A couple of interesting new tents have popped on to the radar screen in the last week.
The SoLong 6 is from LightHeart Gear in the US and looks like an interesting hybrid shelter with masses of internal space. Jolly Green Giant bought a cuben version and reviews it here. My thoughts are that it looks very interesting at 765g for the silnylon version and c.600g for the cuben (both without pegs). However, it’s not quite right for UK conditions. A lower fly, a larger porch, some roof vents and not quite so much mesh would do it for me.
PTC* has been to KORS 2011. In his report, he looks at some new tents from Vango. Below is the new Helium Carbon. The one man version weighs 800g. It looks pretty interesting up against the Power Lizard the Laser range. The TBS system should make it very stable. The flattened roof arch is also an attraction. What about combining the pole system of the SoLong with the design of the Helium? That would make an interesting tent.
Picture courtesy of PTC*
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Robin, really looks like my Power Lizard, except the Lizard has the external hoop pole. I suppose there are only so many designs you can came up with to get a 2 skin tent down to this sort of weight . I think the TBS should help tighten the fly and stop some fabric flapping in strong winds.
I bet it will be keenly priced. I’m not sure I can go back to smaller tents after the Scarp and the Duomid!
Vango do offer excellent value for money.
I just got a Solong. I haven’t given it a spin yet but it looks very promising.
FYI: the Solong now does come with a roof vent (although it is rather small). It also has the option for a sewn-in ‘wedge’ which creates a nice porch and allows you to get in and out of the tent without getting wet.
As for the large amount of mesh and high fly… these are intentional design features that provide ventilation. I tried simulating ‘UK conditions’ with my garden hose and found that the 8 inch bathtub floor kept the tent completely dry.
Thanks. I understand the idea behind the raised fly, but it precludes using the porch in windy/wet weather, which is not ideal. While I think the “wedge” is an interesting idea, it doesn’t really work in windy weather. For the UK, the fly needs to be a bit lower (as TarpTent found with the Scarp) and one porch needs to be a bit bigger (i.e. 20″, same as Scarp, rather than 13″). I know mesh is the norm in the US, but it is just too draughty for the UK. Half solid, half mesh would work and still give enough ventilation. I think the SoLong is a really innovative design and has a lot of potential. It just needs some tweaks for the UK.
I was surprised to find out how reasonably priced the cuben fibre version was. Shows that cottage industry can hold there own against the big boys.