Gelert Solo One Man Tent

[Lister]

Getting one of these [http://www.amazon.co.uk/Gelert-Solo-...cm_cr_pr_pb_t] as a birthday present (Sunday), anyone had experience with them before? I'm already thinking what i can do to shave some weight off it as i intend to use it as my starter tent to get me into bushcraft at the weekend

I'm already thinking of changing the pegs as no doubt that will shave a few grams off
Probably end up ditching the stuff sack and just tying it together instead of packing it in a bag

Anyone modded one before?

[Donny732]

I had one, and it's, to be honest, not great. I'm 180cm tall and both my feet and my head touch the inner fly when lying flat, which isn't really a flaw, but worth noting. The build quality is good enough, although you are relying on the staking to keep the fly taut. That's not so unusual, but with the very limited space inside, it's easy pull out a peg if you roll over in your sleep. Condensation is also a problem. I don't know about the waterproofness, as I never slept in it in a decent rain. Getting in and out isn't bad until you add a sleeping bag to the equasion. Getting up for a **** in the middle of the night can be a bit of an ordeal.

Dumping the stuff sack is a great idea, as I found it almost impossible to get back in. As for mods, all I did was replace the guys with paracord. The supplied stuff was awful. All in all, it's the only tent/bivvy at it's price point in it's weight class, and it doesn't need trees like a tarp, so I can't really fault it. If you come up with any great mods, please post them up and I'll have a go myself.

[Lister]

Ta for the heads up Donny, I'm around 5' 8" so a tad smaller than you but will bare that in mind. I'm going to be on a camp bed or an inflatable, if worst comes to it i'll use a closed cell foam Z mat or if the worst comes to it, a sheet of cardboard.

[redandshane]

A couple of threads on this already

http://www.bushcraftuk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=43976 and

http://www.bushcraftuk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=83928

also heres a pic of mine in Brecon Beacons earlier this year http://www.flickr.com/photos/bucepha...in/photostream

You get used to the snugness and you have to adapt a bit
Use titanium stakes from Alpkit

[Lister]

Cheers for the links, checked them out and now have some ideas, definately going to get one and going to see what mods i can make

[Harb505]

If it doesn't work out I think the Coelman Libra X1 is in a similar price bracket but probs about 500g heavier. Good luck with the gelert. I'm in the market for a new tent so will be good to hear what you make of it.
Happy camping.

[Lister]

Doing a bit more look and i think for a few quid more i'm going to grab one of these:

http://shop.highbridgecaravans.co.uk...ride=1#tdesc_3

(Coleman Bedrock 2)

Still going to see what i can do to mod it.

[Col_M]

I've got one of these, it's not a bad tent for £30 but you do get what you pay for.
I'm always paranoid that the poles are going to snap being only GFRP, the materals feel and are cheap. But. It's a solo tent that weighs close to 1kg and is only £30. I'm about 5'8" too and found the space inside fine, the only thing that can get a bit awkward is getting dressed.

For modifications, as soon as I got mine I threw the pegs out, they're far too heavy and now I have alpkit Ti ones. I cut out all the reams of instructions and safety warnings from the bag and tent, then unpicked the stitching on the transparent document window on the stuff sack. This all shaved a noticeable amount of weight off.
If I was so inclined I might replace the poles with aluminium ones and replace the plastic groundsheet material with a lighter and quieter one but I don't think it's worth spending that much on a £30 tent.

In all I quite like it, I'm probably going to keep it for the odd time I'm not in my hammock although I'm looking at making my own lightweight tarp tent style shelter so it may be relagated to emergency use.

[Donny732]

also heres a pic of mine in Brecon Beacons earlier this year http://www.flickr.com/photos/bucepha...in/photostream

Wow, that's some pic. Did you pitch on the snow or dig out your footprint? What kind of pad/kipmat did you use. Great pic.

[Bearded Bugs]

I haven't used this one in particular, but going on previous experiences with Gelert tents I'd stay clear. I know that's a dodgy way to think about new gear but they've put me off over the years.

[screwdriver]

i looked seriously hard at one of these 2 years ago, as i wanted a lightish one man that packed fairly small but after all the reports on snapping poles spent more and went for a snugpack ionoshere and very glad i did.

[Lister]

Cheers for the feedback all, have gone for the Colman Bedrock 2, will see about shedding some weight from it once i get it

[redandshane]

Wow, that's some pic. Did you pitch on the snow or dig out your footprint? What kind of pad/kipmat did you use. Great pic.

There was next to no snow when I first pitched it
I used a multimat expedition and 3/4 prolite thermarest but actually only stored gear in the solo as we went all hard core and slept under a tarp shelter with a fire
Last week I was above the Wye Valley in a very strong wind and the Solo did the trick no problem in fact it was a veritable haven
Its not luxury and it is quite cramped but it works and its light to carry.Depends what you want it for I wouldn't take it car camping that's for sure as I have plenty of bigger tents,By the same token I wouldn't lug them around if I was hiking or hillwalking
All good fun though

[Paul Webster]

I bought one of these for my daughter last year, she's only 11 so it's plenty big enough for her. I'm 6'1 and 20st and I've slept in it a few times with no problem at all, it's a bit like a coffin but it did the job. It takes a few mins to setup and others have said, swap the pegs out and shave off some of the excess tags and the weight drops right down.

For the price, I'd definitely recommend it.

[Halfdevil333]

I had one & i used it 2 then put it in the loft. I have taken it down to put it up in the garden fir the kids & everyone of the pole sections have split at the ends. So its a no from me. Spend a bit more and get the North Ridge one man from Go outdoors. Mind you i haven't heard anything about these.

Scott

[Lister]

Am going to look at pitching it in the garden tommorrow so will see how it pitches and how i can tighten it up (if needed).....methinks i'm going to need to get a bigger rucksack, don't think my 35 litre is going to pack a tent, sleeping bag and noms (food etc)

[Ichneumon]

I have one and it's a great little tent. Keeps you dry and snug and it's small and light. But for anyone bigger than a child it does present some problems. As somebody has already said, it is little more than a canvas coffin. You cant move, you have to do everything outside the tent and then get into it for sleeping - nothing else is possible. Even taking your trousers off is not possible because you cannot flex your legs. Sitting up - impossible.

I like it. But you have to accept its limitations.

[chris_irwin]

I bought one of these last summer for a 3 day walk along The Ridgeway. I sold it after that as I decided it just wasn't for me. It's very light for the price, but it's just far too small. The main problem I had was that it's not big enough to cook inside, which could be a problem if it's raining. Also, it's not even big enough to sit up in, so you can't really get changed that easily inside.

I decided to spend a bit more and get a wild country zephyros 1 instead.

[beamdune]

I had one & i used it 2 then put it in the loft. I have taken it down to put it up in the garden fir the kids & everyone of the pole sections have split at the ends. So its a no from me. Spend a bit more and get the North Ridge one man from Go outdoors. Mind you i haven't heard anything about these.

Scott

If you mean this one, then I wouldn't buy it without seeing once pitched and getting inside.


Had a nosey in Go-outdoors in Manchester and it felt very small due to the saggy inner.

I used to have a coleman viper (sold it on here last year) which is a similar design but pitched inner first with the pole in a sleeve so it was a lot more taut.

[Lister]

Pitched me Coleman Bedrock 2 today, not too hard to pitch, it is however inner first with is nothing short of annoying, that said I've figured that i can use the outer as a tarp while pitching the inner.

It's a nice size tent although bit of a tight fit if you're using a camp bed so i think an inflatable is the way forward, although being a 2 man, like most, it's more like 1 man and kit

A slight trick i think they missed with this tent is there is no way to tightening the sloping sides of the inner, especially the rear/head slope, it sags a bit too much for my liking so i think there is going to be my first tweak.

The pole for the tent is a unique shape so it makes using old connectors (as a backup) a bit tricky as you'd need to preshape them. The side of the tent were a bit on the flappy side even when pulled taut so i can see me moving the peg tabs to get a best anchor point (and a more taut outer as a result)

Pros:
Lightweight
Twin side doors (so it doesn't matter what side your sleeping bag unzips
Outer can double as a tarp of sorts

Cons:
Pitches inner first
Proprietary sharped pole connectors

Most impressive part for me was getting it back in to the bag first time....and no tears in the bag either

[Harb505]

A slight trick i think they missed with this tent is there is no way to tightening the sloping sides of the inner, especially the rear/head slope, it sags a bit too much for my liking so i think there is going to be my first tweak.

Just a thought you might be able to attatch a fixing point/loop to the outside of the inner half way along the slope/where sags, then lead a cord from that point to one of the tent pegs and tie it so it's taught.

[Lister]

Just a thought you might be able to attatch a fixing point/loop to the outside of the inner half way along the slope/where sags, then lead a cord from that point to one of the tent pegs and tie it so it's taught.

That's what i was thinking of doing, that or simply using a small square of velco and stick it to the inner/inside of the outter.

[Bucephalas]

I have a solo but gave it to a friend without ever opening it. Not for any neg reason, simply because for an extra 500 grams I went for the Avior x3 from Coleman. Easy to pitch, inner is already attached to outer ( but still detachable) and masses of room inside.

Not for backpacking at 3 kg but the solo isn't either IMO at 2.5kg.

I'm still looking for a lighter solution but I'd probably stick to a tarp and exped mat.



---
I am here: http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=54.204449,-0.286624

[SpareX]

just some really good tent makers

http://www.mountainlaureldesigns.com/shop/index.php

http://www.sixmoondesigns.com

http://lightheartgear.com/

[Randall]

If it doesn't work out I think the Coelman Libra X1 is in a similar price bracket but probs about 500g heavier. Good luck with the gelert. I'm in the market for a new tent so will be good to hear what you make of it.
Happy camping.

I'll back the Coleman tents. I've got a Kraz X1 and it's done a good job on the few occasions I've used it. Even stood up to a horse attack. A group of horses came up to camp at 6am and one of them shoved its hoof into the flysheet (multiple times) and must've put some weight onto it because the tent poles bent slightly. It also stood up to very strong winds at Lands End. Overall very pleased with it.

[geordienemisis]

I have one and it fits inside one of the side pockets on my Breghaus Centrino, I also carry a Hammock & tarp incase. I find that I can get all the kit I require for 2-4 days camping. I find that the weight issue that a lot of people go on about is a bit strange. I know you can go further and quicker with less weight but a couple of oz is not here or there. I know the lightweight crowd will be up in arms over this but each to their own eh! For a small decrease in weight you could change pegs & leave out the bags for the poles & the stuff sack. to me this would be unnoticeable. They are a great little cheap tent like all thing there are some really expensive one too.

[Harb505]

That's what i was thinking of doing, that or simply using a small square of velco and stick it to the inner/inside of the outter.

Could work quite nicley but might become detatched in wind and with the inner touching the outer condensation may find its way into the inner.
Either way have fun!