Chinese copies

[Deleted account 240831001]

I was idly looking at tents yesterday (as you do) thinking that what I don’t have is a tipi and how the purchase of one would dramatically enhance the quality of my life and it came to my attention that there are literally hundreds of tents that are obviously copies of well respected brands for sale at less than 1/4 of the price.

That’s all well and good if you’re going to be camping on a campsite next to your car where if it leaks or rips in high wind it doesn’t really matter but if you’re away on a motorbike or halfway up a mountain it’s going to be seriously bad news.

I fully accept that the majority of top end tents will be made in China but the big difference there will be the quality of materials and the actual quality controls put in place by the parent company but looking at some of the advertisements it’s going to be hard to tell if the pole thickness and material specifications are the same on a cheap tent as they are on something like the Quasar I use in the winter and I’ve felt the need to get dressed and pack everything away in the middle of the night when I thought that was going to collapse like a wet paper bag

Anyway, Tipi tents. There are loads out there at what appear to be bargain prices but I think given my doubts regarding the quality of budget brand Chinese manufacturing I’d be better off using a trekking pole and a tarp

 

[TIJ650]

Wouldn’t buy anything Chinese unless as you say, governed by stringent Western quality control.
Friend had a Chinese bike stand that collapsed beneath his beloved Road Glide last year. Think it was actually branded by Abba too

 

[Orinoco]

YouTube has loads of videos of Chinese tents being tried out, start with Naturehike and go from there

 

[Deleted account 240831001]

YouTube has loads of videos of Chinese tents being tried out, start with Naturehike and go from there

Are they trying them out over a February night high up in the Cairngorms?

The last time I spent a night in a cheap tent it was one my wife purchased as a ‘disposable’ when we were doing the Chimay race weekend as the first stage of 2 weeks away when every other night we’d be in hotels. It leaked badly, the zip on the door split open in the wind and I rode to the nearest town selling tents the following morning for a replacement. Never again

 

[Udders]

If you want a surprisingly strong, roomy, lightweight tent that packs down to very little then you won’t go far wrong with a Durston X Mid. ( there are various sizes and materials ). They use trekking poles and are amazingly stable with only 4 tent pegs and two poles. ( either trekking poles or their own lightweight telescopic poles ). You don’t have the issue of a central pole then either. Sort of similar to a tipi tent. Ooh, I’ve just realised they’re made in China! Arse.

Durston

Durston designs premium ultralight outdoor gear in the heart of the Canadian Rockies. With our award winning X-Mid tents and Kakwa packs, we create highly functional gear that genuinely improves your backcountry experience.

durstongear.com

 

[Deleted account 240831001]

Durston meet my requirements to be a brand made to European or North American designs and standards. Unfortunately They don’t meet my requirements for a tent I can carry in my car, stand up in, have room for a large dog and still be suitable for winter ‘base camp’ type use where I can pitch it and go for daily walks in the hills then come back and cook for myself inside the tent.

 

[Udders]

You didn’t say you wanted to be able to stand up in it!

 

[Deleted account 240831001]

You didn’t say you wanted to be able to stand up in it!

I said I wanted a tipi and in most cases you can stand up in a tipi.

I’ve got a choice of a Goretex single skin one man tent, a normal Quasar, an extended porch Quasar, a Vango Force 10 and a couple of small tents for summer use on the bike. The one common denominator is that I can’t stand up in any of them but unless I can find a good quality tipi at a price I’m willing to pay there’ll be no additions.

 

[snelly]

Durston meet my requirements to be a brand made to European or North American designs and standards. Unfortunately They don’t meet my requirements for a tent I can carry in my car, stand up in, have room for a large dog and still be suitable for winter ‘base camp’ type use where I can pitch it and go for daily walks in the hills then come back and cook for myself inside the tent.

Even without the wind and rain a teepee would be fuckin freezing in winter unless your thinking of a small stove and pipe in there aswell;; the biggest problems with tall tents is the warmth; a couple of mates at Chimay have used teepee tents and both said the same with reguards to them being colder ;; i have a 3 man wild country that you can stand in if your under 6 ft and that is colder than my Vango's; another problem with the teepee is water runing in when you open the fuckin door; you really do have to improvise with a tarp covering the front door;; as for how tough they are; i've never seen one properly tested but looking at the shape i would have said they would shed the weather well; i would ask a red indian or eskimo for a better answer;

 

[Deleted account 240831001]

Even without the wind and rain a teepee would be fuckin freezing in winter unless your thinking of a small stove and pipe in there aswell;; the biggest problems with tall tents is the warmth; a couple of mates at Chimay have used teepee tents and both said the same with reguards to them being colder ;; i have a 3 man wild country that you can stand in if your under 6 ft and that is colder than my Vango's; another problem with the teepee is water runing in when you open the fuckin door; you really do have to improvise with a tarp covering the front door;; as for how tough they are; i've never seen one properly tested but looking at the shape i would have said they would shed the weather well; i would ask a red indian or eskimo for a better answer;

Funnily enough the option of a stove is one that’s been considered. I shared beers and dinner in a massive tipi with some German friends at a rally a number of years ago and they had a wood burner set to one side for warmth plus a central fire pit for cooking on but they’d perfected their set up over a lot of years and had made a large stainless steel flue for the fire pit. Would I sleep in there with a dozen drunken fools who insisted on carrying on cooking and drinking while anyone was still standing? No chance, I had my tent there

 

[ogri-nic]

I have had a tipi by Wolftents.dk for a number of years... now at the end of its life and unfortunately the company no longer sells them. The only real problem is the loss of usable floorspace when compared to a bell tent design.

My tipi stood up to severe winds and heavy rain on many an occasion over the 15 years that it was my main use tent. If you wanted warmer, you could get a bedroom section to go up inside but that increased the pack volume/weight. Just the tent and the groundsheet for the 8 person size was lighter and smaller pack size than the 2 person Khyam biker!

 

[Deleted account 240831001]

I have had a tipi by Wolftents.dk for a number of years... now at the end of its life and unfortunately the company no longer sells them. The only real problem is the loss of usable floorspace when compared to a bell tent design.

My tipi stood up to severe winds and heavy rain on many an occasion over the 15 years that it was my main use tent. If you wanted warmer, you could get a bedroom section to go up inside but that increased the pack volume/weight. Just the tent and the groundsheet for the 8 person size was lighter and smaller pack size than the 2 person Khyam biker!

It’s funny you should say that because I’ve just ordered one of these

Nordisk Asgard 7.1 3P Tent

Let the good times roll with the Asgard 7.1; designed for those looking to get the most out of their camping experiences. From festival partying to relaxing at

www.outsidersstore.com

Which until I ordered the last one Ellis Brigham were offering for £283 (plus vat)

Because I’m not really wired up correctly I also ordered an inner tent

Nordisk Asgard 7.1 2P Cabin

A two person sleeping cabin for the Asgard 7.1, it provides additional living comfort. Ground level windows align with the outer windows for light and

www.ellis-brigham.com

Pack size is horrendous as is the weight but if you exclude the inner tent it’s roughly the same as my Vango Force 10 so for car camping it’s acceptable. I might use a tarp as an additional shelter for cooking but I doubt it, there’ll be plenty of room for a small table inside and the only time it’ll be used will be when I take the crazy Labrador away for a couple of days walking which usually involves pub meals.

 

[Stelvioni]

I bought a Tentipi in Norway 21+years ago, and it's still going strong. Expensive, but lots of other tents have worn out in the meantime and this is still like new. One of my best purchases ever, and divide the price by the longevity you'll get and it's not bad at all.

 

[Deleted account 240831001]

I’ve fancied having a tipi for a few years but considered them to be a bit expensive and Brighams were offering a pretty hefty discount compared to MRP. The Nordisk ones are supposed to be made to European standards (though they do seem to be a bit coy about where they’re actually manufactured) so I’d expect them to be well made out of reasonably good quality materials though only time will tell.

Last time I looked for one I nearly pressed the button on a slightly bigger one but it was over a grand with no inner tent so I decided against it but at a shade over £450 for tent plus inner including VAT and postage this time I decided to give it a go

 

[dean0n0]

I think the place for quality tent manufacture is Vietnam.

 

[Tinytim]

I was idly looking at tents yesterday (as you do) thinking that what I don’t have is a tipi and how the purchase of one would dramatically enhance the quality of my life and it came to my attention that there are literally hundreds of tents that are obviously copies of well respected brands for sale at less than 1/4 of the price.

That’s all well and good if you’re going to be camping on a campsite next to your car where if it leaks or rips in high wind it doesn’t really matter but if you’re away on a motorbike or halfway up a mountain it’s going to be seriously bad news.

I fully accept that the majority of top end tents will be made in China but the big difference there will be the quality of materials and the actual quality controls put in place by the parent company but looking at some of the advertisements it’s going to be hard to tell if the pole thickness and material specifications are the same on a cheap tent as they are on something like the Quasar I use in the winter and I’ve felt the need to get dressed and pack everything away in the middle of the night when I thought that was going to collapse like a wet paper bag

Anyway, Tipi tents. There are loads out there at what appear to be bargain prices but I think given my doubts regarding the quality of budget brand Chinese manufacturing I’d be better off using a trekking pole and a tarp

You need to ask @Ex-Call Centre Chimp for advice on tarps . Just saying.

 

[EVskiy]

You didn’t say you wanted to be able to stand up in it!

Or spend a night with a dog

 

[Deleted account 240831001]

Or spend a night with a dog

She likes winter camping in Scotland

 

[ogri-nic]

currently (last 7 years) or so when I want a bigger tent, I have a robins Klondike. it is heavy and slightly bulky but we picked it up as an ex demo tent for about 200 quid! my wife rides her own bike (F800GS) so the extra weight on mine does not matter..... when friends commented I asked if any of their partners weighed less than 16kg... and if they did they may want to be on a Register with the old bill!
however, its a good tent, still going strong, just faded in colour slightly

 

[Pukmeister]

Why not drop diplomaticdanny a PM?There isn’t much he doesn’t know about tents and camping equipment.


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