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BaseballPCHiker
Jan 16, 2006

Pennywise the Frown posted:

For those of you that car camp, what are the things you bring for comfort or to make it more fun?

My big car camping luxuries are my Exped Megamat that is super comfy, big old camping chairs, and a large old REI Kingdome tent I can stand up in, and a two burner propane stove. Can still pack the rest of the gear in some rubbermaids so its just grab and go to the campsite. I still bring backpacking gear because we usually hike out of wherever we are camping at.

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Bilirubin
Feb 16, 2014

The sanctioned action is to CHUG


FCKGW posted:

If you guys have any Garmin gear that suddenly stopped working, it may be down for a bit


https://twitter.com/zackwhittaker/status/1287058140110958597?s=21

Just when I needed to resume my inReach subscription too :v:

Freaquency
May 10, 2007

"Yes I can hear you, I don't have ear cancer!"

Bilirubin posted:

Just when I needed to resume my inReach subscription too :v:

I’m guessing this is why the app was having problems on my phone earlier this week. It still seemed to be getting accurate GPS info, so I would assume SAR response would still be able to get to you, but I don’t know how exactly you would test that.

Bilirubin
Feb 16, 2014

The sanctioned action is to CHUG


Freaquency posted:

I’m guessing this is why the app was having problems on my phone earlier this week. It still seemed to be getting accurate GPS info, so I would assume SAR response would still be able to get to you, but I don’t know how exactly you would test that.

yeah according to their site the SOS function is still working (but the app is not) so I'll at least have that. I do like texting from time to time but this hike should get us into cell reception at the top of the ridges so its less essential.

I just transferred my gear from my mid 90s vintage Kelty pack to the new Osprey Kestrel and my god, does that pack feel nice, and it just absorbs gear and asks for more.

thatguy
Feb 5, 2003

Bilirubin posted:

yeah according to their site the SOS function is still working (but the app is not) so I'll at least have that. I do like texting from time to time but this hike should get us into cell reception at the top of the ridges so its less essential.

I just transferred my gear from my mid 90s vintage Kelty pack to the new Osprey Kestrel and my god, does that pack feel nice, and it just absorbs gear and asks for more.

I recieved an SMS a few days ago from our guys in Idaho so I'm assuming that's working, just not the web map

Bilirubin
Feb 16, 2014

The sanctioned action is to CHUG


thatguy posted:

I recieved an SMS a few days ago from our guys in Idaho so I'm assuming that's working, just not the web map

Sorry I wasn't clear: I won't be able to reactivate my ability to text with their site down, not that it's not working.

Bilirubin
Feb 16, 2014

The sanctioned action is to CHUG


Seems to be back up now

SwissArmyDruid
Feb 14, 2014

by sebmojo

Pennywise the Frown posted:

For those of you that car camp, what are the things you bring for comfort or to make it more fun?

Bug netting for the car.

Sometimes, you will have to sleep in the car. It happens. Depends on your vehicle as to which kind you get but it makes sleeping in your car a lot less claustrophobic and stuffy.

incogneato
Jun 4, 2007

Zoom! Swish! Bang!

SwissArmyDruid posted:

Bug netting for the car.

Sometimes, you will have to sleep in the car. It happens. Depends on your vehicle as to which kind you get but it makes sleeping in your car a lot less claustrophobic and stuffy.

We've got these and they work fine: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07HYXZYMN/

SwissArmyDruid
Feb 14, 2014

by sebmojo
Yeah, something like that. I have one, but it has magnetic strips and goes over the moonroof.

Ihmemies
Oct 6, 2012

Am I missing something? 20D silpoly is 42g/m^2 and 30D silnylon is 44g/m^2, like this: https://ripstopbytheroll.com/collections/waterproof-nylon-fabric/products/1-1-oz-mtn-silnylon

So I calculated I can make an A frame tent for 9-10m^2. So cloth is around 400-450g add 150g zippers, extra cloth, thread, little things, guylines.. 6-8 stakes 100g?

Then I can buy a https://www.msrgear.com/ie/tents/minimalist-shelters-and-wings/thru-hiker-mesh-house-2-trekking-pole-shelter/10823.html and keep patching that lovely thinner than paper 15D floor, 410 grams.

Total around 1,1kg? Is there some reason these are not made? The end walls are vertical so even tall persons don't have cloth in their face...

Edit: seems DD makes one.. from who knows how thick material. And it's only 730 grams.



E2: bearpawwd too.. https://www.bearpawwd.com/tarps/tarps_canopies.php

I understand they do not have that much room, but what 1kg double walled tent has room..? (for tall persons)

Ihmemies fucked around with this message at 10:04 on Jul 28, 2020

j.peeba
Oct 25, 2010

Almost Human
Nap Ghost

Ihmemies posted:

Am I missing something? 20D silpoly is 42g/m^2 and 30D silnylon is 44g/m^2, like this: https://ripstopbytheroll.com/collections/waterproof-nylon-fabric/products/1-1-oz-mtn-silnylon

So I calculated I can make an A frame tent for 9-10m^2. So cloth is around 400-450g add 150g zippers, extra cloth, thread, little things, guylines.. 6-8 stakes 100g?

Then I can buy a https://www.msrgear.com/ie/tents/minimalist-shelters-and-wings/thru-hiker-mesh-house-2-trekking-pole-shelter/10823.html and keep patching that lovely thinner than paper 15D floor, 410 grams.

Total around 1,1kg? Is there some reason these are not made? The end walls are vertical so even tall persons don't have cloth in their face...

Edit: seems DD makes one.. from who knows how thick material. And it's only 730 grams.



E2: bearpawwd too.. https://www.bearpawwd.com/tarps/tarps_canopies.php

I understand they do not have that much room, but what 1kg double walled tent has room..? (for tall persons)

That outer tent is verrry close to just a flat tarp pitched to an A-frame at that point so I suppose that's partially the reason why there's so few models out there.... So why not use a tarp with an inner tent then? It'd be cheaper, weight less and it's more flexible for setting up. You could do a lean-to/laavu when the weather's OK and A-frame when needed. You can add partial doors to the A-frame by pulling in the corners towards the ridgeline. A 3x3m tarp with a good number of attachment points should do the job and give you ample space for the inner tent.

MustardFacial
Jun 20, 2011
George Russel's
Official Something Awful Account
Lifelong Tory Voter
I'm pretty new to hiking and backpacking, I've gone on a bunch of hikes so far and really enjoyed them. I'm looking to do an overnight sometime in the near future but I'll need a new tent first and foremost. My old tent is a Coleman 3 person that weighs about 12lbs and packed is the size of a suitcase. There's no loving way I'm taking that thing anywhere other than the bin, where it belongs.

I'm willing to sacrifice a bit of weight savings for price, and I generally have not used trekking poles so far so I don't really want a trekking pole tent. My requirements so far are this:

- max weight about 6 lbs.
- 2 person tent with either a vestibule or enough room to put my gear inside
- packs small enough to fit into a 50-55L pack
- Does not cost an absurd amount of money (let's say $350 max in Canadian rubles)
- preferably comes with a footprint


With those requirements in mind, I've found these 3 tents:

Marmot Catalyst 2p
The North Face Stormbreak 2
MSR Elixir 2

Which do you guys recommend? A friend of mine has the Stormbreak and says it's really good, but another friend says everything North Face is crap and a waste of money. Both are the "cut down your toothbrush to save weight" types.

ROFLburger
Jan 12, 2006

Man quilts seem pretty popular but I just can't stand them. What's with their popularity? Are they just lighter than traditional bags?

Leperflesh
May 17, 2007

MustardFacial posted:

I'm pretty new to hiking and backpacking, I've gone on a bunch of hikes so far and really enjoyed them. I'm looking to do an overnight sometime in the near future but I'll need a new tent first and foremost.

I don't have an opinion about your tent options but I did want to point out that you can rent camping equipment, if you'd like to try a few out. In my area, sports basement and REI rent tents, maybe check the camping places in your area too. This is especially a good idea if you go on one or two backpacking trips and decide you hate backpacking.

MustardFacial
Jun 20, 2011
George Russel's
Official Something Awful Account
Lifelong Tory Voter

Leperflesh posted:

I don't have an opinion about your tent options but I did want to point out that you can rent camping equipment, if you'd like to try a few out. In my area, sports basement and REI rent tents, maybe check the camping places in your area too. This is especially a good idea if you go on one or two backpacking trips and decide you hate backpacking.

I've gone car camping to provincial parks a handful of times and enjoyed it quite a bit, so I imagine this is the same experience only harder.

AFAIK, there isn't an REI in Canada but I will check with the stores we do have here and see if any of them rent equipment. Thanks for the tip.

Levitate
Sep 30, 2005

randy newman voice

YOU'VE GOT A LAFRENIÈRE IN ME

ROFLburger posted:

Man quilts seem pretty popular but I just can't stand them. What's with their popularity? Are they just lighter than traditional bags?

generally lighter since it's less material and you rely on your sleeping pad for warmth on the bottom. More versatile for venting and stuff when it's warm. On the other hand, more likely to get drafts when it's real cold

The Wiggly Wizard
Aug 21, 2008


MustardFacial posted:

I'm pretty new to hiking and backpacking, I've gone on a bunch of hikes so far and really enjoyed them. I'm looking to do an overnight sometime in the near future but I'll need a new tent first and foremost. My old tent is a Coleman 3 person that weighs about 12lbs and packed is the size of a suitcase. There's no loving way I'm taking that thing anywhere other than the bin, where it belongs.

I'm willing to sacrifice a bit of weight savings for price, and I generally have not used trekking poles so far so I don't really want a trekking pole tent. My requirements so far are this:

- max weight about 6 lbs.
- 2 person tent with either a vestibule or enough room to put my gear inside
- packs small enough to fit into a 50-55L pack
- Does not cost an absurd amount of money (let's say $350 max in Canadian rubles)
- preferably comes with a footprint

Since you're new to backpacking you should know that 2 person tents don't really fit 2 people that well unless you're snuggling. If it's just for yourself and your gear then that's another thing and I'm all for it.

Add Big Agnes Seedhouse SL2 to your list. You'll need to buy or make a footprint separately.

e: Didn't realize the exchange rate. You might get one on sale for 350 CAD if you're lucky

The Wiggly Wizard fucked around with this message at 00:46 on Jul 29, 2020

Leperflesh
May 17, 2007

MustardFacial posted:

I've gone car camping to provincial parks a handful of times and enjoyed it quite a bit, so I imagine this is the same experience only harder.

AFAIK, there isn't an REI in Canada but I will check with the stores we do have here and see if any of them rent equipment. Thanks for the tip.

I have a friend who loves car camping but bounced hard off of backpacking. Basically, she enjoys things like having toilets, running water, and being able to sleep in her car if the wildlife or the other campers are too noisy. I think she also got burnt by her one and only backpacking trip being a particularly long and grueling one, but she's solid on that opinion.

Personally I'm willing to deal with the hardships and really love backpacking, and I hope you love it too.

Verman
Jul 4, 2005
Third time is a charm right?

MustardFacial posted:

I'm pretty new to hiking and backpacking, I've gone on a bunch of hikes so far and really enjoyed them. I'm looking to do an overnight sometime in the near future but I'll need a new tent first and foremost. My old tent is a Coleman 3 person that weighs about 12lbs and packed is the size of a suitcase. There's no loving way I'm taking that thing anywhere other than the bin, where it belongs.

I'm willing to sacrifice a bit of weight savings for price, and I generally have not used trekking poles so far so I don't really want a trekking pole tent. My requirements so far are this:

- max weight about 6 lbs.
- 2 person tent with either a vestibule or enough room to put my gear inside
- packs small enough to fit into a 50-55L pack
- Does not cost an absurd amount of money (let's say $350 max in Canadian rubles)
- preferably comes with a footprint


With those requirements in mind, I've found these 3 tents:

Marmot Catalyst 2p
The North Face Stormbreak 2
MSR Elixir 2

Which do you guys recommend? A friend of mine has the Stormbreak and says it's really good, but another friend says everything North Face is crap and a waste of money. Both are the "cut down your toothbrush to save weight" types.

Mec is the Canuck version of rei but holy balls they are expensive from what I can see. I typically recommend the rei passage 2 (150 US) or the quarter dome (250? Us) which run even cheaper on sale for a comparison. I tried looking for mec equivalents but everything just costs so much more I don't know how to compare. The msr elixir is probably another good option. Honestly most non-Coleman tents from reputable outdoor brands like marmot, MSR, even North face will suffice. It's splitting hairs after a certain point in terms of weight and features. Tents can be repaired and rewaterproofed. Seam sealer for when seems start to leak. Also, mec probably rents gear so that might be worth looking at.

If you want two people inside with packs, you may need to look at three person tents, or two person tents and leave your gear under the rainfly vestibules. Most two person backpacking tents only hold two adult humans shoulder to shoulder with little extra space. Look for something between 4-7lbs packaged weight. Obviously the lighter the better.

Backpacking is a great alternative to car camping. It's a unique type of experience that pushes how much you're willing to sacrifice for the outdoors. You might love it, might hate it, or just feel whatever about it. Personally I like the places you can get when you spend days on the trail. You leave day hikers behind and see things you can't reach by car. You tend to find more solitude.

I'm actually heading out Thursday to backpack goat rocks wilderness here in Washington which I haven't done yet. I think we're going to do something like 30 miles or so. New areas are fun.

It can seem fumbly or overwhelming at first with so the logistics and gear but over time you develop a system of setting up camp, breaking it down, how you store your stuff in your pack, what to bring, what to eat, and what you can live without to shave some weight. Food/cooking is probably the toughest for most people. Everything else is just camping.

Verman fucked around with this message at 01:49 on Jul 29, 2020

MustardFacial
Jun 20, 2011
George Russel's
Official Something Awful Account
Lifelong Tory Voter

Verman posted:

Mec is the Canuck version of rei but holy balls they are expensive from what I can see. I typically recommend the rei passage 2 (150 US) or the quarter dome (250? Us) which run even cheaper on sale for a comparison. I tried looking for mec equivalents but everything just costs so much more I don't know how to compare. The msr elixir is probably another good option. Honestly most non-Coleman tents from reputable outdoor brands like marmot, MSR, even North face will suffice. It's splitting hairs after a certain point in terms of weight and features. Tents can be repaired and rewaterproofed. Seam sealer for when seems start to leak. Also, mec probably rents gear so that might be worth looking at.

If you want two people inside with packs, you may need to look at three person tents, or two person tents and leave your gear under the rainfly vestibules. Most two person backpacking tents only hold two adult humans shoulder to shoulder with little extra space. Look for something between 4-7lbs packaged weight. Obviously the lighter the better.

MEC is rich man camping. I'm not made of money.

The closest MEC equivalent I think would be the AMP but at $400, they can straight get hosed. I don't think the rei tents are even available up here (or at least I can't find any). I'm slightly leaning towards the North Face if for nothing else it is $50 cheaper than the Marmot, but I've heard that North Face stuff isn't as good so I'm unsure if I should bother. If it's not the North Face one, then I'll probably choose the Marmot over the MSR as it's a tiny bit lighter and it looks a bit roomier as well.

Leperflesh posted:

I have a friend who loves car camping but bounced hard off of backpacking. Basically, she enjoys things like having toilets, running water, and being able to sleep in her car if the wildlife or the other campers are too noisy. I think she also got burnt by her one and only backpacking trip being a particularly long and grueling one, but she's solid on that opinion.

Personally I'm willing to deal with the hardships and really love backpacking, and I hope you love it too.

Your friend doesn't do car camping right. You're not supposed to shower or have access to a toilet. The whole purpose of car camping is to pack all of your poo poo into a car, have a BBQ in a provincial campground, get drunk off your rear end, and then pass out in a tent. If you're not coming back smelling of campfire smoke and whisky, then you haven't really gone camping.

In all seriousness, I'm in this to push myself so I'm expecting it to be much harder than I'm used to. I would be disappointed if it wasn't.

MustardFacial fucked around with this message at 01:58 on Jul 29, 2020

pumped up for school
Nov 24, 2010

MustardFacial posted:

I'm pretty new to hiking and backpacking, I've gone on a bunch of hikes so far and really enjoyed them. I'm looking to do an overnight sometime in the near future but I'll need a new tent first and foremost. My old tent is a Coleman 3 person that weighs about 12lbs and packed is the size of a suitcase. There's no loving way I'm taking that thing anywhere other than the bin, where it belongs.

I'm willing to sacrifice a bit of weight savings for price, and I generally have not used trekking poles so far so I don't really want a trekking pole tent. My requirements so far are this:

- max weight about 6 lbs.
- 2 person tent with either a vestibule or enough room to put my gear inside
- packs small enough to fit into a 50-55L pack
- Does not cost an absurd amount of money (let's say $350 max in Canadian rubles)
- preferably comes with a footprint


With those requirements in mind, I've found these 3 tents:

Marmot Catalyst 2p
The North Face Stormbreak 2
MSR Elixir 2

Which do you guys recommend? A friend of mine has the Stormbreak and says it's really good, but another friend says everything North Face is crap and a waste of money. Both are the "cut down your toothbrush to save weight" types.
I think Marmot sort of got caught in the same trap as North Face, where they made so much "fashion" gear that enthusiasts started hating on them in general, even though they still make (some) good stuff.

I've rented that Marmot tent and really liked it. My big beef with tents is foot room. Im 6flat and I can't stand feeling cramped head to toe. That one was fine, good price.

Flatland Crusoe
Jan 12, 2011

Great White Hunter
Master Race

Let me explain why I'm better than you

pumped up for school posted:

I think Marmot sort of got caught in the same trap as North Face, where they made so much "fashion" gear that enthusiasts started hating on them in general, even though they still make (some) good stuff.

I've rented that Marmot tent and really liked it. My big beef with tents is foot room. Im 6flat and I can't stand feeling cramped head to toe. That one was fine, good price.

Marmots tents are pretty solid gear in most cases. They typically will loose the spec sheet war to Big Agnes but they have great space utilization. Marmot is often available 25% off and ends up pretty reasonable cost wise. The Marmot Tungsten UL series are phenomenal tents for the space and price as a good example.

As much as Marmot is fashionable I’ve had a ton of their gear/clothing and I never felt like it compromised technical performance. Sure Marmot makes over priced 600 fill down jackets but they also make the precip series which lets you get good rain gear pieces for like $70/piece. I’ve not personally felt Marmot had quite the sellout badge as bad as the North Face does.

Sockser
Jun 28, 2007

This world only remembers the results!




MustardFacial posted:

- packs small enough to fit into a 50-55L pack

So, for what it's worth, before I downsized a lot of my gear, both my tent, tentpoles, and sleeping pad were all just strapped to the outside of my pack. Obviously, a small tent is still good, but just in case you hadn't considered strapping stuff to the outside.



My tent is a Nemo Galaxii 2, it's a little longer and narrower than most tents, included footprint, two decent sized vestibules, bathtub floor, included footprint, optional inner liner (pawprint) if you want to bring a dog, wonderful hub system for the poles, absolutely love everything about it.

pumped up for school
Nov 24, 2010

Flatland Crusoe posted:

Marmots tents are pretty solid gear in most cases. They typically will loose the spec sheet war to Big Agnes but they have great space utilization. Marmot is often available 25% off and ends up pretty reasonable cost wise. The Marmot Tungsten UL series are phenomenal tents for the space and price as a good example.

As much as Marmot is fashionable I’ve had a ton of their gear/clothing and I never felt like it compromised technical performance. Sure Marmot makes over priced 600 fill down jackets but they also make the precip series which lets you get good rain gear pieces for like $70/piece. I’ve not personally felt Marmot had quite the sellout badge as bad as the North Face does.

I ended up buying a tungsten 2 for my "solo plus dog" trips, and all my rain gear is Marmot. It is a bit bulkier than an OR jacket but at half cost. Kind of the same on the tent: you can do better (weight/bulk) but hard to beat it for the price. Last summer and fall the discounts on the tents were great, and the footprint included (OP mentioned that).

Just throwing it out there for OPs friend, who was making GBS threads on NF, and some of the same people love to do the same for Marmot.

Bilirubin
Feb 16, 2014

The sanctioned action is to CHUG


MustardFacial posted:

I've gone car camping to provincial parks a handful of times and enjoyed it quite a bit, so I imagine this is the same experience only harder.

AFAIK, there isn't an REI in Canada but I will check with the stores we do have here and see if any of them rent equipment. Thanks for the tip.

I think MEC does, if you have one nearby

e. I have stayed in the Marmot tent and it was fine for two. Hell my MEC Lightfield is perfectly good for two if you don't mind proximity.

Both require storing your pack in the vestibule

Bilirubin fucked around with this message at 04:26 on Jul 29, 2020

Ihmemies
Oct 6, 2012

j.peeba posted:

That outer tent is verrry close to just a flat tarp pitched to an A-frame at that point so I suppose that's partially the reason why there's so few models out there.... So why not use a tarp with an inner tent then? It'd be cheaper, weight less and it's more flexible for setting up. You could do a lean-to/laavu when the weather's OK and A-frame when needed. You can add partial doors to the A-frame by pulling in the corners towards the ridgeline. A 3x3m tarp with a good number of attachment points should do the job and give you ample space for the inner tent.

Inner tents and tarps are expensive.. I found out Trekkertent in UK makes such tents too for cheap (no customs fees or extra VAT for me). With solid interior walls and all that stuff. Can also use the flysheet as an tarp... Model is Stealth 1.5. I read they will extend the lengths for like £15 per 10cm..

Some youtuber weighed the stealth 1.5 to 860g grams with solid interior (if I saw right) so that is quite a lot less than what my Scarp 2 weighs. Of course 20d silpoly is a lot less durable material than 30d silnylon.

j.peeba
Oct 25, 2010

Almost Human
Nap Ghost

Ihmemies posted:

Inner tents and tarps are expensive.. I found out Trekkertent in UK makes such tents too for cheap (no customs fees or extra VAT for me). With solid interior walls and all that stuff. Can also use the flysheet as an tarp... Model is Stealth 1.5. I read they will extend the lengths for like £15 per 10cm..

Some youtuber weighed the stealth 1.5 to 860g grams with solid interior (if I saw right) so that is quite a lot less than what my Scarp 2 weighs. Of course 20d silpoly is a lot less durable material than 30d silnylon.

Cool, that Trekkertent does look pretty smart and seems to have nice value. A lot of the name brand tarps are stupid expensive indeed but a 3F tarp from Aliexpress is like 55euros. You could combine one with a Trekkertent fabric inner and save maybe 100eur total but I don't think the combo is worth the hassle if you don't see other use for a generic flat tarp.

Math You
Oct 27, 2010

So put your faith
in more than steel

MustardFacial posted:

MEC is rich man camping. I'm not made of money.

The closest MEC equivalent I think would be the AMP but at $400, they can straight get hosed. I don't think the rei tents are even available up here (or at least I can't find any). I'm slightly leaning towards the North Face if for nothing else it is $50 cheaper than the Marmot, but I've heard that North Face stuff isn't as good so I'm unsure if I should bother. If it's not the North Face one, then I'll probably choose the Marmot over the MSR as it's a tiny bit lighter and it looks a bit roomier as well.


REI ships to Canada. I bought a half-dome2+ (it actually fits 2 people) on clearance and it still priced pretty well with the exchange, etc. Obviously if I have any problems returning it is sorta out of the question but I've been very happy with it.
I just didn't see anything out there that looked as roomy, light, well featured and well breathing. The MSR Elixir just looks claustrophobic and stuffy by comparison.

WHERE MY HAT IS AT
Jan 7, 2011

Leperflesh posted:

I have a friend who loves car camping but bounced hard off of backpacking. Basically, she enjoys things like having toilets, running water, and being able to sleep in her car if the wildlife or the other campers are too noisy. I think she also got burnt by her one and only backpacking trip being a particularly long and grueling one, but she's solid on that opinion.

Personally I'm willing to deal with the hardships and really love backpacking, and I hope you love it too.

My wife is of the hates backpacking persuasion too. I've tried getting her into car camping, but it's been a struggle mostly because we've never found a tent/sleeping pad/bag combo that she can actually sleep comfortably in. I've given up and go backpacking on my own, and we ordered a rooftop tent in the hopes that it will solve her sleep issue so we can car camp together at least.

highme
May 25, 2001


I posted my food for USPOL Thanksgiving!


My wife loves not camping. We have a good arrangement, I disappear to the woods/desert/mountain a few times a year and she says “I’ll see you when you get back.”


In actual gear talk, picked up a SJK Roadhouse Tarp off OfferUp this week. I’ve been looking for something that I could use to extend shelter in my 4Runner and this looked perfect. All the reviews were glowing but said “if you can find one in stock...” so when I found one for $40 and dude offered to deliver it for $10 I said sounds great. Now I need to work on that sleep platform again.


https://slumberjack.com/roadhouse-tarp/

MA-Horus
Dec 3, 2006

I'm sorry, I can't hear you over the sound of how awesome I am.

MustardFacial posted:

I'm pretty new to hiking and backpacking, I've gone on a bunch of hikes so far and really enjoyed them. I'm looking to do an overnight sometime in the near future but I'll need a new tent first and foremost. My old tent is a Coleman 3 person that weighs about 12lbs and packed is the size of a suitcase. There's no loving way I'm taking that thing anywhere other than the bin, where it belongs.

I'm willing to sacrifice a bit of weight savings for price, and I generally have not used trekking poles so far so I don't really want a trekking pole tent. My requirements so far are this:

- max weight about 6 lbs.
- 2 person tent with either a vestibule or enough room to put my gear inside
- packs small enough to fit into a 50-55L pack
- Does not cost an absurd amount of money (let's say $350 max in Canadian rubles)
- preferably comes with a footprint


With those requirements in mind, I've found these 3 tents:

Marmot Catalyst 2p
The North Face Stormbreak 2
MSR Elixir 2

Which do you guys recommend? A friend of mine has the Stormbreak and says it's really good, but another friend says everything North Face is crap and a waste of money. Both are the "cut down your toothbrush to save weight" types.

I have the MSR Elixir 3, as does a friend who has used it for several multiple-week long whitewater canoe trips. It's a durable, relatively light, well priced tent, the 3 person is plenty of room for 2 plus gear and a dog.
I personally would avoid the MEC Volt tents, they're pretty pricey and not too durable. I bought one for a week-long trip on the Spanish river and we got a tear in the door mesh on night two, the 2nd time it had ever been set up. Thankfully MEC has an excellent return policy.

Unfortunately outdoor gear in Canada is pretty expensive, unless you can get something on absurd clearance like Atmosphere tends to do.

Ihmemies
Oct 6, 2012

j.peeba posted:

Cool, that Trekkertent does look pretty smart and seems to have nice value. A lot of the name brand tarps are stupid expensive indeed but a 3F tarp from Aliexpress is like 55euros. You could combine one with a Trekkertent fabric inner and save maybe 100eur total but I don't think the combo is worth the hassle if you don't see other use for a generic flat tarp.

I just don't like the idea of flat tarps if you can get the doors for a little bit of extra...





Trekkertent sells a 20cm extension for £30 total so the tent would be 230cm long with vertical walls, definitely enough for myself. I understand it will be still tight inside but that is the sacrifice for a lightweight double wall hiking pole tent, where I can at least lay down flat and not hit the tent fabric.

Anyways we went to an overnight trip with a friend. He bought a 20€ bag and a 20€ mat, we slept in my 2p tent and boiled water with my jetboil. I borrowed my Mariposa to him and his base weight was 4.7kg...

I was like wtf. SO I took a look at my current list: https://lighterpack.com/r/1erwwz

And thought about what to do with that 8,5kg situation. I could buy lighter trousers with elastic cord instead of suspenders, or lighter hiking shirt to save wearable weight.. but I don't know what so I won't concenctrate on that.

I went through my base weight and found out these savings:

-640g when I'm again able to use Mariposa instead of Unaweep as a backpack thx to lighter baseweight. Mariposa can't handle very big loads comfortably.
-1050g 1p tent with nettent (maybe I'll buy both nettent and innertent so I can compare the comfort and warmth), instead of 2p solid walled tent
-290g with a R2.0 uberlite pad instead of R5.7 xtherm, leaving out pumpsack too
-190g with lighter gas stove and titanium cup instead of jetboil
-125g with befree instead of sawyer system
-92g with gerber fliplock knife instead of mora
-95g with nitecore nu25 usb rechargeable headlamp, can use my battery bank to recharge instead of 40g extra AAA batteries...
-150g without long johns (haven't used them in a long while and I can use my heat reflective rain chaps if I get cold I guess)

https://lighterpack.com/r/gok9n2

To a total savings of minus 2603g.. That gets me closer to a 5kg UL weight but 6kg is still somewhat far away. That last 1kg needs too many sacrifices for now.

Edit: went through prices and the upgrades would be 700-860€ depending on options (regular pocket rocket vs deluxe pocket rocket, 1 innertent or mesh- and solid innertents) etc... 270-330€/kg.

Ihmemies fucked around with this message at 15:55 on Jul 30, 2020

MustardFacial
Jun 20, 2011
George Russel's
Official Something Awful Account
Lifelong Tory Voter

Math You posted:

REI ships to Canada. I bought a half-dome2+ (it actually fits 2 people) on clearance and it still priced pretty well with the exchange, etc. Obviously if I have any problems returning it is sorta out of the question but I've been very happy with it.
I just didn't see anything out there that looked as roomy, light, well featured and well breathing. The MSR Elixir just looks claustrophobic and stuffy by comparison.

They do?

Alright then, gently caress the MSR and the North Face. Given this new evidence it's between the Catalyst and the Passage 2.


[edit] I just checked Sportchek again and the Catalyst just went on sale from $260 CDN to $150 CDN. I guess that's my decision made.

Bought the Catalyst because it was $110 off.

MustardFacial fucked around with this message at 17:43 on Jul 30, 2020

BaseballPCHiker
Jan 16, 2006

Ive owned a REI Quarterdome2 for 10+ years that was awesome and now a new Halfdome2. As long as you take care of them they'll last and they're great tents for the money.

Rolo
Nov 16, 2005

Hmm, what have we here?
I have a passage 1 and 2. Both are drat awesome if you do the little things like cleaning it before storing. You’re not getting the lightest stuff with REI but you’re definitely getting quality for the price.

FCKGW
May 21, 2006

I have a coupon for 25% off any non sale/clearance REI branded equipment. It expires tonight and I'm not going to use it so here you go thread
pre:
HVGEC-ET18Z-DCBBD-XDVDW

FCKGW fucked around with this message at 21:24 on Jul 30, 2020

Destroyenator
Dec 27, 2004

Don't ask me lady, I live in beer

Ihmemies posted:

I was like wtf. SO I took a look at my current list: https://lighterpack.com/r/1erwwz
I don't know much about cutting down weight but just seeing your list has been super helpful for me planning some hikes next week, thanks!

Thaddius the Large
Jul 5, 2006

It's in the five-hole!
Re: essential camping gear, my cast iron dutch oven is unquestionably the greatest quality of life enhancer that I can't take backpacking for quite obvious reasons.

#2 is a cot, though I'm so spoiled I have a lightweight (relatively speaking/not lightweight at all) cot for backpacking.

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taqueso
Mar 8, 2004


:911:
:wookie: :thermidor: :wookie:
:dehumanize:

:pirate::hf::tinfoil:

two friends of mine have taken to carrying tiny little cast iron pans with them

Tell me more about a backpacking cot, it sounds like something that would have been in the old 50s-70s hiking books I found at the library when I was a kid.

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