What the! a 35 Dollar tent....

shadylurker · Post by **shadylurker** » Apr 22 2007 9:13 pm

I was wondering through walmart the other day and stumbled across a swiss gear hiking tent with pole, it was only 35$ so i got it.

I must say im pretty impressed with it being so cheap, the roof is taped and sealed, it could use a little help but nothing to major, All it really needs is a decent rainfly and better stakes (the ones it comes with are cheap)

heres a link
http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product. ... id=4697882

and yes i put it up, it went up easy.

joebartels · Post by **joebartels** » Apr 22 2007 9:27 pm

the swiss make a mean block of cheese, you might consider doing your cartilage a favor and look into something more like this setup
http://hikearizona.com/mypack.php?ver=3&PID=86

shadylurker · Post by **shadylurker** » Apr 23 2007 12:11 am

i think most of the weight is the heavy canvas tote bag, it weighs probably 1 - 1.5 lbs its self its rediculous

i'm young so i think my cheapness will win on this one

azbackpackr · Post by **azbackpackr** » Apr 23 2007 6:48 am

Quality gear is great, I have a lot of it. However, the high cost of gear could keep some folks from going backpacking. Backpacker Magazine once did a piece on backpacking gear from Wal-mart. They field tested it with their usual testers, etc. They found most of it to be fairly functional.

Back in the 70's we used to make gear from Frostline Kits. We used to make do with household items. It still can be done. I was an assistant scoutmaster for a troop in Tucson in the 90's--most of the kids came from single-mom homes, were on welfare, some were even illegal immigrants and Salvadoran refugees, etc. We made sure they could all go backpacking. We bought used gear, and made do with what they had from home. Cotton socks, jeans and all! There was a troop not far away which charged a $125 a year activity fee, charged big bucks for a weekend backpack, and all the kids had new gear their parents bought (they lived on the NW side, of course.) But we outdid them in mileage every year, and always hiked the Canyon (they never did) and I tend to think we may have also had more fun. We ate Ramen Noodles and IGA mac and cheese for dinner, and slept under tarps or under the stars.

azbackpackr · Post by **azbackpackr** » Apr 23 2007 6:53 am

All that being said, I'm printing your list Joe! Unlike our lurking shady friend

I am not young! Loved your super low base weight!

joebartels · Post by **joebartels** » Apr 23 2007 6:58 am

then just go with a sheet of tyvek
it's cheap, light and nothing fancy
add two sticks and you have a hang glider too, shelter/flight what more do you need
no need to take food, there's plenty all around

Of course I'd likely never do the above. It'd be like shaving a pound off an elephant as I carry nearly 20 pounds in camera gear alone. Just suggesting if cheap is the idea, then go all out.

that's mike's! - I'll work on that page setup

azbackpackr · Post by **azbackpackr** » Apr 23 2007 7:03 am

Just what exactly is Tyvek? Where do you buy it?

mttgilbert · Post by **mttgilbert** » Apr 23 2007 7:09 am

In response to azbackpackr's reply:

Tyvek is like gore-tex for houses. They use it in new construction to wrap the framing to seal out moisture. You can get it at most hardware stores, but you usually have to buy a pretty large amount.

te_wa · Post by **te_wa** » Apr 23 2007 7:22 am

Matt, good one. Goretex for houses

I can tell you a place on ebay that will cut tyvek to size of your choice and shipping is cheap. I had them make a footprint for a tent that is 54x90-thats exactly what I recieved and the total with shipping was $9.90

Liz, much of the stuff I have is homemade. For instance, my stove is a chimney style alcohol stove made from a red bull can, the pot is a 24oz Heineken can with the top cut off. All I do is boil water for meals and at 2.4 ounces for the windscreen-stove-pot combo im in pretty good shape. PLUS, the stuff is replacable and gives me an excuse to buy more Heineken!

Davis2001r6 · Post by **Davis2001r6** » Apr 23 2007 11:28 am

There was a big discussion on that tent over on http://www.backpackinglight.com a while ago. Someone actually did buy it and this is what the specs came out to:

Here's the real scoop (all weights done on USPS postal scale):
Tent body: 3lb 4.4oz
Stakes in bag: 7.6 oz (10 steel pins)
trekking pole: 11.2 oz
carry bag: 12.1 oz.

If I needed a cheap tent I would rather spend closer to $100 and get something thats is actually going to last a while, checkout some of the cheap tents Here

or go to the next REI garage sale, get there EARLY and buy one of the tents there. I got a $380 Black Diamond Lighthouse for $160 and a $290 MSR Hubba Hubba for like $125 there. Both slightly used. I'm bought cheap tents like the one above and they don't really cut it.

But like AZBackpacker said, if it's the tent that is going to keep you from getting out there and prevent you from camping, well get the cheap on then for the time being.

djui5 · Post by **djui5** » Apr 23 2007 10:43 pm

I got the same tent

It works for what it does. It's light and keeps out the elements. I haven't had a problem with it yet. Got new stakes of course.

I don't camp a lot though, so it's just an occasional backpacking tent. I also got one of the flannel sleeping bag thingees. Big mistake. Last time I slept in that thing, I froze all night and could barely sleep at all. Horrible horrible horrible.

Maybe this tent works for some, like myself, but it might not work for someone who uses their tent a bit more. It's also pretty small, so if your sleeping more than 1, you'll need a bigger tent.

I just can't justify spending $200 on a tent right now

Davis2001r6 · Post by **Davis2001r6** » Apr 23 2007 11:21 pm

My first tent was This Guy

It's also in the $35 range, it did last a few trips, I think 5 to be exact, then a pole broke.

azbackpackr · Post by **azbackpackr** » Apr 24 2007 7:44 am

djui5 wrote:I just can't justify spending $200 on a tent right now

I can never really justify spending that kind of money, but I do it anyway. I'm okay for the moment, though--I should be able to use all the gear I have for several more years without any major purchases being absolutely necessary.

Except, I've really been wanting to get a road bike...and some kayaking gear...and I need new boots (I'm of the old leather clodhopper waffle-stomper school of footgear--and they do cost at least $200.)

Yeah, yeah, get some trail runners. OK, then, tell me where to get them online, without driving 250 miles to Summit Hut in MY SIZE: Women's 10 1/2 AA (Narrow.) (And no, last time I checked, Summit Hut does not have my size on their website.) No, I don't wear 10's or 11's or medium widths!

Besides, my Vasque boots last years, with resoling. Very at good cost per mile, I'd say. And I can wade creeks without getting my socks wet!

What the! a 35 Dollar tent....

What the! a 35 Dollar tent....

Re: What the! a 35 Dollar tent....