Any 3 person winter tent deals going...

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redefined_cycles
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Any 3 person winter tent deals going...

Post by redefined_cycles »

Spoke to my little monkey (6 years Abdurrahman) this am regards Bell Tent and getting a nice one for the garden and will he be sleeping in it with me. He didn't think too hard about this cold and said yes...

The idea came after seeing Steves posh tent and wondering whether 2 tents would be ok for us. But obviously not (too cold and need to sleep with the young uns). Got mw thinking back to what Luke did at the start of lockdowns to protect his (potentially vulnerable) family and slept in garden with a nice posh tent.

Anyway, belltents... Popped up in my head after an AK newsletter and now that Mr Monkey is happy to sleep out. Don't wanna spend too much but need it to last okish. Our footprinnt of grass isn't that big in garden to be fair but I might be able to move some paving slabs whilst missus isn't looking...

Anyone got any suggestions for a decent one at lidl type prices. Am thinking a 3 person tent should do us (me and 6 yr old and 9 yr old daughter after convincing her!)...

Hmmm :???:
Last edited by redefined_cycles on Wed Jan 06, 2021 11:18 pm, edited 1 time in total.
redefined_cycles
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Re: What's a decent but economical bell type tent?

Post by redefined_cycles »

Area of grassy patch is about 2.5m by 3.5m. This would include where the stakes are grounded. So not that much room...
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Bearbonesnorm
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Re: What's a decent but economical bell type tent?

Post by Bearbonesnorm »

Bell tents tend to come at a premium Shaf. Personally, I'd just look for a reasonable 4 man / family tent by the likes of Vango or Decathlon.
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Richpips
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Re: What's a decent but economical bell type tent?

Post by Richpips »

I can lend you a 5 metre one Shaf, but you'll have to invade next door's garden.
Cheddar Man
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Re: What's a decent but economical bell type tent?

Post by Cheddar Man »

Bell tents are quite expensive, but do last if looked after. Unfortunately the bargains are usually found at the end of the festival season when companies sell of dozens of glamping tents.

A couple of these, cleverly pitched may be a sensibly priced alternative......

https://www.militarymart.co.uk/collecti ... army-lavvu
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Re: What's a decent but economical bell type tent?

Post by lune ranger »

Bearbonesnorm wrote: Wed Jan 06, 2021 9:38 pm Bell tents tend to come at a premium Shaf. Personally, I'd just look for a reasonable 4 man / family tent by the likes of Vango or Decathlon.
This.

I’m actually still in the bell tent.
March - 25th July straight. Then 10th Nov until 2nd Dec until we got lateral flow testing Since then I’ve been in the tent on work days and in the house on days off. Had my vaccine 1 week ago, so in two weeks I can go back in the house full time :-bd
But I digress.
With a small garden and modest budget a bell tent isn’t the best idea. They’re also pretty cold (even if you have a wood burner like me).
Go for a large hiking tent or family tent from Decathalon or GoOutdoors and you can have a great time and not break the bank.
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redefined_cycles
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Re: What's a decent but economical bell type tent?

Post by redefined_cycles »

Thats great. Thanks all (you just saved me quite alot of money). Hadn't realised they're quite cold as they always look so cosy. Remindw me of the time I went to the Crikey, how much shop and camped at a small pitch. The day before I went up Cheddar Gorge (but that other climb about 2 miles away was much much harder). They had this teepee type bell tent... Obviously I slept in my AK Ordos...

Will go looking for a 4 person winter tent instead then. Rich (the pic looks goregous btw, hope you enjoyed the soup), don't wanna invade neighbours garden just yet... I fenced em both off :grin:
redefined_cycles
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Re: Any good 3-5 person winter tent deals going...

Post by redefined_cycles »

Title changed accordingly. Think I'm still gonna aim for a bit of quality like AK as we have a Vango (or whatever it is) 8 person tent shared between a few of us from many years ago. Always told the missus that the next one we buy is gonna be a decent one that doesnt weigh 30kg...

Thats a thought actually. Might just try and find a 4 person - get told off by her for it not having 2 seperate rooms like that 8 man tent - winter tent and use that instead. At least we can use it when summer arrives for camping trips...

Title changed accordingly
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Re: Any 3 person winter tent deals going...

Post by redefined_cycles »

NB. Might just use this as the opportunity to see if Abdurrahman might wanna start working on his BAM2021 badge with me. I reckon he has it in him and could probably push me to it. Loves riding...
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whitestone
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Re: Any 3 person winter tent deals going...

Post by whitestone »

Shaf - "winter" tents tend to be pretty expensive*. If they are the genuine article, i.e. not just marketing BS, they are usually built to a much higher standard to be able to withstand storms and have features like snow valences you just don't need and aren't going to use. You probably want a tent with less mesh on the inner so draughts are reduced.

I've used what might be termed "family" frame tents on the Outer Hebrides in gales and they've held up fine.

*Just looked up some winter/expedition tents and you are looking at £1000+ for a four man tent.
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ScotRoutes
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Re: Any 3 person winter tent deals going...

Post by ScotRoutes »

Wrong season to be looking I guess.

Gone are the discounts off our winter tents.
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Re: Any 3 person winter tent deals going...

Post by redefined_cycles »

Much cheaper equivalent to this I suppose (might have to look at the Quesha or Vango equivalents afterall). The BAM badge for baby might not be a possibility afterall as the missus just boycotted it. Said it's a daft idea to take him 'traipsing' at 6 :sad:

https://alpkit.com/products/zhota

Edit... or this https://www.ultralightoutdoorgear.co.uk ... int-p11089
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Re: Any 3 person winter tent deals going...

Post by voodoo_simon »

ScotRoutes wrote: Wed Jan 06, 2021 11:50 pm Wrong season to be looking I guess.

Gone are the discounts off our winter tents.
I thought we were in the winter of discountent??
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FLV
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Re: Any 3 person winter tent deals going...

Post by FLV »

ScotRoutes wrote: Wed Jan 06, 2021 11:50 pm Wrong season to be looking I guess.

Gone are the discounts off our winter tents.
I enjoyed that :-bd
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Re: Any 3 person winter tent deals going...

Post by redefined_cycles »

FLV wrote: Thu Jan 07, 2021 8:22 am
ScotRoutes wrote: Wed Jan 06, 2021 11:50 pm Wrong season to be looking I guess.

Gone are the discounts off our winter tents.
I enjoyed that :-bd
:grin: i can't say the word I'm thinking of... :lol:
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Re: Any 3 person winter tent deals going...

Post by Borderer »

I used to have a little company that sold bell tents. I could have sold you a lovely 4m one for £325, but then Brexit happened and fecked up the exchange rate and that was that :sad:

Bell tents are pretty good for long-term camping. You only have to look at the army and scouts to see how robust and durable they are. Canvas is pretty much the best thing for putting a woodburner into so they are ideal for winter time. You shouldn't really leave them up in winter without a heat source inside as they will go mouldy. With a woodburner in them they are toasty-as though (not cold at all!)

You can still get them for around that price on eBay.
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/4M-Polycotto ... SwSXdfz2Ry

If you get a bell tent then I would recommend a 4m one as the 3m are not a great design and don't have much useable space. You are looking at £350 for the tent and then around £200 probably for the woodburner, flue, pipe hat and silicone gasket. So not a cheap option, but it does pretty much give you an extra room in the house. I know a lot of people bought them during lockdown to make a space for teens to hang out in.

If you go for a regular tent without a heat-source (you could just put an electric oil rad in there on an extension from the house I guess) then you have to be aware of the damp, which will take hold of bedding etc very quickly.
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Re: Any 3 person winter tent deals going...

Post by Bearbonesnorm »

Shaf, 'family' tents take many forms. You don't need something with 3 bedrooms and a kitchen, you simply need a roomy 3/4 man tent. I reckon something like this Zephyros 4 would be a safe bet. Discounted to £215 at present. https://www.terra-nova.co.uk/sale/tent- ... g-grade-b/

Image

If that's a bit rich, then perhaps a Hoolie 3? https://www.terra-nova.co.uk/sale/tent- ... nt-second/

Image
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redefined_cycles
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Re: Any 3 person winter tent deals going...

Post by redefined_cycles »

Bearbonesnorm wrote: Thu Jan 07, 2021 10:46 am Shaf, 'family' tents take many forms. You don't need something with 3 bedrooms and a kitchen, you simply need a roomy 3/4 man tent. I reckon something like this Zephyros 4 would be a safe bet. Discounted to £215 at present. https://www.terra-nova.co.uk/sale/tent- ... g-grade-b/

Image

If that's a bit rich, then perhaps a Hoolie 3? https://www.terra-nova.co.uk/sale/tent- ... nt-second/

Image
Darn... just missed the zephyros 4... someone probably saw the link from here before me :grin: That would be perfect Stu yes...

Bridget, think I'm gonna leave a bell tent afterall. Especially if it needs a heat source to get by which would add up to over £500
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Re: Any 3 person winter tent deals going...

Post by Rasta »

If you want to have fun with the kids, make a wigwam. These are made with a very cheap but strong plastic tarp. Have a look at videos made by bushcrafters. They don't call them wigwams though, usually some trendy, macho name like Finnish hunter's tent (made that up). If made properly, they are serious storm tents.
Fun, educational and cheap as chips.

As they are plastic they can also be used as a hot rock sauna.
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Re: Any 3 person winter tent deals going...

Post by Cheeky Monkey »

BIt like calling a sewing machine a "thread injector" :roll: :wink: :lol:
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Re: Any 3 person winter tent deals going...

Post by lune ranger »

FYI My 5m bell tent has a good size wood burner which I tend well. When it was -4degC outside last week the best I could manage was to heat it to -1!
When it’s warmer, say 5degC outside I can normally hope to increase the internal temp by 4-5deg. They aren’t very warm because they have a lot of internal volume (inherent in the design) and aren’t insulated at all like a yurt is.
Scandi winter tents tend to be much lower and therefore less voluminous for a given footprint compared to a bell.

https://finn-savotta.fi/en/products/hawu-4-tent/

These are however expensive specialised and heavy.
The stuff Stu is finding looks great for what you’re describing Shaf.
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Re: Any 3 person winter tent deals going...

Post by Lazarus »

surely a thread injector is a prolific starter of threads on the internet
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Re: Any 3 person winter tent deals going...

Post by lune ranger »

Lazarus wrote: Thu Jan 07, 2021 12:59 pm surely a thread injector is a prolific starter of threads on the internet
A Shaf :grin:
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Re: Any 3 person winter tent deals going...

Post by Lazarus »

:lol:
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Re: Any 3 person winter tent deals going...

Post by Cheddar Man »

I think the first task here is decide what you want!

If you are after a bell-tent, which are really good, easy to put up and fun and roomy and you can stand up and put in a log burner etc etc then look for a bell tent.

If you want a 3 person winter tent, then you will more likely get a lower profile, less standing up, made of nylon so please, no log burner, and a more packable size.

If you want to do a BAM then why take a tent?

Bell tents are around £450, a decent 4 season tent (well the ones you linked to) are around £450, a half-decent, but good enough family tent may be slightly less if you are lucky.

But first, what do you want? I would say that you started this to ask about a bell tent, go for a bell tent, you won't be disappointed (but you won't be bikepacking with it), or even a second hand Scout patrol tent, basically a tent shaped bell tent, but equally roomy and quite good fun.
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