Coleman Tent - Wild Texas Forums: Parks, Travel & Recreation

05-03-2005, 06:46 PM

I haven't camped since I was a kid and that was in a little 2 man Eureka tent. I'm looking to start camping fairly regularly, I found a good deal on a Bass Pro Shops brand tent, but keep seeing good deals on coleman tents.

Does coleman make a good tent/camping product. I know this sounds bad, but I figured if Walmart/Target carry it that it can't be that rugged. I know, bad thought even before I tried it, but I'm a firm believer of you get what you pay for.

Thakns!

ploddinTod · 05-03-2005, 08:46 PM

I have a Coleman Peak 1 Cobra that I use for backpacking. It's basically a solo tent but it has room enough inside for my backpack to keep it out of the weather. Only drawback is that it's not freestanding (you have to stake it out for it to stand). This could be a problem on rocky or sandy terrain where the stakes won't stay anchored.

Two cautions to heed when buying your tent. Make sure the rainfly comes all the way to the ground (some cheaper models stop about a foot short). Be sure to seal the seams on your rainfly. Those mircoscopic stitching holes will eventually allow water through.

Shannon · 05-03-2005, 09:49 PM

I'm a tent snob. For the past 12+ years, all I've owned are Sierra Designs tents. I am particularly partial to their Meteor Light CD. I liked my old Meteor Light so much, when it came time to buy a new tent, I just bought the new model of the Meteor Light CD. Love it even more than the original -- two doors, free-standing, great ventilation (a must in Texas), 3-season, fits Justin and I and all our camera gear, vestible, rain fly with great coverage and handles wind well.

Turn Key · 05-04-2005, 12:07 AM

When we returned to camping a good number of years ago, we started in a 10X10, Coleman "SunDome" tent. Found it to be very good and well worth the price we paid for it. We used it for about 4 years until we purchased our first pop-up. Gave the tent to our son who used it for a few more years. Finally had to be thrown away as it just started falling apart from use. Prior to that, the only thing that went wrong with it was a split in one of the fiberglass poles. Wrapped it with a bit of electrical tape and went on.

All in all, I'd say the tent was a very good product that delivered what we needed. I'm sure there are better and lighter tents on the market but if your not backpacking as we were not, I can't see paying the price for it.

Hope this info helps. Welcome to Wild Texas and happy camping!

dwalsdorf · 05-04-2005, 01:57 AM

Suerte:

It really depends on your use. If you only need a 3 season tent (and down here that really means a 2 season tent), then a lot of what is sold at Target/Wal-Mart/Academy does just fine. Also, are you going back to backpacking, or more car-camping? I can't believe how low the prices are on big tents right now. I have never owned a Coleman Tent, but I would think that such a "camplife" company would not want to be associated with a bad tent.

Don't let the store influence you--only the product. I recently bought a Eureka Getaway 9 at WM, and the only reason they were carrying that and other Eureka models was that those models were "discontinued". Does that make them cheap? No. But it does drop the price somewhat, and WM and others pick them up for their retail market. BTW, I paid $105 for my Eureka 10'x16'. It fits perfectly on Texas SP pads. Highly reccommend it if it fits your needs.

Shannon · 05-04-2005, 08:08 AM

PS: Eureka tents can't be bad if the U.S. military is using them at all -- check out the home page of Eureka's website: eurekacamping.com

txvelo · 05-04-2005, 07:18 PM

I have a Eureka hexagonal dome tent that is small enough that I have used it for backpacking and car camping. It has stood up to strong winds, rain storms and even snow when we lived in Colorado. I've re-waterproofed it several times and only leaks now because we've worn holes through the floor. I have had it for fifteen years and can't bear to throw it out.