Need the toughest tent in the world

Hey all!!!

 New to the site but REALLY need some help.

 Went camping in the Ogwyn Valley from wednesday to friday morning (today). We had winds of about 50-60 mph winds constant and gusts of about 75-80 mph. Went in a Blacks Enigma 2.5 and it was brilliant. It withstood the wind brilliantly, especialy seen as i only bought it for £75!!! (staff discount and other things on top).

 However. Someone desided to pitch their tent up at 2200 hrs, right when the wind was worsening further. This tent was a Terra Nova Hyperspace, it came hurtling at my tent and the poles went through my flysheet.

He promised me he would leave his details so that i could get it fixed and he would pay but in the morning he had gone. Not supprised considering he had his kids with him and snow was falling, even picnic benches where begining to move.

 So now i have to claim on my RAF insurance to get a new one.

 My question is, what tent is the toughest 4 season tent in the world around the styles of the Mountain Hardware Trango 2 and the Terra Nova Quasar, money is around £300-£550 and i would like it an a bright colour like orange! (like bright tents).

Thanks very much.....

Rich

Hi Richie welcome to the forum.

Will you be backpacking with it (i.e. weights a factor) and what berth do you need?

how about this beast.an american backpacking website rates this at least as good as the mh trango 2.it only weighs 2.9 kg too.

http://i147.photobucket.com/albums/r304/rattyc5/Picture1013-2.jpg[/IMG]]crux storm

Funnily enough the chap who ko'd your tent posted on uk climbing today asking if anyone knew of you...

http://www.ukclimbing.com/forums/t.php?n=292084

Hi Richie

 The power of the internet....

Our Quasar snapped a pole at 2am so kids pretty freaked out...contact me via the forum.

 Cheers

Rich

Sorry about this, my account is playing up so had to create a new one, ahh well only just joined any way,

 No, i dont need to bag-pack with the tent, im in the process of buying a vaude for that. Just need a solid base-camp tent that can withstand anything, as previously said, even other tents!!! haha!!

 Rich i have contacted you via your UKC forum, but if you drop me an e-mail at Richiebabes02@hotmail.com we can exchange numbers or talk privately their.....

 Thanks,

 Rich

Hilleberg undoubtedly make fine tents that survive some pretty poo poo weather

TRY THIS

And look up the Saivo

Sorry to hear about the disaster, glad to see things are working out well.

I have been really impressed with my (bright red) Hilleberg Tarra, it really is a very stable tent in the most attrocious conditions. 4 equal length poles cross over to make it solid and  a doddle to pitch. The huge vestibules are great for prolonged periods - 1 for gear and 1 for cooking.

On the Hilleberg Tarra/Savio, are the poles on the inside of the flysheet or outside or both?? it's quite hard to tell from the photo's provided as i can see poles on both!!! Os there just one set of poles or is it double strengthend?

 Cheers,

Rich

nother vote for crux here.  Not cheap but very well made and seriously bomb proof. They sometimes have "seconds" on their site which remain warrantied by them for 3 years from purchase.  Depends if you can wait for them to have something available.  If not then you're looking at £400 for a new crux storm, and £475 for a bomb. 

There's lots of nice strong tents around, hillebergs are nice, so long as you get them in bright colours!

Richard Hill 4 wrote (see)

On the Hilleberg Tarra/Savio, are the poles on the inside of the flysheet or outside or both?? it's quite hard to tell from the photo's provided as i can see poles on both!!! Os there just one set of poles or is it double strengthend?

The poles are external on both.  There are short sleeves at the bases which the ends of the poles go into and then you clip the rest of the outer to the poles.  It's very, very quick and easy, far easier than other geodesics I've used.  If you follow the links to the Pitching Instructions or look in their general Tent Handbook you'll see diagrams of how it works.

There is also a cover that goes over the top of the tent to keep the chimney vents out of the elements.  It just clips on with toggles and rings.

The inner usually lives clipped to the outer, so both go up at once, though you can unclip the inner if you want.

There is one set of 4 poles as standard but the tent is designed to take double poling if you want.  Just buy an extra set, the short sleeves are wide enough for both sets and you clip every othger clip to alternate poles.

I have a Tarra, and if you want a geodesic at that size I think it has a lot to recommend it.  It's fearsomely expensive, but I think you do get something for your money.  The porches are a good size, it's not excessivley heavy, the ventilation is very good (thanks to the chimney vents in the roof), it's well and away the easiest tent in its class to put up I've ever seen and the materials and workmanship are as good as anything you'll find.

Here's my OM review of it

If it was abducted by aliens I'd probably get another, though possibly a Staika dome (cheaper, a little lighter, a little less inner space and slightly smaller porches, but no need to peg out the porches and still bombproof), or maybe a Saivo. 

The Cruxes look very good too, but personally I much prefer a tent that goes up all in one rather than bugger about with separate inner first.  The Hillebergs are just much easier tents to pitch IME.  I also like a porch at each end, but that's just personal preference than an objective better/worse thing. 

This is yet another case of a failed Terra Nova pole on top of the three folk I know personally it's happened more than once to on their Quasars.  Not good!

Pete. 

Peter Clinch wrote (see)

I have a Tarra, and if you want a geodesic at that size I think it has a lot to recommend it.  It's fearsomely expensive, but I think you do get something for your money.  The porches are a good size, it's not excessivley heavy, the ventilation is very good (thanks to the chimney vents in the roof), it's well and away the easiest tent in its class to put up I've ever seen and the materials and workmanship are as good as anything you'll find.

Or a very large picnic table???? Seems that after we ran away things got worse!!!!

It's interesting that we had used that Hyperspace on the same campsite in similar conditions many times before before without any problems.  the tent was up and fully guyed out when it gave way.  The panels on the shredded  almost creating a sail effect. the pegs were pulled along thru the ground leaving claw type marks before it got airborn.

def one of the most impressive tent destructions that I have ever seen...even tho it was my tent!!!!

Roger, the Tarra isn't meant to be really light, the Hilleberg to compare with would be the Jannu, which is 2.8 Kg and similarly has a single porch and lighter materials but still should be remarkably bomb-prrof.  You pay more for the Tarra because you physically get a bigger tent in tougher materials with wider poles.  And same again (but more so) with the Saivo.

The point for me about inner first pitching isn't the inner getting wet, it's just a whole lot more hassle than doing it all in one, especially if you've got to bugger about threading 4 full and crossing  pole sleeves.  Hilleberg's short sleeve and clip system is quicker and easier and is still reported to be pretty easy in mittnes in a gale.

I agree with you 4 season doesn't mean geo: I use a Tarra because I want something I can pitch on rocks and shingle beaches out of a sea kayak and still take a gale, and a tunnel's not so good for that...  But Hilleberg's tunnels do have a reputation as full 4 season expedition tents when they're parked on sensible (i.e., soil or snow) pitches.  The Nammatj is lighter than the Tarra too, but has a roomier inner than the Nallo plus stronger poles and fabrics than the Nallo, so if you really want tough it might be the better option thna a Nallo.  There's also the Keron with twin porch/entrance, or if you're happier with the lighter poles and fabrics but prefer a double ended inner with twin porches (I like that) then there's the Kaitum.  

Parky, you'd be much less likely to get a pole through the fly on the Hillebergs because they're external poles.  If one snaps it will pop outwards because of the tension, and "outwards" is into space, not the flysheet material.  That goes for the tunnels too, with the sleeves on the outside of the fly.

Pete. 

not dismissing hilly's at all - from all I've heard they're very very well put together bits of kit. Was weight and expense that had me wincing .  Quicker pitching all in one is another thing to consider, though it doesn't take me that long to get the crux pitched even when cold tired and windy. 

First time I pitched it I was cursing, but that was in teh lounge and it was only just big enough for the pitched inner, so getting the poles to sit through the sleeves before locking them in place was a bit of a nightmare and involved some fairly amusing contortions .  in the OP's price bracket and intended usage I would probably consider nallo/namatj, and either of the crux's.  Depends whether he's going to be carrying it or not. There's plenty of other options out there, but top end bulletproof these would def be on my list.  Another consideration would be macpac minaret or olympus.  I'm not sure how bright their yellow is though.  Crux and Hilly both are seriously bright, when not bought in green

sorry peter i may have my wires crossed. i thought the damage was from another tent's pole flying through the air anfd not from the owner's tent pole failure.

or am i confused beacuse the incident involves two people called rich.

so my question is: would any tent prevent damge from another wind propelled tent's broken poles  i.e. would the original poster have been any better off in any other tent? or simply, it was just bad luck?

sounds like bad luck to me Parky, but the OP asks for

Richie Hill wrote (see)

 My question is, what tent is the toughest 4 season tent in the world around the styles of the Mountain Hardware Trango 2 and the Terra Nova Quasar, money is around £300-£550 and i would like it an a bright colour like orange! (like bright tents).

 That's the question I've been trying to help answer... perhaps not well but...

It's fair enough to wince at the price, though at least Alpenstock will give you 15% off the list to make it merely very pricey indeed (£570) rather than a job for the local mortgage brokers... 

The weight is fair for what it is: it has wider diameter (thus stronger) poles, the inner is 20 cm wider and full height for the whole length with an entrance and slightly bigger porch each end then the one on the Crux storm, and you don't get all that extra space for nothing!  Things like the chimney vent and cover adds weight too, but all of these things make the tent a nicer place to live and it is designed with base-camp duty in mind.   I'd sooner carry the Crux, but if I was carrying it far and wanted a geo I'd have a Jannu rather than a Tarra (also a little cheaper... but still a small fortune!)

We've got a Kaitum 3 tunnel on order for a light (for its size) and tough and easy to live in palace.  It's heavier than the equivalent sized Nallo, but again has full height all through and doors and porches at each end, and I like the extra living space and better ventilation more than I hate the extra carry, but that's just me... We're going for red (as is the Tarra).  I originally got that on the Tarra because red was an end of stock offer at much reduced price, but I've come to like the warm quality of light you get inside even on nasty mornings which just makes it a slightly nicer place to be.

Pete. 

Parky Again wrote (see)

sorry peter i may have my wires crossed. i thought the damage was from another tent's pole flying through the air anfd not from the owner's tent pole failure.

or am i confused beacuse the incident involves two people called rich.

so my question is: would any tent prevent damge from another wind propelled tent's broken poles  i.e. would the original poster have been any better off in any other tent? or simply, it was just bad luck?

I think you're right about the source of the pole, but in any case external poles are probably better if your own do break. 

Beyond that what you'll want is maximum tear strength and that mens high tenacity silicone coated nylons.  Either the Cruxen or Hillebergs have such fabrics.  Quasars are silicone coated on one side but PU on the other so they'll take seam tape, but PU coatings heat age the fabric much more than silicone, so to get seam tapes on the Quasar TN apparently make the flysheet weaker.  Doesn't strike me as too clever, but seam taping is an important marketing bullet point, even if plenty of tents are perfectly adequately waterproof without it.

Pete.