Family sized tent recommendations?

[charby]

Well camping season is right around the corner and I'll be spending a great deal of weekend out camping, planning a week to Yellowstone and week to the Boundary Waters.

I have a pretty decent Kelty 3 person tent that is a little heavy for backpacking but fine if you split it up amoungt two people while backpacking.

My dilemma is that my wife thinks it is too small, too hot and too claustrophobic to be camping in. We are both going to Yellowstone together and car camping the entire time. She brought into the marriage a really large POS Hillary branded tent that she picked up at Sam's Club for $50. Fortunately we have not stayed in during inclimate weather, for some odd reason if there is a chance of rain my Kelty is just fine to sleep in. She didn't like the idea of using my tent and I'm worried that her tent will just suck and first rain shower and everything is soaked. I told her we need to purchase a quality 6 person tent before we head out West.

Our requirements is that she must be able to stand up and walk around inside the tent, she is 5'3" tall, must be room for all her stuff, I must be able to set up by myself, lots of ventilation (3 season tent), bomb proof, aluminum poles and have a available foot print.  I would like to keep it under 20lbs because I'll be the one carrying it. I would also like to keep it under $300 also.

Please let me know you experiences with tents that fit our needs. Please don't recommend Coleman, Wenzel, Hillary or anything you can buy at Walmart, Target or Kmart. One good thunderstorm and those tents can't pass muster.

Thanks

Charby

p.s. I'm trying to convince my wife to get rid of her Walmart sleeping pad and get a Thermarest or similar. I did buy her a new sleeping bag last year and she does like better than the POS she had before. Call me an camping elitist snop but I like to have crap that works well and doesn't break while camping.

[Harold Tuttle]

5 pounds over but a nice price

http://www.amazon.com/Eddie-Bauer-12-ft-Family-Alta/dp/B000A7XEO2/sr=1-8/qid=1172099450/ref=sr_1_8/002-2303086-9797653?ie=UTF8&s=sporting-goods

i have a 10 man Eddie Bauer

the Jack Bauer model is nice but it keeps getting shotup

[Headless Thompson Gunner]

I've never seen a giant 6 person tent that I thought was well designed and well made.  I would prefer to use a good 4 person tent, and maybe an additional smaller tent or a good tarp instead.

[Ron]

You get what you pay for.

Having said that I don't have any experience in tents that big. REI has a tent that is close to your limitations.

http://www.rei.com/online/store/ProductDisplay?storeId=8000&catalogId=40000008000&productId=48096854&parent_category_rn=4500538

[Ron]

At least with REI if it starts to leak you can return it for full refund. Lifetime warranty on everything (for members only).

If you become a member for $15 (for life) you will get an 8% discount on the purchase. You will probably get a coupon for 15% off when you join.

[charby]

Harry T,

Have you spent a weekend in a midwestern thuderstorm in your tent? I see that it has fiberglass poles, I had one snap/shatter during a storm and then wind caused the snapped pole to tear a big big hole in the side of the tent. By morning I had 4" of water in my tent.


Ron,

I have been looking at the Hobbitat, I wonder if a breeze during a rain storm would blow rain in around the fly that goes down the sides.

I have been also intriged by Sierra Designs Bedouin Six.

http://www.campmor.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?productId=39198476&memberId=12500226

It just seems like a well built tent that fits what I need. I almost bought a SD Merlin instead of my Kelty Mantra 3 when I bought my last tent. Kelty was on closeout for too low of a price at the time and I got the place to toss in the foot print for free.

-Charby

[Ron]

I have been looking at the Hobbitat, I wonder if a breeze during a rain storm would blow rain in around the fly that goes down the sides.

zoiks!

Do you live anywhere near an REI? They would probably set one up for you to look at. The fly looks lame in the pic, but it's REI, I cannot believe they would make a tent that leaked. Keeping folks dry is the main point behind a tent with a fly!

[charby]

I live 30 miles north of Des Moines, IA no REI around here. The local outdoors stores: Sportsman's, Jax and Scheels only have backpacking tents on display.

[Headless Thompson Gunner]

I have been looking at the Hobbitat, I wonder if a breeze during a rain storm would blow rain in around the fly that goes down the sides.

zoiks!

Do you live anywhere near an REI? They would probably set one up for you to look at. The fly looks lame in the pic, but it's REI, I cannot believe they would make a tent that leaked. Keeping folks dry is the main point behind a tent with a fly!

Most tents do a pretty poor job of keeping people dry.  If they're sealed up tight enough to keep the rain out, they're sealed up to tight to provide any ventilation.  The average person emits more than 2 pounds of water a day from breath and skin.  In a rain-sealed tent all that water has nowhere to go.  It just collects on the inside getting everything damp and soggy.

The best tents are the ones with ginormous flies designed to cover the main door.  Ideally, the door can be left open in a rainstorm for ventilation without letting any rainwater in.  These two tents from REI look like they'd work:
http://www.rei.com/online/store/ProductDisplay?storeId=8000&catalogId=40000008000&productId=48112331&parent_category_rn=4500537
http://www.rei.com/online/store/ProductDisplay?storeId=8000&catalogId=40000008000&productId=47612028&parent_category_rn=4500537
They're both pricey, and neither will sleep 6 people.  But they'll do better than most in a rainstorm, which is the primary purpose of a tent.  Pitch a tarp or your spare tent to make up for the lost space.

[Sindawe]

Most folks swear AT their tents.  I swear by my Eureka! tent.  While I have an older, two person model (Timberline 2), it has kept me bone dry in some of the foulest weather, including a weekend trip in '97 the had rain all weekend and forced a portage of all our gear (three tents, two heavy coolers of food and 3 cases of beer) 1/2 mile back down the hill to the stuck truck (we drove down the muddy road, but could not get back up).

The Eureka! Equinox 6 may be just up what your looking for: http://www.eurekatent.com/equinox6.asp 

The fly keeps the rain off, while allowing water vapor from inside to exit the permeable main tent body and dissipate on the breeze.  18 pounds, can be had for a hair under $300.

[Harold Tuttle]

I never had it west of Maryland, but it holds up well in an east coast thunderstorm

A buddy photographed a tent maker for a magazine article

According to this guy, there is one guy in asia that is THE expert on tent cloth cutting with software

He designs most of the tents you see.

The Eddie Bauer i have is really well thought out and engineered.

[Ben]

I have a Eureka Assault 3 1/2 season that meets most of your requirements. Mine is a 4 person, but I 'm pretty sure they make a 6 person as well.

[charby]

Wife and I were checking out tents via different manufacturers and she said she likes the Kelty Pagoda 6. Anyone know anything about it. She was more concerned about how it looked than anything, of course I told her for that a tents main purpose it to protect from the elements not win fashion awards.

http://www.amazon.com/Kelty-Pagoda-6-tent/dp/B000KZJRPO

I have a kelty mantra 3 that has been through its fair share of storms and I have never gotten wet. Also it has enough mesh that it does a pretty good job of venting moisture.

-C

[Ron]

http://www.trailspace.com/

That tent has a review at the above site. Actually the REI tent(s) do also. Seems like a good resource for gear reviews.

[charby]

Thanks Ron!  That site is awesome!

-Charby

[Harold Tuttle]

good site:
http://www.campmor.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/CategoryDisplay?catalogId=40000000226&storeId=226&categoryId=45760&langId=-1&parent_category_rn=250

[Ron]

ooh ooh ooh gear!!

Another link for good gear prices!!

http://www.sierratradingpost.com/

[Ron]

REI is a personal favorite. Of course I live ten minutes from the store and they have knowledgeable employees and great customer service.

http://www.rei.com/index.jsp

[Racehorse]

If you're looking for a great family size tent, I've never seen any better than these:

http://www.springbar.com/

They're heavy, but they keep the water out well, and they last forever. I've slept in several in rainstorms and never gotten wet.

[Felonious Monk/Fignozzle]

Re: Family sized tent recommendations?

I heard Rosie O'Dummel has some old jackets and such for sale on eBay.
They'd probably work great, once you washed all the Bohemian Love Slave juices off.  :puke:

[charby]

Figgy

Wouldn't that attract bears and raccoons? or would it repeal them? revolt them?

-C

[Jamisjockey]

If you're looking for a great family size tent, I've never seen any better than these:

http://www.springbar.com/

They're heavy, but they keep the water out well, and they last forever. I've slept in several in rainstorms and never gotten wet.

I've spent a few nights in a friends springbar.  Rained cats and dogs one night.   We drank beer and played poker.   
Nice, big, comfy.  Great tents.

[Ron]

They look great but heavy doesn't even begin to describe them!!

[karlsgunbunker]

Has anyone mentioned Sportsmans guide?

I found a 6 person tent for under a $100.  watch the specials and use any coupons you can find, usually $10 off for a $99 purchase.

[charby]

I ended up buying a Kelty Pagoda 6, wife liked the way it looked and I confident that it would survive most summer storms.

http://www.backcountry.com/store/KEL0357/Kelty-Pagoda-Tent-6-Person-3-Season.html?PID=1692154&AID=10281785

I got on ebay for $230 so a lot less than the $426 list price. Even found a foot print for it on sale elsewhere.

-C