Worth the price. Will be my main tent for years to come.
Review by Nathan S. on 6 Oct 2022 review stating Worth the price. Will be my main tent for years to come. So I originally bought this tent to help ease my pandemic woes and to try and re-spark my love for the outdoors. Guess what, it worked, it worked a bit too well.
I've had this tent for two years now and it's been with me on over a dozen or so trips. Other than smelling like a campfire it's still in nearly pristine condition and has served me and up to three others extremely well in all kinds of conditions. I'm by no means a glamper, usually just going out with the essentials and some good company, but I've definitely come to appreciate all this tent has to offer. That and the good looks don't hurt either.
While it's not the smallest package or most familiar setup process, these things are completely outweighed by the versatility of this design and the value per cost of this tent. It's definitely a car camping tent, but it's not so massive that you can't lug it a couple of hundred yards into a walk-in site. The setup process was unfamiliar but I've learned that with a friend you can set it up in a matter of 10 or so minutes (definitely watch some setup videos). It's a palace, and maybe a bit much for two, but perfect for 3-4 people and their gear. Although I don't think I've ever been mad at the extra room I had with just two people.
This tent is a rainy and cold weather star. You can really bunker this thing down to keep the cold and elements out, and if you get some extra poles or nice sticks you can even turn the front flap of the vestibule into an awning. In hot weather, it performs decently as well, the whole thing can be opened up and you can make the front and back of the sleeping compartment completely mesh. However, you'll never be able to get as much of a breeze as you would in a tent with an all-mesh inner. It's not insufferable, it could just be better. I prefer to just not camp in the dead heat of a muggy midwestern summer anyways though.
Now that it's two years down the road I'm not as worried about babying it and being so careful with it (It's quite durable after all), but I definitely have developed a maintenance regimen that will have this thing looking as good as the day I bought it for years. For one, I store it in one of those big mesh bags that they store soccer balls in to let it breathe, and only really use the original stuff sack when I'm tighter on space in the car. I'll spot clean it after a trip or two with a couple of drops of dish soap in some warm water, and it almost never stains, grime and bug guts just kinda wipe off. I've only really had stains happen on the lighter fabric of the inner tent if at all. Then after the season comes to an end I'll give it a good wash with the Nikwax Solarwash and Solarproof duo.
If you made it this far thanks for reading and I'll end this on a quick Pro and Con list.
Pros: -Quality materials -It's beautiful -Stable in bad weather when guyed out -A true four-person tent -Front and back vestibule flaps offer a lot of versatility in weather protection and ventilation -Rainfly is pretty stain resistant -Lots of room to cook and such in the vestibule -Decent amount of pockets in the interior -A standout design that gets even non-campers talking
Cons: -Not as simple to set up as a standard dome tent -Not terribly compact in pack size or footprint -Condensation doesn't form in the inner tent but definitely forms in the top nook of the rainfly (bring a rag if you're taking down camp early in the AM). -No gear-loft like in some other tents, but there are attachment points at the front and back of the inner tent
On Vault in Ivory
