A strong but light 3 person, 4 season tent

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A strong but light 3 person, 4 season tent

Postby sgilling » Thu 28 Apr, 2011 1:05 pm

Hi all,

I have recently purchased a WE second arrow tent to use for walking in Tasmania. In the course of walking in the Walls of Jerusalem over Easter we discovered that our other tent a Salewa dome leaked. The floor is too thin and not waterproof! So we need a good second tent to house the other half of the family. I want a tent that can accommodate myself and my partner, while our 2 sons can use the second arrow. I would also like to be able to use the tent to take the 2 boys somewhere by myself. So, hence the need for 3 person. I was looking at a first arrow, but feel that the size is a little constrictive for three and the vestibule space too limited. I've been looking at Hilleberg tents, either the Kaitum 3 or Kerron 3. Has anyone experience using these tents in Australian (particularly TAS) conditions? Is the Keron 1200 fabric of the Kaitum sufficient for TAS? There is no info on the Hilleberg site about the floor material. Does anyone know how it compares to WE or Macpac floors?

I apologise in advance if this is too general. Any advice would be greatly appreciated before I fork out hard earned cash!
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Re: A strong but light 3 person, 4 season tent

Postby tasadam » Thu 28 Apr, 2011 4:26 pm

Hilleberg Nallo3 is likely your answer. Cheap at the moment too with the Oz dollar booming!
If you are coming to Devonport I will happily show you my Nallo2. Contact me.
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Re: A strong but light 3 person, 4 season tent

Postby sgilling » Thu 28 Apr, 2011 11:46 pm

Thanks for that tasadam,

I am almost 6'2" and thought the Nallo might be a bit short with only one vestibule. I think I could use the extra space that the Kaitum offers. I have read that the ventilation is better with the 2 high vents in the Kaitum. Do you find the floor material is sufficiently strong/waterproof? What about the fly material? It is tempting to go to the heavier/stronger Kerlon 1800, but the weight saving in the the Kerlon 1200 sounds good if this is strong enough for Tassie conditions. Thanks for the offer to see your tent, I'll let you know if I'm heading up that way.
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Re: A strong but light 3 person, 4 season tent

Postby tasadam » Fri 29 Apr, 2011 8:19 am

Well, I'm less than 4 inches shorter than you, I believe there's 4 inches behind my feet when I'm in the Nallo.
Best thing is to check it out if you're down this way I think.
I always use Tyvek under the tent, probably an overkill for most camps. For the weight and cost of a bit of tyvek, it's great insurance.
I've had my Nallo2 in +100kph winds on more than one occasion, no problems. You can always double pole them, a worthy option for strong winds.
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Re: A strong but light 3 person, 4 season tent

Postby frenchy_84 » Fri 29 Apr, 2011 8:56 am

Im 6'2" and have no problem with a Nallo 2.
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Re: A strong but light 3 person, 4 season tent

Postby sthughes » Fri 29 Apr, 2011 1:26 pm

If you actually plan to regularly sleep 3 then I'd definitely go the Kaitum as it has heaps more space, especially in the vestibule department. In my opinion the Nallo 3 is more of a luxury 2 man tent, 3 man in a pinch tent. However it is lighter, cheaper and easier to fit on a small site. Nallo 3 will be quite cramped with 3 adults (i don't know how old your boys are). The Nallo 3 is only about 100mm wider and 50mm longer than a First Arrow.

As for materials I'd say whilst the Hilleberg materials are very good (perfectly adequate) the Macpac and WE floors are a tad tougher. Like Tasadam said, a Tyvek ground sheet is a good idea, and if you do that then the Hilleberg floor is tougher than you'll ever need anyway.

The MSR Holler might be wort considering too, though they are new to the market and I have never seen one in the flesh yet.
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Re: A strong but light 3 person, 4 season tent

Postby andrewa » Fri 29 Apr, 2011 7:52 pm

I've got a Hilleberg Nallo 3 GT, but, whilst I think it is a fantastic tent, it is very tight with 3 adults in it ( as in, you're up against the sides, and therefore condensation becomes more of an issue) and i would not consider it a perfect tent for winter, as it's snow shedding ability is limited. If regular snow camping is part of the itinerary, then I'd prefer a geodesic dome, albeit a lot heavier. If it is a case of 4 season camping where it might snow, then I'd be happy with the Nallo. Unlike some others on this forum, i have trouble pitching mine really taut , for some reason, which no doubt adds to my anxiety about snow building up on it. I do love the extended vestibule of the GT, but realize that the additional footprint might not work in Tassie. Beyond this, they are exceptionally well made and designed.
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Re: A strong but light 3 person, 4 season tent

Postby samh » Fri 29 Apr, 2011 11:57 pm

A friend of mine used the Kerron 3. It did withstand everything Tassie's weather did throw at it. The only trouble was sometimes finding enough room to pitch it, and that would also be my biggest concern with the Kaitum 3 as it has the same length but it 25 cm wider.
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Re: A strong but light 3 person, 4 season tent

Postby Humpo » Sat 30 Apr, 2011 9:52 pm

I had the Nallo 3 GT great tent. Im a big guy and with just me and the wife we had stacks of room. Not sure about three of you would be cramped. The thing i liked about the GT is the extra room you get in the vestibule. Room for 4 packs and then some. If you got court out with a few days of rain then you and the kids could all hang out in the gt.
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Re: A strong but light 3 person, 4 season tent

Postby tasadam » Sun 01 May, 2011 10:03 pm

I just came back from a walk where two 9 year old girls and a 7 year old girl stayed in a Nallo2 and they slept solid all night.
How old are your boys? Might be a consideration when thinking about the Nallo3 as an option.

Because my wife and I have started walking with a 9 year old, I've had a bit of a look at the 3 person tents too.
It gets hard when the Nallo, Nammatj, Keron are all called 3 person but are all 64 inches wide, when the Katium is 73 inches wide. That's a pretty big difference.
But, the length of the Katium / Keron at 4.3 metres... The Nammatj with the smaller vestibule than the Nallo (100mm)...
With the proven strength I have seen with the Nallo2, maybe the best solution (if width is a consideration) is the Nallo4 - still lighter in weight than any of the other 3's.
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Re: A strong but light 3 person, 4 season tent

Postby sthughes » Mon 02 May, 2011 11:19 am

tasadam wrote:With the proven strength I have seen with the Nallo2, maybe the best solution (if width is a consideration) is the Nallo4 - still lighter in weight than any of the other 3's.

Good idea :wink:
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Re: A strong but light 3 person, 4 season tent

Postby Franco » Sun 08 May, 2011 9:40 am

"we discovered that our other tent a Salewa dome leaked. The floor is too thin and not waterproof!"

If that is the only problem why don't you try to fix the floor ?
McNett has a product called Tent Sure just for that.
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Re: A strong but light 3 person, 4 season tent

Postby sgilling » Wed 18 May, 2011 10:22 am

Thanks to all for your excellent and thoughtful suggestions. I'm still pondering my options and am leaning towards a Nammatj 3 or a Kaitum 3. I like the extra strength of the Nammatj but appreciate the extra room of the Kaitum, both about the same weight. I guess if we avoid platforms, the length of the Kaitum shouldn't be prohibitive, especially when you can probably put the vestibule over a bush in a pinch. In response to the suggestion of fixing the floor, it's probably not worth it in the Salewa, it's just too long in the tooth!

Thanks again,

Steve
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Re: A strong but light 3 person, 4 season tent

Postby tasadam » Wed 18 May, 2011 11:06 am

Just a point, as far as sleeping length goes, all the Hilleberg 3 person tents are 2200mm long, so when you said you're taller so wanted the extra space, I thought I'd better point that out.
Actually, so are the 2 person and 4 person tents, all the same sleeping length.

EDIT - as pointed out below, that's tunnel tents I was looking at.
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A strong but light 3 person, 4 season tent

Postby ninjapuppet » Wed 18 May, 2011 12:36 pm

I think my Jannu is 235 cm long.
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Re: A strong but light 3 person, 4 season tent

Postby tasadam » Wed 18 May, 2011 12:44 pm

ninjapuppet wrote:I think my Jannu is 235 cm long.

Yes.
I was referring to tunnel tents.
A bit of tunnel vision on my part.
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Re: A strong but light 3 person, 4 season tent

Postby ninjapuppet » Wed 18 May, 2011 2:40 pm

sgilling wrote:Thanks to all for your excellent and thoughtful suggestions. I'm still pondering my options and am leaning towards a Nammatj 3 or a Kaitum 3.
Steve


I was in your situation just over a week ago but I ruled out the kaitum because of its 4.3m length. Generally shouldnt be a problem in snow, but 4.3m really is quite long if you think about it. It was hard to decide the Nammatj 3 vs Nammatj 2 GT, but i figured out i would rather have extra space inside the tent rather than in the vestibule. I spend more time inside the tent rather than in the vestibule and it gives you some living space if its really cold outside. I plan to use it as a 2 person tent but it gives you an option to take a 3rd person if required rather than the 2GT.

Just got the Nammatj 3 today in the post. The poles on the Nammatj are 10mm rather than the 9mm in the Kaitum. I didnt think 1mm would make much difference but oh man! they feel so much beefier. For Australian purposes, the 9mm poles should be sufficient.

Got it from Neptune mountaineering during their sales for $450 AUD. At that price, its risk free since 2nd hand ones go for that price already.
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Re: A strong but light 3 person, 4 season tent

Postby ninjapuppet » Thu 19 May, 2011 8:29 am

This must be one of the strongest tents Ive ever seen. Easily fits 3 people and handles 4 seasons, .... somehow I'm just not quite sure about it being lightweight.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-13430747
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Re: A strong but light 3 person, 4 season tent

Postby Tony » Thu 19 May, 2011 8:37 am

ninjapuppet wrote:This must be one of the strongest tents Ive ever seen. Easily fits 3 people and handles 4 seasons, .... somehow I'm just not quite sure about it being lightweight.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-13430747


Great idea ninjapuppet, I am wondering if it is collapsible to reuse at the next camp site.

PS: you can carry it.

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