Suggestions

[rogheff]

Due to extreme weather conditions while camping (46 of 54 campouts have been rainy), my troop needs some new tents with REALLY good rain flies. I'm looking for a tall (6' or taller) dome tent 10' diameter, with an incredible rain fly.

 

Anyone have a suggestion?

[+TotemLake]

Due to extreme weather conditions while camping (46 of 54 campouts have been rainy), my troop needs some new tents with REALLY good rain flies. I'm looking for a tall (6' or taller) dome tent 10' diameter, with an incredible rain fly.

 

Anyone have a suggestion?

I would look at Cabelas tent section. I bought a Cabelas brand rain fly from them for my screen room and it was excellent for using as a winter camping kitchen. It repelled 16 hours of rain with no leakage, and blocked the wind to the point the kitchen was the favorite spot to be. Some of their tents are heavy duty and will stand up to alot of abuse.

Edited January 21, 2008 by TotemLake

[rogheff]

Thanks I will check there. I should mention these will be for younger Boy Scouts (11-13 years) who may be setting them up in the dark.

 

A simple design is mandatory. When I took over as Scoutmaster, we had these gray/red dome tents. They had to be at least 6' tall and easily slept 3 larger kids. The rain flys went almost tot he ground.

 

Unfortunately, we threw them away when they leaked terribly (they were really old) so I never saw a brand on them.

 

I'd like to find a modern replacement.

[+DeskJocky]

The tents you have, are they still good? Do the seems just need sealed really good with some seam sealer? If they still are, you may be able to make your own rain flies. You can buy some sil-nylon that will work really well. It is also pretty cheap. If it works, it also gives a chance to use those sewing skills.

 

Edit:

Dolp! I see you tossed them out...

Edited January 21, 2008 by DeskJocky

[rogheff]

After coatign them with 2 cans each of seam sealer and they leaked the very next campout - we tossed them. Their replacements are now getting worn, so it's time to start thinking about new tents.

[+briansnat]

LL Bean King Pine Dome . Not cheap, but these tents shed water like none other.

[rogheff]

LL Bean King Pine Dome . Not cheap, but these tents shed water like none other.

 

NOW we're talking - that's great. Look how far down the sides the rain fly goes. I dn't necessarily need the attached porch, but we're getting close. If only I could find that tent at half the price

[+DeskJocky]

LL Bean King Pine Dome . Not cheap, but these tents shed water like none other.

 

Whoa, at almost 31 lbs I doubt I could take that backpacking. Maybe Brian would when he's out doing all his highly appreciated trail maintenance. You could set up some major trail magic in one of those...

 

You maybe able to get a discount on those by contacting LL Bean and let them know they are for scouting.

[+BuzzardJ]

 

NOW we're talking - that's great. Look how far down the sides the rain fly goes. I dn't necessarily need the attached porch, but we're getting close. If only I could find that tent at half the price

 

For what it's worth, some sporting goods stores offer discounts for scout related gear. The local Gander Mountain offers 20% off everything for scouting purchases. Dick's Sporting goods matches that (at least around here in TN). You might save a little bit that way.

[rogheff]

 

NOW we're talking - that's great. Look how far down the sides the rain fly goes. I dn't necessarily need the attached porch, but we're getting close. If only I could find that tent at half the price

 

For what it's worth, some sporting goods stores offer discounts for scout related gear. The local Gander Mountain offers 20% off everything for scouting purchases. Dick's Sporting goods matches that (at least around here in TN). You might save a little bit that way.

 

Been there, done that. My local Gander Mountain gives us 10% off on camping gear - but, they sell crappy tents.

 

31 pounds is an issue. About half would be great. We have backpacking tents - these are for a regular camping trip .

[+briansnat]

LL Bean King Pine Dome . Not cheap, but these tents shed water like none other.

 

Whoa, at almost 31 lbs I doubt I could take that backpacking. Maybe Brian would when he's out doing all his highly appreciated trail maintenance. You could set up some major trail magic in one of those...

 

You maybe able to get a discount on those by contacting LL Bean and let them know they are for scouting.

 

The OP was asking for a tent with a 6 ft peak and 10' diameter, so that rules out nearly any backpacking tent.

 

The LL Bean 2 person dome is also very waterproof and inexpensive and can be used for backpacking. At 8 lbs it's a bit on the heavy side for a backpacking tent, but not too bad if you spread the weight among your partners.

Edited January 23, 2008 by briansnat

[+briansnat]

Here is a Sierra Designs tent that might do the trick. Inexpensive and SD tents are quality. Smaller than you are looking for ( 5'4" peak 7 x 7) but you might have to make tradeoffs to get something close to what you want.

 

This Big Agnes tent meets your specs, but is pretty pricey, as is this Mountain Hardwear tent.

Edited January 23, 2008 by briansnat

[+Jeepergeo]

I've camped and back packed for years, both as a Boy Scout and as an adult Boy Scout leader, and have yet to find a large dome type camp tent that did well in inclimate weather. The high profile of these large family type tents get battered in the wind and weighed down in the snow, and the rain flys ususally end too high, allowing rain to pour onto the tent sides and into the tent.

 

If you're willing to go to 2-3 boys per tent, there are all kinds of tents that will live up to your needs. I suggest looking for "clip" type dome tents where the tent poles are assembled over the tent (which is spread out over a ground tarp, and then the tent is raised and clipped to the poles. This avoids the process of trying to slip poles through sleeves, which can be hard to do in the rain and in the dark. Once clipped up, the rain fly goes over the poles. Of course, the rainfly should extend pretty much to the ground, and should be designed such that the fly does not sag into the tent.

 

If you are set on a very large tent, this Kelty tent at REI might fit the bill. It's not quite as big as the 10' diameter you mentioned, but it is close and has some nice attributes like a great fly and a clip design. http://www.rei.com/product/732924. Cabelas as a nice dome tent too, but it is expensive: Cabela's Outfitter Series® XWT-Xtreme Weather Tent Item:IJ-516306 http://www.cabelas.com

 

If you really want to stay with big tents, consider going with a lodge type tent. These are huge and heavy, and are usually constructed of either waxed canvas or plastic coated canvas. The will be tough to find a place to set them up, and will be tough for the boys to set up, so this is not something I recommned unless you have a long term camp.