I miss the old canvas tent that my Dad would put up when we went camping. It took forever to get it up. It STANK. It was lopsided. It lived in the basement when not in use. And it leaked. It was a palace in my childhood.
If you are out in the elements a lot that's a great find. Especially because you can have a wood stove - heat and cooking inside. I am a tent camper, use cots, set up chairs and a small table in a 10 person tent.
I lived in a Kodiak Canvas 10x10 Flexbow for a year in the American West, but I looked at these, and I'll add several points from experience: 1) When the winds kick up to 50 mph+, regardless of how well constructed the tent is, it's miserable to be inside it and you'll wind up dropping it. 2) Get lag bolts and a drill. These tents have at least 24 staking points, and in the desert you'll be able to drill into the ground. That said, many places are very hard and rocky, and you won't be able to get stakes/bolts in. 3) Wood stoves are great, but you need to cover the chimney flue because when moisture gets in, it will turn to goop that will be hard to clean out. Also, with high winds, the wind will blow out the stove, and can push smoke into the tent.
Got rid of my slide in camper and picked up a 20 foot bell tent. Love it😊 May the good lord watch over you and your family and friends. Peace and Love 😊
Bob, what also needs to be talked about is how big is it when it's in it's storage configuration? The best tents are only as good as the room I have for it in my van
Hey! Saw this was posted 5 MO this ago, hoping you've gotten some use in during that time 🤞 How do you like it, and what state do you do most of your camping?! I just bought this tent today and I'm so anxious about it 😅
Great video! I have the 13’ Regatta. Had it up for 7 months straight while building my tiny cabin. Stayed bone dry inside and was super easy to set up. They make a 8’ mini too, though it doesn’t have the stove jack.
I have camped in a Bell Tent for 3 to 4 weeks every season for the last 4 years and strongly recommend folks take a look at the Psyclone Bell Tent. It comes with the A-frame door system, a heavy vinyl bathtub floor that goes up the walls 4", and a cotton/poly canvas that doesn't stretch like canvas, is mildew and fire resistant and when wet, drys out faster, has many windows and is hundreds less expensive than that tent. Pro-tip, get rid of those suction cup things on the top and bottom of the center pole, attach a rounded 6" piece of wooden dowel (to get rid of the sharp inner edges of the metal pole) cover the top of the pole with a rounded 3" PVC end cap that will perfectly engage with the canvas top, and make an 8" plywood disc with carpet glued to the bottom and a PVC ring centered on top of the disc. With this mod, you can engage the pole in the center of the tent and the center of the plywood disc and simply slide the disc and pole along the floor into the upright position. Believe me, this is easier for one person to do rather than having to lift and pull to get the pole in the center! It will also save from pushing a hole in the floor by distributing the weight of the canvas over the area of the 8" disc. These are Great tents!
Great video. How long will a tent like that last if up and lived in year around? I always put a tarp on the ground under a tent to help protect the tent floor. With a tent that nice I'd likely have it on a platform.
I reckon a big tent would be a great asset for folk that have bought a patch of dirt and don't have the moolah to start building......or just want to keep exploring and build later but still have a place to call home.
Hi Bob. Would you please consider setting up a playlist with all the tent videos in one place? Would be appreciated. I still think the Springbar Classic 100 would be best for me but interested in others. Thanks. 😁🐈⬛ BTW what is the area you’re in showing the tent? Looks nice with a little greenery around.
Sometimes links don’t show up in the comments do if it isn’t visible in my previous comment, just go to the playlists and you’ll find one that says Living In A Tent.
I’ve been tent camping for 65 years. Guess I’ve spent my life practicing my whole life to be a nomad. I’ve been planning the details for giving up sticks and bricks; one of my first list items is a tent.
Now that's a tent. Just thinking, would it be easier to stake the front part down and put the pole in the front door first then try putting up the center pole ? It may help lift some of the weight when pushing in the center pole .Just a thought.
Yes, tents are a very good option Bob, but there’s one problem most of us cannot lift or move 100 pounds and most of these tents definitely weigh that much that stopped me from purchasing one of these tents. Most of us or some of us are older, and have physical conditions that would limit our ability to move or put up some thing that heavy. Yes, a van or an SUV would be a much better choice because we don’t have to try to lift some thing that is beyond our capability.
Have I ever camped in a tent or my minivan? No. But I enjoy this content to see what's possible. And if 💩 hits the fan, I have so many basics recommended from this channel for survival.
Tents are nice if you need to spread out or have guests with you. Also if you are limited on cash and have to have your vehicle fixed, a tent can give you shelter. Definitely worth having a tent onboard.
I'm sitting in my Kodiak canvas cabin tent at night in Quartzsite right now writing this. 9 x 12' it has lots of windows, doesn't need guy ropes to support it. Handles the wind and rain well. Model 6121 and costs $699. Using a Chinese diesel heater. Nice and toasty.
I prefer the natural sand color as well. I plan to add a tent to my arsenal at some point this year or next. The camping wood stove was already part of my plan. I really appreciate the reviews of every tent and camping equipment as well as solar power equipment. 🤗❤️👍🏽💯
Another great contribution for the life style! Thanks Bob. I wish someone would create an easy up collapsible quonset style 'tent' type thingy. I think the roundness of it would reflect winds better.
Tenn footer looks like a GP small. They work in any weather. If you have all the parts. Work so well that you need to really watch moisture accumulation.
Looks great! A high waterproof bathtub seems pretty important for certain camping areas, does this have one, and how high? Someone below mentions Psyclone Bell Tents have a bathtub, but their ad doesn't clearly highlight a bathtub. My backpacking tents have waterproof bathtubs at least 4" high, would you please review large tents with higher waterproof bathtubs? Or does this have a bathtub? Maybe not, it's not needed for well drained areas, but last year camping opened my eyes. It'd be nice to have a removable insert bathtub, only to be set up if the huge rainstorm moves in like labor day weekend 2023. Cheers!
White Duck’s site offers a variety of canvas tents. Including some cabin tents, identical to Spring Bar and Kodiak. Have a two-man Kodiak right now, which is excellent. I’m looking for a bigger 10 x 10 cabin tent. Will keep them in mind. Thanks, Bob.
Personally I think a tent is a must have even if you have a large RV. It’s always nice to be able to add space! And when it’s time to leave, a tent takes up very little space when it’s packed up. I can’t likely set up a canvas tent alone unfortunately. I go camping a ton though and use an easy pop up nylon tent. When my kids are bigger, we will do canvas because they’ll be able to help me then 😂
Dear Bob I was just watching an older video of yours And Realized that we are both in a club we never wanted to join Mine was Um Just this last year 2023 I'm living in my van now It just broke me and the thing you said about You wake up every morning and how can I be alive when they're not It's exactly it How can I enjoy life how can I be here And I'm living in my van I'm a total mess My family's Just kind of Pieced out after the funeral and Left me to deal with it on my own Anyways I just Was surprised to hear that you We're in that same God awful Club And Yeah maybe somewhere down the line I will meet you It's not a lot of people that Want to hear and talk about this or understand Different levels of Guilt and Devastation But I hope you are at peace with it now I hope someday I will be at peace
So sorry for your loss. Don't know that I have the right words to offer comfort. Just an observation - one seems to learn to manage the pain over time. May peace come.
I had a tent that fit on my suv. It took more than an hour for me to set up. I loved it, but it was too hard for me to set by myself, and it was smaller than these. I sold it to a couple that could put it up together. ❤ I’m still looking for a single person suv or similar tent.
Canvas tents are very heavy however this style of tent will be easy to set up because you just put the pole in the middle. I go camping a ton and because I don’t have a helper I use nylon instant pop up tents. Im very petite though.
You might want to get 2 nylon tents, two different sizes, and put one inside the other. It will help keep you a bit warmer. Cheaper than a canvas but obviously won’t last as long
When I was a kid in the early 50s, and later as a mountain guide, recommendations about outdoor products came via those with multi-year experiences OF that product. How the world has changed. Now we believe advertisers and their carefully crafted ads or folks who get a free products, set them up and tell us how great it is without ever having experienced serious rains or 60mph winds. It's like George Carlin said about a world that no longer produces losers: "Bobby, you were the last winner". In other words, everything sold is the best you can buy :- (
I agree with you overall, but I don't think that applies here. He has a video of the smaller version of this tent, that he purchased with his own money gave a glowing review and they sent him the bigger to review. This one reflects the review he did for the one he purchased himself, so I trust it lol
Well I know it can be expensive..BUT… never know what can happen.. never.. having a solid tent can be life saving can be for occasional friends visit etc etc … and can serve as an extra room …
My comment disappeared, weird. I'm trying to email with a question. I've tried from the website but the email does not autofill. Can someone please post it
I don't need a tent, I just like Bob's videos.
😭
Me too ❤ he's just awesome
Me too!
Me either but he makes me want one seeing my rent is going to by $135 bucks ! Lol
ken, are you reading our minds?!
if your in a vehicle that you cant stand up in, then a tent is a must!
I miss the old canvas tent that my Dad would put up when we went camping. It took forever to get it up. It STANK. It was lopsided. It lived in the basement when not in use. And it leaked.
It was a palace in my childhood.
Hello from Puerto Rico to all of friends of CheapRV living and Bob Wells
If you are out in the elements a lot that's a great find. Especially because you can have a wood stove - heat and cooking inside. I am a tent camper, use cots, set up chairs and a small table in a 10 person tent.
I lived in a Kodiak Canvas 10x10 Flexbow for a year in the American West, but I looked at these, and I'll add several points from experience:
1) When the winds kick up to 50 mph+, regardless of how well constructed the tent is, it's miserable to be inside it and you'll wind up dropping it.
2) Get lag bolts and a drill. These tents have at least 24 staking points, and in the desert you'll be able to drill into the ground. That said, many places are very hard and rocky, and you won't be able to get stakes/bolts in.
3) Wood stoves are great, but you need to cover the chimney flue because when moisture gets in, it will turn to goop that will be hard to clean out. Also, with high winds, the wind will blow out the stove, and can push smoke into the tent.
I'm considering that 10x10 flexbow as we speak.
Got rid of my slide in camper and picked up a 20 foot bell tent. Love it😊 May the good lord watch over you and your family and friends. Peace and Love 😊
Why would you give up the camper for a tent?
Bob, what also needs to be talked about is how big is it when it's in it's storage configuration?
The best tents are only as good as the room I have for it in my van
We are a family of 6 and we just got one of these. Looking forward to a lot of family trips and memories with it. Thanks for such a good review.
Hey! Saw this was posted 5 MO this ago, hoping you've gotten some use in during that time 🤞 How do you like it, and what state do you do most of your camping?! I just bought this tent today and I'm so anxious about it 😅
This seems great for a family or a couple with large dogs.
Great video! I have the 13’ Regatta. Had it up for 7 months straight while building my tiny cabin. Stayed bone dry inside and was super easy to set up. They make a 8’ mini too, though it doesn’t have the stove jack.
This comment really helps. Thank you! 🤗❤️👍🏽💯
@@charofheart37 you’re welcome
I wonder if the amazon listing is wrong or they changed it. It lists the 8' as having a stove jack also.
THinking of buying the 13, do you think a moderate strength female can put it up by herself?
@@ontheroad684 You can definitely set it up! If I were you, I would go for the 10 or 13. :)
❤ Bigger than the small military tents we had to pack 6-8 people in. Looks to be great comparable quality. Thank You
Hi Bob, I love what you do! Do you have a list of folks where I could donate a tent like this for them to elevate their living situation?
Such a lovely thought. ❤
HOWA - Homes on Wheels Alliance
Tents are great! Instant house! Thank you Bob!
I have camped in a Bell Tent for 3 to 4 weeks every season for the last 4 years and strongly recommend folks take a look at the Psyclone Bell Tent. It comes with the A-frame door system, a heavy vinyl bathtub floor that goes up the walls 4", and a cotton/poly canvas that doesn't stretch like canvas, is mildew and fire resistant and when wet, drys out faster, has many windows and is hundreds less expensive than that tent. Pro-tip, get rid of those suction cup things on the top and bottom of the center pole, attach a rounded 6" piece of wooden dowel (to get rid of the sharp inner edges of the metal pole) cover the top of the pole with a rounded 3" PVC end cap that will perfectly engage with the canvas top, and make an 8" plywood disc with carpet glued to the bottom and a PVC ring centered on top of the disc. With this mod, you can engage the pole in the center of the tent and the center of the plywood disc and simply slide the disc and pole along the floor into the upright position. Believe me, this is easier for one person to do rather than having to lift and pull to get the pole in the center! It will also save from pushing a hole in the floor by distributing the weight of the canvas over the area of the 8" disc. These are Great tents!
Great video. How long will a tent like that last if up and lived in year around? I always put a tarp on the ground under a tent to help protect the tent floor. With a tent that nice I'd likely have it on a platform.
A footprint or a deck are great ideas!
I wish the same company made a Indian Indian t p That would be awesome with a fire right in the middle. Love this channel keep up the good work❤❤❤❤
Good idea!
I reckon a big tent would be a great asset for folk that have bought a patch of dirt and don't have the moolah to start building......or just want to keep exploring and build later but still have a place to call home.
For sure
This is such a helpful tour and size comparison, thank you! 😄
Might have to add one of these to our Class C for the Grandkids!🤔😁😁
Hi Bob. Would you please consider setting up a playlist with all the tent videos in one place? Would be appreciated.
I still think the Springbar Classic 100 would be best for me but interested in others. Thanks. 😁🐈⬛
BTW what is the area you’re in showing the tent? Looks nice with a little greenery around.
Sometimes links don’t show up in the comments do if it isn’t visible in my previous comment, just go to the playlists and you’ll find one that says Living In A Tent.
I’ve been tent camping for 65 years. Guess I’ve spent my life practicing my whole life to be a nomad. I’ve been planning the details for giving up sticks and bricks; one of my first list items is a tent.
I do like that tent & the stove, fabulous.
Love the way Bob just put the papers down on the grass😊so natural - & real
I almost bought a white duck! It’s a great tent! I like that you can put a hot stove in it.
Love that you love it!
I like the tour of this tent. It's good for people who no longer have a vehicle or any other method of shelter
Now that's a tent. Just thinking, would it be easier to stake the front part down and put the pole in the front door first then try putting up the center pole ? It may help lift some of the weight when pushing in the center pole .Just a thought.
Wow what a beautiful tent I love the color
Done deal buying one now thank you Bob! ❤
Love it
Yes, tents are a very good option Bob, but there’s one problem most of us cannot lift or move 100 pounds and most of these tents definitely weigh that much that stopped me from purchasing one of these tents. Most of us or some of us are older, and have physical conditions that would limit our ability to move or put up some thing that heavy. Yes, a van or an SUV would be a much better choice because we don’t have to try to lift some thing that is beyond our capability.
Have I ever camped in a tent or my minivan? No. But I enjoy this content to see what's possible. And if 💩 hits the fan, I have so many basics recommended from this channel for survival.
Appreciate the tent posts. I see it as an economical option, and great way to have space and adventure.
Agreed.
Thanks Bob. Great video. Awesome tent. Tents are great. The ten footer would be great.
Tents are nice if you need to spread out or have guests with you. Also if you are limited on cash and have to have your vehicle fixed, a tent can give you shelter. Definitely worth having a tent onboard.
Mine is a Springbar Highline 6 and I love it!
thank you Bob
I'm sitting in my Kodiak canvas cabin tent at night in Quartzsite right now writing this. 9 x 12' it has lots of windows, doesn't need guy ropes to support it. Handles the wind and rain well. Model 6121 and costs $699. Using a Chinese diesel heater. Nice and toasty.
Nice to know, thanks. I'm thinking of your exact tent or the 10x10. Just myself and my gf
Hey Hollywood Cody, I saw you slippin by. 😱😂👍✌️
Thank you, Bob, for all you do. You have helped so many over the years.
True that!
I prefer the natural sand color as well. I plan to add a tent to my arsenal at some point this year or next. The camping wood stove was already part of my plan. I really appreciate the reviews of every tent and camping equipment as well as solar power equipment. 🤗❤️👍🏽💯
I love those White Duck bell tents( thanks to your reviews) I would go with the smaller one, if it also comes with that high quality stove Jack??
I have this same tent, it's awesome.
Woo! Love to hear it.
Keep the tents coming Bob!
Thanks for sharing the choices of tents.😊
I like it….looks cozy for a group 👀🇺🇸
I appreciate all your videos! Thank you!
That looks like a Really good winter tent.
Another great contribution for the life style! Thanks Bob. I wish someone would create an easy up collapsible quonset style 'tent' type thingy. I think the roundness of it would reflect winds better.
#Grateful 🙏 love you guys, thank you, #mahalo
Thank you very much for the great review!
Thanks Bob. It looks nice.
I had one like this I didn't like that I couldn't look out but It didn't leak
I enjoy the tent reviews. As I’m really interested in one thanks.
That’s a big top tent!
Would love to see that side by side comparison of the bell tent and the kodiak/springbar type.
I like the tent videos.
Thanks for another great video ! I love the idea of a tent with a stove inside. Warm, cozy and you can cook on it ! What’s not to love?
Tenn footer looks like a GP small.
They work in any weather. If you have all the parts. Work so well that you need to really watch moisture accumulation.
Bob your videos are greaaaaat !
Looks great! A high waterproof bathtub seems pretty important for certain camping areas, does this have one, and how high? Someone below mentions Psyclone Bell Tents have a bathtub, but their ad doesn't clearly highlight a bathtub. My backpacking tents have waterproof bathtubs at least 4" high, would you please review large tents with higher waterproof bathtubs? Or does this have a bathtub? Maybe not, it's not needed for well drained areas, but last year camping opened my eyes. It'd be nice to have a removable insert bathtub, only to be set up if the huge rainstorm moves in like labor day weekend 2023. Cheers!
White Duck’s site offers a variety of canvas tents. Including some cabin tents, identical to Spring Bar and Kodiak. Have a two-man Kodiak right now, which is excellent. I’m looking for a bigger 10 x 10 cabin tent. Will keep them in mind. Thanks, Bob.
Thanks for thinking of us!
I was wondering when you would talk tents. I have the cabela 6 man alaskan. Those living in a caravan never made sense to me.
I can see this being set up at the LTVA. It would be a hassle if you had to break it down every week or two.
Personally I think a tent is a must have even if you have a large RV. It’s always nice to be able to add space! And when it’s time to leave, a tent takes up very little space when it’s packed up. I can’t likely set up a canvas tent alone unfortunately. I go camping a ton though and use an easy pop up nylon tent. When my kids are bigger, we will do canvas because they’ll be able to help me then 😂
Why can't you put up a canvas tent by yourself? I've seen several videos where one guy seems to do it somewhat easily.
Dear Bob I was just watching an older video of yours And Realized that we are both in a club we never wanted to join Mine was Um Just this last year 2023 I'm living in my van now It just broke me and the thing you said about You wake up every morning and how can I be alive when they're not It's exactly it How can I enjoy life how can I be here And I'm living in my van I'm a total mess My family's Just kind of Pieced out after the funeral and Left me to deal with it on my own Anyways I just Was surprised to hear that you We're in that same God awful Club And Yeah maybe somewhere down the line I will meet you It's not a lot of people that Want to hear and talk about this or understand Different levels of Guilt and Devastation But I hope you are at peace with it now I hope someday I will be at peace
Peaced
So sorry for your loss. Don't know that I have the right words to offer comfort. Just an observation - one seems to learn to manage the pain over time. May peace come.
How do you think this canvas would hold up in the humid southeast for 4-5 days at a time?
Thanks Bob!
wow
Being in the house is boring this is the way to go exactly
I love these tents however I don't like the roundness for placing furniture❤
Is this a tent or a "soft yurt"?
Ty for sharing 👍
I wonder how this would hold up in full sun. Isnt UV a killer of all fabric?
❤❤❤
What size is the tent when it isn't set up? How much room does it take when you're relocating?
It packs down into a duffel bag, about 4' long.
have you ever reviewed an inflatable tent?
👍👍👍👍
Cool review !! Really torn between getting a 13ft or a 16ft . We got 2 kids , not sure which would be best!! Anyone got any suggestions?
Go 16', you will enjoy the extra space! :)
I had a tent that fit on my suv. It took more than an hour for me to set up. I loved it, but it was too hard for me to set by myself, and it was smaller than these. I sold it to a couple that could put it up together. ❤ I’m still looking for a single person suv or similar tent.
Canvas tents are very heavy however this style of tent will be easy to set up because you just put the pole in the middle. I go camping a ton and because I don’t have a helper I use nylon instant pop up tents. Im very petite though.
Can't afford that
😭
They have cheaper, smaller ones. They really are great quality tents and I can set my 13’ up alone with no problem
You might want to get 2 nylon tents, two different sizes, and put one inside the other. It will help keep you a bit warmer. Cheaper than a canvas but obviously won’t last as long
A great vid.
When I was a kid in the early 50s, and later as a mountain guide, recommendations about outdoor products came via those with multi-year experiences OF that product. How the world has changed. Now we believe advertisers and their carefully crafted ads or folks who get a free products, set them up and tell us how great it is without ever having experienced serious rains or 60mph winds. It's like George Carlin said about a world that no longer produces losers: "Bobby, you were the last winner". In other words, everything sold is the best you can buy :- (
I agree with you overall, but I don't think that applies here. He has a video of the smaller version of this tent, that he purchased with his own money gave a glowing review and they sent him the bigger to review. This one reflects the review he did for the one he purchased himself, so I trust it lol
the one you reviewed with the giant windows was better by far personally
Springbar? Those are great tents. More expensive though. I don’t think springbar has a bell option but I may be wrong.
You could have mentioned that canvas makes a lot less noise in winds than plastic.
Good point
Well I know it can be expensive..BUT… never know what can happen.. never.. having a solid tent can be life saving can be for occasional friends visit etc etc … and can serve as an extra room …
My comment disappeared, weird. I'm trying to email with a question. I've tried from the website but the email does not autofill. Can someone please post it
My 10'×14' Kodiak is much heavier than these & MUCH cheaper in price! Still canvas and big metal zippers. Sleeps 10 also.
Just worry about dampness,
Very to put up unless you have alot of help
its one of those harry potter tent
Bob, there is an 8' for $450....
Would the 8' tent accommodate basic camping gear?
The 8' doesn't have the same standing room though! The center height is 5'2".
Who needs a tent higher than 7-8 feet?
Shaquille O'Neil
Why do you need a tent for BLM desert?
If you’re dwelling in a small vehicle or even an RV and want more room for yourself or pets or to cook or whatever, a tent is great.
To have some place to live and sleep if you don't have a large enough vehicle to live out of. Not everyone has a camper
Small vehicles are too cramped to bed down inside
To stay out of the wind in the rain
Too damn big cannot do solo especially as a senior.
Backyard, tent , no to much money for a tent. Buy a cargo trailer, make your own hard side camper.
Cargo trailer takes away from gas milage efficiency. Cargo trailers are also $$$$$$ in the thousands. Pros and cons to both! 😊
If you want some body help you to set up the tent this mean it is bad tent.
i want the 13 ft green tent im in Oregon
Ty for sharing 👍