Bushwalk Australia

My Scout Group has two Wilderness Equipment i-Shadow tents.

Unfortunately, some long ago Venturers lost both the outers very early in the tents' lives!

I believe that I can buy replacement outers at $279 each.

Is there any better option? Something like this? https://www.snowys.com.au/spartan-3-hiking-tent

I wish Coleman still made the Ridgeline 3P -- I have one of those and would buy some more like a shot.

I lead an annual youth camp for which the group has a few of those Spartans to lend to kids who don't have their own tents. They're OK. I wouldn't have confidence that they would be suited to a storm, but they're perfectly adequate in good weather. (I wouldn't use them for myself, when I have my own better tents available.)

I liked the design of the Spartan but since acquiring some better and UL tents, the lasting quality is not there.

Anything by WE or One Planet in that range will last a long time for group use, has been especially designed for that.

See if scouts gets a pro deal (pricing) with WE.

Our scout group have the same problem... somehow tents always seem to get attached to the outside of Packs and either the whole or just bits get lost along the way. I have spent the last few years trying to teach the scouts how to pack and making sure if they have to attach to the outside how to attach so they don't fall off (ie don't just shove it under a strap or in a side pocket).

When we were looking we went with these: https://www.snowys.com.au/pro-hiker-2-tent. Snowies gave us a further discount as we bought several and when we let them we were a scout group. I am led to believe these are also used by outdoor ed groups quite widely. So far these have been really good for our group but they are heavy - similar to your Spartans.

I would be hesitant to get anything expensive and lightweight for scouts/venturers as they do cop a fair beating and for the money you spend they can be easily broken.

A few of our more adventurous venturers have bought these: https://novaprosports.com.au/collection ... rest-green after seeing one I bought for my son. These are a really great tent IMO, freestanding, comes with the footprint, and only 1.55kg. For the price these are amazing value. I know there is always quite an interest in these when he goes off to district/state camps - they are bombproof and has withstood really high wind, really heavy rain with no real issues. The only downside so far has been the footprint is a bit close to the fly so in some conditions water can drip down, run off the ground onto the footprint and then on slight slopes will continue to run under the tent. However you don't have to use the footprint if conditions look like this might happen, but maybe the tent bottom woudl get wet then anyway.

What's the cheaper option?
WE do make reliable and reasonably strong gear but loosing stuff is a real PITA

Thanks Fiona, I like the look of the Illumina X. It looks better than my Ridgeline 2P (the Ridgeline 3P is great, but I always have trouble with the inner sagging with the 2P).

I'm trying to compare the floor material of the Ridgeline and the Illumina X, but I really don't know the difference between "360T 20D Nylon Ripstop" (the Illumina) and "75D P/190T Nylon" (The Ridgeline).

I use the Ridgeline without a footprint, and get a few damp spots but nothing to worry about.

And now I'm tempted to spend $99 on one of these: https://novaprosports.com.au/collection ... new-colour just to see what they're like.

Hey TG, the Speedy 4 tent in the video looks to be identical (apart from the colour) to one I bought from Aldi a few years ago, exactly same construction, dimensions, weight and layout. My one is waaay too heavy for my kind of bushwalking (2.9 kgs) but I use it often for base camp/car camping and have found it to be easy to erect, tough, well made, rain proof, wind resistant-ish. The mesh inner and gap between the fly and the ground means that it is quite drafty in windy conditions and is definitely a three season rather than four season tent. The one you are looking at from Novapro looks like a bargain for $99, what's not to like? As you suggest it is worth the money just to check it out.

Thanks Greg. I would be expecting at least 2 and probably 3 scouts to share the weight, so 2.9 Kgs is fine. Looking more closely at it, I have some similar tents -- but with fibreglass poles. It also looks as though the Speedy has a more generous fly than my tents, although perhaps it has just been pitched very carefully!

Three seasons is fine -- the coldest conditions these tents are likely to see is Cataract Scout Park in June (which does get surprisingly cold! And I know June is in the fourth season )

Have you spoken to WE about your challenge? They might do a deal? I'm sure they don't want to lose their place as a preferred supplier for outdoor ed markets.

Also re kids losing stuff/strapping on outside of packs. Isn't there some kind of waiver you make the parents sign? Eg not taking reasonable care will cause replacement value to be charged.

Wanderer, I will reach out to WE.
On kids losing stuff: I would not be happy to put a youth member in that position with their parents. When I set fees for camps/hikes I build in a little extra to cover wear and tear on equipment.

It is quite common to hear me shouting "That tent pole is not a sword, Molesworth!" at camps!

I bought a Novaprosports illuminaX about 3yrs ago. Great little tent. One of the guy loops on the fly base pulled out, and this reminds me to attach it again. It was roomy, and withstood heavy rain well. Didn’t get a footprint with mine, however vestibule covers inner tent opening well. It wouldn’t shed snow that well. As to “bombproof” , the fact that the guy loop pulled out would restrict my thoughts about using that term! But, it seems a good design.

A

Finally put the Speedy 4 up in the living room. Looks good -- it's a standard cheap "4 person" dome tent layout, but with aluminium poles, a decent vestibule, a bag that it's actually easy to get the tent back in to (dry anyway!) I like it for $99.

Only question mark is how waterproof the floor material is.

A couple of my Scouts will be using it at Scout Hike in a few weeks, so we'll see how it goes. I'll have to hope for rain, so it gets a proper workout

Gave the Illumina X the living room treatment too. It beats the Coleman Ridgeline 2P on ease of setup, weight (if you don't use a footprint -- which the Coleman doesn't have/need) and particularly interior space.

The Illumina cost almost twice what I paid for the Coleman 2P.

I still rate the Coleman Ridgeline 3P as excellent, 2.4 Kg, great for two people, but alas no longer made.

Tom