Light weight 3 man tent?

[Moder-dye]

Not exactly bikepacking but has anyone got any recommendations on a reasonably priced 3 man 3 season tent that actually fits 3 people?

I've got one I'm very happy with other than it weighs 5kg and could do with a much lighter one for a family trip to Norway this summer where we'll be doing some hiking and cycling with it. As I'll end up carrying the bulk of the weight I'm keen to get it down from 5kg with out breaking the bank. Would really need to be one with an inner/ bug netting.

Cheers.

[Joshvegas]

You'd get two two man tents and save a kg straight off.

Having junior in another tent has plus points...

[FLV]

Something simple like a wild country hooligan 3 ?
http://m.cotswoldoutdoor.com/wild-count ... lsrc=aw.ds

[Moder-dye]

Cheers, a possibility though I've become wary of simple tunnel tents with wind, possibly unwarranted as times have moved on and there's plenty of higher priced tunnels. Certainly a the saving of 2kg and cheap price would be welcome

I see there is a hoolie etc 3 which is a bit heavier but much bigger in storage and some extra width.

Our current family tent is a vango hurricane 300 http://www.trailspace.com/gear/vango/hurricane-300/ with 1800mm interior width so there's no need to top and tail and fit 3 mats. The hoolie's only 1500m so would probably not fit 3 full kipmats (klymit static v's) without pushing on the sides.

As our son gets older (8 now, but for all he loves getting out he's no Minipips) there's more chance of us doing some actual backpacking and bike packing, but can't afford more than about £250 really. Actually can't afford that, but I need to save the weight and pack space. Did think of 2 smaller tents (which I have) but it's not a popular idea with my wife, plus its finding or paying for two camping spots.

[Moder-dye]

You'd get two two man tents and save a kg straight off.

Having junior in another tent has plus points...

Yeh I agree especially as I have my newly made trailstar plus another lightweight tent. Unfortunately, my wife doesn't want our son in his own tent for some paranoid reason I don't share. It's also two camp spots to find or pay for. Maybe I can work on her... Or I'll just be the one in a tent on his own!

[Ben98]

http://www.backpackinglight.co.uk/shelters-3/WG109.html
How about this? It's a bit over budget, and you'd have to get a pole of Stu, but even once you've added the weight of the pole its pretty light and it looks massive to me.

[Moder-dye]

Yeh had been looking at the various mids on there , good weight and my wife likes the idea of them for head space too. I've possibly got a suitable pole already, though not lightweight like Stu's, just a bell tent pole.

She had a bad experience in a small two man tent with me where she was basically having coffin dreams and freaked out LOL!

Also found this http://www.decathlon.co.uk/quickhiker-u ... 45651.html at 2.6kg and £149 thoughit's a bit ugly

Edit: the octapeak F8 just got a thumbs up from the boss in terms of price, coolness and space. It may be the one...but I'd rather spend less LOL!

[Moder-dye]

Found this on Alpkit in the sale for £175 and only 2.1kg https://www.alpkit.com/products/jaran-3

[Adventurer]

What about a tarp tent.

Nice and lightweight and not too bad on price either

https://www.tarptent.com/rainshadow2.html This one sleep 3 though

[Moder-dye]

Funny I was just looking at the Cloudburst 3 tarp tent and missed the rainshadow. Have you ordered from them or used any of their tents? Just wondering about the time and shipping costs...

[Moder-dye]

Bitten the bullet and ordered the Jaran 3 from alpkit as the golite Wolf Creek L3 that it is rebranded from got good reviews. Very light for size and a good price. Hopefully the inner first erection won't prove to be too much issue. Thanks for the input.

Next thing is a down bag for my wife rather than the 1.9kg synthetic beast she has. Deciding between a vango venom 400 and alpkit pipe dream 400. Doesn't seem to be a lot between them...

Then we're sorted

[restlessshawn]

"Floor and fly feature lightweight rip stop nylon with a 1200 mm waterproof coating"

1200?? really? that seems low

[Bearbonesnorm]

"Floor and fly feature lightweight rip stop nylon with a 1200 mm waterproof coating"

1200?? really? that seems low

Uhm, material is required to have a HH of 1500mm before it can be called waterproof.

[Moder-dye]

Jay? from alpkit was questioned on this somewhere I saw and reckoned the HH test wasn't so relevant due to the mechanics of silnylon when under the HH test, but it comes with a foot print if needs be.

Time will tell, but it's a good price and weight even with a footprint.

[Giacomo]

Vaude Terratrio is worth a look.

Had mine a few years and it's been put through a lot. Still going strong. Think it's just under 3kg, so not super light but I'd recommend it...

[FLV]

As a comparison, Macpac minaret has a floor HH of 10,000mm and a fly of 3000mm

The wild country one I posted has Flysheet 4000mm and Groundsheet 6000mm

1200 dosnt sound like enough, but... I assume they have real world tested their products.

[Moder-dye]

Here's what he said...

The 1200mm is correct - With all siliconised fabrics the hh test is not the best...

I will try to explain, but we will be putting a much more comprehensive article on the Alpkit site next week.

Silicon fabric can have a much better DWR coating, that will last a lot longer and in normal conditions such as continual light rain, mist, condensation etc. it will be more waterproof than the best PU coated nylon with a really high hh because it will not wet out.

However the pure mechanics of the hh test puts a high force on the silicon coated fabric and can force it's way through (think a puddle on your tent or really big rain drops!). If you were planning with this tent to go out on a particularly wet trail where the ground will be always wet, we would recommend using the footprint (doubling the hh). But through careful use the groundsheet on these should be fine.

Jay

For the cost,weight and size of that tent I'm happy to have a scrap of some other light weight waterproof material as a footprint or add a coat of fabsil to the groundsheet.

Stu, are you the same Stu in the thread about it on UK climbing forums? I agree it seems daft to sell tents that rely on a footprint, but I can also see the benefit of a sacrificial element

[Bearbonesnorm]

Stu, are you the same Stu in the thread about it on UK climbing forums? I agree it seems daft to sell tents that rely on a footprint, but I can also see the benefit of a sacrificial element

No, not me.

I'm a little confused now. Does the 1200mm HH refer to the outer fly, the groundsheet or both?

[Moder-dye]

I'm confused too. Sound like both 1200hh but floor is PU coated too. Wouldn't PU coated be 100% waterproof? See below...

Floor and fly feature lightweight rip stop nylon with a 1200 mm waterproof coating
1200 mm waterproof polyurethane-coated nylon bathtub style floor

It's ordered now so I'll know soon enough if I've made a bad mistake

[voodoo_simon]

"Floor and fly feature lightweight rip stop nylon with a 1200 mm waterproof coating"

1200?? really? that seems low

Uhm, material is required to have a HH of 1500mm before it can be called waterproof.

And 3000 for a winter item!

FWIW, I've been told you need at least 5000 of you were to sit in a puddle of water to stay dry (I.e, the force of sitting down)

[FLV]

If you were planning with this tent to go out on a particularly wet trail where the ground will be always wet, we would recommend using the footprint (doubling the hh). But through careful use the groundsheet on these should be fine.

Jay

As long as no water gets in between the ground sheet and footprint too

[Cheeky Monkey]

I like Alpkit but there's sometimes you need to be a bit careful about some products / claims / justifications. IMO much of their stuff is built to a price, and that quite often being a lower one than some other firms. Nothing wrong with that in itself and I've got some lovely, functional gear from them at prices I consider to have been good or great value.

However, it gets a bit confused when the AlpFans bang on about them as though they're something exceptional. For example; rucksacs with slippy straps, a whole batch of tents not up to spec' (fair play all sold off cheap with full disclosure), kraku's that you can only use with certain gas canisters, down jackets with baggy cuff's "to help with gloves", jetboil "clones" that take an age to boil (see Stu's review) etc*

Not looking to bash them. Just not about to wet my pants in excitement and always a bit wary of the blurb. I hope the tents grand and it probably will be.

What's the issue with footprints? I like the fact I can gamble / make a choice and have either a lighter tent or err on the side of caution / experience and take a semi-disposable / more durable layer intended to fit. Some of the prices seem a bit steep sometimes but I'd rather wear a footprint out than a tent inner, which is where I've found most of mine end up letting water in first.

HYOH

* off the top of my head, not claiming to be 100% accurate

[whitestone]

I think a lot of the broohah about tent floors/groundsheets started when manufacturers like North Face and Terra Nova/Wild Country came along and didn't use the heavy ripstop nylon bathtubs that were typical in the Vango Force Tens of the time.

Now the difference between the Force Ten groundsheet and that in the newer tents was obvious but could you (or I) tell the difference between a fabric that has an HH of 5000 and one with an HH of 1000 without sitting in a puddle? Lighter? Yes, but everything comes at a price and the newer groundsheets are less durable and potentially less waterproof though if you pitched a Force Ten on ground with sharp rocks sticking out then it would puncture as well, the last one I used had plenty of patches where this had happened.

As for footprints - a piece of Visqueen from your local builders' merchants is just as effective. Different weights available but usually only in clear or blue

[Bearbonesnorm]

jetboil "clones" that take an age to boil (see Stu's review) etc*

It was a pot with heat exchanger I was playing with in that instance, not a Brukit stove. The pot wasn't an Alpkit branded one but a Fire Maple ... although it would appear that they're the same pot. I was given a smaller version of the Brukit last year to look at and see if I could spot any potential problems, apart from a couple of very minor niggles it was actually very good.

[Cheeky Monkey]

jetboil "clones" that take an age to boil (see Stu's review) etc*

It was a pot with heat exchanger I was playing with in that instance, not a Brukit stove. The pot wasn't an Alpkit branded one but a Fire Maple ... although it would appear that they're the same pot. I was given a smaller version of the Brukit last year to look at and see if I could spot any potential problems, apart from a couple of very minor niggles it was actually very good.

Cheers Stu and my apologies to AK for my mistake on that one