I finally bought my tent!!! Opinions?

[SS76]

So, I have researched, reasearched, and researched, and was going to settle on the BA Flying Diamond 6, however today I visited a local outdoors store who had the following tent on sale:

http://www.sail.ca/en/catalogue/camp...97/mont-logan/

Now, the site have a couple of errors. Firstly the floor is 420D Nylon Oxford, and 3000mm. Its the Woods Mount-Logan 6.

I got this for $230 on clearance, seems like a steel to me.

My question to anyone, is has anyone ever tried this tent? I can't find anything on the net, and also can't find any reviews. This will be the first time I would make such a purchase without knowing the item inside and out, but the price was too good to pass up.

Any opinions are welcome. The main sleeping area is 13 x 9, 6'9 height at the center, and has a room divider. Bathtub floor and 1 door for each section. Large vestibule in addition of 6x9. The Polyester is labelled "Embossed", but have no idea what that means.

Thanks.

[renodesertfox]

Re: I finally bought my tent!!! Opinions?

Yes indeed that's seems too good to be true! Never ever heard of it either, hopefully you weren't scammed! Please take a picture or two when it arrives, when you pitch it(set-it-up) and some while camping! Would love to see it and get your opinion of it good or bad!

[SS76]

Re: I finally bought my tent!!! Opinions?

I doubt I got scammed given where I bought it and the full price isn't exactly cheap, but such a big part of buying tents is other people's experiences. So we'll see.

[Mike]

Re: I finally bought my tent!!! Opinions?

Looks like an excellent tent at a great value.

Really, you can't go wrong. If for some crazy reason a seam leaks, fix it with seam seal. If some spot on the tarp leaks, give it a spray or a swab of rainguard.

90% of the time, the tent just keeps the mosquitoes away and you don't have to worry about rain.

Have a ball with your tent. It looks like a winner.

[SS76]

Re: I finally bought my tent!!! Opinions?

Looks like an excellent tent at a great value.

Really, you can't go wrong. If for some crazy reason a seam leaks, fix it with seam seal. If some spot on the tarp leaks, give it a spray or a swab of rainguard.

90% of the time, the tent just keeps the mosquitoes away and you don't have to worry about rain.

Have a ball with your tent. It looks like a winner.

That is what I figured and after they set it up, was impressed enough. Full fly with 2000 MM rating, 16mm Aluminum poles.....seems solid.

[tplife]

Re: I finally bought my tent!!! Opinions?

I really don't like the Woods tent. You've never heard of the brand before, there are virtually no reviews (although those can't always be trusted) and it's on "clearance". IMHO: The design is scary, it's half-screen room (an area you'll rarely use it for) and half-sleeping area. You give up half the useable space in bad weather - the screen-room half is full of potential leak zones due to the covered screen window design, it even has a side opening vent area right where you never want moisture gathering to drip. Even if it's leak proof a time or two, after a few seasons you'll regret spending you money on this design and seam sealer won't change these design flaws. I do like the fabric, the diameter size of the poles (I'd guess they're not anodized) and the large rear vestibule, but that's only half of the tent. Take a look at these photos: http://www.campers-village.com/100183/Mt-Logan-6-Tent/
Notice all the extra tie down points? That's to prevent water from pooling on the sides, likely there are not enough poles by about 2 for the amount of fabric being supported. This tent doesn't look or spec out as half the tent the Flying Diamond 6 does, thus the $230 price. I'd bet the store always advertises this as a great deal, and a "clearance" opportunity and never sells these at the MSRP. I'd instead go with the Big Agnes (or similar design). http://www.backpacker.com/gear-revie...ent/gear/13422 There's way more useable dry room in the Big Agnes, an up-to-date design, and all the right features in # of poles, fabric, full rain fly, vestibules, etc. It's downsides are it's long, too long for many tent pads at 17' so you'll have to put up with less choice in where to pitch it or leave those huge vestibules folded in and un-staked. A 10X10 size is about right, and it's a 6-man, so the pitch is doable alone (a big plus), provided you're okay with the pad needs of like 17X10 with vestibules extended. The Flying Diamond is a 4-season tent, and since most quality 3-season tents will take a light snow load, this is possibly too much tent for your actual needs. Big Agnes has other choices, you might looking in my opinion, but not due to quality or design ala the Mt. Woods. I'm guessing you're also looking at the other quality lines of polyester, like Sierra Designs, NorthFace, REI, EMS, Mountain HardWear, Marmot, etc. in addition to Big Agnes, a quality name in its own right as you can see by the features. Now many folks buy a tent, go out once or twice a year in great weather, and are stoked with terrible tents. I'm glad to call them neighbors around the campfire, but you asked for an opinion...If you're an "owner" and have to live with the Woods tent, look at it this way, you could do a lot worse!

[SS76]

Re: I finally bought my tent!!! Opinions?

Thanks for sharing your thoughts! I think you made a lot of good points. I do like the flying diamond 6 better,but not double the price better and after seeing it set up, with full fly and mm rating, 420d bathtub floor, not sure it's such a bad bet. Woods owned by Columbia, and this is also a protection labeled tent which I see on British tents. As for the usable area, the inside of the tent is 12x9, and then you have the screen area which is more of a bonus as far as I'm concerned. We'll see I guess, but thanks again

[sarahspins]

Re: I finally bought my tent!!! Opinions?

Woods owned by Columbia

You do realize that columbia does not manufacture tents, right? So this statement really means nothing in terms of assumed quality. Columbia contracted their tents through North Pole who makes a vast majority of cheap department store tents. Granted some Columbia tents were fine, but none of them carry any kind of warranty now that Columbia no longer has a contract with North Pole... so if you have a problem that would ordinarily be a warranty claim (pole breaking, seam separating), you're out of luck.

I wish you luck finding places to pitch a tent with a footprint of 13x18+.

[tplife]

Re: I finally bought my tent!!! Opinions?

Thanks for sharing your thoughts! I think you made a lot of good points. I do like the flying diamond 6 better,but not double the price better and after seeing it set up, with full fly and mm rating, 420d bathtub floor, not sure it's such a bad bet. Woods owned by Columbia, and this is also a protection labeled tent which I see on British tents. As for the usable area, the inside of the tent is 12x9, and then you have the screen area which is more of a bonus as far as I'm concerned. We'll see I guess, but thanks again

I think you should set the tent up and measure it. The specs call it a 2-room tent (screen room + non-screen room) with a 120 foot outer vestibule. Looking at the diagram blowup, and the perspective in the photo, it's very difficult to believe the back non-screen room could possibly be 12X9 in dimensions, unless the interior height was 9'7" or so, but it's described as 6'7". If it's really that big (2 rooms of 12X9 each= 216 sq ft), it's made of very thin material and very few poles as it weighs in at only 29.5 pounds, half the standard weight of a synthetic tent if it's 216 sq ft. That's not true since the specs say 68D for the fly, no spec for the walls, and 420D for the floor (with a floor that thick I guess you can skip the ground cloth!). My 6-man weighs 18 pounds for 76 sq ft. not including the 2 vestibules. BTW, Columbia is owned by holding company Vanity Fair, and which also owns Mountain HardWear, The North Face, Jansport, EastPak, Napapijri, and Kipling. North Face and Mountain HardWear tents carry lifetime guarantees on replacement parts, and have very good customer service. That's what you're paying for (besides new designs) for the extra money. Like I said, you could do a lot worse in tent choices and the money you saved can go to some other gear you might need. Doing your research (comparison for brand, features, price) and checking different sellers (www.resellerratings.com, ebay, amazon, brick-and-mortar) no doubt saved you from the disappointments that await the careless. Knowing what you got for what you paid should eliminate that from happening, whether you buy a $4K tent or a $40.00 tent! :cool:
Mike said that "90% of the time, the tent just keeps the mosquitoes away and you don't have to worry about rain." I agree and you should be fine in typically mild weather in this tent. Don't let my critiques on these forums bother you, in my work, I live or die by small details, and in my camping, we experience cold/wind/rain extremes in the SoCal mountains and desert region and as a result, demand a lot from our gear from those experiences...(YMMV)!

[SS76]

Re: I finally bought my tent!!! Opinions?

Thanks! Do you know anything about Protex labeled tents? The store is bought it from sells replacement poles if needed according to them.

You do realize that columbia does not manufacture tents, right? So this statement really means nothing in terms of assumed quality. Columbia contracted their tents through North Pole who makes a vast majority of cheap department store tents. Granted some Columbia tents were fine, but none of them carry any kind of warranty now that Columbia no longer has a contract with North Pole... so if you have a problem that would ordinarily be a warranty claim (pole breaking, seam separating), you're out of luck.

I wish you luck finding places to pitch a tent with a footprint of 13x18+.

[SS76]

Re: I finally bought my tent!!! Opinions?

I am not bothered at all, I asked for opinions so I appreciate yours and everyone elses. The inside is huge as it was set up inside the store for me, but I will measure it as you suggested.

I think you should set the tent up and measure it. The specs call it a 2-room tent (screen room + non-screen room) with a 120 foot outer vestibule. Looking at the diagram blowup, and the perspective in the photo, it's very difficult to believe the back non-screen room could possibly be 12X9 in dimensions, unless the interior height was 9'7" or so, but it's described as 6'7". If it's really that big (2 rooms of 12X9 each= 216 sq ft), it's made of very thin material and very few poles as it weighs in at only 29.5 pounds, half the standard weight of a synthetic tent if it's 216 sq ft. That's not true since the specs say 68D for the fly, no spec for the walls, and 420D for the floor (with a floor that thick I guess you can skip the ground cloth!). My 6-man weighs 18 pounds for 76 sq ft. not including the 2 vestibules. BTW, Columbia is owned by holding company Vanity Fair, and which also owns Mountain HardWear, The North Face, Jansport, EastPak, Napapijri, and Kipling. North Face and Mountain HardWear tents carry lifetime guarantees on replacement parts, and have very good customer service. That's what you're paying for (besides new designs) for the extra money. Like I said, you could do a lot worse in tent choices and the money you saved can go to some other gear you might need. Doing your research (comparison for brand, features, price) and checking different sellers (www.resellerratings.com, ebay, amazon, brick-and-mortar) no doubt saved you from the disappointments that await the careless. Knowing what you got for what you paid should eliminate that from happening, whether you buy a $4K tent or a $40.00 tent! :cool:
Mike said that "90% of the time, the tent just keeps the mosquitoes away and you don't have to worry about rain." I agree and you should be fine in typically mild weather in this tent. Don't let my critiques on these forums bother you, in my work, I live or die by small details, and in my camping, we experience cold/wind/rain extremes in the SoCal mountains and desert region and as a result, demand a lot from our gear from those experiences...(YMMV)!

[SS76]

Re: I finally bought my tent!!! Opinions?

I should have mentioned that I will be camping mostly in summer/fall,and in federal campgrounds with tent pads that will fit and be surrounded by trees. May have to get through the odd storm though.

[SS76]

Re: I finally bought my tent!!! Opinions?

Ok, I have an update! I used my tent for the first time this Canada Day long weekend, it rained too, and not a drop (although it wasn't a major rainstorm). I am super impressed by the space, quality of material, and general design of the tent. I will have more detailed pictures and review after my trip to Eastern Canada in 2 weeks. Easily sleeps 6 and the vestibule area is huge. Tried linking the pictures from my facebook page below, not sure if its showing or not....its not to me anyways.

[Game-Heure]

Re: I finally bought my tent!!! Opinions?

I bought this tent too.
First of all very big tent. A lot a good features well built with aluminium poles. Keep in mind I pay 229$+ taxe for this Wood Mount-Logan tent 6 places...

Since I didn't found a lot of reviews for this tent, I made a little video on my campsite for everybody who want to see it and view to good and bad side of this tent.

Here's the link: http://youtu.be/2VASFjLUE-8

And BTW I use to sell tent for years, for sure it's not the best one, but the price VS what you get is amazing.

Hope you enjoy

[SS76]

Re: I finally bought my tent!!! Opinions?

I bought this tent too.
First of all very big tent. A lot a good features well built with aluminium poles. Keep in mind I pay 229$+ taxe for this Wood Mount-Logan tent 6 places...

Since I didn't found a lot of reviews for this tent, I made a little video on my campsite for everybody who want to see it and view to good and bad side of this tent.

Here's the link: http://youtu.be/2VASFjLUE-8

And BTW I use to sell tent for years, for sure it's not the best one, but the price VS what you get is amazing.

Hope you enjoy

Thanks for the video! Well, I completed my camping trip and the tent survived winds of 30 MPH and torrential downpour, and not a drop inside. In fact, the tent itself barely moved!

Really happy with the space and contruction quality of the tent. It could get a bit stuffy but did have plenty of ventilation.