[Closed] Tents for bike touring

I quite like the look of this one - are Vango any good nowadays? http://www.gooutdoors.co.uk/vango-tempest-200-2-berth-tent-p139965

Like the idea of the porch at the front.

I have a tempest. Its quite a nice tent and it handles a weather bomb admirably. But if you are tall you'll not be sitting upright which would be tiresome.

Look at the Cotswold site, they have some on sale:

[url= http://www.cotswoldoutdoor.com/wild-country-tents-zephyros-2-tent-72110220?id_colour=98 ]Zephyros 2 man [/url]

Also that link shows two different tents in the photos.

I have the first one which i think isn't a tempest.

I'm 5'7" so that should make things easier....
I'd like some space in it though.

Wild Country make some tents just for Sport Direct, I have one but can't remember which model, might be worth a look on their site.

Its a vango mirage i have which is the tent they are showing in the first pic.

Someone will come along and say cheap tents are rubbish and not seam taped. It is and its withstood wind and rain that I genuinely thought would see it fail.

5.7 you'll be grand plenty of space in the inner and the porch. The porch entirely folds into the wee triangular peak away too if the the weather is nice.

Pick one of these up very cheaply. Will be ideal. At around 6ft, I used it to make my weary way from South of France to UK. I found it a tad short but for you there will be loadsa space.

Decathlon do a good range of lightweight tents or some of the Vango ones aimed at backpackers.
I think Alpkit are launching a new range at the end of the week so you may want to look at that.

I use a Lunar Solo tarptent from the states. It's a cracking tent but a bit pricey and you need to get it shipped over. Plenty of room for one person though.
I wouldn't discount the lightweight side of things. If you save a kilo on a light tent - that's the equivalent of a summer bag and an air mat.
For my setup, I have the Lunar Solo, a NeoAir X Lite mat and a cheap Lifeventure summer sown bag (replacing it this year with am ultralight quilt). Tent and mat in the seatpost bag, sleeping bag and clothes in the handlebar dry bag. Tools, tubes in the frame bag and a bum bag/waist pack carrying electricals, cycle jacket, wallet etc:

[url= https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2925/14503105954_2f7b70a084_z.jp g" target="_blank">https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2925/14503105954_2f7b70a084_z.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/o6Ad7W ]IMAG0312[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/people/76053886@N08/ ]DKNWHY[/url], on Flickr

My tent is on the left:

[url= https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2922/14501055381_672fa581f8_z.jp g" target="_blank">https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2922/14501055381_672fa581f8_z.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/o6pGye ]IMG_1192[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/people/76053886@N08/ ]DKNWHY[/url], on Flickr

Any more?

Not cheap but get a hilleberg. Me and my brother used one on our France/Spain bike tour and it's exceptional. Light and small in pack size yet a good size when up with a porch for storage. We have had ours for probably a good 7 years now and it is just like new aside from a few replaced guy ropes. The quality is much better that cheaper stuff we had before but it has outlasted everything before to the point where it has paid for itself.

Tarptent Scarp 1. http://www.tarptent.com/scarp1.html

[url= https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7091/7349580792_4ec88d2d30_b.jp g" target="_blank">https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7091/7349580792_4ec88d2d30_b.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/ccswjd ]P1040204[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/people/22384952@N02/ ]ScotRoutes[/url], on Flickr

Double doors/porch so always somewhere sheltered for cooking and another porch for wet gear storage. And when it's warm, open both for good ventilation.
It's about 1 1/2 man-width so loads of space inside too
Proper double-skin tent for best ventilation and waterproofing.

http://www.ukcampsite.co.uk/tents/p/Vaude-Taurus-II/1715

nice and used often

We have a hilleberg staika. Self standing means easy to erect on any site. Very easy to put up, very good quality. Expensive, but very pleased with it.

I had a Vando Helium and that was ace but died in the summer. I haven't replaced it yet but I've basically narrowed it down to a Terra Nova Polar Micro 2.

I wanted something slightly bigger than the helium but that was <2kg and had short pole sections (i.e. would fit inside a frame traingle). This was the best I could find with going Hillberg sort of money.

Fill yer boots here:

[url= http://www.ultralightoutdoorgear.co.uk/equipment-c3/tents-shelters-c25/all-tents-c148 ]More Tents than you can shake a stick at![/url]

And that's just the one person models . . .

Hth
Marko

Marko - they are all a bit expensive on there. 🙁

I've been using a Terra Nova Laser for a few years, good balance between packed size and inside space. I believe they do it now as a Wild Country model now, bit cheaper and heavier.
[url= https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2922/14474124020_a7a09b117e.jp g" target="_blank">https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2922/14474124020_a7a09b117e.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/o42ENq ]
P1030125[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/people/107347896@N06/ ]pickers48[/url], on Flickr

I quite like the look of this one - are Vango any good nowadays? http://www.gooutdoors.co.uk/vango-tempest-200-2-berth-tent-p139965

Like the idea of the porch at the front.

Yep - great tent for the price and it's what I used on [url= http://singletrackmag.com/forum/topic/a-little-report-from-my-trip-to-slovenia-pic-heavy ]my trip to slovenia![/url]

How about a Wild Country Zephros 2 xl lite? I got one last year and its been great. Big for one person,light enough, and a half decent packed size.

Heres a couple of pics,with a mat to give rough idea of size.

[url= https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3907/14939069066_534479ae9e_s.jp g" target="_blank">https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3907/14939069066_534479ae9e_s.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/oL7CLj ]SAM_0566[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/people/100876064@N05/ ]philipdixon36[/url], on Flickr

[url= https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3835/14775598678_cc075bc004_s.jp g" target="_blank">https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3835/14775598678_cc075bc004_s.jp g"/> [/img][/url][url= https://flic.kr/p/ovENHm ]SAM_0567[/url] by [url= https://www.flickr.com/people/100876064@N05/ ]philipdixon36[/url], on Flickr

EDIT. A quick google search doesnt show much available any more,only saw one place and that was £230 🙁 ,perhaps they stopped doing them for some reason.

they are all a bit expensive on there.

More to give you an idea of what's available really. Weight is going to be the issue with any tent on a bike and as ever less is more (money).

Marko

Highly recommend Hilleberg - we (2 people) used a 3-person one for two years' cycling in Africa and it's still going strong. Lightweight for the size/durability/function/waterproofness too. They're not cheap though, but well worth it if you can afford the price.

Terra Nova are a little cheaper and also make very good tents.

Plenty of cheap rubbish around too which will be fine for most purposes but will be relatively heavy and not last as long. Bit like bikes really.

Cheap, but good! Vango banshee. Waaaay better than the £62 in sales cost suggests.
If you can find one, they also used to make an Apex model, that was cheap, small and you could sit upright in, but maybe not full on mountain tent.

Gelert Solo Lite if you can find one. About £40, decent little tent unless you plan on being up high in serious weather.

Terra Nova Superlite Voyager here - palatial for 1 - tight squeeze for 2. Weighs nowt but well tough - I've had it out in some proper mountain weather - none of yer campsites - and it stands up well.

Heavy or cold weather - Hilleberg Soulo. Heavier than the Voyager but absolutely bomber any time any weather any place..

Have a look at Coleman tents.

North Face Tadpole. Its a 2 person tent, but I use it on my own for touring, plenty of space for me and all of my stuff. And its high enough to sit up inside. Has coped fine with plenty of wind and rain. Plus it can be set up freestanding (without any pegs) if necessary.

That North Face one is £200. I ain't got that sort of cash. Less than £100 really.

I don't have a sleeping bag and mat either so it's gonna be a big outlay even at the cheap end. I do like the look of those sleeping blankets, I can't stand those mummy bags and I'm not a fan of the square ones either, too restrictive.

I'm not going mega lightweight or off-road, using a proper touring bike.

That Terra Nova tent is £400!!!!! 😯

You can get it for 300 online. Sadly lightweight 3/4 season tents cost a bit. There are cheaper options but the weight goes up.

I have a Tempest too. Decent tent for the price, and squeezes nicely on to a pannier rack. Was thinking of replacing it with something smaller though, as I originally thought along the same lines as yourself, but in practice, for what I've used it for, it seems overkill. It is a good size though. Comfortable.

More to give you an idea of what's available really. Weight is going to be the issue with any tent on a bike and as ever less is more (money).
Marko

I know you can spend any money you want to on a tent. My original post asked if a £80 tent is any good. Recommending a £400 is kinda missing the point.

Butcher - thanks.

I stand by my earlier comment 🙂 No need to get all super high tech. £65 tent take regular dumps to keep the weight in check.

You can spend too much time comparing specs, JFDI is my motto

TNF Solo 12. Weighs 1kg, single skin, surprisingly good in strong winds especially given I never use the guys. Obviously no room for cooking, it's well vented, but you'll need them open all the time or else it gets a little clammy. £85 from cotswold on offer iirc.

Terra Nova Laser Competetion.
The one with two doors.
More than five years use and no tears or damage. Recommended
P.S I got a second from Terra Nova for £195.

Spend your money on caffeine and 'phets, and smash the 260miles out in one go....?!

Sorted...

DrP

I've got a Gelert Solo and for £30 its amazing.
Its in one of the pictures near the start. Around 1.3kg I think. Pegs can be changed to drop the weight further if needed. It's not bulky and easily fits between the hoods on a road bike.

Have a look for a Coleman Bedrock 2, a few years old now,but if you can get one they're great.

Terra Nova Laser Competetion.
The one with two doors.
More than five years use and no tears or damage. Recommended
P.S I got a second from Terra Nova for £195.

£250. Bit more than £100!!

I have a Coleman Phad X3 i think its called. Really nice tent, dead easy to put up though it isnt the smallest or lightest tent. I think they do a 2 man version which would suit?

I'v heard really good things about the terra nova tents though.

My original post asked if a £80 tent is any good. Recommending a £400 is kinda missing the point.

No mention of £80 in your original post?

😯

Tent prices are tricky. I guess it depends not just what you are planning on doing with it but how lucky you turn out to be - the extra could just be a waste if you luck out with some epic weather on your planed trip(s) or that relatively innocuous trip that on paper could almost be done sleeping in the open air is saved by an extra £100 spent on better quality canvas.

I'm needing a new tent for a summer trip - it'll be 2 weeks plus and my uber- minimalist hooped bivvy is both too cramped and too prone to condensation and my 3 man tunnel with massive porch too heavy for a solo trip. Currently oscillating between something pretty cheap and practically throwaway as the trip will be low level continental Europe in the summer or something worth holding onto and a bit more UK mountain walk capable which which I can use at other times too. On the second front the MSR hubba hp (or the larger Hubba Hubba) is currently winning. The Nx version is lighter but less capable of handling some horrible weather in the future.

A gut I met through work sent me a link to this site, lists weights of all tents, which is nice:

http://www.ukcampsite.co.uk/tents/search.asp?m=0&b=1&t=0&g=0&p=0&searchspec=Search+by+spec

Went to Decathlon last night and picked up (literally picked one up, not bought) a 2.75kg tent.

Errrrr, no. Too heavy.

B and B's for me I think or maybe YHA for the time being.

Marko - if you're going to be picky then be my guest but I posted twice very quickly so you could say they were both my first post - the link to the £80 was in my second post.

Dear me this forum is very useful but can be a right chore sometimes.

To be fair Rob, whilst you did mention that £80 tent in your first two posts, you didn't stipulate that the tent in question was an indication of the limit you were prepared to spend; your posts were more focused on the features you were after. My inherited Scottish genes means value for money is never far from the top of the list of my purchasing priorities but I guess we are all different!

I know you can spend any money you want to on a tent. My original post asked if a £80 tent is any good. Recommending a £400 is kinda missing the point.

Not being picky, but I never said buy a £400 tent. I tried to help you by leading you to a good list of many of the options available. Crucially all the tents listed there have the weights listed and as you've now found out for yourself a 2.75 kg tent might be cheap but it's heavy.

The [i]'less is more (money)[/i]' was a clue . . . 🙄

Marko

i got one of these.

I don't expect it to be too long lasting or amazing. but it was cheap and it's light.

http://www.gooutdoors.co.uk/hi-gear-soloista-p217173

Terra Nova Laser Competetion.

P.S I got a second from Terra Nova for £195.

I got a brand new one for £130 after a PSA on here a couple of years ago..
Great bit of kit IMHO.

I bought a Vango blade 100 last summer. It's reasonably light at 1.7kg and has a small pack size. I've only used it once so far in perfect conditions, but it worked well for me although being 6'2" it was about on the limit for internal length. It has a small porch for storing stuff and probably cooking. I have plans for some bikepacking with it when the weather improves.

It's currently pretty cheap (£60) at Go-outdoors

[url= http://www.gooutdoors.co.uk/vango-blade-100-trekking-tent-p261660 ][/url]

Snugpak ionosphere about £130 I think only 1.5kg when packed up in its stuff sac and very good build quality and keep the weather out perfectly spa cycles even stock them cheap for touring cyclists and I think john there uses one himself

Those Vango Blades get good [url= http://www.ukcampsite.co.uk/tents/p/Vango-Blade-200/2981 ]reviews[/url], and don't look like a coffin. Not sure whether to go for the 100 or 200 myself.

I bought a Vango blade 100 last summer.

Currently using the terra nova laser comp sub kg one man tent but need something bigger for when the missus comes along so will be getting one of the superlighweight Cuban fiber tents from www.zpacks.com as soon as I can afford.

I have a Vango Banshee 200 which I got from Go Outdoors. It's been very reliable and it has kept me nice and dry. Tight for two of us on Scarfell in minus 10, had to leave the gear outside. Wind and rain can't recomend it enough - and for £80.

I'm not so stupid that I don't know that the more I pay the lighter it will be. That's obvious. 🙄

Vango banshee gets my vote in your budget - more a 1.5 person for me at 6.2, good for you at 5.7 and your gear inside. Toured Lewis with one a couple of years ago, on the bars. Can't remember the weight but pretty light, sturdy and under £70.

I've had the banshee since 2009 and while its a very tempting balance of weight and price and has served me well, I'd be hard pushed to recommend it for touring.

For one person the floor area is fine but the high area is in the wrong place, you're always trying not to kick/headbutt the inner into the fly. Its a little awkward in general to live in, even for short periods- moving kit around etc. That and cooking- the porch is an awkward shape and I have cooked in there only when necessary from fear of accidents.

If you ever want to get two people in it can be done with little or no kit, but not comfortably! Two blokes of 5'10" have roughed it in their on a few nights but decided in future we'd rather carry a heavier tent! The OH has decided much the same I think. They have at least put a second door on it iirc which deals with one of the major inconveniences.

If it sounds like I'm being harsh, I don't mean too- I'm fond of it, it's served me well and there's no one thing wrong with it but a few little things add up to make it awkward to live with. In your situation I'd either go for a smaller quick to pack hooped bivvi type or more probably suck up a little extra weight for something like a tunnel tent if similar floor dims but more useable head space

Just glancing at the van go list, I'd be looking at something like the helix 200, less than a hundred quid, similar floor space to the banshee, similar weight, Bruce layout, better height.

Bruce layout? Is that autocorrect? Or jargon of which I am sadly ignorant...

This may have been done, and perhaps some models will be out of the budget, but when I worked in a travel/outdoor shop, I was always very impressed with Marmot for the money.

However I went on a 9 month tour with a Lightwave Trek XT. About £300 IIRC, but a damn fine bit of kit, with loads of space in the porch.

At the other end of the scale, i went cycle touring with my girlfriend and we just used a cheapo tent that weighed about 4kg (like this http://www.outdoorcampingdirect.uk/ascent-3-three-person-tent.html )

We very much decided it was a "comfort" bike tour, with stops to look around places and so on, so wanted something big. The porch was big enough to keep stuff in, and you could sit up inside etc.

Strapped the poles to the top tube, and put the tent in a bag on the top of the rack. Everything else went in panniers. I was carrying pretty much everything.

I found the weight fine, and would happily do the same again.

Ah, yes 'bruce' should be 'floor' which is quite an impressive leap by autocorrect