Help me choose a new family tent! (1 Viewer)

[LFD2037]

I have a 10x14 Kodiak Deluxe. The stakes take about 10 minutes to install then the rest takes about 2 minutes. All 1 person. I've been really impressed w/it. We use a XL cot & a queen air mattress w/room for all our bags, clothes & a small table. It stays cooler in the summer & warmer in the winter. We were in a massive downpour w/the rain blowing sideways for over an hour. Not 1 drop got inside. I've camped in tents for 30+ years & this is my favorite! It's heavy but that usually converts to quality.

 

[LFD2037]

@1973Guppie ,
This place has the VX for $590.19 today & free shipping:
Kodiak Canvas Tent 6041VX Super Deluxe 10x14 Includes Free Ground Tarp

 

[ewillis]

Did you consider the Oztent? Expensive, but seems like really high quality and sets up in under a minute. I'm leaning quire strongly towards one for the new year...

 

[LFD2037]

The OzTent I saw wouldn't sleep 4 people. It was tight w/2 people & a dog. Maybe it was just a small one, IDK. Looked like a quality unit though.

 

[1973Guppie]

Did you consider the Oztent? Expensive, but seems like really high quality and sets up in under a minute. I'm leaning quire strongly towards one for the new year...

I looked at the oz tents but really they are too much $$ in my opinion.

 

[ewillis]

I looked at the oz tents but really they are too much $$ in my opinion.

Yeah...I hear ya. Paying over $1000 for a ground tent seems pretty ridiculous to me too. On the other hand, the sheer speed and ease of setting up and breaking down, coupled with the high quality materials and ability to expand with add on's makes it one of those "last purchase" type set ups to me. I've been trying to talk myself into it as I know I DO NOT want a RTT, but need something way quicker and easier than my current wall tent. An OZtent would have been great in the windy gusts at Turf & Surf this year...instead we had to bail early as I couldn't get the damn wall tent set up in those conditions solo...

 

[kybishop]

The Blackpine Sports Freestander 6 Turbo tent is on sale here;

Blackpine Sports Freestander 6 Person Turbo Tent - 30076

 

[NMBruce]

need follow this, Want a true 6-8 person tent with a tall vestibule, thinking that would sleep 4 with air mattress. I have a nice 8 person tent that really only sleeps 5 or 3 with air mattress, but I like the vestibule to get out of the rain before getting in the tent, just wish it was taller.

 

[Live to Ski]

Those corner gizmos scare me.......

 

[1973Guppie]

so I ended up going cheap and getting this unit from coleman:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004E4AVY8/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I know there are alot more robust and better quality units as shown in this thread but I am on a strict budget right now. I used it this weekend in joshua tree and could not be happier with it. The tent was under $100 and I feel I got a very good value. Setup and pack up is literally minutes. The material as well is well made compared to other tents in this price range. I like that it has a higher profile than my wetzel little dome tent. You literally spread it out, click it together and stake it down. I used my little tent heater and we were very warm all night. I don't expect it to last forevor but for a few years it should do the job for a quick setup and teardown tent.

 

[RFB]

oztent makes my hilleburgs look poorly made

 

[JLH911]

Black Pine Turbo Tent. Love it.

 

[kybishop]

so I ended up going cheap and getting this unit from coleman:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004E4AVY8/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I know there are alot more robust and better quality units as shown in this thread but I am on a strict budget right now. I used it this weekend in joshua tree and could not be happier with it. The tent was under $100 and I feel I got a very good value. Setup and pack up is literally minutes. The material as well is well made compared to other tents in this price range. I like that it has a higher profile than my wetzel little dome tent. You literally spread it out, click it together and stake it down. I used my little tent heater and we were very warm all night. I don't expect it to last forevor but for a few years it should do the job for a quick setup and teardown tent.

I certainly understand the budget thing. We are pretty limited ourselves right now.

If this tent gets you out there and serves you well for some years then money well spent. My brother has had a couple Coleman tents and he has gotten many years filled with a great many memories out of these tents. For the money and price point they seem to be hard to beat. Especially if you just need to get out there now.

I had a Wenzel for a good many years back in the mid 80's. It was a cheap tent that I bought while I was in college. And as most college kids I had very little money. It served its purpose and we had a lot of fun with that tent. It had flimsy fiberglass poles. Last time we used it we got caught in a bad storm with high winds and lots of lightning. The tent sides would collapse in with the wind and didn't do a great job there but we stayed relatively dry and the tent frame did not break nor did the fabric rip or tear.

Enjoy that Coleman! If and when you do wear it out revive this thread and let the hunt begin again.

 

[cbpeck]

I've had an REI Base Camp 6 that has worked great for the past 10 years. In fact, it looks like it has another 10 years of use in it. I bought it when it was just my wife and I, and now there's five of us. IMO, it's a good balance of quality and price. They also make a four person model.

 

[bajaphile]

I just buy the $40 Coleman tents every 5 or so years... Worth it in my opinion...

 

[NMBruce]

I just purchased the Kodiak 8 person canvas tent, it will be March before I get to use it, but it did set up easy

 

[1973Guppie]

I have 2 trips coming up this year, one to grand canyon/ouray colorado and one to yosemite with the whole family. I plan to get the kodiak tent for these trips, a large one. The little quick popup coleman is great for quick one night trips for my daughter and I but the larger kodiak will be great for longer trips where we are staying 3 plus nights in one spot. I plan to get cots for everyone as well. I considered buying an RV but after adding up the costs with storage, etc it just is insane. A nice tent with cots can be packed easily on the roof rack, stored in the garage and nothing to tow. Most likely we will be selling the old tent trailer we have, it is falling apart. Time to move to a nice ground tent setup. I figure I have all the stuff that would be in a little tent trailer, shower, fridge, tent heater. It will basically be the same thing but more portable and a lot cheaper.

 

[NMBruce]

The thing to remember about the Kodiak flex bow VX or any of their flex bow tents, is that they need to be stake into the ground to work OR you need to make a bottom frame. I did a frame out of 3/4 pipe, I think 1/2 would of been good enough and I tied the stake pockets to the pipe frame, worked great when I set it up in the garage. I have a trailer to carry the pipes in, just encase the ground is too hard to drive stakes in.

And I have to give a plug to Cabela’s, I returned my old tent at their suggestion because it wasn’t as nice and easy as advertised and they exchanged it because it was a Cabela’s product, even after 3 years of ownership and I purchased the Kodiak from them.

 

[tclark]

The thing to remember about the Kodiak flex bow VX or any of their flex bow tents, is that they need to be stake into the ground to work OR you need to make a bottom frame. I did a frame out of 3/4 pipe, I think 1/2 would of been good enough and I tied the stake pockets to the pipe frame, worked great when I set it up in the garage. I have a trailer to carry the pipes in, just encase the ground is too hard to drive stakes in.

View attachment 1619608

And I have to give a plug to Cabela’s, I returned my old tent at their suggestion because it wasn’t as nice and easy as advertised and they exchanged it because it was a Cabela’s product, even after 3 years of ownership and I purchased the Kodiak from them.

That's a fantastic idea; I bought a small Kodiak a while back and my only real dislike was that it needed to be staked out. Some places that's just a pain for whatever reason.

 

[1973Guppie]

I saw someone recently carry a drill and use some lag bolts as tent stakes, easy in and easy out in almost any material besides cement....