High quality ground tents - the set up speed of the RV-5 but smaller packed dimensions? (1 Viewer)

[Captramrod01]

I realize the OP already made his decision but I guess we can keep this discussion on high quality ground tents going?

I stumbled upon Southern Cross Canvas tents last night. Australian made, even the canvas. Prices are a bit higher and shipping is going to be roughly $280 AUD to the states. They look to go up very quick and pack down to a reasonable size. Has anyone dealt with these before?

Ultimate Deluxe - Southern Cross Canvas Products

Ultimate Deluxe The Ultimate Deluxe is the third largest tent that we manufacture in our touring range. This models suits families and large groups. Manufactured using Wax Converters Billabong 370g/sq.m (10.9oz) canvas. It consists of three windows with flywire and one opposing door with...

www.southerncrosscanvas.com.au

 

[stevenjj71]

This one looks great!

The Truck Tent | Ellis Canvas Tents

The Truck Canvas Tent is designed for the Off-Road Over-landing and car camping crowd. A better utilitarian and economical option over a Roof-Top Tent.

elliscanvastents.com

Any other similar models to that around?

 

[Bludozer]

Had some spare time this weekend before our longer planned trip so decided to do a trial run at setting up the spring bar tent. I didn't time myself, but I would say it took a total of about 20-25 minutes for the first go. Now that I have that under my belt I think realistic set up time is in the 10-15 minute range at a leisurely pace. Longest part was getting it staked out, after that it is incredibly easy. Quality is very high. Overall happy with the purchase.

 

[TXSunDevil]

I have the Kodiak 10x14. I stake it with my impact and 14" lag bolts. I think I can have all stakes in under 7 minutes. I am sure I can have it completely setup in under 15 minutes

 

[Dharma Dude]

15 minutes....that's an eternity. I can setup my REI Kingdom 4 tent ($300) in that time. I would definitely not shelf out big bugs for the Spring Bar ...... and they call it fast setup. What a joke. To me, fast setup is 2-3 minutes.

Gazelle T4 Tent setup 90s.



They cheated a little. I takes another 90s to peg the corners if you choose to do so.

My Frontrunner flip pop tent. 2 minutes pegged.

 

[Bludozer]

15 minutes....that's an eternity. I can setup my REI Kingdom 4 tent ($300) in that time. I would definitely not shelf out big bugs for the Spring Bar ...... and they call it fast setup. What a joke. To me, fast setup is 2-3 minutes.

Gazelle T4 Tent setup 90s.



They cheated a little. I takes another 90s to peg the corners if you choose to do so.

My Frontrunner flip pop tent. 2 minutes pegged.

If you reread my post I said 10-15 minutes at a LEISURELY pace. That means slowly walking around and staking it in while drinking a beer. Yes if you race (idk why you would?) it will be significantly faster. Even still though, there are clearly many other factors to consider in addition to just set up time. I am glad you are happy with your REI and Front Runner tents, they are great tents too but a different ball game entirely.

 

[Live to Ski]

Look @ the motorcycle tents. Redverz works for me. Right around 15m basic solo setup (bare min stakes).

Redverz Atacama Expedition Motorcycle Tent Green

The Redverz Atacama Expedition Tent is the premier motorcycle tent for riders. The versatile garage design allows you stand up inside providing comfort, storage and security.

redverz.com

Only issue is not free standing (think Moab).

Tons of standup room in the vestibule.

 

[mdcoa]

Any more feedback on the Gazelle tents? Thinking about a T8 . . . family of five.

Currently have an OzTent Jet Tent F25X, which is absolutely incredible, but which is bulky (48x15x15), heavy (70 lbs), and, while easy to pitch, is kind of a pain to take down. Fantastic for multiple nights at one site. Loaded with amazing features like the windows covers you can stake out for great ventilation even in a downpour--we've camped in it in all kinds of weather, all the way down to about 20F.

We're doing preliminary planning for an extended (1 year) trip in Europe, shipping the 100 over, in a couple years and trying to figure out what tent would be best. Definitely want two rooms (which our Jet Tent and the Gazelle T8 both have) or two tents (like a RV-3 plus Tagalong). Looking for something compact enough to fit in the cargo area or in our Yakima sky box (72" long or so), since we'd rather not leave a tent unsecure strapped to the top of the vehicle while overnighting in towns. This rules out an Oztent RV series tent, unfortunately, and makes our current tent suboptimal, since it takes up a lot of our cargo area. . .

If the Gazelle is compact, fast up/down, and durable, it might be the hot ticket for us. Would love feedback on how it performs in rain and wind, and would love to hear if anyone has the monster version (T8).

 

[cruiserpilot]

Look @ the motorcycle tents. Redverz works for me. Right around 15m basic solo setup (bare min stakes).

Redverz Atacama Expedition Motorcycle Tent Green

The Redverz Atacama Expedition Tent is the premier motorcycle tent for riders. The versatile garage design allows you stand up inside providing comfort, storage and security.

redverz.com

Only issue is not free standing (think Moab).

Tons of standup room in the vestibule.

I just looked at that tent. It looks like the material isn’t as tight when set up as I’d like but
certainly impressed with set up. If you took 15 min you were having a beer break from what I saw.
Two pegs at the end, unroll, insert poles, pull tight two pegs and it’s basically up.
For comparison did you look at the MotoTent Lone Rider? Both are cycle oriented tents but I like the
one you got a bigger and more vertical walls. The only decider side by side would be that apparently the
Lone Rider tent material actually has a fire resistant rating, and that is very cool as I’ve not seen that
in a recreational tent before.

MotoTent

Tested and proven by worldwide adventure motorcyclists, the MotoTent is designed to shelter one or two riders, gear, and one adventure bike with luggage cases.

www.lonerider-motorcycle.com

 

[Live to Ski]

Your wrong. Beer would actually speed up setup

Redverz looks to be longer & wider.

Downside of gazelle is weight, especially the expanded version. The good is it is self standing.

There is another large large free standing hoop tent Exped Ursa VI, but expensive/hard to find.

As an aside, I stay away from tents that have non-straight poles due to field repair issues.

 

[cruiserpilot]

I would have agreed with buying factory curved poles in the past, but technology
now is high and if it’s a reputable manufacturer that shouldn’t be as much of
an issue. I have more lingering issue with straight poles that are bent to curves,
but I’m a careful guy and that’s never been an issue either.

 

[yotarunner]

We have had our oxley 5 for 2 years now and absolutely love it. My buddy has had the RV5 for 12 years now so we knew oztent was great quality. I wanted something that packed up smaller though so we went with this one. Heres a few pics of it in my 80 and at camp this past wknd. I wasnt a fan of the sloped roof in the RV series also. This one you can easily stand up in.

 

[mdcoa]

That looks significantly more compact than my tent, which is its big cousin--same design, but in canvas, with a lean-to on the back. It's pretty massive, and the lean-to makes packing it up always interesting . . . but we do love it. If I could figure out a theft-resistant way to put it in the roof rack or if it took up less room in the cargo area/was quicker to pack up, we’d definitely just stick with it...

 

[yotarunner]

Oh wow that looks much bigger then the 5. I like that spare room on the back also. I loved my buddy's RV5 and borrowed it a few times, but man its a pita to haul as it just doesn't fold down much so your forced to put it on the roof rack. How much does yours pack down to?

 

[mdcoa]

IIRC it's about 48x14x14, so it fits in the cargo area just fine, but does take up a fair amount of space. These are NLA, though, but your Oxley's big brother is, I believe the same design, just not canvas, which probably makes it a bit more compact and lighter, but less bulletproof. This thing is built like a brick outhouse.

 

[DAILY80]

White Duck 10’x14’ Prota Canvas Tent, Deluxe I just got is super high quality. The tent is a bit heavy, but it sets up super quick and it is stout.

 

[bajaphile]

I was very impressed with my 9x8 Kodiak Flex Bow. A bit overkill for us though. Took up a large amount of space and was still ~60lbs. Felt extremely solid in the high desert winds though. For the Land Cruiser, we've just gone back to the cheap Coleman 4 person Sundome tent... Great for fair weather camping.

 

[wiseinvestor]

I just got back from a week in CO with my gazelle T4. It has 8 ground stakes for the tent and 4 for the guy lines to keep the sides from coming in during heavy wind. The pros continue to be the quick setup/take down, easy to get in the travel bag, reasonable weight, and it did well in very heavy rain. The cons include the length of it when packed, the lack of any real awning over the entry and obviously it is nylon and not canvas.

 

[cruiserpilot]

My impression is the Gazelle and OZ Tent seem to fall in the same realm. Really fast, easy set up. Both quality of
different materials so personal preference takes over. I like the traditional look of the OZ but the Gazelle seems to have
figured out to be a bit more configurable for inside layout. OZ has awning, which is primary importance, nothing worse
than blowing in of rain, snow or just debris - it's almost psychological comfort, kinda standing with a coffee in hand in the
rain. Both are large and heavy, location and load points are something requiring planning. I'm moving away from RTT
just for personal reasons, but damn - it's hard to replace that convenience! Location and load points being deciding factors.

 

[mdcoa]

Great thoughts—and, yes, the awning is one thing I’d sure miss if we switch from our JetTent F25X to a Gazelle. I’d probably get a vehicle mounted awning but that seems like a pretty poor substitute, esp at sites with a level tent pad but vehicle parking on a hill....
I’m going to see if I can fit our JetTent into our Yakima carrier if I leave it out of its bag and feed it in....if it’ll fit and leave any room for other gear that might be a way forward—ditch the enormous bag altogether...