Gunnison 4 now.

Both have the great vestibules, 2 aluminum poles, store very small (the Gunny 4 is not all that much larger packed up), are cool, and good for some really cold camping. You can't go wrong with these tents, if that is what you select.
Good luck!
Larry
 
Whatever you get, consider purchasing a compression bag instead of using the stuff sack that comes with it. My tent compresses down to less than half the space it takes up with the stuff sack. I put the poles of my tent inside a rolled up Thermarest Standard. I'll have to reconsider what to do when I upgrade the pad to something smaller.
 
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Ortlieb Bag:)

I have been using these bags for years with much success to store my tents and the like. They are water tight and compress really well with multiple straps, making tents and other items SMALLer for the bike:). I may well have to choose the bigger Kelty G3 or even the G4, when time comes to buy. I like the room, just NEED the ease of setup and they seem to be axact duplicates of the smaller version G2. Two poles sure beats 3, 4 or more poles. I'm not into superstructure building my tents IF I can find equal strength with two. Randy:thumb
 
Whatever you get, consider purchasing a compression bag instead of using the stuff sack that comes with it. My tent compresses down to less than have the space it takes up with the stuff sack.

That makes sense. I use compression sacks for everything else, might as well stuff the tent in one. My only fear is forgetting poles, pegs, groundcloth, or the tent itself. :dunno

It's nice to have it in one package.
 
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