Pioneer Lecture: Measure of Good Tents

Pioneer Mentor of the Period: Heartbroken Grass


The tent is an essential product for outdoor camping equipment. Its technology is very mature whether in design or in materials. But as an outdoor practitioner, I have direct contact with many outdoor enthusiasts to communicate with them on how to choose equipment every day. I have found that many of my friends still have some misunderstandings about equipment selection, or that they are on the wrong route, such as tents. There are some less scientific evaluation criteria. Based on this, in this month's equipment topic, I will first talk to you about the tents.

The first choice for most friends is material, and the next options are weight, structure, and workmanship. In fact, the standards for a good tent must be composed of many factors, but only one of them can be called a sword. Then we come to a concrete analysis of what factors are needed for a good tent and the significance of these factors.

Since everyone devaluated the material, we started with the material:

The price and performance of the tent depends largely on the choice of materials. Several tents of the same model, using different materials, can make the price difference very large and the performance may be different. Tents developed to today, basically no major changes in the composition, are generally composed of the following aspects: internal and external accounts fabrics, poles, nails and wind rope and other spare parts.

First of all, to talk about fabric issues, in the general view of outdoor enthusiasts may be just a cloth, can cover wind and rain on OK, how can there be so much stress. In actual fact, a good tent, its fabric has a lot of performance indicators, such as tear resistance, moisture resistance, UV protection performance, service life, texture and so on.

Taking tear resistance as an example, now this time the forum equipment version popular pyramid tents, this type of tent has the advantages of light weight, large space, easy construction, good stability, etc. It is also very convenient to set up, just fixed the account angle and Corresponding to the wind rope nails, the middle cane or support rod to hold it up. Pyramids are often used in some harsh environments. In the event of strong winds, the canopy body is exposed to a lot of external forces. This places high demands on the strength of the fabric. If the tear resistance of the fabric is low, it is possible that tearing may occur at the main force-relief portion of the wind rope fixing point, the post support point, and the like, thereby causing the entire tent to collapse. The pyramids produced by the world's top and top tent brands all have high tear strength to ensure safety and reliability, so these brand pyramid tents are expensive. The vast majority of domestic producers of pyramid tents did not realize the importance of fabric strength and simply catered to the lighter demands of consumers and adopted fabrics with very low strength. This type of tent had a pyramid type and no pyramid soul. It can be used for camping as an ordinary outdoor route, but it is used in harsh environments and its reliability is worrying!

Let's talk about the moisture-repellent properties of tent fabrics. Under the same stress conditions, the stretchability of dry and soaked fabrics will be somewhat different. For example, we will hold a dry towel straight at both ends and then on the towel. When it is poured into the water, it will surely droop in the middle of the wet towel. Similarly, tent fabrics will also have this phenomenon. It will cause the tight outer tent to be weak after a long period of rain and snow, which will cause the internal and external accounts to stick together, so that the dew on the inner wall of the account will wet the inner tent and wet out. Our sleeping bags and other items.

The service life of different fabrics and processing methods is also very different. The service life of good fabrics will be much longer than that of ordinary or inferior fabrics, so as to lower the cost of using tents. There are also many ways to handle fabrics. For example, we often see now. To the double silicon, single silicon, etc., dual silicon single silicon is just the technology of silicon coating on the fabric base. This technology has high and low, and the basic fabric also has advantages and disadvantages. Not all double silicon fabrics are necessarily better than single silicon. The fabric is good, certainly more expensive than the single silicon fabric. If the quality of the basic fabric itself is relatively low, then the price cost will not be too high. This is why we often see brands adopting high-end dual-silicon fabrics in some low-end tents. "s reason. In addition, we often see in the tent's introduction on the parameters of the fabric parameters, such as 15D, 20D, such as the waterproof index, D, and grams, centimeters just as a unit of measurement, does not mean that its good or bad, the same texture of the fabric The lower the D number, the more often it means thinner, lighter, and lower in strength. The waterproof index is not as high as possible. The supermarket plastic bag's waterproof index is easily 10000mm. Just as the price performance of cars with different models of 2.0 displacements is very different, the same fabric with the same D number and other parameters will also have advantages and disadvantages.


Again, if you say that the fabric is the flesh of the tent, then the pole is the skeleton of the tent. For most camping accounts, if the pole problems, basically the tent cannot be used normally. Now the general camping tents are basically made of three major categories: glass rods, aluminum rods, carbon fiber rods. The steel-glass rods are the cheapest, but they are heavy, low in strength and easily broken. They are generally used in recreational tents at the lowest end. There are very few tents for outdoor poles and high-end professional tents such as the Four Seasons Account. The high school accounts do not even see the use of glass rods (at least I have not seen). Carbon fiber accounts are difficult to find on the basis of price, intensity, and other factors. The aluminum poles are relatively balanced due to their strength, toughness, price, and weight. Therefore, most of the current professional outdoor walking and camping tents use aluminum poles.

Because of the difference in the metal processing technology, even if it is also an aluminum pole, the performance is very different, such as the strength, toughness, weight, workmanship, etc. of the post, of course, the quality of the account pole and the ordinary account pole inferior account post. The difference in price costs is also very large, ranging from several times to ten times. We use the DAC, the world’s most expensive pole provider, as an example. DAC's position in high-end tent brands is comparable to that of GORE fabrics in outdoor clothing. It is a South Korean company and is now the world's top and first-line tent brands such as HILLEBERG, BIG AGNES, MSR, SD, MARMOT, BD, etc., as well as domestic Some of the individual tent brands such as Liberty Spirit have been authorized by the DAC. They can use his account pole (not everyone who wants to use them, there are many imitation goods on the market with DAC ledger LOGO). The DAC's post has several advantages: light, strong, and fine. In the same thickness, the DAC can be the lightest, like many lightweight tents such as BIG AGNES, TERRA NOVA, etc. have adopted his family's F NSL poles to achieve; light at the same time, the DAC The pole also has high strength and good toughness, which improves the reliability of the tent and reduces the probability of broken rods. In addition, the DAC poles work well, and the incision section is very delicate, unlike some low-end ones. Pole hairy thorns are easy to scratch tents, the overall texture is very fine as crafts. On the other hand, some poorly crafted poles with rough workmanship are easily broken due to their low strength, heavy weights leading to increased load on the user, and surface treatments and even burrs may cause damage to the fabric of the tent.


After simply talking about the material, let's talk about the tent structure. The common structures of camping tents nowadays include a dome (also called a dome) structure, a ridge (also called a fish ridge) structure, a tunnel structure, a pyramid structure, and the like. The most common among these structures is the dome structure. As the name implies, the entire tent looks like a hemisphere. This structure has the characteristics of simple construction, stability and reliability, and space comfort. Because such tents often have double halls or multiple halls, it is very suitable if they are used by two people and many people. We can see this kind of structure in most outdoor camping tents and some large camp tents.

Top account


The top of the ridge (fish ridge) tent looks like the back of a fish. The tent of this structure can be lifted by only one main pole, thus reducing the weight. In addition, it has a downwind structure and wind resistance. The advantage of being excellent and the roof is not easy to accumulate snow, etc., has been adopted by many brands and models taking lighter weight routes, such as HOGAN of VAUDE, Slater of BIG AGNES, and Feixi. However, it also has a soft rib with a narrow head space and only a small entrance and exit. This structure is suitable for single-person travel in most cases.

Tunnel structure and pyramid structure are popular in China in recent years. The tunnel account is represented by HILLEBERG in Northern Europe, and the pyramid is represented by the lightweight brand GOLITE. The advantage of tunneling accounts is that it has a large hall for living, and because of its streamlined appearance and semi-cylindrical shape, it has good wind resistance and performs well in bad weather. Pyramid accounts for a stable tapered structure throughout the body, so long as the fabric is strong enough it has good wind resistance. Both of these structures have a good sense of space, so they are suitable for those who have a relatively high space requirement.

Tunnel account


Pyramid account


Analysis of the structure of the tent can make it clear what kind of structure tents should be used in what kind of environment and lines. An excellent structure must be a structure with good stability and a comfortable space for the user, rather than a product with little space or structural instability. By the way, when I went to Wugong Mountain in May Day, I saw a lot of fast-moving tents in the tent hotel area in the Peak Scenic Area. When these tents were stored, they were a disk. When they were built, they were taken from the bags. Out of aside, the tents were supported, but convenience was convenient, but this type of tent was unable to withstand the strong winds of Wugong Mountain, and several of the scenes had been destroyed by the winds on the top of the mountain to collapse. This structure is a bad structure. Only this kind of tent is cheap enough, so there is also a big market.

Next, talk about the popular topic of weight - lightweight. Lightweighting is a development trend of outdoor equipment. A variety of lightweight, ultra-lightweight equipment has been found everywhere. As a result, in the eyes of many outdoor enthusiasts, lightweighting has become a measure of the pros and cons of tents. However, is it really lighter the better?

Many outdoor enthusiasts will ask me when they are shopping for tents. The tents are light and durable. To the extent that they are light, it is best. Many people propose that the double accounts should be less than 1.2 kg, if more than 1.5 kg. It is totally unacceptable! In fact, such standards are basically impossible to achieve in the existing technical conditions and not too outrageous prices.

We admit that lightweighting is a development trend. Thanks to the improvement in the level of technology, the existing tents have made considerable progress in terms of weight. When we go back to China in 1978, it is already known that a double account can be achieved within 2 kilograms. Ultralight tents, such as the time that BIG AGNES's double account accounted for 2.09 kilograms, this weight was enough to get it OUTSIDE outdoor equipment awards, don't forget that the weight of MSR HUBBA HUBBA weight at that time was all in 2.2 About kilograms, the other double accounts on the market are generally around 2.5-3 kilograms full weight.

It is not surprising that under the current conditions, the full weight of the double accounts is less than 1.5 kilograms, and double accounts of less than 2 kilograms are common. For now, except that individual special fabrics, such as expensive Cuben fabrics, can be made ultra-light while maintaining a high level of strength, basically, in order to continue to reduce the existing weight standards, it is necessary to rely on the reduction of tents. Space, thinning fabrics, replacing thin poles with thinner diameter pipes, and reducing nails and wind ropes can be achieved. A truly good tent will definitely have a balance between weight and performance. The purpose of lightweighting is to allow us to reduce weight and make it more comfortable and relaxing outdoors. However, if we are comfortable and safe, we must pursue ultralight, and even consider ultralight as the standard for measuring excellent tents.

To give two examples, the first example, for example, we went to some very difficult abuse lines. If we use tents that are too lightweight, the chances of breaking the account pole and opening the fabric in this environment will be greatly increased. The kind of circuit is often in a bad environment, and there is no resupply on the road, so equipment problems will be very sad. In the second example, some friends only looked at the weight and did not consider the size of the space. As a result, the tent space was found to be extremely small, The inside of the room will turn to the inner wall. If the humidity is relatively large, the sleeping bag is bound to get wet. So the tent in the space, even if the weight is light one or two hundred grams, do you still want it?

Continue to talk about the issue of workmanship. If the inferior work is spread out, even if the material quality is better, it will be fierce, and the design will be better. It is only the Pearl darkcast. The quality of workmanship is, on the surface, merely whether the craftsmanship is superb, whether it looks good-looking, whether it makes the heart comfortable, but from the depths it is said that the work is good or bad, and the level of processing technology is determined to a large extent. Product performance. We have a simple example to understand: tents of the tent body is made of different shapes of fabric splicing, in the stitching at the normal situation should be after the stitches and then stitching the seams, so as to avoid heavy rain The phenomenon that the rainwater penetrates the needles flows into the account. In many tents with fine workmanship, we can see that the seams are straight and neat and tidy, and the plastic strips can completely and accurately cover the entire seam, and fit tightly without air bubbles. The poor quality workmanship is the other way around. Even if the pressure is good, it cannot be completely covered by the seams. If the adhesive pressure is also continuous, then it will not take long for such a pressure strip. The phenomenon of shedding will occur. Once this tent encounters moderate to heavy rain, it will surely flood the mountain. For example, the four corners of the tent or the wind cord buckle parts will be made to fight against the pressure exerted on the canopy body, such as strong winds. The strict products are required for reinforcing strength, how many lines to play, what kind of lines to play, etc. All of them are elaborate, and many of the poor low-quality tents I’ve seen are just two or three lines of grass in these locations. The general line does not show the difference in use, but once the bad weather is encountered There may be tearing or falling off of the stressed part of the poor quality tent. Therefore, it is true that workmanship can largely change the performance of the product.

When we got the product, everyone could actually see the merits and demerits of the tent. If a tent's seams are twisted and twisted, the needle thread is everywhere, and there is a lot of pressure-blanket white bubbles. This product is probably not good. product.

In addition to the aspects discussed above, whether or not the detailed design of the tent is humanized is an important criterion. Of course, the consideration of details is not something that every manufacturer can think of. This must require the designer to have professional outdoor experience and experience. It must be the designer's care and attention. Let us give a few details to illustrate:

1. Whether the projection height of the account door is reasonable The projection of the general tent door on the ground is triangular or trapezoidal. The length or head width of the account within the tent is the bottom of the triangle/trapezoid, and the height of the triangle/trapezoid is the pin of the door. The distance to the internal account is not suitable if the distance is too short or too long. If the distance is too short, the area of ​​the hall will be too small to store the backpack. If the distance is too long, it will cause inconvenience in the opening and closing of the door. The body climbed out of the account, and the arm extended to the longest can effortlessly open and close the door. The appropriate hall projection height should be around 55-70 centimeters. This type of hallway has both a suitable area for use and can be easily switched. A brand's hot model tent has a projection height of only 40 centimeters. If you want to put a big backpack, it is very difficult;


2. The shape of the outer gate is basically a triangular shape after the open door of the sale tent is opened. The open area of ​​this shape is limited, and the number of entrances and exits may be somewhat inconvenient, but the starry double accounts of the free spirit will be closed. The shape is designed to be pentagonal, which adds two extra areas above the traditional triangular door opening, which makes it more convenient to enter and exit, and is also more conducive to ventilation and ventilation. It also has a better view when the weather is fine.


In addition to the full text, there are some non-quantitative criteria that are not discussed here in detail, such as price, appearance, etc. This is a matter of wisdom and wisdom. In general, a good tent must be a comprehensive product that contains material, structure, workmanship, weight, details, and other aspects. We should never unilaterally pursue one aspect of the sword and ignore the other. .


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