Rant: My 'ultralight' tent was junk until I actually read the specs

I bought this so-called ultralight tent off a big online store for $120. First trip to the Smokies, the zipper snagged within an hour and the floor soaked through on damp ground. After that trip I actually looked at the denier rating on the fabric, it was like 10D or something crazy thin. Six months later I paid $280 for a tent with 40D floor and 20D fly and it's held up through rain and wind no problem. Anyone else learn the hard way that cheap ultralight gear just means fragile?

2 comments

2 Comments

dakotam177d ago

Oh boy, I've been there too. I actually read an article recently from a gear testing site that said anything under 20D on a tent floor is basically disposable, and it made me feel a lot less stupid about my own mistakes. I think a lot of these cheap ultralight brands just use the buzzwords to sell tents that are really only meant for one or two trips, not real use. Once you bump up to a 40D floor like you did, the weight difference is usually only a few ounces but the durability difference is night and day. It's frustrating how much you have to learn by trial and error in this hobby.

the_drew7d ago

But have you ever thought about the actual weight of the tent plus a groundsheet? I just throw a polycro sheet under mine and it saves all the worry about floor denier.