New lightweight and mountain tent ranges for this spring from top Swedish brand.
You may associate Swedish brand Fjallräven with their somewhat alternative wax-proofed G1000 garments, which offer a soft-shell like balance of breathability and weather protection, but this spring, the company has also launched a range of high performance tents utilising a new Triple-Rip flysheet fabric.
Abisko Lightweights - Light All-In-One Pitching Tunnels
There are two series of tents in the new line. The gramme-saving, three-season, Abisko Lightweights which Fjallräven says, are all about combining low weight and high comfort in a stable package. There are two and three-person models, both of which use an unusual highly angled construction - the centre hoop is taller than the end ones - which apparently helps with stability in high winds.
Both have large porches for easy kit storage and cooking along with drying lines and smart kit stowage facilities while large vents at either end help minimise condensation. Plus for rapid pitching in bad conditions, inner and fly go up as one.
New Triple-Rip flysheet fabric is made from a 30D polyester rip-stop fabric with four layers of silicone applied on either side. Silicone treatments dramatically increase the strength of fabrics along with their water resistance, so we'd expect high levels of toughness along with good UV resistance and minimal stretching when wet.
And speaking of wet, the fabric has an impressive hydrostatic head of 4 metres despite its low 52g per square metre weight. So what does that translate to in terms of overall tent weights?
The Abisko Lightweight 2, two-person tent has a respectable weight of 2600g, while the three-person incarnation weighs in at 2950g.
Akka Endurance - Four-Season Tunnels
Also new this spring is the Akka Endurance series, again they're tunnel tents, but this time specced for all-year - including winter - use. Again they pitch as one unit and colour-coded poles help avoid pitching confusion when the going gets frantic.
The fly is the same Triple-Rip fabric and there are extra-large pole sleeves, which mean that in expedition base-camp scenarios, you can actually double up on poles to increase strength. The tunnel configuration is more conventional than the Abisko's slanted design with more equal pole lengths.
There are two, three and four-person versions with weights of 3700g, 4200g and 5900g respectedly, so think weighty but tough.
Prices start at £450 for the Abisko Lightweight 2, £495 for the three-person version and for the Akka Endurance, £495, £550 and £695 for the four-person biggy. Not cheap, but Fjallräven has a good reputation for high quality kit.
Full details of the entire range of Fjallräven clothing and equipment at www.fjallraven.com
