Which tent frame is better internal or external. What is a modern tent made of? Condensation in a single layer tent

A tent is a house on a camping trip. Not only comfort, but also safety depends on its reliability and convenience of design. It is for this reason that the Italian Ferrino tent became my first branded foreign item from my tourist equipment back in 1997, which, thanks to its classic universal design, optimal dimensions and the highest quality of production (then still made in Italy!) lasted 15 years (! !!).

At the moment I have five tourist tents! Double 4.1 kg for mountain climbing, 2.2 kg for mountain hiking, light 1.3 kg for trekking, ultra-light triple 1.8 kg for family trips and a single selfie tent weighing 800 grams. I'll try to talk about each.

THE NORTH FACE Mountain 25

Purpose: 2-seater 4-season assault tent. My biggest tent ever!

Strengths : Incredibly strong, warm and comfortable. Durability is achieved through the construction of four (!) bars made of strong but lightweight aluminum and a large number of conveniently adjustable guys. The tent is warm due to the very dense fabric of the "inner" tent. But the main thing in this tent is the convenience and comfort of living. It is provided thanks to a large number of pockets in the inner tent, two entrances, two vestibules (one of which is full-fledged, and the second is very small), as well as the presence of a simply fantastic ventilation system (comfortable temperature inside the tent can be provided in almost any weather and in any situation. It's hot - you can open through ventilation windows located under the dome of the tent and duplicated with mesh, cold - you can completely close everything. I consider this very important and use this opportunity all the time, because good ventilation is the key to good sleep and rest. In general, the tent is really very comfortable , you can really live in it for a week and not bathe! It's also great that the design allows you to set up only an inner tent if the weather is good. That's exactly what we did on Elbrus on days when there was no rain!

Weak sides : in the tent of the "expeditionary", assault class, a skirt would be useful, at least on the vestibule, so that it would not blow out the snow, as in Kamchatka (in later versions this drawback was corrected!). I would also like the second vestibule to be a little more spacious, and not just "exit + 30 cm of space for boots." Then it was possible to cook and arrange a kitchen in one, and through the second - to walk / go out. And of course, the weight of a tent of 4 kilos is a lot for a kopeck piece. But, on the other hand, miracles do not happen - after all, it is very spacious and functional, and not "minimalist".

Specifications of THE NORTH FACE Mountain 25 2007 model:

• Year of purchase: 2007
• Capacity: 2 people (Jack includes 3!!)
• Frame: aluminum
• Number of entrances / vestibules: 2
• Weight: 4.1 kg
• Manufacturer website: thenorthface.com
• Tent THE NORTH FACE Mountain 25 in Sport-Marathon store

The North Face Mountain 25 tent is so "severe" and powerful that I went with it only three times - on the Elbrus traverse with an overnight stay on the saddle, on a trip to the volcanoes of Kamchatka and on a family trip to the Bzerpinsky cornice, when I just needed all three of my tents to accommodate six adults and two children. Below are some photos from these hikes and ascents:

Camp "3700"
North of Elbrus

We rent a camp
Kamchatka, Tolbachik volcano

In the clearing of Emanuel
Elbrus, July 2012

At the top of the volcano Plosky Tolbachik,
Kamchatka

Camp on the Bzerpinsky cornice
Krasnaya Polyana

Time off!
North of Elbrus

General view with and without awning

Tent dimensions

As you probably already understood, tents of this class are not cheap. Professional brands today cost from 40 to 80 thousand rubles! In addition to THE NORTH FACE Mountain 25, among other double-layer two-layer assault climbing tents, you should pay attention to the American MARMOT Thor 2, the Swedish HILLEBERG Tarra or the Italian FERRINO Snowbound 2. If you need a 3-seater - check out THE NORTH FACE VE 25, Norwegian BERGANS Helium 3, Italian FERRINO Snowbound 3, Swedish HILLEBERG Saivo or domestic ALEXIKA Matrix 3. Among 4-seaters - domestic ALEXIKA Mirage 4, TNF Bastion 4. For five people, the American tent MSR Stormking is the best option. For those who are seriously concerned about reducing weight, manufacturers also make single-layer assault tents. In addition to the well-known Bibler, there is a one-and-a-half-layer kopeck piece with a removable vestibule MARMOT Hammer 2p weighing 2.2 kg and THE NORTH FACE Assault 2 of approximately the same design!

BIG AGNES Blacktail 2

Purpose: classic double tourist tent. The most versatile of all my tents. If I did not have the opportunity to have many tents, I would buy one of this kind.

While hiking in Switzerland in the summer of 2015, my favorite tent Ferrino Movin 2000 (description on the page "Equipment previously used") "died", which had served faithfully for more than 15 years, since 1998. The tent lasted 24 hikes and 154 camping days! When choosing a replacement for this tent, I came to the conclusion that I want to replace it with two tents: a lighter three-piece for family trips and a two-piece for full-fledged mountain trips. My requirements for the "kopeck piece" were as follows:

• Strong frame. The frame of a tent for mountain hiking must be with a full-fledged classic crosshair of two arcs in the center of the tent (the so-called X-frame), and not the now fashionable Z-frame, which is lighter but holds the wind worse.
• Strong fabrics. The wind and rain in the mountains are much stronger than in the plains. The requirements for fabric materials for a mountain tent are increased. In my opinion, the density of the tent should be at least 30-40D, the bottom - at least 70D.
• Two vestibules. Believe me, two vestibules are convenient. Very comfortably! And in the end - comfortable. And we go to the mountains to rest, not to suffer. Those who deny the need for two vestibules for a two man tent usually cite the added weight. But damn, I'm ready to give up an additional two to three hundred grams (100-150 grams per brother) of weight for the sake of convenience!
• discreet color. Specific requirement! Actually, I always said that the mountain tent should be as bright as possible, ideally orange. This is an element of the so-called "passive safety". A bright tent is much easier to find. It doesn't matter who - you, returning to the fog and bad weather from a radial or, God forbid, rescuers. But there is one BUT: the bright tent is also noticeable to other people, including the rangers of the Caucasian Biosphere Reserve, on hikes in which I like to go. And although there are a number of absolutely legal routes in the reserve (my guide to Krasnaya Polyana), sometimes you really want to go to the violation! In general, I realized that I need NOT a bright tent.

After buying a three-person tent for hiking with the whole family, I realized that I would like to take a second tent from the same company. By design, the BIG AGNES Blacktail 2 tent is a classic! Reliable and stable classic frame with a crosshair, materials that are optimal in terms of weight / reliability / durability, two vestibules on the sides, strong fabrics, eco-friendly color, good weight / price ratio. Someone will say that the weight - almost 2 kg - is a lot for a kopeck piece. But pay attention to what strong materials it uses? I think the tent will last a very long time!

With closed vestibules

inner tent

Separate installation of only an awning

Tent floor dimensions

Tent Height

Characteristics:

• Year of purchase: 2015
• Capacity: 2 people (a jack will also include three !!)
• Frame: aluminum
• Number of entrances / vestibules: 2
• Total weight: 2.2kg
• Price in 2016 - 19,000 rubles

I have had this tent not so long ago, so I did not go on so many trips. However, in two campaigns in Abkhazia (a trip to Malaya Ritsa and a trip along the Arabica Plateau), a trip and in Iceland, she was most welcome! I will do a more detailed review later. Now I can note two small drawbacks - the absence of a double zipper on the vestibule (and this is very convenient, if there is one, for additional ventilation, you can open the zipper in the upper part of the vestibule, which removes condensation from under the awning very well). Well, the second point - the inside pockets are not as big as we would like and only at the top. But again, the “Blacktail” series is not the top, but the “classic” series of BIG AGNES, and it’s not true to demand all the “chips” and lotions from this tent. If all this was, the price of a tent would be significantly higher.

• Manufacturer website: bigagnes.com
• Big Agnes tents in the Sport-Marathon store

BIG AGNES Slater UL2+

Purpose: Ultralight double three-season tent for spring-autumn trips

I bought this tent as a very light yet roomy double tent for fast & light camping trips in spring or autumn when it can be cold and windy. Bribed me one moment - with the actual three-season (the inside of the tent is not made of mesh, but of dense material), the weight of the tent in the complete set is only 1.3 kg. The tent is planned to be used primarily in spring and autumn trips with outside night temperatures around zero and below.

Pros:

• Low weight. Only 1.33 kg for a THREE!-season double tent.
• Large internal length. The length of the inner tent is as much as 244 cm (which is why there is a prefix “+” in the name). This was done specifically so that in bad weather (snow, blizzard, cold wind) it was possible to store things (backpacks) right in the tent. They really fit in the legs without any problems. And of course, such a tent is perfect for tourists of high and VERY HIGH GROWTH!

Peculiarities:

As with everything in our life, the disadvantages of this tent are a direct consequence of its advantages. To reduce weight, the designers had to sacrifice some moments.

• The tent is not a free-standing ("self-contained") design. For its installation, fastening of guy wires is required. For "experienced" tourists, this, of course, is not a problem, because ten years ago we did not know other tents at all). However, sometimes it can be stressful, like our very first night with this tent in the Bavarian Alps. Then we stood right on a dirt-gravel road (the road was a traverse of a steep slope and there were simply no other flat areas) and no pegs entered the ground. I had to climb through the forest in the dark and look for stones in order to somehow delay the guy lines.
• The entrance is one and from the end (from the head), and not two on the sides, as I like. This is of course much less convenient.
• Despite the large area of ​​​​the bottom of the tent, due to the design features, the internal volume is not so large. The side walls in it are inclined, and not vertical, as in the already classic "hub-hub" designs.
• Well, the last nuance, which directly follows from the three-season purpose of this tent - in hot weather it is stuffy and hot in it, since the inner tent is not made of mesh, but of windproof fabric.

So far, the tent has only visited the Bavarian Alps. A more detailed review will be in a year or two, when more statistics are collected.

• Manufacturer website: bigagnes.com
• Big Agnes tents in the Sport-Marathon store

BIG AGNES Copper Spur UL3

Purpose: ultralight 3 person tent

Last year, our son turned two years old and I realized that we needed a light, but as comfortable as possible three-person tent for our family hikes in the mountains of Krasnaya Polyana. My old FERRINO Movin 2000 model of 1997 was still alive then, but fundamentally did not suit me for at least three reasons. Firstly, it was heavy - almost 3 kilos for a three-ruble note for dad, who is too much to carry equipment for three in our time! Secondly, with fig ventilation - in the heat it was unrealistic, and in Krasnaya Polyana, where we live now, in the mountains, in general, it is usually quite warm. And thirdly, she had only one vestibule, which is extremely inconvenient for family trips with a small child!

Choosing a tent for a long time and slowly, and having studied, among other things, our popular MSR shawls, I settled on the Copper Spur UL 3 model of the legendary American company BIG AGNES, famous for its ultra-light tents. What I liked about this tent:

• Incredibly low weight. On our family trips, I will have to (and already have to) carry a lot of equipment for the three of us, so every gram is now more important than ever. And the BIG AGNES Cupper Spur UL3 is one of the lightest free-standing three-man tents with two vestibules to date. Here is an overview in our "Blog". Weight in the basic configuration - 1.9 kg. The total weight, including pegs, guy lines and even an additional bottom (not included) is a little over two kilograms!
• Space and internal dimensions. Family trips are not hardcore and hardcore "sport trips". When hiking with your wife and child, you want maximum comfort, and if you have a small child and a girl with you, then believe me, you will have just a bunch of clothes, and it would be nice to place all this inside the tent. BIG AGNES Cupper Spur is just huge and spacious! You climb into it, and you can’t even believe it! The length of the bottom of the tent is 229 cm (!!), the width is 178 cm, and it also has practical vertical side walls. Thanks to all this, the tent is very spacious. Subjectively, compared to the old Ferrino, there is twice as much space inside!! If we now calculate such an indicator of the tent as the ratio of the useful internal volume of the tent to its weight, then according to this indicator, this scarf of mine is almost three (!!!) times better than my old Ferrino! That's what progress means!
• The presence of two vestibules. When the whole family is with you on a hike, and even with a small child - two vestibules are not a luxury, but practically a necessity! “Logistics” in a tent with two vestibules is incommensurably more convenient and simpler: one vestibule is used for the “kitchen” and storage of things, and the second one is used for entering / exiting the tent. It is not only very convenient, but also safe.
• Mesh inner tent top and not thick fabric. Thanks to this, you can admire nature without even getting out of the tent (through the vestibule or even throwing back half of the top awning (an unrealistically cool feature of such tent designs !!). Of course, the use of “retina” in the inner tent, and not dense fabric, makes it much less warm. But living in Sochi, we can afford to go on family trips around Krasnaya Polyana, choosing days with good weather, so I don’t need a “warm” tent for these purposes. which you plan to spend the night at negative temperatures - this tent is not for you.
• positive design. Purely subjective, I really liked her positive appearance. The tent is sunny, joyful, bright! She's very cool. In many tents, the sensations, unfortunately, are completely different ...

I want to note the following important features of the BIG AGNES Copper Spur UL3 tent:

• Not very wind resistant. The type of construction of the tent - Z-frame with four braces from the ends - does not imply use in the highlands. The wind resistance of the tent is not very high, and it is necessary to take it on hikes with camps above the forest zone with great care. This is especially true for the double version - Copper Spur UL2. But I took it for family trips (when you have to carry everything for three), and with my family we go to the mountains only with a good forecast, so I think that my choice is justified. If you are planning long autonomous hikes in the highlands and or in areas with a high probability of prolonged bad weather (Kamchatka, the Polar Urals, the Sayan Mountains), this tent is not for you.
• Very thin materials. The lightening of the tent was achieved, among other things, through the use of very thin materials of the awning and especially the day in its design. So, the tent is not designed for those tourists who “give it strong”, because everything always breaks and breaks with them .. With this tent, as with all ultra-light equipment, you need to handle it skillfully - understand how and where to put it right and do it carefully. If your hands are... the BIG AGNES Cupper Spur UL3 is not for you.
• Additional pegs required. The pegs in the basic configuration of the tent are not enough to stretch all the guys, as there are in the tent. I bought four extra pegs for end guys.
• Tent requires daily drying. The third feature is also related to the general property of modern ultra-light tents. To ensure waterproofness, the awning of the tent is siliconized. Because of this, the tent "breathes" relatively poorly, and in the morning collects condensation on the inside of the tent. This feature of tents with siliconized awnings requires them to listen to the tent every morning before packing in a backpack. The matter, in general, is not at all complicated, and requires an additional ten to fifteen minutes of time (laying out a tent in the sun, drying, collecting) and, in fact, the sun itself (which, unfortunately, does not always happen in the mountains). In this case, in principle, it is enough, as always, to simply shake the awning well to shake off drops of moisture on the inner surface of the awning.

With that said, I want to warn tourists with minimal hiking experience against buying this tent. In order to fully enjoy the advantages of this tent in terms of weight and comfort of the internal space, you need to know and be able to do a lot ... Know how to choose the right place for a tent so that it is not blown away by the wind, know how to place it correctly in this very wind, be able to handle it in such a way that don't break. If you are an experienced hiker, then this is probably the best tent on the market for you, because a three-person tent with two vestibules weighing only 1.8 kg is not a miracle! And for me, as expected when buying, this is a very light, spacious and comfortable tent for simple trekking and hiking and mountain trips without spending the night at altitude or on passes.

Against the backdrop of the four-thousanders of the Alps
Switzerland, July 2015

On the Bzerpa cornice
Krasnaya Polyana, July 2015

Inside the tent
Krasnaya Polyana, July 2015

inner tent

Installing the awning only
(padding sold separately!)

Tent dimensions

Characteristics:

• Year of purchase: 2015
• Capacity: 3 people (Jack includes 4)
• Frame: aluminum
• Number of entrances / vestibules: 2
• Weight: 1.8 kg (!!!)
• Price in 2016 - 34,900 rubles

P.S. Immediately after the purchase, I invested a little money in order to make the tent please me more and longer. Namely:

• I made an additional bottom from an aluminized rescue blanket (teared it at the seams, it turned out 1: 1). It just seems that the additional, second bottom in the tent is some kind of unrealistic crap. Actually, it's very smart! For in addition to additional protection of the bottom of the tent from cuts, you get a complete absence of condensation on the bottom of the tent in the morning. And it's worth it! As a result, only the awning of the tent requires drying.
• Bought four extra pegs for end braces.
• Replaced the end braces with "smart" ones from NiteIze. Now it is very convenient to adjust the tension of the guys without bothering with knots and / or “tapping” the pegs after, after or during the rain, the awning of the tent naturally stretches and sags a little.
• After all these manipulations, the final weight increased by 150 grams, the tent began to weigh 2 kg.

The tent is still quite new, it is not yet three years old. To date, the BIG AGNES Copper Spur UL3 tent has been used on a hike in the Swiss Alps, as well as on several hikes in the vicinity of Krasnaya Polyana, for example, on family trips to the Bzerpinsky cornice and. After a few years of trips, I will definitely rewrite this text, taking into account more significant use experience.

• Manufacturer website: bigagnes.com
• Big Agnes tents in the Sport-Marathon store

NEMO GoGo Elite

Purpose: single person ultra-light ultra-compact tent

Market analysis showed that the global outdoor industry offers a lot of models for freaks (geeks?) like me. Of course, the English TerraNova Laser Comp with a carbon arc and a weightless cloth and a total weight of 450 grams is a miracle, but the price of $1500 stopped me. As a result, I settled on the Nemo GoGo Elite with the "inflatable arch" technology, unique for serious tourism. I liked its compactness (less than 2 liters in a complete set), bright yellow color and an ideal price-weight-quality ratio. 17 thousand for a tent weighing less than 800 grams seems to me to be the "golden mean" in this endless race to reduce the weight of equipment!

In Austria

Tent with things inside

My feet and a mat in a tent

Tent in original case

Tent dimensions

Sectional design

Characteristics:

• Year of purchase: 2014
• Capacity: 1 person
• Frame: one arc with air chamber
• Awning: 10D OSMO™ Elite W/B membrane
• Bottom: 20D PU Nylon Ripstop
• Number of entrances / vestibules: 1
• Total weight: 800g
• Price: $430

Weaknesses: It's too early to tell. You can, of course, say - there is no space, small, low, cramped, in order to get into a sleeping bag, you need to undress in advance, "on the street", because you climb into the tent only feet first (not for the superstitious, in short). But after all, ultra-light is not about “comfortable sleep”, but about “walking a lot on the route”;) Although, to be honest, there are no problems in sleep - you sleep, stretched out to your full height, there is also a place on the sides. So the dream is full, no problem!

So far, the Nemo GoGo Elite tent has been on two hikes - my third hike in the Caucasian Biosphere Reserve and weekend hiking in the vicinity of Innsbruck. Here are some photos from these trips:

• Manufacturer website: nemoequipment.com
• Nemo equipment in the Sport-Marathon store

SEA TO SUMMIT UltraSil 15D Tarp Poncho

"In battle" since 2014

Purpose: 3-in-1 ultra-lightweight poncho

A camping awning, with which you can quickly build yourself a shelter from rain and wind, is actually an indispensable element of bivouac equipment for serious hikes. By stretching it in the camp, you can get an additional area protected from wind and rain, ideal, for example, in order to equip the kitchen. The second purpose is a quick shelter from rain and wind right on the route, when you want to quickly and comfortably wait out the bad weather, and not sit in a tent>. There is a third, more original use of a camping tent - in case of rain, you can easily get clean drinking water with it. Once, when spending the night on the crest of a wooded Altai ridge, we did just that!

I lost the previous large Bask tent, 3 by 4 meters in size, after a hike in Kamchatka and decided that the new tent should weigh not 2 kg, but 200-300 grams;)

But posto awning is the last century! The modern solution is an awning in which you can walk (!!!). Yes, yes, walking in the rain, with a backpack, using it instead of a waterproof jacket. Such a miracle is called - a poncho awning. A poncho awning is a 3-in-1 solution - an awning, a rain cover and even a replacement tent (rain cover + mat and sleeping bag, that's a den for you to sleep!). In general, consider yourself. But I will say - the weight savings are fantastic!! So it is not at all surprising that in our Sport Marathon this model is wildly popular with participants in various kinds of forced marches and adventure races!

Characteristics:

• Year of purchase: 2014
• Size: 145 x 280 cm.
• Weight: 230 g
• Price - 7300 rubles in yellow-green or seatosummit.com
• Sea to Summit poncho in store

A typical modern tent consists of two layers: inner tent made of thin breathable fabric and waterproof awning. It would seem, why fence such a garden? Make a tent from a solid piece of waterproof material and you will be happy. But the fact is that when breathing, among other things, we constantly exhale water vapor, which actively condenses on the walls cooling down overnight (more on this). The solution was found to make the walls of the tent from a light fabric that almost does not interfere with the passage of air, and from above to cover it with a waterproof awning, on which everything will condense. Between them there is a gap of 10-15 cm , and drops without wetting anything safely flow down to the ground. Between the layers of the tent there is a kind of division of duties: the tent does not let rain and wind inside, and the inner tent protects us from mosquitoes, plus it makes the interior somewhat warmer (on average 5-8 ° C higher than outside temperature).

Thanks to their convenience, double-layer tents have now almost completely replaced their single-layer predecessors. The vast majority of what can be found in a tourist parking lot or in a store has a two-layer construction.

So, the main forms of tents:

• gable house. Two vertical pillars supporting the "horse" of the roof. The entire structure is supported solely by pegs driven into the ground. Throughout the twentieth century, it was an inescapable classic. Now the design is dying off, and is practically no longer used in modern tents, being replaced by more modern forms. This is primarily due to poor habitability. Especially in the rain or with a side wind, when the walls of the tent begin to sag a little. On the other hand, these tents are quite light and cheap.
• Barrel. The arcs are elastically bent in a semicircle and are located one parallel to the other. In general, a worthy, still actively used type of construction. Its advantages include very good habitability and slightly less weight compared to the sphere. To set up such a tent, it must be stretched to the sides with the help of pegs. And if in a normal situation it will not be difficult, then on rocky or sandy soil it still adds a little trouble.
• Sphere. A design where elastically bent arcs intersect each other. In practice, it is far from always in shape that it is a hemisphere, as a geometric figure. But it does look a little like her. Its main advantage is that such a tent itself keeps its shape. It is easy to install, if necessary, it can be lifted and moved from one place to another, turned upside down to dry the bottom, etc. This is the most common type of construction.
• Rigid frame (cube). The frame is made of thick curved pipes, most often steel. Due to its almost rectangular shape, such a tent is most convenient for being in it in full growth, for field kitchens, sunshades, etc. But due to the very large weight and longer assembly, it is used only in camping (road trips) or in summer cottages.

Also quite often there are combined options, when several forms are combined in the design of the tent at once. For example, sphere and barrel .

External or internal frame

Structurally, all two-layer tents are divided into those in which the frame arcs are located inside (between the inner tent and the awning) and those in which they are located outside. From the point of view of living in them, there is no difference. The difference is only in the assembly process. In a tent with an inner frame, first the inner tent clings to the arcs, after which an awning is put on top. And in a tent with an external frame, the awning and the inner tent are already fastened together and cling to the frame at the same time, in one action (for more information about assembling both types, see).

As for tourist (camping) tents, in stores you can find many models of your choice with both external and internal frames. But camping tents, with a few exceptions, are almost all external-framed, since hooking hooks and throwing an awning over a two-meter-high structure is far from being for everyone in height.

Each species has its advantages and disadvantages. It is easy to set up a tent with an external frame in the rain: unroll the bundle, stretch it on arcs and you're done. While the inner frame gets wet during assembly until it is covered with an awning (although this can be successfully dealt with). On the other hand, dismantling the inner-frame tent in the morning, we remove the awning from it and, having shaken off drops of condensate, quickly dry it. With an external frame tent, on the contrary, it is somewhat more complicated. If you shake it, most of the condensate will not fall to the ground, but will wet the inner tent attached to the awning. So you have to climb inside, unhook all the hooks with which they are connected, dry, and then hook everything back. If cold, condensate-rich nights come one after another, and every day you assemble and disassemble the tent, then this can seem quite dreary ...

Automatic tents

And, in conclusion, I will say a few words about the so-called prefabricated or prefabricated tents (automatic tents). Usually, a person who was previously unfamiliar with tourism collects his first tent in 20-30 minutes. There is something to think about, something to experiment with. But, once he does this just a few times, and the process begins to take only 5-7 minutes. With bulky camping tents a little more, but in general the situation is approximately the same. So the vast majority of people who are regularly engaged in tourism or just relaxing in nature do not find it difficult to assemble and disassemble their tents in the usual way every day.

However, there are several types of automatic tents. First of all, these are spring-loaded structures rolled up in the form of a flat disk. I took out such a pancake from the package, threw it on the ground, x-x-x-o-o-o-p, and the tent is already assembled. True, its folding back still requires some skill. Here you already need to know what to do, otherwise you can then helplessly circle around for a long time, thinking about how to pack your home back (,). These are always quite cheap tents, without any pretensions to lightness, compactness and special reliability. Accordingly, to go a couple of times a year for a weekend on the river or put in the yard for children - yes. But taking such a thing even on the simplest five-day hike is already a rather controversial decision. Here we must remember about some of the inherent disadvantages of this design: when assembled, this is a rather voluminous disk that you have to carry, attaching somewhere outside the backpack, due to the low rigidity of the frame, even with a slight wind, it begins to chew and wind it from side to side, and if one of the rings of the frame breaks, then serious crutches must be sculpted in order to save the situation and somehow spend the rest of the night.

The second type of automatic tents works like an umbrella. . These are already more serious designs. In fact, these are the same ordinary tents, only their arcs are already sewn to the awning in advance. We produce them mainly by Greenell and Maverick. As the downside of quick assembly, in this case, it is somewhat more weight and less reliability (collapsible joints of the arcs are sometimes clogged with sand, and if something breaks, then you can only fix such a tent by taking it to the dealer or it remains a life-long disabled person) . But in certain cases, "umbrellas" can be a very good option. For example, when fishing, you have to move from place to place several times during the day.

However, I repeat once again: prefabricated tents are rather an exception to the rule.

From personal achievements: My comrades and I, as talented guys, seeing for the first time in our lives such a miracle as an automatic Maverick, managed to assemble it inside out. That is, the frame is not outward, but inward. He cracked, resisted, but we still managed. So, yes... the first exposure to a thing is a great time. There is room for imagination...

How to choose a tourist tent? Among the huge variety of various shapes, sizes, capacity and water resistance, you want not to get lost and choose the one that is best suited for your trip. In order not to make a mistake and not regret a hasty choice during a hike, away from civilization, it is worth spending a few minutes and studying carefully the presented tents based on several factors. So which is the best tent? Let's try to understand the points and make the right choice.

Tourist tents today are quite widely represented on the market and differ from each other both in performance characteristics and in the price range. Below are some considerations to help you navigate and make the best decision.

Manufacturer. Tourist and camping tents from well-known manufacturers are more expensive than the average, but we should not forget that such companies value their name and therefore cannot afford to offer the buyer products of poor quality. Brand reputation is a guarantee of product quality and reliability. After all, your safety depends on the quality of the equipment!

From myself: The article has been slightly modified. Updated versions of tents, prices, descriptions and photos.

Manufacturer or brand
The most famous American manufacturers are Marmot, North Face, Sierra Design, Alexika. At the same time, many worthy trademarks are not known to Europeans. Of the European manufacturers, Salewa, Tatonka, Vaude, Jack Wolfskin, Camp, Ferrino have proven themselves most well in Russia. Among Russian manufacturers there are those who can boldly compete with foreign brands, and those who are just getting on their feet, trying to win over domestic consumers in the lowest price niche. We draw your attention to such brands as Bask, Normal, Red Fox, Nova Tour, Equipment.

Purpose
What is the purpose of the tent you are buying? Just don't tell yourself that for all occasions. Such tents simply do not exist. Let's say that for both the cyclist and the climber, the light weight of the tent is very important. However, the operating conditions of a tent in the mountains and during a bike ride are very different, respectively, and tents will need to be purchased completely different.

Salewa, in addition to the proprietary classification Alpinextreme, Salewa Classic, Five continents, Family Line, uses another one - Four Seasons, Three Seasons, Two Seasons. Let's take a closer look at this classification.

Four seasons. If you are going on a serious expedition in winter, then the tent of this class will be the right choice for you. Such tents are mainly taken by professionals, and they do not need to be told anything: they themselves know everything. About the features of these tents, I can only say that for greater wind resistance, it uses a larger number of arcs, made mainly from expensive duralumin alloys. A mandatory element is a storm skirt and braces. Such tents are lower than usual, the entrance is most often made in the form of a tightening tube, mosquito nets are usually not used, although this is not a hard and fast rule. These tents are made from the most durable fabrics, which are based on additional RipStop reinforcement. Recently, the awning fabric of such tents, in addition to polyurethane impregnation, has an additional silicone layer applied by the manufacturer from the top side of the awning.

three seasons. Tents of this class are designed for summer, spring and autumn, but are not very adapted to the conditions of winter or highlands. These include tents for base camps and simpler models. However, in such tents you can still protect yourself from storm winds and heavy rain. The Three Seasons category includes the hardiest tent models after the extreme ones.

Two seasons. These tents are mainly designed for warm weather, so good ventilation is an important quality for them. For this, the entrance to the tent, duplicated with a mosquito net, can serve. Some manufacturers also make the walls of the inner tent from mosquito nets. However, from my own experience, I will say that, despite the lightness and good ventilation qualities of this design, you run the risk of waking up because the condensate that accumulates on the inside of the awning will drip on you from above, easily flying through the mesh holes.

Summer/screen. This category includes the simplest, "beach", single-layer tents. They, according to users, are able to protect with varying degrees of success from light rain and non-hungry mosquitoes. Although this series also has its leaders, which are made of very good fabric, with a good mosquito net. Tents usually weigh less than 1 kilogram and cause delight among fans of beach holidays and picnics.

As you can imagine, we haven't talked about camping tents yet. They are most often referred by manufacturers to a separate Family Line series. If we consider tents made for families, then they are mostly heavy structures - from 10 kilograms and more. These tents are more convenient to transport in the trunk of a car than to carry on your back. Their height is from 170 centimeters. Camping models use larger diameter poles and these tents are not designed for extreme conditions.

"Primitive", from our point of view, dwellings that have survived to this day mainly among the peoples of the Far North and have excellent aerodynamic (and not only) properties, were a prerequisite for the fact that at first in Scandinavia, as part of the Wild Life trend, designers began to exploit a simple, but in the same time very functional conical or pyramidal shape. Now, in Russia, you can also find "tents" for sale, which are superior to camping tents in a number of parameters and are easily operated all year round.

Tent capacity and weight
If we talk about these parameters, then in most cases they are interconnected. It was once thought that the maximum weight of a good tent should not exceed one kilogram per seat. However, depending on the specific operating conditions, this dependence may vary. For example, the average specific weight of an extreme tent can reach 1.8-2.2 kilograms per person - a bit heavy, of course, but you have to carry it. You can also accommodate three people in a one and a half tent weighing 1.8 kilograms. When it is very cold outside, this is how it should be done - there is no time for convenience and comfort. A camping tent can weigh 15 kilograms, be two-room and designed for 4 people.

What is the ratio of weight to the number of people who will sleep in a tent is up to you. It happens that the buyer of the tent can be found in the store with their own scales. The fact is that many professionals do not trust manufacturers who indicate the weight only in the minimum configuration (weight without storm braces and pegs) and at the same time “forget” to indicate the real weight. If the ratio of weight and capacity is an important parameter for you, pay close attention to it.

Design

In order for the tent not to let water through, the fabric is additionally processed. PU is a polyurethane coating that is usually applied to the inside of the fabric. The four-digit number next to it is the water resistance of the fabric in millimeters of water column. Water resistance of 3000 millimeters is achieved with a double application of polyurethane impregnation, 5000 millimeters with a triple application. Each application is an additional weight and price. With indicators of 3000 millimeters or more, the awning fabric will withstand almost any weather conditions.

PU/SI- polyurethane coating plus silicone, which can be applied on the inside or outside of the fabric. Most tent companies now use fabric with silicone on the outside. This impregnation is very functional: silicone not only prevents moisture from accumulating in the fibers of the fabric, but also increases its tensile strength.

W/R- Water-repellent fabric coating on top. You can add additional moisture-repellent properties yourself, using special water-repellent impregnations for this.

Rip Stop- this is the special weaving of the fabric, which makes it more durable with a slight increase in weight.

inner tent
In the inner tent you have to live. Pay attention to its color: it should be light, combined with the color of the awning. Otherwise, the morning will seem bleak to you. Light, passing through two obstacles, can change the complexion of the inhabitants of the tent to unrecognizable. It's not very pleasant to see a neighbor's blue or green face every morning.

The fabric that the inner tent is made of should be light and strong - Rip Stop weaving is preferred. In addition, it must have good "breathing" and windproof properties. It is desirable that the inner tent has a water-repellent W / R treatment. This impregnation will protect you from condensation. For an inner tent, Nylon is better. It is softer and more tear resistant than polyester. UV resistance for an inner tent is not important.

bottom of the tent
The bottom can be made of fabric or reinforced polyethylene. Polyethylene is generally used to make the tent cheaper, but it adds weight. When choosing a tent, pay attention to the following features:

1) the fabric at the bottom of the tent should be more waterproof than the awning of the tent;

2) floor fabric with 3000mm water resistance can withstand body pressure; 5000 millimeters - leg pressure; 10,000 millimeters - elbow pressure.

Check if the seams on the bottom of the tent are welded, especially the corner seams. Properly gluing them is not easy, many companies save on this operation.

Arcs of tents
Poles on tents are made of fiberglass and epoxy resins (denoted in the descriptions as fiberglass or fiberglass) or aluminum alloys of various qualities. The most common brands are 7075, 7001 from AMG (aluminum-magnesium alloy) of Korean production, they are used in high-quality tents; 7178, 6061 - require anodizing; Russian grades D16T and V95 cannot compete and are gradually being replaced by other alloys. In addition to the brand of alloy, serious firms indicate its "hardness". Designations 7075-T9 and 7075-T6 differ in that the former uses a stronger alloy. Fiberglass is about 1.5 times heavier than aluminum alloys. In addition, it does not tolerate large temperature changes and cannot be repaired. If such an arc is broken, you need to look for a new one. Aluminum arcs can be repaired in field conditions.

The joints of the arcs are also different. The inner sleeve of smaller diameter can be attached to the arch using punching or glue. Sometimes the articulation of the arcs is carried out by flaring. Minimal backlash and maximum bonding strength for archwires with a glued adapter

Important little things
The threads must be stronger than the fabric, not rot and not collapse under the influence of sunlight.
Eyelets should be brass, not iron (this place in the tent is always wet).
Lightning - extremely reliable - trust the Japanese brand YKK.
Mosquito net - with small cells.
Power plastic fittings are more reliable - trust Duraflex or Nexus.
The straps are light and strong. They should easily pass through the adjustment buckles.
Storm guy lines should be strong and thin, as well as visible in the dark and during the day.
Pegs - light and durable, rigid. It is desirable that they do not rotate in the ground, that is, they would not have a round profile.

I wish you a successful purchase, and rather run away, leave, fly away from the city to the bosom of mother nature, where we become her children - real people.

NORMAL

Troubadour 3

A classic tent with a large vestibule for any hikes. Tarpaulin: Taffeta PU. Breathable nylon inner tent. Bottom: Oxford PU nylon. All seams of the awning and the bottom are glued. Frame: aircraft aluminum 7075T6. Metal-polymer fittings. Sufficient wind resistance. The entrance of the inner tent is equipped with a mosquito net. Awning with a ventilation system that reduces the formation of condensate.

Capacity: 3 people

Packed/full weight: 4.0/4.5 kg.

Ladoga 3

Classic tent with two entrances and two vestibules for any trips. Awning: Taffeta PD. Inner tent: breathable nylon. Bottom: Oxford PU nylon. All seams of the awning and the bottom are glued. Frame: aircraft aluminum 7075T6. Metal-polymer fittings. High wind resistance. The entrances of the inner tent are equipped with a mosquito net. Awning with a ventilation system that reduces the formation of condensate.

Capacity: 3 people

Packed/full weight: 3.9/4.1 kg.

Price: 6 500 rubles. (05.11.2009)

Lotus 2

A classic tent with a vestibule for hiking in normal and advanced categories of difficulty. Tarpaulin: Taffeta PU. Inner tent: breathable nylon. Bottom: Oxford PU nylon. All seams of the awning and the bottom are glued. Frame: aircraft aluminum 7075T6. Metal-polymer fittings. High wind resistance. The entrance of the inner tent is equipped with a mosquito net. Awning with a ventilation system that reduces the formation of condensate.

Capacity: 2/3 people
Water resistance of the tent/bottom: 5000/8000 mm.
Packed/full weight: 3.3/3.7 kg.

Price: 5 300 rubles. (05.11.2009)

Diogenes 4

A classic half-barrel tent with a large vestibule and two entrances for any hikes. Tarpaulin: Taffeta PU. Inner tent: breathable nylon. Bottom: Oxford PU nylon. All seams of the awning and the bottom are glued. Frame: aircraft aluminum 7075T6. Metal-polymer fittings. High wind resistance. The entrances are equipped with a mosquito net.

Capacity: 4 people
Water resistance of the awning/bottom: 5000/6000 mm.
Packed/full weight: 4.8/5.4 kg.

Price: 8 200 rubles. (05.11.2009)

Neva 4

A classic model with large and small vestibules and two entrances for any hikes. Tarpaulin: Taffeta PU. Inner tent: breathable nylon. Bottom: Oxford PU nylon. All seams of the awning and the bottom are glued. Frame: aircraft aluminum 7075T6. Metal-polymer fittings. Sufficient wind resistance. The entrances are equipped with a mosquito net. Awning with a ventilation system that reduces the formation of condensate.

Capacity: 4 people
Water resistance of the awning/bottom: 6000/8000 mm.
Packed/full weight: 5.3/5.8 kg.

Price: 8 900 rub. (05.11.2009)

ALEXIKA

Trekking tent.
Inner tent: breathable polyester. Floor: 150 D Oxford PU 6000 mm. Tarpaulin: polyester 185T PU 4000 mm. Racks: arches from an aluminum alloy. The seams are sealed with heat-shrinkable polymer tape. two entrances; two vestibules; mosquito net; ventilation windows; shelf and ring for the lamp. Dimensions: awning (100 + 180 + 100) x 220 x 130 cm; inner patch - 180 x 220 x 130 cm. Size in case: 45 x 16 x 17 cm.

Capacity: 3 people
Water resistance of the tent/bottom: 4000/6000 mm.
Packed/full weight: 4 kg.

Price: 9 700 rubles. (05.11.2009)

For tracking.
Tarpaulin: polyester 185T PU 4000 mm. Inner tent: breathable polyester. Floor: 150 D Oxford PU 6000 mm. Racks: arches from an aluminum alloy. The seams are sealed with heat-shrinkable polymer tape. Two convenient entrances under the awning; mosquito net; ventilation windows; shelf and ring for the lamp. Dimensions: awning - (160 + 205) x 180 x 130 cm. Size in a cover: 45 x 15 x 16 cm.

Capacity: 3 people
Water resistance of the tent/bottom: 4000/6000 mm.
Packed/full weight: 4.3 kg.

Price: 10 700 rubles. (05.11.2009)

Explorer 2

Extreme Series.
Tarpaulin: polyester 185T PU 4000 mm. Inner tent: breathable polyester. Floor: 150 D Oxford PU 6000 mm. Racks: arches from an aluminum alloy. The seams are sealed with heat-shrinkable polymer tape. two entrances; two vestibules; snow skirt; increased wind resistance: mosquito net; ventilation windows; shelf and ring for the lamp. Dimensions: awning - (80 +150 +80) x 210 x 115cm; inner tent - 150 x 210 x 115 cm. Size with cover: 45 x 19 x 17 cm.

Capacity: 2 people
Water resistance of the tent/bottom: 4000/6000 mm.
Packed/full weight: 5.1 kg.

Price: 10 300 rubles. (05.11.2009)

Mirage 3

Extreme Series.
Tarpaulin: polyester 185T PU 3000 mm. Inner tent: breathable polyester. Floor: 150 D Oxford PU 6000 mm. Racks: arches from an aluminum alloy. The seams are sealed with heat-shrinkable polymer tape. two entrances; two vestibules; snow skirt; increased wind resistance: mosquito net; ventilation windows; shelf and ring for the lamp. Dimensions: awning - (100 +205 +50) x 200 x 110 cm; inner tent - 180 x 180 x 110 cm. Size with cover: 45 x 19 x 20 cm.

Capacity: 3 people
Water resistance of the awning/bottom: 3000/6000 mm.
Packed/full weight: 5.5 kg.

Maxima 6

Camping tent.
Tarpaulin: polyester 185T PU 4000 mm. Inner tent: breathable polyester. Floor: PE 10x12.145 g/m2. Racks: 11 mm fiberglass arches. The seams are sealed with heat-shrinkable polymer tape. Two inner tents; a large common vestibule in the middle; two entrances; three ventilation windows; two pockets in each tent. Dimensions: awning - (220 + 140 + 220) x 220 x 200 cm; inner tent - (160 + 60) x 220 x 200 cm. Size in case: 68 x 23 x 25 cm

Capacity: 6 people
Water resistance of the tent/bottom: 4000/6000 mm.
Packed/full weight: 13.5 kg.

Price: 16 500 rubles. (05.11.2009)

According to my personal experience of water and hiking tourism: the lighter the weight, the easier it is to walk, so a two-room tent with a plastic frame is suitable for hiking (unless, of course, you are not in the mountains, you need duralumin for this)

For water, the tent should be light in weight, small in volume, with good resistance to moisture, easy to set up, so that it can be easily put up in the dead darkness in one. It is very convenient when the inner tent is attached to the awning and you can not unfasten it for installation and disassembly.

Under the internal arcs here, in this article, we mean such an installation scheme in which an internal tent is first placed, and then an awning is placed on it; accordingly, in a design with external arcs, the awning is first stretched, and then the inner tent is suspended from it.

Both schemes have their own certain advantages and disadvantages, which will be the subject of the article.

Tents with external arches on the outdoor market are presented in fewer models than the more “classic” ones with internal arches. Actually, the defining difference between them is the fact that a tent with external arches can be set up simultaneously with an internal tent and no longer be unfastened during the trip.

That is, at the very first bivouac, we set up an awning, fasten the inner lining to it, and in the morning we remove everything at the same time. In the evening, we set everything up again at the same time, and so on for the rest of the trip.

The advantages are immediately clear - quick installation and removal of the camp, and the worse the weather, the more noticeable the difference. At the same time, in the rain, the inner tent remains dry, and wet users get the opportunity to quickly climb into a warm sleeping bag.

From such pluses come out and minuses, which are not always immediately obvious. In particular, there are problems with drying the tent. If the arcs are internal, then we will remove the awning, throw it on a bush, a stone, or just whatever we need, while the inside also dries quickly. It is not so easy to dry the tent on the outer arcs, even by opening the entrance and ventilation “wide open”. If you really want to dry it, you still have to unfasten the inner tent. If the tent itself is small, such as or, then messing around with unfastening and fastening in the conditions of the running route in terms of time spent on this business, to put it mildly, is not productive. As a result, the tent is usually packed wet - by the way, nothing is done to it from this action. In locations where rains in summer are a fundamental norm and where, it happens, the sun rises to the sky through clouds only on holidays or thanks to a temporarily sober local shaman - for example, ridges and - drying does not play a role at all and the disadvantage ceases to be significant.

By the way, thanks to the aforementioned hiking areas, I generally have a very good attitude towards silicone (Si) on tents, since in this case, after a rain, you have to carry a little less water on yourself then along with the tent ...

In severe winter, if we travel with a two-layer tent, the situation is somewhat different.

Before packing, the tent usually has to be cleaned of condensate. If, for example, the three of us sleep in a tent well buried in a snowdrift, then there will be a lot of condensate, both in the inner lining and on the inside of the tent.

If the arches are internal, then we remove the awning, clean it with a mitten, then clean the inside from the inside, turn it over and pour condensate out of it through the entrance.

If the arcs are external, then first we clean the inside of the inside, sweep the condensate out, unfasten it from the awning, clean it from the inside and then take out the arcs.

As a result, in the case of external arcs, the operation of collecting and setting up the camp significantly increases in time. At the same time, the suspension and removal of the inner lining in forty-degree frost turns into a procedure that is fascinating in its obscene content. It is aggravated especially in those cases when the manufacturer uses fastexes instead of hooks at the corners of the tent and some cunningly hammered asymmetrical shape of his product, where at first you half fasten the inner lining, and then it turns out that you oriented it incorrectly. Unfastening the inner lining and rotating it in the light of a lantern fading in the cold under the hasty and accusing shouts of suffering comrades, you finally get confused and begin to commemorate the designer of this misfortune in bad words ( for the future - it's great if you know his name, it allows you to come up with better epithets), remember orientation by stars and sextant ( because it seems that otherwise you can’t fasten it correctly), as well as recall astrological and Orthodox horoscopes for a hike.

Of the winter pluses, it can only be subjectively noted that in a strong wind, in my opinion, it is somewhat easier to set up a tent with external arcs - especially one and if the suspension of the inner lining does not require special refinement in verbal constructions 🙂

In a stationary camp, hemorrhoids, of course, are less with condensate removal. By the way, the double-sided silicone coating of the tent, as it is not regrettable to admit because of the price of such tents, makes it somewhat easier to remove condensate - subjectively, it freezes to such a coating much less zealously.

From a very good and obvious plus of external arches, one can single out the fact that installing a separate awning without an inner can be a very convenient thing. Settling down for lunch and it's raining? We set up a tent and no problems. The same thing in the piercing wind and open places, especially in winter - they tied guy ropes for backpacks laid on the ground or snow / ice and the shelter is ready. Of course, this is all true for options when, during transportation, the inner tent is not fastened to the awning, and the tent itself, along with the arcs, lies somewhere in a pocket or a backpack valve, or on drags.

As for snow resistance and wind resistance, these factors depend on Where arcs are located do not depend, but depend on other parameters, including the fact that How they are located. That is, in order to consider snow and wind resistance, it is necessary to consider the design of the product in full, as well as the materials from which it is made.

The choice of a tent with one or another arrangement of arches is more a choice of individual preference in the format "whatever you like". In my opinion, when choosing, one should also consider a combination of other structural elements - self-support, the number of arcs and their intersections, materials of the tent and arcs, the location and number of guys, and the like. Well, and most importantly, the choice of a tent, like all other equipment, must be consistent with the principle of self-sufficiency for those events in which we are going to participate.