In article ,
Bob Chilcoat wrote:
We have a 35-year old French ridge tent with a solid vinyl molded bottom.
We've had 2" of water running under the tent in a downpour and absolutely no
leaks. It has a separate rainfly that goes all the way to the ground. Not
high tech -- it's just waterproofed cotton, but we've never gotten wet.

Ah well, I've got a circa 55 year old "Ted Williams" (the Sears, Roebuck &
Co., house brand in those days) umbrella tent. purported 6-person, with an
*inside*frame* (a design few people have even "heard of" these days
Integral fully water-proof floor -- not sure what the treatment is. but
like Bob described, have had streams running under the tent, with no water
inside. Rain fly? _What_ rain fly? Didn't come with one, doesn't _need_
one. It's a _very_ tight-weave cloth -- cotton duck?? -- and water just
_doesn't_ go through it -- not even in torrential rains and high winds. And
we've _never_ had to use any supplemental treatment on it -- no 'seam sealer',
nothing to 'renew' the waterproofing, not -anything-.

Yeah, it's heavy and bulky. No, I wouldn't _dream_ of using it for back-
packing. But I *wish* I could buy something approximately as good _today_.

I can't even find anybody who could _custom-manufacture_ a duplicate.

We
bought it in the UK in the early 70's and have camped all around the UK and
Europe and here in the US. OTOH, it's pretty heavy and bulky. We've since
bought a couple of different "high-tech" nylon dome tents with fiberglass
poles, but none of them measured up to that old tent. If we knew it was
likely to rain, we'd take that.

--
Bob (Chief Pilot, White Knuckle Airways)


"john smith" wrote in message
...
After seeing others experience with tents at AirVenture '05, I am going to
write an article to post prior to AirVenture '06 about what to look for in
a tent that will keep you dry and stay where you place it.

However, since you are asking now, here are a few quick suggestions so you
may seek and purchase a tent at a discount this Fall when stores are
discounting this Summer's merchandise.

o Three season tent with full rain fly. Single wall tents are lighter, but
do not breath because they are coated to seal out the water. As I have
told others, in 25 years the only weather I have not yet seen at OSH is
snow.

o Look for a tent that has a full rain fly, not those little umbrella sun
shade things that some tents have. You want a rain fly that goes almost
all the way to the ground, completely covering the inner tent. You want a
fly that is factory seam sealed.

o Bathtub floor. The waterproof tent bottom that comes up the sides of the
tent six to eight inches.

o Ground cloth. I use TYVEK, the vapor barrior material that is wrapped
around new house construction. Find a scrap in the dumpster or ask the
construction crew to save you a piece. (Check with a local Boy Scout troop
to see if they have a roll that they will sell you a piece from.) Cut it
to the shape of your tent's footprint so it is two-inches from the edge
all around. If it is the same dimension or larger than your tent's
footprint, water draining off the fly can be caught on top of the ground
cloth and flow under your tent. Although the bathtub is waterproof, water
will still seep through microscopic holes and make the inside of your tent
wet.

How many people will be sleeping in the tent?

Do you need/want a stand-up size or a crawl-into size?

Metal poles vice fiberglass poles? I prefer metal, but the most important
feature of the tent will be multiple lash points for guying. If you have
sufficient guys/tie-down points, it will withstand very strong wind.

Domes/A-frame/rectangular shape. Think airflow. How will the surface of
the tent deflect the wind and rain? Domes generally allow the greatest
interior volume and best wind/rain shedding.

Visit a backpacking store or good sporting goods store and try out the
different models. Read BACKPACKER magazine. Google "backpacking+gear
reviews" for websites and read what users have to say.

Onlines websites:
www.campmor.com
www.rei.com
www.northernmountain.com
www.sierratradingpost.com
(these are the ones I commonly check for sales)
there are many others, including the manufacturers websites.

Remember, this is a brief overview, there is lots to discuss.