Good quality tent?

[Colorado Ron]

Looking for a nice tent for family camping thruout the summer. Wasnt happy AT ALL with the Eureka I just purchased. Small wind storm and 3 fiberglass rods are broken. Strap for tent peg ripped off the tent as well. I would like a good durable tent that can sleep 8. No thin cheap plasticy tents need apply. Anyone know of a good one?

[91xlt]

you know what...good tent are VERY hard to find. I used and still have a Walrus all season 2 man tent this thing is awesome, i have looked a little and have not been able to find anything from them, do not know if still in business, but if you can find one of them to fit your needs...they work well

[bigreen505]

Can you be more specific about what you are looking for? The Sierra Designs Meteor Light is a very nice car camping tent for two people, as are the Alpha and Omega, though all are way too heavy for backpacking IMO. The Alpha and Omega are designed as "convertable" tents and pretty much can handle whatever Colorado is likely to trhow at you, from 100 degree nights to above tree line storms. Lots of good tents, take a trip to Mountain Miser or REI with an open mind.

[asteffes]

Definitely look at the new models from The North Face. The new "Trailhead" models make for a nice basecamp. Most everything from TNF is bombproof.

http://thenorthface.com/opencms/opencms/tnf/gear-shop-subcategory.jsp?category=62&site=NA

[ducktapeguy]

If you're looking for a tent that sleeps 8, there's not a whole lot of tents that big that will handle a wind storm and is affordable.

http://thenorthface.com/opencms/opencms/tnf/gear.jsp?site=NA&model=A557

You might be better off buying multiple smaller tents.

BTW, I picked up a Sierra Designs Meteor at an REI used gear sale for $20. Had one or two bent pole sections, but nothing that had any effect on the tent. I really like it.

[AndrewP]

These are not light, but the best car camping tents I have ever seen for less than crazy money. Seriously these are good, heavy duty, waterproof and wind proof.

I have the 4 man version which is a squeeze for 4 but styling for 2.

http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/pod/horizontal-pod.jsp?_DARGS=/cabelas/en/common/catalog/pod-link.jsp_A&_DAV=MainCatcat20075&rid=&indexId=cat20103&navAction=push&navCount=1&parentType=index&parentId=cat20103&id=0006263

[paulj]

If I had a $1000 or more to spend on a large tent, I'd seriously consider a Kifaru tipi, especially if I wanted to use it in cool weather.

http://www.kifaru.net/TIPI.HTM

The largest, a 16 man size, has a 20' diameter floor plan, but weighs only 15 lb. And it's a Colorado outfit. The owner started MountainSmith.

paulj

[durango_60]

I am extremely impressed with my North Face Basecamp 6 person tent. We have had it out in some pretty serious wind/rainstorms it performed flawlessly.

[vanguard]

FWIW, I just bought this tent at target: http://www.target.com/gp/detail.html/ref=br_1_1/601-5913939-2512167?%5Fencoding=UTF8&frombrowse=1&asin=B000E7ZK2M

Aside from the test run in the back yard its maiden voyage was last weekend. The rain was horrible, I can't emphasize that enough. It was a "100 year storm" kind of event, roads were shutting down, and flash floods were all over.

The tent leaked by the back door and by one of the windows, which I suppose is normal for a cheap tent in bad rain. Anyway, I thought I'd throw it out there as another data point for you. The poles, fabric, etc, all held up well to the wind and I can set it up by myself.

[Jonathan Hanson]

Ron, I've reviewed more tents than I can remember, and watched with sadness as some formerly high-quality brands such as Eureka have slipped (although their smaller Timberline models are mostly still okay).

Definitely stay away from fiberglass poles. Look for either Easton or DAC aluminum.

You might try the Sierra Designs Bedouin 6 (or, per Ducktapeguy's good suggestion, two Bedouin 4s). The Sierra Designs Mothership is a really sturdy base camp tent, and huge. And look at the stuff from Paha Que, which is all top quality.

[fj803fe]

I am extremely impressed with my North Face Basecamp 6 person tent. We have had it out in some pretty serious wind/rainstorms it performed flawlessly.

Another vote to the basecamp. Ours is the basecamp8

Low profile with the fly, aerodynamic, and a friggin apartment sized interior. my wife gotg our idea for it from D60

[Colorado Ron]

Just to give you guys an update. I was upset about missing the latest trip to Leadville so while in Michigan I decided to run off to Cabelas. Spent way more on gear than I should have but couldnt resist. They had all the tents set up outside and I got to do a side by side comparison. One stood way ahead of the rest in my opinion.
http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/product/standard-item.jsp?_DARGS=/cabelas/en/common/catalog/item-link.jsp_A&_DAV=MainCatcat20075&id=0024840516306a&navCount=5&podId=0024840&parentId=cat550002&navAction=push&catalogCode=IG&rid=&parentType=index&indexId=cat550002&hasJS=true

I got the 12X12. I set it up in my backyard just to check it out. Very nice quality! Ill be testing it out this coming weekend:victory:

[Jonathan Hanson]

Nice, Ron! Let us know how it performs in weather.