Novapro Sports Tents?

Posted:
Thu 12 Apr, 2018 7:53 pm
by andrewa
Has anyone any feedback about the Novapro line of tents, which I have never heard of before. I was doing a random Google search last night, and came across this one, which "looks too good to be true", and prob is, but at this price I'd be happy to give it a go.
https://novaprosports.com.au/products/l ... gKhA_D_BwEAndrew
Re: Novapro Sports Tents?

Posted:
Thu 12 Apr, 2018 8:50 pm
by Mark F
There is a comment on the tent in an earlier thread.
http://bushwalk.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=58&t=19745&start=30 2nd last post on page 2.
Not sure I would class it as 4 seasons with a mesh inner and if over 180cm it may be a bit short.
Re: Novapro Sports Tents?

Posted:
Fri 13 Apr, 2018 7:20 pm
by andrewa
Have decided to buy one and see how it is - even if it needs some “modification”. Will report back in due course. I’m not so worried about the mesh inner, as I’ve used my Hilleberg Nallo 2 fly on Bogong in the snow in Spring - the major downer with it was that heavy rain caused the condensation to “shower” down on me, and I’m hoping the mesh will at least reduce this. I’m normally not camping in v exposed conditions, so don’t need it to stand up to high wind - I just want a reasonably roomy 1 person shelter for weekend ski touring.
A
Re: Novapro Sports Tents?

Posted:
Fri 13 Apr, 2018 8:18 pm
by Franco
Reminds me of the BA Fly Creek 2.
Re: Novapro Sports Tents?

Posted:
Fri 13 Apr, 2018 8:24 pm
by andrewa
Yes - with a few more wrinkles and a bit more colour!
A
Re: Novapro Sports Tents?

Posted:
Mon 16 Apr, 2018 10:29 pm
by keithy
Andrew - the Novapro guys say they are distributors for Naturehike and this does look like a rebadged Naturehike Cloud Up 2.
I have had the NatureHike Cloud Up 2 tent since July 2016, and it's not a bad tent. A mate of mine's been using it since December. I have the 3 season 20D siliconised version. There was a 4 season version - well, it has a snow skirt on the fly.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06XSZ878X/re ... UTF8&psc=1I was testing it out to see if I could live with the style before buying the Big Agnes Flycreek 2. The Cloud up 20D tent is a good solid tent, but is a bit tight for two people. My mate who has it is well over 6' and he's using it instead of his heavier One Planet tent as a one man hiking tent.
There are differences between the two though.
- The Naturehike one is heavier by about 300g as it uses 20D sil nylon vs 15D on the FlyCreek 2. But mine came with an included ground mat of 200g while the BA doesn't.
- The rainfly does not connect to the inner or the poles, and it can sag in heavy rain and touch the inner. The fly creek has an attachment point from midpoint on the fly to the midpoint on the inner, and then at the bottom of the fly to the bottom of the inner so the can be pulled out taut. The cloud up only has the connecting point from the fly to the bottom of the inner at the sides.
- On mine the inner has a tie to connect to the inner to the central pole that runs to the rear. On the BA it is a clip like the other points. Mine might be an aberration - it uses a cord with toggle lock instead of a hook - it still can work but is not as easy as a hook.
You can still fast pitch the tent with the ground sheet and the fly, and then setup the inner later.
I'll be keen to compare your Novapro version with my Cloud Up when you get yours. I'll have to get mine back first though.
Re: Novapro Sports Tents?

Posted:
Mon 16 Apr, 2018 10:49 pm
by andrewa
Thanks for that. I'm after a 1 person tent for weekends on Bogong in winter - otherwise I'll take my Hilleberg Nallo GT 2 or 3.
I'm also prepared to seriously modify it at that price - so no issues with design - as long as the fly pitches OK, I can modify the inner to suit.
A
Re: Novapro Sports Tents?

Posted:
Wed 18 Apr, 2018 8:43 pm
by andrewa
Tent arrived today. Set it up briefly inside. I'm planning on using it as a 1 person tent, including winter ski weekends on Bogong.
First impressions.
- wt is 1370g, not 1300 as advertised. Can cope with this.
- fabric on floor and fly looks robust - Its certainly not "ultralight" fabric. If this was made with ultralight fabrics, It'd be even better. I don't understand why they recommend a footprint. The floor is heavy enough. I'd be very happy just to use it as is.
- very easy pitch. Inner first, fly over. Only took a few minutes.
- very very roomy for 1 - tent has rectangular floor, with enough room for 2 mats, but the roof angles in from the sides, and I think 2 would be more cosy than I'd like. For one, there's plenty of head room, and heaps of space to have gear inside.
- Vestibule . There's so much room inside for 1 with gear, that the only benefit of the vestibule is keeping the inner dry when getting in and out, and perhaps cooking. It isn't big enough to store much gear. Necessary for winter in the snow though.
- re 4 season use - nylon extends about half way up the sides of the inner tent, mesh at top. Seems like a good compromise, with better ventilation.
- snow shedding - it has a high ridge, and will shed snow well, but the snow wil likely push in on the sides and compress the tent, which is not an issue with 1 person in it. The fly goes down to the ground all around.
- wind - my immediate thoughts were that the fly was not attached to the poles, which might be an issue, but I then thought about all the tents from the 70's/80's, and possibly later . They coped. Presumably when I peg it out properly, the fly will be anchored to the ground well enough to minimise wind flap. There are 2 guy points on each "pole", so it should be able to be anchored well. My gut feeling is that I'd like the poles attached to the fly, but I'll see how it goes. I can easily modify this.
Haven't tried trying to pitch it fly first, and not sure whether I can, but it's so easy and fast to pitch, it probably doesn't matter.
If this was made from some if those ultralight fabrics that Terra Nova use on their Laser photon elite, it would be perfect for me. As it is, I reckon it's a great tent for 1, and I'll be very happy to take it up Bogong in winter - with another person, I'll use my Hilleberg Nallo GT 3, mainly to have some covered gear storage. I suppose my H'berg Nallo GT 2 might now become obsolete.
I think I've found my perfect weekend winter tent. id love an ultralight version for my walking/fly fishing trips. And, it's incredibly cheap for what you get.
A
Re: Novapro Sports Tents?

Posted:
Fri 20 Apr, 2018 10:52 am
by Moondog55
Fly to pole attachment is easy enough with Velcro but a pull-out on the sides may be more difficult; a round patch internal or external using silicon glue perhaps
Re: Novapro Sports Tents?

Posted:
Fri 20 Apr, 2018 8:26 pm
by andrewa
Yes, I was thinking about Velcro to attach fly to poles, but I might just use it and see whether there's actually an issue, before modifying it! My mindset is still that from the 80's, when outdoor gear design was evolving rapidly - I need to just sit back and see how things work first, and then modify as needed.
Sadly, tent won't get a decent run until mid to late August on Boges.
A
Re: Novapro Sports Tents?

Posted:
Thu 09 May, 2019 1:26 am
by tjmckay
G'day Andrewa
Have you been using your Amber X tent much? Happy with it? I recently bought the Amber X orange version but haven't set it up yet. I'm already having buyers remorse....Grrr as the Mont Moondance is on special via Paddy Pallin ebay.
https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Mont-Moonda ... %7Ciid%3A1
Re: Novapro Sports Tents?

Posted:
Tue 18 Jun, 2019 11:15 pm
by havanainthebush
andrewa wrote:Have decided to buy one and see how it is - even if it needs some “modification”. Will report back in due course. I’m not so worried about the mesh inner, as I’ve used my Hilleberg Nallo 2 fly on Bogong in the snow in Spring - the major downer with it was that heavy rain caused the condensation to “shower” down on me, and I’m hoping the mesh will at least reduce this. I’m normally not camping in v exposed conditions, so don’t need it to stand up to high wind - I just want a reasonably roomy 1 person shelter for weekend ski touring.
A
All UL Nylon tents tend to do this. If you want wet weather protection, get a Polyester fly.
What you're linking is the Naturehike tent. I considered buying one too but went with the 3F UL Gear Zhengtu 2 because of the extra ventilation and partially covered inner.
My friend has the same tent you've ordered. She seems to like it but she doesn't use it in extreme conditions, only in the summer on lowland and she tends to avoid wet weather camping. So can't say for sure. She has the nylon 1.3kg 1-2P version. The pegs are useless and bend easily so I'd order better pegs if I were you, like the MSR mini groundhog (not the large ones for caravan camping) or special snow pegs.
Re: Novapro Sports Tents?

Posted:
Thu 11 Jul, 2019 12:03 pm
by jackattack
" The pegs are useless and bend easily so I'd order better pegs if I were you, like the MSR mini groundhog (not the large ones for caravan camping) or special snow pegs."
I have the Nature Hike Cloud up 2 upgraded silnylon version. I wanted to try out a front entry tent and as it is mostly self standing, on rock platforms, using rocks for what needs to be guyed. Overall I cant fault the tent, just the pegs - Pegs bent in the back yard. I use my MSR Ground hogs when I need to stake things out.
I fit, but you would not want to be really tall. There was rain, not a storm and I was dry.
I am not a fan of front entry it seems and glad I found out at a much lower price than a Big Agnes.
https://novaprosports.com.au/products/c ... 5747113040