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Author Topic: a big thank you  (Read 6629 times)

VMCC

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a big thank you
« on: November 07, 2010 »

I would just like to say thank you to forum admin for adding the word 'campsite' to to subtitle. As a campsite camper I hope to make a lot of use out of the forum and hope others do too.

Here's a couple of my tents











RedLeader

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Re: a big thank you
« Reply #1 on: November 08, 2010 »

That's quite a collection. People make fun of me for my tent collection but you defo have more :P
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VMCC

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Re: a big thank you
« Reply #2 on: November 08, 2010 »

lol I have another 3. A small Vango dart, a Royal Tarn 4 and a Vango Juno 500 which is the comedy tee pee one.

RedLeader

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Re: a big thank you
« Reply #3 on: November 08, 2010 »

Think I saw you mention it elsewhere, but I have a Juno 300 (which I love) and it's worth mentioning that it is good, stable tent. People look at them and think they're for gentle weather but there's a reason the teepee shape has been popular for so long - it's very efficient in the wind! The single sheet element is more of a problem - condensation does build up but I've never gotten wet..

lol I have another 3. A small Vango dart, a Royal Tarn 4 and a Vango Juno 500 which is the comedy tee pee one.
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Belfastman1958

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Re: a big thank you
« Reply #4 on: November 08, 2010 »

Please let me say this to the moderators.....

I have never been more interested in this site than I have while reading this thread.

It's has been all about getting out and wild/campsite camping with ordinary gear without trying to say who has the biggest/baddest/bestest stuff.

Brilliant thread.....keep them coming.

Alan.
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VMCC

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Re: a big thank you
« Reply #5 on: November 08, 2010 »

That's very kind of you Belfastman

Redleader, I only got the Juno 500 a fortnight ago, and put it up once to check all was there. I was very impressed by how strong it is, and mine is bright purple and green which is why I call it the comedy tent.
It has a huge gap along the front door which should aid with ventilation, and I am trying to work out some way of making an inner tent, a bit like a mosquito net, hanging it from the centre pole and tucking it around the airbed/si mat (whichever solution I'll use) with maybe a zip in it or at least ties so that it retains a little bit of warmth as that front door could be very draughty. It would, if it worked out, look a bit like the inners you get for a bell tent.

Do you use the 300 for backpacking? I know my 500 has quite a big packsize you'd have a heart attack trying to get that one up a mountain! At least I would anyway.

My ultimate tent would be some Dutch Canvas. Again a huge packsize and very heavy but they're so beautiful that they are like a work of art.


http://www.dewaardtenten.nl/tenten.html




but a more budget conscious version can be found here at Obelinks site

http://www.tent-tents.com/overzichtpagina2.asp?cat=1&id=21&pagina=1

Belfastman1958

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Re: a big thank you
« Reply #6 on: November 08, 2010 »

Two summers ago I bought a RAGE DREMMEN and I'm well pleased with it.

8 berth family tent with sewn in groundsheet too.

Only dislike that I have about it is that there are two doors in it, both opposite each other, in the sides of the tent. These doors have no way of fastening them along the bottom and I'm looking to stick/sew a long piece of velcro along it to seal it off. (Anyone any thoughts on a good tent maker who could do this job for me?)

All in all a great tent for only £110 from the Bay of Evil.

Alan.
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VMCC

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Re: a big thank you
« Reply #7 on: November 08, 2010 »

Belfastman.....Vango brought out the Icarus in 08' and the bottom of the door not being sealed was one of the criticisms of the tent. New models have a toggle in the middle with an O ring on the groundsheet in the middle of the door, which goes some way to solving the flapping if the wind gets up. You could easily do something yourself (does the groundsheet rise at the door?) but I think a few stitches would be better than glueing, but stitch on the storm flap and the groundsheet which are made of the same type of material, not the tent fabric as you'd compromise the waterproofing.

I'd suggest that you don't want to completely close it up, as a tent with SIG needs to be ventilated all the more because of the SIG - and you might have a problem with condensation if you seal the tent completely.


« Last Edit: November 08, 2010 by Victoriamcc »
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Belfastman1958

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Re: a big thank you
« Reply #8 on: November 08, 2010 »

True enough. Never thought about ventilation from the lower level.

I have some fine mesh netting that I might get sewn into the flap instead, but as for the door? - it's getting sewn up.

I must say, the SIG is great on a larger tent for keeping stray draughts out at night. We were well pleased on our first trip out.

Alan.
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suspectmonkey

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Re: a big thank you
« Reply #9 on: November 08, 2010 »

Please let me say this to the moderators.....

I have never been more interested in this site than I have while reading this thread.

It's has been all about getting out and wild/campsite camping with ordinary gear without trying to say who has the biggest/baddest/bestest stuff.

Brilliant thread.....keep them coming.

Alan.

I would say there has always been a diverse range of camping aficionados using this forum.  Personally I was brought up going away in the caravan most weekends of the summer with my parents, and they are some of the most memorable days of my life.  I loved playing in the forests at Gosford and Castlewellan on the "Touring in the Trees" sites.  Once I was old enough to drive I started taking the tent to Tollymore, and then found Meelmore Lodge.  Just a couple of years ago Kat and I took a massive family tent to Wicklow for a week and had a great time touring around there. 

Now I prefer to wild camp, but rather than being about having biggest/badest/bestest stuff its actually about the complete opposite.  Before I used to spend hours loading up the car with tonnes of kit; big family tent, double ring gas burner and grill, camp tables, chairs, inflatable beds etc.  Now don't get me wrong, I love all that, but it was so much effort packing and unpacking for what were essentially shorts trips.  So I found NI-Wild, ended up buying a two man Vango Tempest tent and now I've been enjoying the simplicity of camping with everything you need fitted into a small rucksack.  I find that quite liberating and really don't miss the big tent!  I still enjoy going to camp sites like Meelmore Lodge though, so its not all about wild camping in forests or summits.

One thing I do really fancy is a camper van!  I'd love to buy a Volkswagen Transporter van and convert it to a small, two man bunk camper.  Don't have the time or money at the moment but that's definitely on my list of things to do.  Guess it says it all when the calendar beside my desk at work is the 2010 VW Camper calendar ;)

At the end of the day the content of the forum is driven by its members, so if you want more chat about family tents and camp site camping then post away.  You'll probably be surprised how many people participate!  We did try to organise a NI-Wild "Super Meet" earlier in the summer with the plan of having a big family camp at a "proper" camp site, but there didn't seem to be much interest at the time and it was shelved... maybe its one for summer 2011?
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VMCC

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Re: a big thank you
« Reply #10 on: November 08, 2010 »

I have to say a VW would be the only thing that would compete with a tent for me, and even then I'd probably stick my quechua pop up on the side and use it as a drive away awning.

I get what you say about taking loads of stuff. I've been trying to hone my camping gear so that it doesn't represent a whole lot of work when I get to site. My main tent is a 10 minute job, and I try to take enough to be comfortable but not so much that it ruins the holiday. So although I like to have EHU so I can have a proper kettle and a small fan heater, I don't want a TV and lots of gadgets. In fact I go to get away from that.

I started carrying everything in a narrow set of plastic drawers, which holds my first aid kit, plates and bowls, pack of cards, torches, all the little things. I put it from the shed into my hatchback then lift it straight into my tent when I get to site. I use a small toolbox to carry cutlery, and it has places in the top to store satchets of sugar, coffee, salt and pepper and a few clothes pegs. When I go camping I need to feed alot of people so I really need a useful kitchen. I've used the Quechua pop up as a dedicated kitchen tent in the past which really worked well. I tend to have alot of day visitors, I'll be somewhere in NI and a portion of my family will come for a visit.

I use another toolbox to carry spare pegs of different types and a mallet, and it also has my tenacious tape as well as cable ties and bungee cord. I can do repairs on site if I need to. I have a comprehensive camping list, but it gets modified on every trip. I didn't take any EHU around England for example, as I wanted the freedom to choose a good pitch not only the ones with electricity, and of course not every site has electricity. So I took the insulated coolbox instead of my 12v one, and dispensed with the lights and kettle. I used a suitcase stove and a whistle kettle instead, and l.e.d. lights at night. But if I'm going somewhere I know I can use EHU I change the type of stuff I take.

I do find buying camping gear a bit addictive though. Some ladies like to buy shoes, so this is my thing.


 

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