what do you think of this œ15 tent?

plusgourmande

Hi all, first time post in Tour/Exp.

I'm thinking about doing some touring in southern france/northern spain this summer, for about 2 weeks. I'm also on a really tight budget, so i found this tent for œ15.99.

Wondering if anyone has any experience with this tent? Will i wake up soaked from a drizzle?
Never bought a 1 person tent before and am desperate to save weight/not spend much œœ.

http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/partNumber/3409172.htm

Thanks.

cardinal guzman

Hi pg,

it gets mixed reviews for weatherproof-ness so maybe not ideal for Northern Spanish squalls, and if you're a tall lad, then it might be a bit cramped?

http://www.comparestoreprices.co.uk/cam ... n-tent.asp

If you need to save weight, maybe you could work out a way to do without the poles, perhaps suspending the tent from a tree or something?

Personally, I'd go for one of these.....
http://www.surplusandadventure.com/isho ... r3322.html
It's light as, it's breathable so you won't get damp if it's cold, you'll be able to keep an eye on your bike, it's not mega-money and it's tiny!

essentials: kip-mat (cold strike is your enemy!), bog roll, tin opener!

alittlecrazy

What about one of the Queucha pop-up tents from Decathlon.... or do they not pack well on a bike?

I'd be wary of buying a tent quite that cheap. If you go down the Bivi route, as suggested by another poster, then you will be able to wild camp very easily without being seen, saving lots of money! We found Spanish campgrounds (except the municipally run ones) to be very expensive.

Round the world on our bicycles -- www.travellingtwo.com

vernonlevy

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by plusgourmande</i>

Hi all, first time post in Tour/Exp.

I'm thinking about doing some touring in southern france/northern spain this summer, for about 2 weeks. I'm also on a really tight budget, so i found this tent for œ15.99.

Wondering if anyone has any experience with this tent? Will i wake up soaked from a drizzle?
Never bought a 1 person tent before and am desperate to save weight/not spend much œœ.

http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/partNumber/3409172.htm

Thanks.
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote"></font id="quote">

Don't even dream of purchasing this tent. It is not one of Argos' better products. It is a single skin tent, prone to condensation and whose waterproof nature has been cast in doubt by some forum users elsewhere.

Even though money might be tight, skimping on the tent is a false economy. You need to have a comfortable and dry night's sleep irrespective of the weather. Your proposed tent will not deliver that. Have you also considered how you'd keep the inside dry when it's raining and you want to get in and out of the tent?

bikepacker

My daughter purchased one to take to a music festival. It was useless when it rained. She left it behind.

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I'm pedaling around the world looking for the sunshine that always seems to come my way.
www.bikepacker.co.uk

fieldmousecp

I thoroughly recommend the Gelert Eiger 2.Weighs 2.83 kg. Costs about œ20. I've used it for a 3 week tour in France for the last 5 years. It has a fly sheet so you'll get no condensation problems and I've been bone-dry in it in heavy rain. It has enough room in it for you and all the stuff off your bike as well. The one you've just bought from Argos looks mickey - mouse to me ! If you've had it for less than 30 days you can return it without question for a refund if you have the receipt.Get yourself a Gelert Eiger 2 ! Google it and you'll find all the details and suppliers.

Tourist Tony

Said tent is carp. It was advertised on e-bay recently for the express aim of getting enough money to buy petrol to give it a Viking funeral.
The pop-up Decathlon Quechua tents are basically circular when packed and are awkward to carry.

If I had a stalker, I would hug it and kiss it and call it George...or Dick

plusgourmande

Thanks for all your help, guys!

I was planning on touring in a month or so, and hopefully not expecting rain, but you never know...

will do more research.

peterbr

The absolutely minimum for a tent to be useful IMHO is a double skin and taped seems - mine is branded Salewa and cost about œ30. Otherwise you may as well sleep outside or with a bivvy.

If cash is tight, why not try and borrow a tent? If buying, consider a 2 man as these aren't necessarily very much bigger/heavier and are potentially a lot more useful.

<hr noshade size="1">
Elephants - where were they when we were fighting the nazis? Eh? Eh?

Nigeyy

I think I bought my brother that same tent (but under a different name) for about 10 quid. He used it on a little tour of Massachusetts we did last summer.

It's a bit awkward to get into and out of, it is very small and plus since it's a single skin, breathability is essential, yet in the rain it's obviously not a good idea to keep the entrance open. For these reasons, I think this tent would be a very poor choice in the wet.

Having said all that, we went touring knowing there wouldn't be any rain (I know, I know, I have the luxury of that in the States) and it was used more for the purpose of keeping mosquitos out rather than rain protection. Another good thing about this tent is that it is very light and very packable. I think it would only be a good buy if you could put it up under shelter so it is well ventilated or if you knew wet weather isn't going to be a problem. Since my brother didn't have a small lightweight tent, this actually was a great solution (cheap, lightweight, packable, offered mosquito protection) for our situation.

If you have the money and think you'll use a lightweight tent, I'd say go and get a better quality tent that is more practical.



Fight Cystic Fibrosis: do something. http://www.cycleforhaylee.org http://www.cff.org

CyclepathToHell

I've done tons of cycle tours and car camping trips in France. I've been up North and down south, spring,summer and winter.

no matter where I've been and at whatever time it has been, it has always rained at some point.

One of the things that pleases me most about cycle touring/camping is the money I save. However, the one thing I would always shell out a bit more on is the tent...after all...it's your shell

cougie

I bought a 2 man tent from Asda two years ago - it was about œ15 and suffered a night of torrential rain at a triathlon and didnt leak once.

Its also been up in the back garden for the summer months with no problems either. Sorry - I've just complicated matters havent i ?

maryinoxford

Pro Action used to make a one-man tent called Tiger Paws. That got good reviews. Then they replaced it with the Sydney, and that got bad reviews. There is currently a new Tiger Paws offered on Ebay - link here:
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll? ... :middle:uk
The vendor doesn't know the merchandise well, because he's listed it as single-skin, but the Tiger Paws is double-skinned (although it pitches inner-first, which could be a nuisance in a storm).

Mary

The older I get, the better I used to be.

vernonlevy

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by maryinoxford</i>

Pro Action used to make a one-man tent called Tiger Paws. That got good reviews. Then they replaced it with the Sydney, and that got bad reviews. There is currently a new Tiger Paws offered on Ebay - link here:
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll? ... :middle:uk
The vendor doesn't know the merchandise well, because he's listed it as single-skin, but the Tiger Paws is double-skinned (although it pitches inner-first, which could be a nuisance in a storm).

Mary

The older I get, the better I used to be.
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote"></font id="quote">
I have a Tiger Paws. It is a fine bit of kit though a little cramped if you are a 'big yin'. I was lucky enough to have a nice Vango two man tent donated relegating the Tiger Paws to reserve tent.

Simon Notley

I bought a œ20 'Solo' tent made by Gelert last year and was pleasantly surprised. It's double skinned and kept the water off during a few fairly heavy showers, although there was some evidence of seepage so I wouldn't use it if I was expecting heavy weather. The main selling point for me though was the fact it is smaller and lighter than tents at 10 times the price.


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If I had a baby elephant, I'd fit right in here.

plusgourmande

Yeah, i see what you mean, Simon. I'm sort of looking for ultralight on a budget. Will definately look in to all of these that you all have recommended.

Has anyone toured in southern france (around Perpignan/Massif Central) in mid june/july? What are the chances of rain? I'm really want to keep my luggage minimal in weight and size, so i was looking at a tarp/sleeping bag method. I love the look and size I think this would be perfect, so long as the weather was nice and warm....

That snugpak bivvy bag that you recommended, cardinal, looks and weighs fantastic, but i can't really drop œ60 on it, much as i should. Might check gumtree/ebay a bit more.

Thanks for all your help, much appreciated!

cardinal guzman

just remeber pg,

the rain in Spain fall mainly on the northern mountains.

Brock_71

Since I've just spent over 400 quid on a Hilleberg, I have to say I think your 15 pound tent is wretched rubbish. [:)]

<hr noshade size="1"><font size="1">A bicycle is for life, not just for Christmas.</font id="size1">

rustynut

I've got a Jack Wolfskin Gossammer tent from Cotswold Outdoor for œ80. It is based on a Bivi cum Tent and the spec is very good.
http://www.cotswoldoutdoor.com/Cat/110155?Ref=124108

CyclepathToHell

summer showers are regular in the massif

Oldknees

I know of one chap in our cycle camping club (The Fell Club) who got an ASDA tent on special offer for less than a fiver and it is wonderful. I spent about œ95 on a Vango 1 person tent seven years ago and it's still like new - use it two or three times a year. Weighs less than 2.0 kg too. You can be lucky with tents. I'd love to know what the mark-up is. Most of the tents these days are made abroad.

slow is good too