The only quibble is the entrance - there's nothing to stop water pissing in when you unzip it to go out.
Get a canopy or tarp:
http://www.gooutdoors.co.uk/camping/tent-accessories/canopies
That's why we have that green canopy shown in my photo. Keeps the doorway dry and provides just enough space to cook in if required. Ours is the "Freedom Trail FT Universal Canopy" which is £35 from Go Outdoors. Only used it once but seems pretty good so far.
(Fancier canopies are available)
Ha ha. I'd love to see you putting our tent up properly in 15 mins. I'm not talking about slinging it up as fast as possible. I'm talking about putting it up properly keeping track of where the bags and ties are, putting stuff away as you go along etc.The footprint has 8 pegs for a start and laying it out/orienting it takes longer than a minute, if you want to avoid creases and get it taut.
The tent is to big to unroll by flinging it out. It is folded before being rolled. Once you've unrolled and unfolded it you need to make sure it's the correct way round and rotate if necessary.
Stumpy, I reckon you have the wrong tent... but also a bit of left over scouts ???
I often don't repack the tent between pitches when with a car... I just roll it up (the groundsheet is often wet anyway)
Then I fling it out from the front .. if its really windy I'll leave the car in front as a windbrake anyway..
Once it's at this stage there is generally a bit of tweaking to get the inside flat, or you end up with areas where the groundsheet lifts.
If you have the groundsheet sewn[u] into the inner [/u] you can split this...
I'll often go and repeg the outer a bit later, once everything else is done..especially if it looks windy or if I ended up putting in pegs not quite where I wanted (usually when its rocky ground) but the focus is getting the tent up...
Due to the design that means you can be a bit sloppy and correct later but I still struggle to see how an inflatable can be that much quicker...
This isn't a particularly expensive tent ... from memory it was bought at Decathalon (though in France where they have more choice perhaps) and was a quick replacement to an expensive one that went missing with all my luggage flying from Italy
question - how essential is a footprint ? They seem to come as options on more expensive ones, but not on the Decathlon Air Seconds. I have a tarp that can be folded to approx size....
stumpy, to be fair, I have no idea! Only looked at internet pictures, and it
looks like ours, but a bit bigger with one extra pole and a couple of extra clips. Still, I'm sure you can shave a bit off your 45mins. Putting up ours takes about half the time if I'm actually thinking about it.
One simple investment that did speed up our erection a little bit (giggity) was buying an second mallet and peg bag.
We have a Kampa Croyde 6 Classic Air. The polycotton and air combined make it very big and bulky, almost half of the Octavia's boot. It is however very easy to put up solo and even easier to put away.
Ian C - Footprint is pretty much essential to keep the tent clean and dry when packing away (sewn in ground sheet gets rolled up with fly sheet if not). If you do you own make sure its sits inside the extremities slightly, if not when it rains water will pool between the ground sheets.
One simple investment that did speed up our erection a little bit (giggity) was buying an second mallet and peg bag.
Forget mallets, you want an [url= https://www.msrgear.com/ie/tents/stake-hammer ]MSR Stake Hammer[/url] -
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Other than that, I've used both the Vango AirBeam tents and awnings and both have been brilliant. They pitch all in one, so basically all you do is peg the corners, inflate three or four air tubes with the pump supplied then peg the rest and guy as needed.
Also, as a few folk have said already, because the beams tend to deform and spring back in strong winds rather than failing catastrophically, they are deceptively tough.
stevextc - Member
...but I still struggle to see how an inflatable can be that much quicker...
It's definitely quicker as a one man job.
Roll it out, peg, inflate, guy ropes. Minimal faff.
Forget mallets, you want an MSR Stake Hammer -
Pretty! But I suspect a little more expensive than the generic rubber headed mallet from the bargain bin at Go Outdoors 😉
And I'm not sure I'd want my wife swinging that sharp looking claw next to an inflatable tent!! 😯
Watch out for those cheap mallets GrahamS - last trip we had I had a comedy "mallet on head" moment as the head came off as I was pegging out the tent. Flew off on the upstroke and clocked me on the nut! 🙂
We have a Vango Solaris 600 airbeam tent and it's great. As has been said already, I can put it up on my own so the Mrs can entertain the kids whilst I do the donkey work 🙂
Nice and tall so you can stand up inside, nice big living area so we can play games etc at night. Will be buying a side awning for it soon so we have a bit more room to store junk and wet gear.
They are big and heavy, but no more so than equivalently sized pole tents (~20kg airbeam vs ~19kg poled, pack size is similar too).
I have an unused footprint for a Vango tent if anyone needs one (it's the wrong size for my tent):
http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/fs-vango-tent-footprint
It's definitely quicker as a one man job.
Roll it out, peg, inflate, guy ropes. Minimal faff.
Ah, yep I guess one-man (or woman)
I've always done family sized tents with 2 adults.... but I also choose family sized tents specifically on how easy it is to put up (which means actually seeing it in person).... (I found more expensive isn't always better in that regard)
I have a trip coming up with just me and Jnr ... so I guess I'll see how it goes with 1 adult and 1 7yr old....(with an attention span of a goldfish)
Based on my earlier post, I went to Decathlon at lunchtime where they have loads set up, outside, in the hosing rain. The Air Seconds Family 4.1 XL is the one I was keen to see :
Quite impressed with it in the flesh - very heavy rain, place was bone dry inside and not being affected by the blustery conditions. Seemed well enough made for weekend use so have ordered one in.
I take back my original advice on the Quechua ones then iain. Glad you liked what you saw.
I'd say a footprint is handy as a bit of extra protection for the sewn-in groundsheet tents. Just make sure you order something same size or (just) smaller. Something bigger will cause water to wick under and pool between tarp and SIG. Your tent will have a footprint size on the Decathlon website. Note size, go to eBay, search for "tent footprint" and there are any number of sellers selling tarps in a variety of sizes. Pick up a bag of the eyelet pegs while you're at it. For the Decathlon 4-mans, a footprint tarp should be less than £20 delivered.
EDIT: don't forget the pump! AFAIK, Decathlon don't include one with the tent.
thanks DD - the tent footprint size is 4.8 by 2.9, which includes a tapered section of porch area. Decathlon do a 4 by 3 footprint for £13, so I got that, as I reckon the 5 cm each side will be lost under the pegs. Pump also purchased, along with some spare hard ground pegs and a new mallet. some great advice on this thread, cheers.
^^^ in the living section it is spacious - I am 5 ft 10 and my head was well below the roof, I reckon you'd need to be well over 6 ft to get close. The sleeping bit is similar at the entrance, quickly tapering down to where your head would be when lying.
That's good to know, thank you. I'm 6ft and quite often find i have 50cm sq to stand up in most tents
I've got the Air Seconds 4.2 XL and it's a great tent. Goes up quick and easy, plenty of space, and has stood up to some fairly horrible weather. Just been to get it out of storage ready for a trip to Wales this weekend.
^^^^ I looked at that one, but couldn't really justify the extra cost - it's usually just me and my 2 boys on 'dads and kids' trips while the better halfs do other things 🙂
GrahamS - Member
Forget mallets, you want an MSR Stake Hammer -
Pretty! But I suspect a little more expensive than the generic rubber headed mallet from the bargain bin at Go Outdoors
Ah, but the MSR Stake Hammer doubles as a heavy duty bottle opener. Not only that, but it leaves the removed bottle top absolutely flat, making it ideal for anyone with one of those beer cap headset caps 🙂
That aside, I think they're about 20 quid, but the thing should last for decades unlike cheapo rubber mallets which routinely snap in use ime. They're also dead sexy and draw endless compliments from passers-by of both genders. 😉
They're also dead sexy and draw endless compliments from passers-by of both genders
Cutting quite a dash down at the annual Serial Killer Camping Club annual jamboree?
Cutting quite a dash down at the annual Serial Killer Camping Club annual jamboree?
annually held at Hoddam, innit ? 🙂
Not any more. Numbers have been dwindling year on year.
Just me left now.
^^^^ that's scarey 🙂 .....heading there for a dads and weans weekend end of the month....
.....and now I know what your tent looks like.
Sweet Dreams. 😉
it's ok, we have a GP and 2 First Aiders in the group 🙂
(edit, if you're going to be there weekend of fri 30/sat 1st drop me a note and we'll grab a pint..)
What's currently also p*ssing me off is the number of tents on eBay listed as "New other" which have descriptions like "thanks for looking at my tent! We bought it last year and we've used it for three week-long family holidays, but it's in really good condition, it just has a couple of little tears" ...THAT'S NOT NEW THEN IS IT?
We have the Air Seconds 4.2XL. An excellent tent all round. I'm 6' and can stand comfortably in the main living area. Lots a really useful well thought out features, such as the ground sheet stops short at the door with a decent lip so you can get in out of the rain and take your boots off on the grass without spreading water and mud all over the living area. Good storage, plenty of family space. It's withstood plenty of weather, and as others have said, in the wind it flexes really well, rather the the usual snapped fibreglass poles of most equivalently priced tents of that size. It's not light, it's very bulky, but as a car camping family tent I really cannot rate it highly enough.
K
(edit, if you're going to be there weekend of fri 30/sat 1st drop me a note and we'll grab a pint..)
Would've loved to , but we're away to Cornwall the following weekend so that weekend is gardening / packing / fitting roof boxes etc.
we got a berghaus air 4 after last year in the sales and asking on here, its great, super quick to get set up and great when you're in it and stands up to weather fine. Family of 4 and me at 6'3" no issues with space. only issues are it needs a porch / canopy, the matching berghaus one is almost as much as the tent was, so will try one of those one grahams has if i can cope with a green canopy on a blue tent! the bag it goes in takes up loads of room in the car and taking it down in the rain is no less a miserable experience than a poled tent and if you're in a hurry you can't just chuck the different bits in hte car and leave, ie flysheet/inner and poles etc its all connected and has to go back in the bag in a specific way! otherwise all good!
Fenboy, the porch for the air4 is quite pricey but it is huge.
thanks mr blobby, we're going to try the cheaper canopy on a trip in a couple of weeks and decide if we need the proper porch then! it would be useful as the kids grow as it almost doubles the tent size!
Couple of Qs
Are you sizing up? I would always buy an extra persons worth of space i.e. 5 or 6 man for 4 people, but it looks like you're buying a 4 man for 4 people, hows the space?
Where are dog owners putting their dogs? Inside the awning or in a room? 1 of my 2 dogs has been camping with me, but that's either floorless shelters (a mid or a tipi) or tarps so no worries about traipsing wet or mud through
Fenboy, the porch for the air4 is quite pricey but it is huge.
If you wait until the end of the season it's a bargain 😉
Are you sizing up? I would always buy an extra persons worth of space i.e. 5 or 6 man for 4 people, but it looks like you're buying a 4 man for 4 people, hows the space?
Mrs Dubs & I have the air 4 for just us. We have the porch as well for a bit of extra room / bike garage if we need it.
right o! ta MRs Dubs will wait for the end of the 'season' and get the porch!
My 4 man Air Seconds 4.2 XL is my solo tent when I want space at an event if I'm either taking part or marshalling. Plenty of space to sit around and talk rubbish whilst getting drunk out of the rain, get changed and so on. Feels like a place compared to the Banshee 200 that I use if I'm short on space...
I was dithering between the 4.1xl and 4.2xl, but as it's usually just me and the boys (11 and 14) I reckoned one big sleep area and a biggger living space swung it towards the 4.1. That said I think the 4.2 looks more sturdy....
GrahamS - Member
If you can hold out get one in winter when the prices drop!
"Now is the winter of our discount tents"?
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I've fancied getting a bigger tent than the 3-person I bought at Millets five or six years ago, but as it's YT who has to pitch the thing then take it down, going bigger is just going to add to the phaff-factor.
I'd seen inflatables a while back, I think they were the geodesic type, which looked amazing, but were sodding expensive, so this thread has been very informative.
I've just had a look at the Air Seconds 4.2 XL, and I've found it going for around £350, which is half what I'd be paying for B&B at the pub in the village where I usually go, and looks absolutely ideal for pitching up and setting up single-handed, and giving me space to be able to move around without crawling if the weather takes a turn for the inclement.
I don't have kids to worry about, it's just me on my tod, so minimal kit as well, just S/A mattress and bag, and I could use one of those air lounger jobbies inside if I needed a bit of luxury.
Is there anything wrong with this picture of sybaritic luxury away from home for a reasonable period of time, a week to nine or so days?
It'll all go in the back of my Octavia, which should have plenty of room.
Think the new 4.2 XL is that price, which has the blackout bedrooms and a few other new features. The previous model is still available for £280.
Looking at the forecast for the next couple of days I'm glad it's the tent I've brought with me...
Hmmm, £280 looks like an even better number...
This bears a closer look at, methinks; I've fancied a bigger tent, just to have space to stand up in, if nothing else, but being able to use a double S/I mattress would be added luxury as well, and just not going stir crazy in a small space if summer turns to winter overnight.
What's put me off is wrestling with loads of really long poles and acres of nylon when it's just me fighting with it.
Unless you need 2 bedroom sections the 4.1xl has a bigger living area, plus the bonus of one big airy sleep bit.
On camp at the moment so in the interests of science I timed our erection (diggity).
2 adults, 6 man (allegedly, realistically 4) family tent pictured earlier, ideal soft grassy pitch and no wind:
15 mins to the initial pitch (separate footprint down, tent pegged at 6 main anchor points only, poles in, standing proud).
35 mins till full pitch (all guys tensioned, skirt pegged, inners/bedrooms up, carpet down).
That was a good time (for us) in pretty much ideal conditions.
Not counted: additional hour or so ferrying stuff from the car, inflating beds, adding awning etc.
Was it on Strava? If not...
No, but performed under strict test conditions under the watchful eye of beaver/cub leaders, so hopefully it still counts 😆