Customer Reviews

9' x 12' CANVAS STRAIGHT WALL BASE CAMP CABIN TENT

5 star:		(0)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

You get what you pay for. In the case of this tent, you don't get top quality, but you don't pay top dollar either. The tent isn't bad. It's nice and roomy once you get it set up, but getting it set up is the problem.

I've had mine for a few years now (so they MAY have made some changes to it, I don't know).

Don't even TRY to set it up alone. It can be done, but even with two people it's tough to do. One bit of information on setting this up is critical: the tent gets its stability from the stakes and tie-offs. This is in no way a "free standing" tent that needs to be tied down for protection from the wind. For some reason that wasn't so obvious to me when I first got it. It looked like it should stand up mostly on its own. It does not.

Get or make some GOOD stakes (and extras). Don't skimp or you'll only regret it.

It may just be my lack of patience, but whenever I get mine set up, it never looks quite like the pictures. It's always quite a bit more... "droopy" looking.

Quality wise, I'd give it a 7 out of 10. In trying to pull the tent tight I actually ripped the stitching along the very top of the tent, and had to sew it back up myself (very heavy canvas, not fun stitching...) This is an area that obviously has to take a lot of stress and abuse, and I was surpised it ripped as easiliy as it did. With my fix, I haven't had any more trouble with it (it was only one corner that let go - the other corner has held just fine without any of my stitching re-work).

Aside from that, this is just what it looks like, four walls and a roof. The bottom is heavy duty enough not to have failed me yet. I'm not overly cautious with it, so I take that as a plus.

The plasticy,rubbery rain fly/sun shield is a good addition. A bit flimsy, but I look at it as a freebie they didn't need to stick in, so I can't complain.

The canvas did rapidly fade once the sun shone on it, but that means very little to me personally.

Would I buy it again? A definite maybe. I remember when making this purhcase that I steered away from some of the other wall tents that looked like they needed more tie-offs - but now that I realize this needs just as many I might make a different decision. But for the price, this really isn't a bad deal.

Mine has no outlet for a chimney, that's something I miss having...

So my review on this is pretty much down the middle. If you can easily afford more, or it's going to get used a LOT, then spend more. If you just need somethihng for occasional use, this is probably fine for you.

If you're doing a lot of weekend family camping, I'd recommend more of a large "pop up" tent. It'd be about 50lbs lighter, take up much less space in your vehicle, and setup in a snap without having to get all p'd off at your wife while trying to raise it. : )

Plus you'll really stick out in a campground with this thing! And I don't mean that in a good way. It really does look a little silly set up in the woods next to a bunch of colemans. It's very tall and very bright. When everybody around you spends five minutes popping up their tents, compared to your hour and a half, you tend to get a little sensitive to your tent standing out so much. You'll keep asking youself "why exactly do I have this thing again?".

I bought this tent a few years ago with the intention of putting it on a deck. My mistake was not realizing that the door of the tent is on the 12' side, and therefore it did not fit on the deck very comfortably. That said, it has done well although the zipper on the front door broke and I can't get it to realign, but this was after 2 years of constant opening and closing. I would buy it again, but keep the zipper oiled, and make sure that the tent is not staked in such a way as to put stress on the zipper.