Gatewood Cape - Pole - Question for Stu

[Cheeky Monkey]

... but might be useful for anyone else.

Packaging blurb / instructions say 45" to 49" pole. IIRC Stu recommends 45" (so I assume that's the length of the shelter specific one in the BB shop).

My questions - is it possible (and/or worth it) to get a 100mm / 4" extender to match to allow height adjustments? Or am I just being utterly P&P

[Bearbonesnorm]

is it possible (and/or worth it) to get a 100mm / 4" extender to match to allow height adjustments? Or am I just being utterly P&P

Perfectly possible. Is it worth it? Maybe but I reckon you'll end up angling the pole.

[Cheeky Monkey]

Ah, I thought "angling" was bad because it stressed the pole in a way that wasn't a good idea. As you know, I know nowt

I'll just order the one in the shop

PS: would you like those "spreaders" back?

[Bearbonesnorm]

Ah, I thought "angling" was bad because it stressed the pole in a way that wasn't a good idea. As you know, I know nowt

That's right. It puts a lot more (bending) stress on a pole. It also tends to produce a less stable pitch.

would you like those "spreaders" back?

No, I'm sure you'll find something to do with them ... maybe.

[Bearlegged]

I clearly need an inverse extender for my pole...

[Bearbonesnorm]

[Bearlegged]

I'm debating whether to cut 4cm off one section, or 1cm off each of the 4... Expedient vs OCD...

[RIP]

Funnily enough was reading a Gatewood review today where the geezer was suggesting pole angling for tautening up after pitching. Guess I'll ignore that then. Awaiting arrival of said cape at the moment. Soon I shall be a caped crusader, and will delay pole decision until then.

[Bearbonesnorm]

where the geezer was suggesting pole angling for tautening up after pitching.

Doesn't make sense that does it, when you consider that angling the pole will actually shorten it.

[RIP]

Sorry, I misquoted... I'm going mad 'ere... other way round... I think he was suggesting angling to start with then pushing it more vertical as things loosened up.... but yes it did sound a bit mumbo-jumbo anyway .

[Cheeky Monkey]

Little blurb in the package says "Allow a half hour for the material to relax, then re-tension as necessary".

[Cheeky Monkey]

Oh, and pole ordered Stu. Watch out for the new address!

[RIP]

"Allow a half hour for the material/Reg to relax, then re-tension as necessary".

By some bizarre coincidence that is exactly what Mrs Perrin does to me on an ongoing basis .

I noticed I hadn't had a confirmation email for my Gatewood, so I dropped them an email. They responded very quickly and said something had gone wrong. There were only two grey ones left on the website but he found an extra green one under the counter, so I'm saved!

So, top service from Ken at backpackinglight.se there - cheers Ken.

[Cheeky Monkey]

By some bizarre coincidence that is exactly what Mrs Perrin does to me on an ongoing basis .

Glad to hear you got sorted. I picked green for it's potential stealth characteristics. It's very green, dark and jungly / depths of FC conifer plantation type colourway.

EDIT - I just noticed that, in contrast to the model Stu reviewed, the cords at the peg-out points are now c.250mm long and are knotted to divide into into three along it's length, I assume to give pegging / tensioning options.

[RIP]

Will be interesting to get to grips with it. Still can't believe I'm buying a shelter with a bloody great hole in it. I love my "flattie" but finding it a bit harder to get changed under it when there's a rain deluge - OK with drizzle/rain etc but tedious in a downpour. So might as well get this bought in anticipation. Maybe grey would have been alright anyway. Camo flavour would have been nice, then I could pretend I'd bought a super-premium Altaplex .

I'm giving poor Stu a bit of grief about a pole, as if he didn't have enough to do. I've got a nice 110cm four-piecer, but an extender for that would be 5cm which sounds vaguely ridiculous! Anyway, awaiting advice from The Man .

[Bearbonesnorm]

the cords at the peg-out points are now c.250mm long and are noted to divide into into three along it's length, I assume to give pegging / tensioning options.

I'm not sure about length but the cords on mine are knotted to allow some leeway for pegging.

[middleagedmadness]

Will be interesting to get to grips with it. Still can't believe I'm buying a shelter with a bloody great hole in it. I love my "flattie" but finding it a bit harder to get changed under it when there's a rain deluge - OK with drizzle/rain etc but tedious in a downpour. So might as well get this bought in anticipation. Maybe grey would have been alright anyway. Camo flavour would have been nice, then I could pretend I'd bought a super-premium Altaplex .

I'm giving poor Stu a bit of grief about a pole, as if he didn't have enough to do. I've got a nice 110cm four-piecer, but an extender for that would be 5cm which sounds vaguely ridiculous! Anyway, awaiting advice from The Man .

My extender for the same pole is about 4” reg , with the actual “extension piece being a 50mm solid piece inside at the the bottom

[JackT]

Also joined the Gatewood bandwagon. But for all the positive notices on here, I'd never have thought of buying something like this (£ for lb it's probably the most expensive bit of kit I've ever bought - but that's how it works, right? Spend more £ to get less lb).

On the basis of having put it up in the garden, I'm very impressed indeed. I can't think of anything else that's so novel and so well designed. A few observations:

- The fabric of the new one (15D) is insanely, indecently, thin. This would worry me but I guess materials science has moved on since I last bought something made of silnylon. The result is astonishingly small pack size.

- In common with tarps it has multiple pitch options, both in terms of pole height, length of tie-outs and configuration of the beak/door. This is a good thing and it means there's no one correct answer on pole height. Angling the pole to vary the pitch height isn't the ideal solution since a low / storm pitch is exactly the time when you'd want your pole to be vertical for strength reasons. An adjustable trekking pole is perfect, so will have to play about with extenders to give options for a fixed length pole.

- In common with tents you can be fully enclosed. Useful in foul weather but also if you're spending a night in a commercial campsite - I always feel a bit odd with people looking in at me, and all my stuff on show if I'm away.

- There's sufficient room inside (I'm 6'1"), yet the pitch area is usefully compact. When wild camping pitch area can be a limiting factor on a larger tarp like the Trailstar (I've been using the Trailstar and a TN Laser Comp tent for the last few years, and the small pitch area of the tent is a plus). Gatewood seems to have the best of both worlds as well as being lighter, smaller and faster to pitch than either.

- Side opening is really nice - giving you a view out, good ventilation and a sense of sleeping à la belle étoile.

- As well as using it for my cycling trips I can anticipate packing this on day walks and throwing it up to entertain the kids at lunch stops, or provide a bit of shelter if the weather turns bad. Or to have a snooze during the day.

- While I could certainly imagine using it as a cape when walking, and being an occasional cape wearer while cycling, I'd worry about it flapping about all over place and tie outs getting snagged, or the material torn. Has anyone had success wearing it while riding?

I like how this forum is much more about doing things and than buying stuff, but I'd like to say thanks to Stuart and all the other caped crusaders for drawing my attention to it. Excited to get out and try it for real.

[Cheeky Monkey]

the cords at the peg-out points are now c.250mm long and are noted to divide into into three along it's length, I assume to give pegging / tensioning options.

I'm not sure about length but the cords on mine are knotted to allow some leeway for pegging.

Indeed (just checked the article picture again). Weirdly I looked before originally posting and thought they were only one loop Anyhoo, bit longer and bit knottier now though not by as much as I thought

[Borderer]

- While I could certainly imagine using it as a cape when walking, and being an occasional cape wearer while cycling, I'd worry about it flapping about all over place and tie outs getting snagged, or the material torn. Has anyone had success wearing it while riding?

I don't think you are meant to use it for riding for exactly the reasons you give there. I got one thinking that if the weather ever really turned against me I could wear it as an emergency additional layer while I push the bike through the storm/blizzard whatever. I wouldn't wrap a tent around me at such times but would put the cape on.

I bought one of these last year and still haven't slept in it. I did take it on a day ride and put it up and I found it didn't seem like it was long enough (and I am a shortie). Maybe I didn't pitch it right. I did use it as a sun shade though and fell asleep right away, so it def works

[RIP]

Multiple pitching options..... I would have thought that the fixed geometry would mean fewer options? That's one reason I like - no, love - my flattie. Happy to be contradicted of course . In for a penny - might as well inject my usual gentle dig at bivvybags now while I'm at it . Never had a wet sleep under my flat tarp without a b'bag, and even less point having one with this thing along with my Ultrashell bags. The only good reason for a b'bag is stealth, and no need even for that if it's not raining. And Grandma Gatewood itself is somewhat less stealthy than a tarp.

I bought one of these last year and still haven't slept in it.

Wot are you like .

I did use it as a sun shade though and fell asleep right away, so it def works

I don't think you are meant to use it for riding for exactly the reasons you give there.

I had this extremely sensible idea that I'd be riding along in a downpour in my nice cape, a bit like Sherlock Holmes maybe, then stop for the night, and erect the shelter from the inside while still wearing it , then unload my kit and go to sleep never having left the confines of the capeshelter. I'm definitely going to give that a try. Although maybe not in a downpour. I'll get me coat. Or cape.

R

[JackT]

Multiple pitching options..... I would have thought that the fixed geometry would mean fewer options?

I meant more pitching options than a tent. Not as many as a flat tarp.

You can vary the height and mess about with the doors / beak. Similar to how you can alter the pitch on a shaped tarp like a Trailstar.

[RIP]

Coolio. Enjoyed reading all your comments about it .

[lune ranger]

Not worn mine riding but have deployed it cape style as extra shelter during stops in crappy weather on Dartmoor. Works kind of like a one man bothy bag and provides a reasonable micro climate.

[Bearbonesnorm]

Probably quite dull but on topic so I'll carry on ... I made 2 Gatewood poles yesterday but from differing materials to see what kind of weight saving might be achieved without going silly and stopping the pole (and therefor shelter) being practical.

Both poles are 5 section, shockcorded and with a folded length of 26cm. In standard trim, we recorded a weight of 79g and the other version was 64g.

See - quite dull.