The camp cot thread; what's good, what's bad ...

[Honu]

Sportsmanswarehouse in Phoenix had them on the floor a bit ago ? not sure if you can call up the main number have them look for one at a local store and have it shipped that way ? might be a option to try though ?
www.sportsmanswarehouse.com

what city are you in ?

 

[Colonal Angus]

Reviving an oldie but goodie...

Just ordered a Disc-O-Bed from Cabelas. On sale right now plus $5 shipping. I know this bed is going to be huge...but it will be smaller than the footprint of two cots side-by-side. It weighs in at a meaty 68 lbs but when they're setup they're the width of a twin bed :Wow1: . So, I figured we could probably sleep an adult and child on each bed somewhat comfortably. I'm hoping to get four people (wife, two kids and myself) off the ground without taking too much room in the tent. I have a 10x10 Kodiak and I'm thinking the walls of the tent will be straight enough to accommodate the height of the Disc-O-Bed.

I'll report back once I get it and set it up. My 5yo is pumped and can't wait to climb all over it.

 

[JAvendan]

Reviving an oldie but goodie...

Just ordered a Disc-O-Bed from Cabelas. On sale right now plus $5 shipping. I know this bed is going to be huge...but it will be smaller than the footprint of two cots side-by-side. It weighs in at a meaty 68 lbs but when they're setup they're the width of a twin bed :Wow1: . So, I figured we could probably sleep an adult and child on each bed somewhat comfortably. I'm hoping to get four people (wife, two kids and myself) off the ground without taking too much room in the tent. I have a 10x10 Kodiak and I'm thinking the walls of the tent will be straight enough to accommodate the height of the Disc-O-Bed.

I'll report back once I get it and set it up. My 5yo is pumped and can't wait to climb all over it.

i bought one from cabelas late last year with the intention of using it in our tent.

unfortunately, the weight and size, even when packed, is a problem for us and our 2000 4runner... especially when we are loaded up!

if i finish our lil 4' x 4' harbor freight trailer then there is a good chance we can try it out this season!

my girls have used it already and really like it - lol.

hope to see yours set up in your tent soon!!!

joel


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

 

[BADDANDY]

A few weeks ago, I used my Tentcot 5 nights on a 10 day trip. 3 on the ground at campgrounds and 2 on the trailer dry camped. Due to cold and possible rainy nights, I used the rainfly every night which results in condensation on the ceiling. I tried all combos of venting to no avail. At least each morning was dry and sunny so airing and drying out occurred quickly. I have always slept like crap camping and the cot was no worse or better, but I'm getting a thick foam mat or air mattress to sleep on from here on out. I have the feet of the cot permenantly mounted on the trailer lid and the cot's footbars just plop into them for a secure fit.

 

[Colonal Angus]

That's too bad about the condensation with the Tent Cot. I can't stand waking up wet...that a huge reason for me to get the Kodiak Canvas. Canvas seems to breath a little better. Like you though, I've always had a hard time sleeping at camp. Between rock hard, frozen ground to cold, bouncy air mattresses...I just haven't found the right solution. I hope the discobed, topped with a thick sleeping bag or feather comforter will revolutionize the way I sleep at camp. We shall see!!!

 

[just eric]

I can't believe nobody has mentioned Davis Tent's Big Boy Cot. I've been reading about them for sometime and all of the reviews I've seen have been great. I think I'll order one today and giver 'er a try.

 

[trailscape]

I like my Alps Mountaineering Titan XL cot...

Wide enough that you don't have to worry about sleeping on the hard edges and combined with the Alps comfort series air pad it makes a pretty comfy bed.

 

[BADDANDY]

That's too bad about the condensation with the Tent Cot. I can't stand waking up wet...that a huge reason for me to get the Kodiak Canvas.

I haven't been wet from the condensation as it hasn't been heavy enough to drip.

 

[Wallygator]

I bought 3 of these for the kids and I. The little side pocket organizer things never got used so I had a thick elastic strap sewed on them and they double as a seat back organizer in my vehicles.

http://www.amazon.com/Earth-Product..._2?ie=UTF8&qid=1369553259&sr=8-2&keywords=cot

We use large Thermarest Basecamp sleeping pads on top of them with cot sheets over the pad. Then sleeping bags or sheet and blanket.

http://www.campmor.com/outdoor/gear/Product___40044

http://www.campmor.com/outdoor/gear/Product___43011


This setup is pretty comfortable. And yes this cot is hard on the tent floor like all army style cots are. At first I cut up some old car floor mats and rested the legs on them. Well they worked but you have to keep an eye on them because the cots get bumped off of them on a regular basis. So I went and bought 18 tennis balls (6 per cot), cut a whole in them with a knife and slid them over the leg ends. Perfect. :ylsmoke:

It's a little more difficult to get the cots in their carry bags with the tennis balls on there but this works for us.

 

[BADDANDY]

XL here too, room is a non-issue.

 

[Honu]

as I wrote earlier I had that setup in a 10x14 kodiak
awesome setup just to heavy and large for us
my kids kept making forts behind the edge of the bed between the wall and cot since they have to sit about a foot away from the wall of the tent great kid fort area hahahah
but amazing comfortable cot ! you are going to love them

also one one each side and put the cots in to bench mode flip your pads up you have a cool couch to couch put a table in between ya place if its pouring rain to hang out !

Reviving an oldie but goodie...

Just ordered a Disc-O-Bed from Cabelas. On sale right now plus $5 shipping. I know this bed is going to be huge...but it will be smaller than the footprint of two cots side-by-side. It weighs in at a meaty 68 lbs but when they're setup they're the width of a twin bed :Wow1: . So, I figured we could probably sleep an adult and child on each bed somewhat comfortably. I'm hoping to get four people (wife, two kids and myself) off the ground without taking too much room in the tent. I have a 10x10 Kodiak and I'm thinking the walls of the tent will be straight enough to accommodate the height of the Disc-O-Bed.

I'll report back once I get it and set it up. My 5yo is pumped and can't wait to climb all over it.

 

[Colonal Angus]

as I wrote earlier I had that setup in a 10x14 kodiak
awesome setup just to heavy and large for us
my kids kept making forts behind the edge of the bed between the wall and cot since they have to sit about a foot away from the wall of the tent great kid fort area hahahah
but amazing comfortable cot ! you are going to love them

also one one each side and put the cots in to bench mode flip your pads up you have a cool couch to couch put a table in between ya place if its pouring rain to hang out !

Honu, was the DOB too large even when set up? I know you strive for weight savings with your gear...was that the main reason for getting rid of the DOB? What are your thoughts on my plan to sleep four on the bunk beds. Is it a possibility or just wishful thinking? My kids are 5 & 2. I like the idea of the entire sleeping area being on one side leaving the other half of the open to gear, a small table, and small cooler for water. I figure that 1' void area between cot and tent could be used for storage, too.

 

[Honu]

pack size was first weight was second
we ended up with Alps ultra light cots or something like that low to the ground and about 11 lbs each
our 4 ultra light cots pack down in size to less than a single disco

in our 10x14 which has more pitched in walls we had a small rei table and a med dog crate between us
not sure how close you can push them to the walls ? we had ours going along the 10 foot wall because of the 14 foot width thing
set them up for test the other way with the foot at the 10 foot wall and head to the open but again the slope of the 14 wall is greater so we went the other way was easier to get in and out of them that way

my kids are now 4 and 9 one thing the wife wanted was all of us to be together as long as we can

I end up with a lot of gear purchased some returned cause I always feel ya have to try things out and decide sometimes its that OH those are not that big then you get them home and you are like OH thats big now that its in my tent or in my home kinda thing

I need to sell our FJ and buy a full size rig is what I really need to do hahahahaha

 

[Colonal Angus]

pack size was first weight was second
we ended up with Alps ultra light cots or something like that low to the ground and about 11 lbs each
our 4 ultra light cots pack down in size to less than a single disco

in our 10x14 which has more pitched in walls we had a small rei table and a med dog crate between us
not sure how close you can push them to the walls ? we had ours going along the 10 foot wall because of the 14 foot width thing
set them up for test the other way with the foot at the 10 foot wall and head to the open but again the slope of the 14 wall is greater so we went the other way was easier to get in and out of them that way

my kids are now 4 and 9 one thing the wife wanted was all of us to be together as long as we can

I end up with a lot of gear purchased some returned cause I always feel ya have to try things out and decide sometimes its that OH those are not that big then you get them home and you are like OH thats big now that its in my tent or in my home kinda thing

I need to sell our FJ and buy a full size rig is what I really need to do hahahahaha

Thanks for the heads up. We'll see how it goes. The weight is not ideal but isn't too much more than toting 4 individual cots. I have a 2nd gen Tundra, so I look for oversized, overweight gear to help justify why I bought such a huge truck in the first place. j/k

 

[Colonal Angus]

Received my DOB last night. I heard this thing was heavy and that's describes its weight perfectly. I have a heavy Kodiak tent and was still pretty shocked by the weight of these cots. With that said, they are very manageable. Once out of the box, the two storage bags were much easier to pick up than the one hug cardboard box. I assembled the first cot this morning. On my first try, it took maybe 5 minutes...absolutely no more than 10 minutes to assemble. I saw a video on You Tube prior to purchasing...if you watch the video you will not even need to reference the assembly instructions. It's so basic. My kids came home early from school today (last day of school) and wanted to see the bunk cot on top. Again, maybe 5 minutes to assemble...even with two kids scattering the parts all over the living room, fighting with each other, both standing on the canvas while i was trying to insert the poles into fabric, etc. Im extremely impressed with the quality and the sturdiness. They're extremely comfortable, very roomy although I think it will be too tight to sleep adult and kid per cot...we'll see. The length allows enough room for your pillow and for your feet to not touch the footboard (I'm 6'1").

I left the DOB assembled in my living room while I went to work in my home office. When I came out to get some water, I found my German Shorthair snoozing on the lower cot.