Marmot tents ? And what we ended up with

[Sawyer]

Sawyer thanks
OH my 3 year old is named Sawyer
curious what it was that made it so tough to break down ? size ? weight ? the legs ?
thanks again ! helped a lot

Funny... Sawyer is my sons name....

Honestly, I think the trouble was the wind. Since I was alone on this trip I slept in my old north face 2 person tent. It took me all of 10 min. to take down and fold up. With the Turbo tent, it was like a big sail. Unlike more traditional style tents where you can pull the tent poles at the four (or however many corners) and it goes flat, with the turbo tent you drop the center first then have to go around to the four corners and pull a pin in the middle of the tent pole for it to fold up. It holds up great to the wind when fully up. but once it starts coming down.... the two of us (two bigger guys) were wrestling to keep it under control. Perhaps with more practice that could be over come. It was my first experience and the guy that owned it had only set it up once or twice before. Combine that with how big it was after we had it all put away and I just knew (1) I dont want to deal with that when breaking camp every time and (2) I didnt have the extra space for something that big (it was double or a little more than my flying diamond 8 when packed up).

I like the idea of the OZ/Turbo/Jet tents and the ease of set up. After dealing with that... I dont mind the set-up and take down times of more traditional style tent. However, before I completely discounted these pop-up style tents (for my needs/wants) I would like to see the Jet tent in person because there are some pretty impressive videos out there on take down and set-up. until then my search for the prefect blend of quality, size and ease of use continues....

 

[Honu]

AHHHH that makes sense watching the way they go down
good to take in the equation trying to balance hassle and setup time with convenience

where I am from on Maui would have been a nightmare with constant trades though hhehehe
I used to camp a lot on Lanai when I lived there and have a pic of my buddies cheap tent looking like a fortune cookie from the wind and mine was just fine

yours and mine hunt continues !

 

[Jonathan Hanson]

When I take down our Turbo Tent in a wind, I leave the corners staked out until it's collapsed. That helps a lot.

I don't know of any big tent that's easy to handle in a stiff breeze - or many small tents for that matter. The best I had was my old Taku - you pounded in its three stakes, then crawled inside to erect the three poles.

Actually, I'm wrong - the Oz Tent is pretty easy to handle in a strong wind, both up and down, as long as you keep the back into the breeze.

 

[Honu]

Good tip on the corner staking

 

[Honu]

So got to check out the marmot nice tent but not what we want setting up was pretty easy and quick on it though and the front door was nice being vertical with the brow poles
The orange in daylight though !!!! Way way to a obnoxious inside

 

[Honu]

So again thanks for all that helped out appreciate it very much

As said wanted a campmor or howling moon but 10x10 did not cut it

Ended up with a Kodiak canvas 10x14 and very happy with it so far but real camping will tell
Seems like everyone is happy with the springbar or kodiaks though so not to worried

Love the tall roofline and the full length roofline inside and wife is happy with it

Reasons did not go the jet tent F30x money one also might want to wait see how they do after a few years and the layout of the side door for us is working out well with our cots and dog crate etc..
Since the marmot was similar layout to a jet tent it did not work as well

Reasons for not getting the turbo was no canvas bigger than the 10x10

Things we wanted did not get was attached extra room off the front like the jet tent or oztents can have ! With our RTT setup we had something like this and liked it for the kids late night potty needs ? Not a big deal though

Learned I am a canvas guy and I like a larger tent with room to dress the kids etc..

Thanks again

 

[Jonathan Hanson]

I'll look forward to a report on the Kodiak - good luck with it!

 

[Honu]

Update

Since selling our trailer and camping out of our FJ what I thought and reality are not as close as I thought !
I am a canvas fan but have said nylon/poly has its place in saving weight and space

So the Kodiak is gone and we now have a snow peak Land Lock and so far with car camping we are liking it !

The kodiak is great and would recomend it strongly and if we get a larger vehicle we will get another canvas tent either kodiak/springbar or one of the African 3 meter again but at this point it came down to packing size and weight ! And use the Land Lock as a huge living eating tent or combination

With the kodiak we had nice comfy tent more comfy in temperature than our SP but wife and kids like bug free eating also ! And a place to have all our gear handy etc...
So having a eating screen room was one more item and thing to setup along with the kodiak !
While we dont always need it nice to keep the family happy also I am allergic to bees ! Have had anaphlyaxis reaction twice in my life where I needed attention usually I just get really sick and pass out ! So I like avoiding bees also !

The Land Lock is both a place to sleep and we can change or eat in the outer area

The stability of the Land Lock is very nice we were in strong winds this last weekend 20-30 sustained and gusts to 40 and the tent was very solid! Actually quite amazed at how stable it was we never had the Kodiak in high winds ? So cant compare


Turns out that front room was something we really came to love and while I thought it was not a big deal to have ! It ended up being a huge deal for us so lesson learned

Still tweaking what we carry and this week we cut back a few more things to save setup time etc...

Setup for me though is on island time and for the most part I am camping so relaxed no rush setup procedure but setting up the main tent is a bit more work than the Kodiak but when done we have a nice sleeping area nice outer room we can live out of eat in etc... so a nice compromise and balance ! All that and some 30lbs lighter

One note about my hate of nylon/poly tents in wind and flapping Noise they can make we did not get this with the Land Lock !
While most large models of nylon/poly tents can be flappy not sure if its the weight of the side walls being what most comapnies use for floor ? The sod cloth edges kept the dust out keeping the huge front door open let it in though a few of the dust devils made for a dusty camping trip


Have to say our no worries attitude from trailer camping to car camping has me rethinking everything !
From how big our camp chairs are to not having true kitchen pots and pans to using a nesting kit going from big self inflating pads under our rtt mattres to nemo inflating pads !

Its the balance of comfort and weight so some things we will keep and others are all new !
The IGT setup is working out great and wont give up my cast iron griddle but gave p two bowl sizes of our corelle dishes ! We used to carry divided plates for the kids and regular now its just regular ! I hate eating on plastic plates so that luxury stays

Trailers everything has its place ! So trying to create a camping setup that acts like a trailer but can be unloaded loaded is tough

 

[SanDiegoCruiser]

It was my Turbo Tent that Sawyer was discussing above. It was my first time pitching it in the desert, and I really did not have the technique down for packing it up. Since the experience outlined above by Jonathan, I have become wiser and now am much more efficient in taking the tent down. The trick is to fold down all of the poles before unpegging the corners. This prevents the tent from catching the wind. If you don't do this, then it is a nightmare to pack up in the wind. I used my Turbo Tent last weekend up in the local San Diego mountains and was able to pitch it in about 10 mins by myself (including the fly). It took about 15 minutes to take down and pack up.

While it is bulky and takes up alot of space, I am confident it will keep me dry and warm if I ever decide to camp in the winter or snow.

 

[nwoods]

I have to ask those with the Turbo's... Is that fly adequate? It does not look adequate to hold up in any kind wind/rain event. I often camp in the Sierra's, and experience summer storms regularly.... Or in the desert with Santa Ana wind storms. I just can't get past the way the fly on the Turbo models doesn't extend down to cover the walls of the tent.

Has anyone tried Pahaque? They are hand-built in USA (San Diego), and look like a modern polyester version of a Spingbar mated with a Turbo. Not cheap, but light, durable, cleverly built, and quite roomy:
http://pahaque.com/product.asp?productID=45322


As for me, my family loves the REI Basecamp 6. Works great in all seasons, totally bomber in the wind, easily packable, infinite warranty (I did break a pole once), two vestibules, great floor space, but not on the scale of the larger tents discussed in this thread.

 

[Sawyer]

I have to ask those with the Turbo's... Is that fly adequate? It does not look adequate to hold up in any kind wind/rain event.

I have always wondered the same. But, having been with Craig (post above yours) in pretty good wind out in the desert. The fly did great. Would love to hear about rain....

I am also glad to hear he has the system down now. It was my first introduction to them. I am sure I will see it in action again...

 

[SanDiegoCruiser]

I've only tested my Turbo tent with the garden hose when I first purchased it and set it up in my backyard and it held up fine. It's very difficult to go camping in Southern California in the rain since it never rains. I'm sure it will be put to the test on a Sierra camping trip in the future.
As far as the wind goes, it held up fine in desert winds. In the future, I am not sure if I will put the fly up on real windy days unless it is going to rain. The fly makes some noise in the wind and I have a feeling it would be much quieter without it.