Can't decide between a Vango Equinox TBS 350 2006 model or the new Vango Omega 350 - can anyone recommend either?
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 I have the Equinox 350 2006 model and its a great tent, used a 250 for years as backup in Scotland and for shorter trips and its always been bomb proof when others have collapsed, so last year bought our own 350 and its brilliant! Go Outdoors are doing the Equinox for just £159 http://www.gooutdoors.co.uk/1100000100508
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 I have the Equinox 350 2004/2005 model that i bought for camping from the car.
Its a fantastic tent...the 2006/2007 looks better as the pole sleeves are on the outside of the tent making it easier to pitch.
at £159 its a bargain...i paid £180 for mine a few years back.
like Jamie says its bombproof...we have been on campsites when other people have had to bin their thents and ours has remained unscathed.
its also really roomy and has a huge porch too.
highly recommend it!
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I'm quite keen on the Omega as its £65 cheaper and seems to have the same features, altough its a polyester groundsheet rather than a nylon one..
The Omega 350's are new for 2007 so i'd quite like to hear from anyone thats tried one out?
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The Equinox is designed for 4 season use and the Omega range is more 2 or 3 season use. You'd be best covering yourself and spending only £59 more to have a bomb proof tent you can use all year round and be sure that it won't collapse on a windy day.
The biggest differences in the two are that the Equinox has vango's TBS Tension Band System which adds a lot more strength to the tent in high winds and the flysheet itself is only 2000HH on the Omega and 3000HH on the Equinox meaning it will last a few years longer and be more waterproof in downpours.
For £59 extra it really is worth having the much stronger tent as in the long run it'll last you a lot longer and you'll be more confident of it staying up in bad weather!
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understood! thanks for the advice Jamie. I've just paid the extra and ordered the Equinox 350!
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 I've had my Equinox 350 since 1998 and it has never let me down. I've replaced some pole sections after a night in very severe gales and it still performs.
The newer models benefit from some subtle design changes over the years so are that little bit better. Its a great tent.
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Great decision matey! Hope you enjoy many great trips in it, the day you find yourself in strong winds on an exposed site in the middle of summer and everyone else is packing up or there tents are collapsing and bending all over the place you'll think back to that moment you made the right choice!
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hehe think that swayed it for me to be honest. I've bought it for a motorbike trip round Europe in June. Its way too heavy for backpacking unless you split it between 2 maybe.. As weight isn't so much of an issue i was tempted by the Omega but its just out and from experience new models aren't always perfect by any means. At least the Equinox has a proven history! :-)
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I'm trying out an Omega 350 mid-June, for a week. I was interested to hear if anyone else had given one a go as well though, come across any particular faults etc? Although I'm weary of its strength & general lower waterproof rating, I just wanted a decent 2-3 season tent for the summer etc, and save my pennies for something a bit more substantial later in the year. The 350 seemed to match pretty much everything else I needed though. I shall let you all know how it goes (if) when I come back! :) (fingers crossed no gales please!)
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i put my new Equinox 350 up in the garden today to try it out and i'm very impressed so far. That said, it is quite large when packed and very heavy - really can't see how anyone could use this tent for back packing unless you have a team of sherpas or something..
Its about as big and heavy as i'd want to go for motorcycle touing any way and thats all i bought it for. If i had the money i'd have gone for a Hilleberg Nallo 3 GT! ;-) and that would've worked for any outing!
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 Kayley G, how did you find your Omega 350. It could be time to replace our aged Vango Dome tent next year and get out during school holidays!
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bought omega 350 last year stong stable tent kept dry. goes up in 10 mins packs away in much less .was away during a wet gale when others were getting wet and tent blowing away..doesnt take much space in boot ,lightweight.perfect 3 season tent.
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 I oohed and ahhed for a while over these two tents for car camping and was prety much decided on the Equinox for the same reasons stated above. I then changed my mind thinking "If I'm car camping with the missus I want to be able to stand up". "If I'm car camping I'm not gonna be out in really bad weather, it is a holiday after all". "If I have the car to carry it for me I dont give a tinkers toot about the weight". So I had another look on Vango's web page and decided the Yukon 400 was for me. For car camping and taking the missus on a holiday it ticks all the boxes. It has decent HH ratings, TBS etc. In fact apart from the fibreglass poles (which are coated apparrently to stop em splintering if you break em) the spec is quite good. Anyways, I just picked up a new one on a well known auction site for 100 notes. It was from a shop too so they have more and there was no reserve. A bargain I thought, although it depends on what you want it for.
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| Edited: 23/04/08 11:43 |
 Just bought an Omega 350 for the missus as she hates having to crawl in and out of tents and It'll only be for camp sites. Will be trying it out over the weekend at Beddgelert if anyone still wants to know how it performs.
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 Bigbananafeet, I agree with your thinking and we'll be getting a standing-room tent for car camping at some point, especially if the adoption plan goes ahead and we'll have asmall person who isn't necessarily as patient sat in a small space with a book when it's raining... Our mountain tents are very nice... but if you're carrying it less than 100m out the back of a car you might as well have space for standing up, chairs and tables etc. Pete.
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 Thats a good buy BBF. I went through similar thought process last year over buying an Omega 350 for family trips, then went for a Vango Oregon 400, which looks like the predecessor of the Yukon. Great tent, no regrets on my part at all.
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 I havent seen it yet in the flesh (hopefully delivered tomorrow according to the parcelforce tracker thingy) but it looks well specced and the pics are nice. I wouldnt normally buy a tent this way but its not intended for serious mountain use and I couldnt miss the chance on the cheap sale.
I'm champing at the bit for it to arrive so I can get it up in the garden (admit it all tent saddo's do this ). I might get away in it the first weekend in may with my mate and a few crates of beer (for testing purposes only mind). Failing that I'm going up Ben Donich and the Brack for the Macmillan cancer corbett challenge so might try and convince the missus to come with me and use it at the Ardgarten site if I cant get away at the start of may. (helps me out a bit also cos she can drive me to the rest and be thankfull meaning I dont have to do a circular route) I'll post my thoughts on the tent after this.
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| Edited: 23/04/08 13:56 |
I'm champing at the bit for it to arrive so I can get it up in the garden (admit it all tent saddo's do this).
Of course we do. And we even try to justify it by saying we need to familiarise ourselves with the pitching, check it's all okay etc. Not a case of Boys With Toys at all, no no no! Pete.
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 lol
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