I really 'need' a new tent and I have kinda set my heart on an outwell montana 6. Brill reviews, but pricey !! Cheapest I have seen is £419 (i know I could probably wait and get it cheaper the end of the summer i want it now!!)
OH is not keen for me to spend that amount so have been researching alternatives. This Skandika one looks very similar : http://www.amazon.co.uk/Skandika-Indiana-II-Man-Tent/dp/B0012GJZ7K/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=sports&qid=1274112134&sr=1-1
Does anyone have any opinions - should i get the cheap one (again) or the one i really want...
Have you seen the Vango Columbia 600 - very, very similar to the Monty and was in Vango's premium family range last year. Still a few around for about £275 (RRP £450 last year). The footprint and carpet for the Sungari 600DLX will fit and also the canopy if you go for a sage coloured Columbia.
5000HH, steel poles, SIG, enclosed side entrance, 2/3 bedrooms, part or whole of the front opens, low level vents under the skirt as well as the traditional vents, plenty of pockets and also Vango's TBS internal strapping system that you can clip in place in very windy weather to provide even more stability to an already very stable but easy to pitch tent. The living space is even slightly bigger than the Monty's.
We are incredibly happy with ours. We considered the Monty last year but wanted the 2/3 bedroom option as we use one for storage to keep the living area tidy and being able to open the whole front up means that you are both indoors and outdoors and don't really need the canopy. We use a Vango Adventure Tarp with longer guys and the tent's king poles as protection over the front door if it rains. The Vango pitching video for the tent on YouTube gives you inside shots of the tent, although the flymesh is on the left hand door rather than the right hand porch door.
Re. the Skandika tents - they have had very mixed reviews...
Looking closely you will see that its a poor imitation of the monty , it doesnt have a sewn in groundsheet , you can clearly see the grass around the edges of the groundsheet.
another thing that put me off was the pole joints, they look like plastic joints? I may be wrong , but I wouldn't be keen on them .
As speedcamp says , they do have very mixed reviews.
A possible reason for this could be, what a newbie camper thinks is wonderful , a more experienced camper will say is rubbish.
as you progress into having better quality tents, you realise that what you were happy with as a first purchase , you wouldn't want to go back to with hindsight.
I'm not trying to be a tent snob here, but in my own experience the first synthetic tent we had we thought was great , until we got a better quality one, that had sewn in groundsheet , nice big windows , with curtains that zipped up from inside the tent , rather than getting wet each time it rained with the old one, which closed from outside.
One with mesh doors and windows, as opposed to just open or shut doors. All these extra features come at extra cost , so bear it in mind when choosing a tent.
I'm all for getting a cheaper brand if the quality is good . for instance , the sunncamp global was on offer last year for aboout £250 , and was a very good copy of the monty with a canopy included in the price .my friends had one, and I recommeneded them to anyone , quality was excellent.
I am sure the vango thats being recommended will be a much better buy than the skandika.
We have a Monty and it's brilliant. We have dithered about changing it for a Vermont lately but can't bear to part with it so bought the awning for it instead.
Whenever we pitch it I am amazed at the amount of space there is inside it, it's such a deceptive looking tent. And so easy to pitch.
The finish and quality is very good, plenty of ventilation, windows, mesh doors, etc.
If you have a Go Outdoors nearby you could always try to price-match, even a quick google shows that World of Camping sells it for £419 delivered, GO will knock 10% off that price bringing it down to £377.10.
I went to Go outdoors last night, just for a look and they have the monty at £409, so if I can find it cheaper I'll get the price match.
I had a look at the vango columbia one and it looks good. The thing that puts me off is that we have currently got a vango venture 5 which I think is really poor - the inner tent doesn't fit well so has ended up getting ripped, on our second outing with it a pole broke (was not even that windy), third outing it was leaking..
I know that it is one of cheapest tent that vango make but I honestly expected better quality.
The Kyham one looks good too. I assume you can get foorprints/carpets/extensions for this too.
I can't decide, Help!!
(note how it has gone from 'i'm thinking of getting a new tent' to 'help me decide')
I think you'll find that even some of the Outwell cheaper (or not so cheap) tents have problems too. The manufacturers don't always get the design right and cut corners to reduce the price. It is a shame that you've had a bad experience with Vango. Vango's budget and premium tents, like Outwell's, differ greatly.
The Monty has been around for a fair few years and is a very good tent, but they are still changing things. Note that the porch has been re-designed this year to address stability issues, however, there have been a few threads about the new porch pole being too long and pressing against the flysheet of the tent. May be worth checking out... There was a 20% sale held by one of the main retailers a few weeks back (possibly Yeomans) which someone on this forum price matched against - managing to get a Monty for around £300 - a bargain if it can be repeated...
The Khyam looks a good tent too, but is smaller and hasn't got the wind-shedding front of the Monty and Columbia, so expect it to take bit more of a hammering when the wind swings round to the front of the tent.
You've got a difficult decision on your hands --- you can always look at eBay too!
The vango is looking tempting, but I think my OH would be against it just because the main reason of getting a new tent is to replace the vango which we are currently using. I really want this to be our 'life tent' We have bought numerous cheap tents all which are either too small for us (have 4 kids now) or just rubbish and cold and make camping to as much fun.
I'm going to cross my fingers for a reduction on the monty by the may bank holiday (just realised its next friday).
Quote: Originally posted by lynnexxxo on 18/5/2010
Thanks Helen,
.... I really want this to be our 'life tent' ...
Just thought - you ought to know given what you said - that the estimated life of a polyester tent (70-75D flysheet, which Vango, Outwell and most other makes use) is about 16 weeks in the sun. Some last longer and others not as long. A higher denier flysheet will generally last you longer under UV radiation - e.g. Kampa's Ultimate range 100D flysheets:
Quote from an independent source "75D Polyester is 10-20% stronger than 70D nylon, and has 30% longer life under UV exposure. 150D Polyester is 50% stronger than 70D nylon, and has 200% longer life under UV exposure."
Polyester becomes brittle with UV exposure. Polycotton tents (especially those with higher % of cotton - e.g. Kampa and Outwell) and cotton tents will last longer but unfortunately are also much heavier and bulkier... and a lot more expensive.
Your Monty should last you a fair few years of moderate camping, but unfortunately not a lifetime. Its just something to note if you are looking for a bargain - ex. display ones and second hand ones can have very few weeks of life left in them.
Probably in a few years I'll decide that this tent isn't 'right' for us either!
At the moment my kids are all small and I want them next to me rather than the other side of the tent (which OH correctly points out is like 2 metres max away) so really I am limiting myself to six man tents with the sleeping areas together(not wanting bigger as we only really go away for weekends)
Luckily, living in scotland it will take us many years of camping to get 16 weeks in the sun!!!
I know what you mean - we wanted our 3 year old next to us at night - its also great being able to tuck him back in without having to get out of bed myself. He loves having his own room too which the bedroom divider gives him. When he gets older he can have the separate bedroom inner if the tent lasts that long!
£355 is a nice price for the Monty - good luck!...
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Topic: Outwell without the price tag? Skandika
. Its just something to note if you are looking for a bargain - ex. display ones and second hand ones can have very few weeks of life left in them.
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