New From Force Ten Scoop

The other week we popped up to sunny Glasgae for an early look at what's coming your way for 2005 from the mighty AMG collective - that's Vango, its top-end off shoot Force Ten, Teva and family tent brand, Lichfield.

AMG asked us to wait a bit before publication, but now we can reveal all, or at least the more interesting new stuff, because believe us, the sheer scale of the Vango / Force Ten range has to be seen to be believed.

So anyway, on with the show, here's what's coming your way from Force Ten in 2005. More soon.

Just in case you've not noticed, Force Ten, once a range of tough, traditional and usually orange, mountain tents, is now a brand in its own right. It's touted as bombproof mountain kit, that may not always be the lightest thing out there, but gets the job done.

The AMG guys are proud, for example, that Alan Hinkes used a Force Ten tent on Dhaulagiri earlier this year and there's something resolutely Scottish about the whole brand. Quite no-nonsense, just like the old tents in fact. Or that's the idea.

Waterproof Rucksacs

We told you about two new waterproof packs from Berghaus a couple of months ago, but they're not the only ones to grab hold of the idea. Vango now has its own waterproof packs.

Normally all packs will leak in heavy rain because the seams aren't sealed, but Vango has tackled the problem by using ultra-sonically welded seams, a roll-top waterproof opening up top and, in the case of the two big packs to get the treatment, a totally waterproof zip opening to the lower compartment using a genuine, and very expensive, immersion dry-suit zip.

The top of the range Expedition 70+10 is, as you might have guessed, a great, big no-nonsense expedition pack and it's backed up by a smaller 60 + 10 version, which uses the same design. It's an impressive thing to look at using the latest, swank, diamond rip-stop fabrics, an adjustable back system complete with air mesh and a 3D hip-belt.

Not the lightest packs in the world at 2.6 and 2.5 kilos respectively and not cheap at aorund £180 and £160, so they'd better be good. You're paying around a 50 per-cent premium for the waterproofing says AMG, a fair bit of that is the dry-suit zip which costs around 35 quid on its own...

The waterproof technology also gets an outing at the smaller end of things with the welded construction popping up in the neat little Hydro Plus - right - hydration packs in 10 and 15-litre sizes. These seem pretty well specced for small packs with the welded construction backed up with heavy duty PVC base material, air mesh lined harness and belt and a water-resistant zip entry to the main compartment.

Should go down well with moutain bikers and fast-moving walkers / runners who like to keep their kit dry.

New Alpine Packs

Alongside the waterproof stuff, there's also a new range of alpine packs that look really, really neat - particularly alongside the slightly barrel-like Expedition items. Dubbed the Couloir - a good alpine name if ever we've heard one - they comes in three sizes, 30+8, 40+8 and 50+10 and is aimed at providing no-nonsense alpine performance.

You get an adjustable back system, which isn't always the case with mid-sized packs, plus standard issue compression straps, ice aze loops, daisy chains, so you can pick daisies, expansion side pockets and even a detachable waterproof cover. Weights are between 1.7 and 2.0 kilos and the emphasis is on durability. Prices are £60, £70 and £80 respectively and they look like good, workmanlike packs.

As with the packs, Force Ten puts the emphasis on no-nonsense toughness and emphasises that their designs are tested in a wind-tunnel to make sure they stand up to the worst conditions.

The robust, but slightly weighty geodesics - Vortex, Spindrift, Ascent and so on - soldier on for another season in the snow, but there are a few interesting new models coming our way. Joining the four-pole geodesic team is the new Baltoro. Priced at £280 it shares the same top kwoll DAC alloy poles and Hytex SPU-Xtreme nylon. It's not quite as full-on as the Vortex or Spindrift and lacks the Fly-Support-System add on triangulated pole supports, but looks like it'll be a good all conditions UK tent in the Quasar way of things.

New Lighter Tunnel

Also new is the Serac Light a development of the existing Serac tunnel tent, but withou t its great big porch which means it loses a pole along with nine kilos of weight producing a tough-looking two man tunnel with a claimed minimum weight of 2.1 kilos. That should put it into the ring with the likes of Macpac's Minaret and other tough tunnels. And at £250, it's competitively priced.

And Even Lighter...

One for the weight watchers and adventure race crowd, the new Vitesse is a two-person tent weighing just 1.3 kilos. When we say tent, perhaps 'shelter' would be a better word. It's a single-skinned beastie that rather cunningly uses a pair of trekking poles in lieu of proper tent poles. You get a ground sheet and taped seams, but it's definitely utility over comfort. Price is £120.

The high quality down bags - Proton, Neutron and Electron - roll over into 2005 using 95/5 white goose down with a 700 plus fill power, the super lightweight Pertex Quantum fabric and trapezoidal baffles.

For next year, the hood design's been modified with a cunning dual thickness cord arrangement so you can work out which one you're tightening in the dark. They're different colours too. Not cheap, but an impressive spec and well worth a look if you're after a top quality sleeping bag. Force Ten emphasises that all its bags are lab tested in France to ensure that the temperature ratings given are reasonable.

Brand new to the range are a new X-Wave synthetic bags, four of them, using a mix of hollowfibre and anti-microbial, silver -based X-Static insulation with an advanced shingle construction removing any thin spots and overlapping the filling in crucial areas. Ratings go from two-season to four-season with the top-end 550 model being good down to a nippy -24 C in extreme circumstances.

Prices range from £70 to £130 and again they look like a good bet in their class.

The kit described here will be available early next year in most cases, however you can find information about Force Ten's current range at their web site.