James Baroud or Autohome roof top tent
- Thread starter backpackbirk
- Start date
concretejungle
Adventurer
as an owner of a james baroud, here is my take on it:
Finish and materials are unmatched. It is finished like a fine luxury car in my opinion. The solar fan works great, the stow pockets and netting inside is great, the mattress is super comfortable, it's extremely water proof, it holds up extremely well in high winds, there is a vent mechanism that evacuates moisture and smell from the tent as you drive down the road and it works very well, it sets up in literally a few seconds.
Here is what i don't like about it: It's just a little too short. I'm 6' and i JUST fit in it. If i'm alone i can always lay diagonal but i will say that my pillow touches one side of the tent and my sleeping bag touches the other. Don't get me wrong, i do fit and i sleep great in it, but if i was to lay on my stomach and stretch out completely i would touch both sides of the tent. The gas struts that set the tent up are too strong. It's great for setting up, but take down often takes a little strength; especially if it's hot outside and the gas struts are extra stiff. So this is good and bad because the good of it is that it sets up VERY quick and it stays set up in strong winds (i stayed in it with over 30mph winds and it was rock solid) while the bad is that it's just hard to close.
Other than that, i really like mine. I slept in it for 15 nights straight during this spring traveling across the US and out west.
EDIT: also i will mention i purchased two of the rino rack load bars to mount it on. They are super light and very sturdy. I ended up buying one more to make three total rino rack load bars to make sure if there were two in the tent the load would be distributed evenly. The track on the bottom of the tent and the mounting brackets are genius! It mounts so easy even a caveman can do it.
Finish and materials are unmatched. It is finished like a fine luxury car in my opinion. The solar fan works great, the stow pockets and netting inside is great, the mattress is super comfortable, it's extremely water proof, it holds up extremely well in high winds, there is a vent mechanism that evacuates moisture and smell from the tent as you drive down the road and it works very well, it sets up in literally a few seconds.
Here is what i don't like about it: It's just a little too short. I'm 6' and i JUST fit in it. If i'm alone i can always lay diagonal but i will say that my pillow touches one side of the tent and my sleeping bag touches the other. Don't get me wrong, i do fit and i sleep great in it, but if i was to lay on my stomach and stretch out completely i would touch both sides of the tent. The gas struts that set the tent up are too strong. It's great for setting up, but take down often takes a little strength; especially if it's hot outside and the gas struts are extra stiff. So this is good and bad because the good of it is that it sets up VERY quick and it stays set up in strong winds (i stayed in it with over 30mph winds and it was rock solid) while the bad is that it's just hard to close.
Other than that, i really like mine. I slept in it for 15 nights straight during this spring traveling across the US and out west.
EDIT: also i will mention i purchased two of the rino rack load bars to mount it on. They are super light and very sturdy. I ended up buying one more to make three total rino rack load bars to make sure if there were two in the tent the load would be distributed evenly. The track on the bottom of the tent and the mounting brackets are genius! It mounts so easy even a caveman can do it.
Lemsteraak
Adventurer
ConcreteJungle, The Baroud may be made short on purpose because it is an expedition tent. It is quite an advantage in cold weather. They could also make the top raise higher but probably want to keep the internal volume low for passive heat, like an old style mountaineering tent. Makes a big difference but it does make it more like sleeping in a coffin as one of the guys at Pangea puts it. I figured it gives you about a 20 degree difference from the outside temps when all buttoned up.
A long time ago I had a tent called the Maggiolina Adventure, it was really short, shorter than a standard Maggiolina by about six inches as near as I can tell. I'm six foot four and had to sleep on my side. It was outstanding for snow and high elevation use. The Columbus I have now is good for three seasons, all the warmth goes to the peak.
A long time ago I had a tent called the Maggiolina Adventure, it was really short, shorter than a standard Maggiolina by about six inches as near as I can tell. I'm six foot four and had to sleep on my side. It was outstanding for snow and high elevation use. The Columbus I have now is good for three seasons, all the warmth goes to the peak.
concretejungle
Adventurer
I did get the space evo edition which has a lot more head room than the other models. In fact, i can stand up on my knees and my head just barely touches the ceiling of the tent. So it's great for changing clothes.
Another interesting tid-bit of info is that when i first purchased it and went to close it, i had all the doors zipped closed. I couldn't close it! It was like a giant balloon full of air. So i learned when you close it you just leave the doors halfway unzipped to allow the air to escape as you close it. To me that proved just how air tight and well built this tent is. I slept in a snow storm in Colorado and woke to 4 inches of snow on it, and then slept through a terrible thunderstorm in Missouri somewhere where it was hailing and pouring down rain all night. Woke up dry as a bone the next morning.
Another interesting tid-bit of info is that when i first purchased it and went to close it, i had all the doors zipped closed. I couldn't close it! It was like a giant balloon full of air. So i learned when you close it you just leave the doors halfway unzipped to allow the air to escape as you close it. To me that proved just how air tight and well built this tent is. I slept in a snow storm in Colorado and woke to 4 inches of snow on it, and then slept through a terrible thunderstorm in Missouri somewhere where it was hailing and pouring down rain all night. Woke up dry as a bone the next morning.
concretejungle
Adventurer
Ace Brown
Retired Ol’ Fart
The comment above referring to 20 degrees diff in and out is suspect from my actual thermo readings. I have a AH Columbus that is only a bit over one year old. I have a max/min recording thermometer that rarely sees more than 5 degrees diff and usually more like 3. But if I moved the thermo to the peak I'm sure there would be a bigger difference but as I can't sleep up there it would be irrelevant.
Ace
2008 FJ Cruiser expedition ready and off-road trailer with RTT.
Ace
2008 FJ Cruiser expedition ready and off-road trailer with RTT.
Here's a long review after my first weekend with the Space Evo.
http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/threads/129045-Review-James-Baroud-Space-Evolution
Overall really like it. Dislikes is the ladder and the mattress.
http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/threads/129045-Review-James-Baroud-Space-Evolution
Overall really like it. Dislikes is the ladder and the mattress.
Ace Brown
Retired Ol’ Fart
This past week my AH zipper failed, the slider broke in half and fell off. No way to close the door, but the screen still worked. I hung a poncho over the door and was lucky that we had no significant rain for the duration. Really pisses my off that a $2500 RTT uses a less than robust zipper. Taking it to a zipper repair lady Tuesday.
2008 FJ Cruiser expedition ready and off-road trailer with RTT.
2008 FJ Cruiser expedition ready and off-road trailer with RTT.
Mike S
Sponsor - AutoHomeUSA
Ace - your tent is under warranty. I'll send you a new zipper and pay for the repair work.
Give us a call.
Mike
Ace Brown
Retired Ol’ Fart
Mike, I was going to call you but think all I need is a new slider and help with installation. There is no one around here that I would trust with zipper replacement. I figure they would have to remove the tent from the shell and it would never be right again when reinstalled. Frankly that zipper has been a pita since new. It gradually got worse until it was jamming or pulling apart just about every time I closed it. I was not careless or rough with it. It needs a stronger zipper.
Ace
2008 FJ Cruiser expedition ready and off-road trailer with RTT.
runandcycle
Member
I thought I would post my recent experience with auto home in this thread. I have been living in my airtop since 6/22/14…A little over a month. I spend about 50-100 days per year in my air top too. My air top is about 3 years old and I give it hell.
I was latching my front 2 straps a 2 weeks ago and one of them broke! I was on backcountry trails in Colorado(still am but wimping out in a motel room to dry out today) and had to use gorilla tape to keep the front down. I got to a small town at the end of the day and called Andrew at autohome. He sent me out 3 straps next day shipping w/ new rivets. I told Andrew my airtop was far from new and I didn't expect warranty replacements. He apologized anyway and charged me $0. I decided to not use the rivets and use stainless steel bolts/nuts. Either way the whole replacement process should only take a few minutes.
I only have experience with autohome rtt's so I can't speak of the other brands. I am curious if the other brands offer this exceptional service after the sale? After 3 years of abuse? Also, on a side note, I called before they opened and the phone call was forwarded to Andrew's home phone. That's pretty cool cust. service.
I will stay loyal to autohome because with the way I travel, it is essential to know that, #1 I have a superior tent and, #2 they will be right there to help if a problem does pop up.
I was latching my front 2 straps a 2 weeks ago and one of them broke! I was on backcountry trails in Colorado(still am but wimping out in a motel room to dry out today) and had to use gorilla tape to keep the front down. I got to a small town at the end of the day and called Andrew at autohome. He sent me out 3 straps next day shipping w/ new rivets. I told Andrew my airtop was far from new and I didn't expect warranty replacements. He apologized anyway and charged me $0. I decided to not use the rivets and use stainless steel bolts/nuts. Either way the whole replacement process should only take a few minutes.
I only have experience with autohome rtt's so I can't speak of the other brands. I am curious if the other brands offer this exceptional service after the sale? After 3 years of abuse? Also, on a side note, I called before they opened and the phone call was forwarded to Andrew's home phone. That's pretty cool cust. service.
I will stay loyal to autohome because with the way I travel, it is essential to know that, #1 I have a superior tent and, #2 they will be right there to help if a problem does pop up.
Mike S: I live in AZ about an hour and a half from Prescott and I think I am going to purchase an AT Chaser trailer. The RTT options they offer do not appeal to me but your Autohome Maggiolina does. No reason a medium Maggiolina can't fit on a Chaser, right? Would I do better to have AT order the Maggiolina and mount it on the Chaser or would it be better for me to buy the trailer without tent or rails and just bring it to you (Carson City isn't really that far away). I drive a 2dr 6spd pentastar rubicon.
Mike S
Sponsor - AutoHomeUSA
We do this fairly regularly… ship tents to AT for installation. No problem, and might save you a little money on shipping, too! Martyn or Mario can order for you.