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Anyone care to recommend a top quality lightweight portable chair for use when watching offspring at sports events. Foldable, robust and lightweight so easy to carry from distant car parks to the actual event… There are plenty on Amazon but quality and portability is hard to determine.
TIA.
A decent camping shop will have lots that you can sit in and pick up and see what works for you. We did this and ended up with a couple of Vango chairs. They've been great.
Thanks, I saw those Helinox ones. I was hoping for something a bit less £££! The variety on Amazon all look similar but vary quite a bit in price and as with all things Amazon, are quite likely to be the same product but with a different name on in a lot of cases.
I've got a One Tigris one off Amazon that's essentially the same as that Helinox, but a fraction of that ridiculous price.
It's good, comfy and I'm larger than the average bear.
I would say to make sure you get the base mat with that kind of chair as they will sink into any ground that's not firm. Sometimes they're an optional extra, but not really optional.
The Helinox ones are spendy but they are very well made and solid in use. But there are also much cheaper copies out there too which I’m sure are nearly as good.
Shit forum. Don't know where my post has gone and couldn't get the link thing to work.
Google Oztent King Goanna chair
We’ve got a few of these for when we go car camping. Not super light but easily good enough to carry around sporting events and strong enough not to collapse with my significant bulk in it.
As with others above; tiny feet might be an issue trying to use them on soft ground.
I have an OEX lightweight folding chair from Go Outdoors. Folds up nice and small. It's a Helinox knock off but very good quality and much cheaper. I use it for motorcycle camping along with a lightweight folding table from the same brand. It's robust, well made kit, just maybe not quite as premium as Helinox.
We've got a pair of XXGHUYyiuoOO ones from Amazon bought about 5 years ago. Broke one assembling it for the first time but repaired with cloth and epoxy and it's still going. They didn't even look like the ones in the advert but they work.
I was planning on buying the Alpkit version c£40 next time (not currently in stock) or a Robens Pathfinder (about £70) with the aim of better quality without full spend of Helinox
We've got a Helinox, Aldi and Vango versions of the same chair.
Helinox is nice, robust and light but expensive (I was given it over 10 years ago).
The Aldi ones are OK. The stitching on a couple of the covers where the poles plug in has come unpicked and had to get sewn up by the cobbler on two (of the three) after about 3 years abuse family camping.
The Vango one has a steel frame so heavier but feels slightly more robust than the Aldi versions.
Lidl have them due in stock soon:
When I was poking around at these last year I considered the Helinox, saw the price, and bought a Highlander.
The Vango one has a steel frame so heavier but feels slightly more robust
I got a Vango one recently, it's a bit heavier than I would have liked (for carrying on the bike) but is solid and looks well-made, goes together easily and quickly, and the fabric bit of the chair has a quality feel, no complaints from me for twenty quid.
cheers,
Keith
This looks virtually the same as the Helinox.
I unsuccessfully tried to buy the oex lightweight chair from go outdoors but it is oos in-store. I wanted to try before I bought. It seems like a slight compromise on the weight 1.4kg vs sub 1kg options. At some point I'll purchase one.
Instead of a chair I bought 2 of the oex lightweight carbon walking poles. I already own the folding lightweight table which is ok and can by improved on by placing a wooden board or solid table mat on the surface.
This looks virtually the same as the Helinox.
clearly, as they're copies. I'm pretty sure the one we ordered had a similar image, but what turned up had adjustable legs.
All that's going to differ is minor elements of the design, quality of materials, quality control and any warranty support.
Sportspursuit have some Fjern ones currently - am dithering over which one to go for. We have Aldi ones - used at weekend for first time, comfy enough but heavier than Fjern, but virtually identical design.
I have one of these Quecha ones from Decathlon for motorbike camping. It's brilliant. Lighter than the Go Outdoors one too. Folds into a bag about the size of a 750ml water bottle.
These types of chairs sit fairly low if that matters to you. A compromise for light weight and portability.
That little Decathalon one is my favourite too. Packs really small and is comfy.
Alpkit do a very similar one for £40
SportPursuit have the big agnes ones on sale and own brand Fjern ones for about £30
BigAgnes Mica Basin XL Camp Chair (Blue) | Sportpursuit.com
Have had two helinox snap and now have a Nemo moonlite, it can handle twisting much better than the helinox.
I think I prefer a foldable frame rather than one you have to assemble (at the expense of some weight obviously) . That compromise steers me towards the Amazon 2 for £40 type options by the looks of it. 2.6kg as opposed to 600-900g for the Helinox type
Everyone has their own preference
For me anything that has feet will sink in. I need bar against the ground
I’d rather have stool than a chair i slump in
So we have a couple of these
LFSEMINI Camping Stool, 16in Tall Large Size Folding Stool with Carry Bag, Aluminum Alloy Bracket, 1.5lbs Lightweight, Load Capacity to 300lbs, for Travel, Hiking, BBQ, Fishing, Beach(Grey) https://amzn.eu/d/2Cb165X
The OEX chair I have, has a couple of wide straps you can connect between the feet which stop it sinking in soft ground.
Anyone care to recommend a top quality lightweight portable chair
I've got.a couple of Helinox chairs - one of the low ones and a higher one. Full disclosure, I was given them, but they are nice. I've used the smaller one for marshalling at bike events, riding there on the bike, and the other one for lightweight van camping. I'm not sure I'd buy them with my own money though. Online reviews suggest the Big Agnes ones mentioned above are good
For wandering a few hundred yards from a car park to a sports pitch, I'd just buy any old budget, lightweight camping chair to be honest, you're not going to be trekking across the Andes, though I guess you may need to be a little careful if you're a proper big unit.
The answer used to be a shooting stick.
The answer used to be a shooting stick.
Indeed, and one of which I have. It was my dad’s, the shaft was painted a rather unpleasant shade of brown, what one might call babyshit brown; clearly an attempt to make it look like bamboo and failing miserably! I wire brushed it and painted it Hammerite black, it looks a lot better. I would hazard a guess that it’s around a century old, as he had it when I was very little, and I’m 71 in roughly a month.
They’re ok, easy to use as a walking stick, but not really ideal for long periods of sitting on, and you have to make a proper tripod with your legs, as it’s fairly easy to topple over sideways!
I’m liking the look of the Lidl one, looks comfy, and just the thing for the occasional sit down during a two-hour archery session.
Available in-store in three days, and there’s a store about half a mile away…
I have some of the robens jobbies and 2 eBay specials with a steel frame (same design). Whilst the robens ones are lighter it's really not noticeable
I think naturehike have a new model, it looks pretty good.
The yl01
We've just ordered one of these (other colours available) for £17...
www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00UNAHL8Q
(I remembered about removing "https" from link so it links, rather than a blank Kindle picture on here that won't link)
It's not as light as the Lidl posted further up (900g vs 2.3Kg) and has a weight limit of 100Kg (way above weight of recipient, pretty marginal for her better half, who is a fitter/muscle gym going version of current me). Reminds me an awful lot of the one I was given ~15+ years ago when we used to go camping, looks far more comfy to me than that Lidl one, but looks can be deceiving.
This thread has just reminded me to pop down to the nearest Lidl later on and grab one of their chairs. I’ve got a couple of the traditional green camping chairs that get left scattered all over festivals around the country, in fact I picked one up at the IoW Festival that had been abandoned on the first day! Saved buying one.
Used it earlier this evening while faffing around with my bow sight, but it’s a heavy thing and not exactly a space-saver.
The lightest one I found for a full size folding chair was Lafuma. Very comfy, alloy frame and mesh seating which keeps you cool. Had to buy direct from Lafuma but not a problem. Quite expensive but very good.
I bought a couple of the Helinox ones before there were copies available probably 15 years ago, still got 'em still use 'em so they certainly last.
Not a chair but telescopic stool 😃
Son loves it. Maybe not good for long sessions but he used it at the last comic con and the similar horror thing for a day of standing in a line.
Does anyone make a lightweight folding chair that you don’t need to assemble? Like the cheap Amazon jobs but light.
I have had a pair of these for donkeys years. Will take all the abuse you can throw at them. Also very comfy for sitting and also to use at a table for eating. Compact and easy to carry and pack away. Only downside is the weight as they are steel framed not alloy.
I have back ishoos and like going to music festivals that involve loads of walking and standing around which are both things I don't love these days. This teeny tiny stool got bought last year and fully tested at Kendal Calling (and other places) last year. Worked for me, really easy to carry and great to take the weight off for a bit.
EVER ADVANCED Folding Stool Tripod Tall 53 cm Lightweight Camping Stool Compact Portable
We've unintentionally ended up being the kid's football team gazebo provider, so have ditched lightweight and now have a collapsible buggy that hauls three camping chairs, the gazebo and coolerbox for tournaments, or just carry the Halfords and Lidl cheapo chairs if we're not taking everything. We've got an Alpkit and Amazon copy of the Helinox one, they get used at the beach or car camping as they take up less space, but the big ones are more comfortable, don't sink in the ground and aren't a massive hassle to carry from the car to wherever they're playing
I have the OEX model with the gold frame bar, the Alpkit grey one shown earlier, and a cheapy one from Argos i think?
The OEX is the lightest and the Alpkit is probably the most comfortable but they are all decent. I do prefer the alu frames to the plastic though, more substantial.
This looks virtually the same as the Helinox.
Twice the weight. almost a kilo!