Setup and a Negative Review of the REI Kingdom 6 Tent
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 6 ต.ค. 2024
- We owned the previous version of the REI Kingdom 6 tent for years before it started to really show some age. So this spring we decided to buy the newer version on the tent and immediately noticed some big differences in the newer version of the tent. Some were great additions. Others really missed the mark. In this video, we'll show you how this tent sets up, a few different options in setting it up, the differences between this tent and the previous version, and tell you why it just wasn't for us.
This is the tent we ended up with after the Kingdom 6. I am happy with the quality and size. I will post an actual review after we've had more time to use it.
• 2020 REI Base Camp 6 T...
Thank you so much for this review; We have an older Kingdom 8 and love it. I don't know why major companies think they have to fix something that doesn't need to be fixed.
I'm not sure either Gary. They had a really good thing going.
I appreciate honest reviews like this that provide a critical viewpoint. Too many videos out there that talk about how awesome something is without any discussion of product pitfalls.
I was trying to show some good things about it and some negative. Hopefully it helps a few people eventually. But you're right, most reviews only show how good something is. Thanks for taking time to comment. Hopefully they can get the Guads open soon.
Ultralight Outdoors It’s a good honest review, thank you for taking the time to do it :). And yep, can’t wait for GUMO to open again once all this blows over :)
I got the old style tent last year (6 person ). I really like it . I also have the garage extension. I find the aluminum pole quite strong. I would not replace it with the new version. Too bad for REI . They killed the best 6 -8 person tent on the market. Thanks for the honest review😉👍
You're totally right. They changed something good that didn't need to be changed. Unfortunate.
Man! That was a good review! I can't believe I just watched 22 minutes of the ins and outs of an REI tent!
Hah, I really appreciate you watching! Hope it helped.
Thanks for the video, we just got a kingdom 6 sits beside a north face wowona 6 for base camp operations (were guides for a history group) we always have a practice of sealing the tents with scotch guard and silicone for the seams. we had no leaks from the tent the new cross poles give it added strength we found compared to the older version. However the North Face tent is is very good as well. the major tent we used is a 2meter north face but that thing cost us like 5 grand. bottom line our last trip it was very cold. The kingdom 6 was much warmer than all the others using the same heaters. this was at K2, I think REI engendered the tents for 4 seasons rather than 3 like the older version. the did did very well, but we still like North Face just a little better. and the 6P wowona is a little cheeper for roughly the same quality. the new version has made 4 expeditions now from K2 to Tennessee with no issues. what we don't like about it is it has no ports for power from the solar units and fuel hoses. The North Face Does. Anyway maybe check out a north face when you're in the market... but trust me the new kingdoms are very strong and perform well is cold stormy conditions.
David, thanks for taking time to comment. You certainly have put the tent through its paces. I certainly don't think all Kingdom tents will leak. I know ours happened to have a flaw. I still think REI makes good gear. We actually ended up with the REI Basecamp 6 and we enjoy it. Still not 100% what we wanted. But its a good tent. I did look into the North Face tent in my extensive search for a 6 person tent. Read several reviews of it. If the Basecamp 6 hadn't have worked out, I was going to try the Wowona next.
You need to use seam sealer on all the stitching because the rain soaks through the threads like a wick.This happened on my kingdom 6 and my north face bastion 4.Once you seal them no more leaks.Even the footprint soaked through on both tents so I sprayed sealant on them and problem solved.For what you pay you wouldn't think you need to do this but you do.Put xtra heavy sealer on all stitching on the tie downs and stack straps because of pulling on threads.
Hey Andy, thanks for taking time to comment. I know that both versions of this tent that we have owned had taped seams and theoretically shouldnt leak. Our older version went for about 5 years before we ever had any leaks. Even at that it wasn't a lot of water. I did end up resealing the seams on that tent and was able to get a few more years out of it. That worked really well.
I've seam sealed several of my tarptents and other ultralught shelters.
The seam tape that is on the underside of the fly on the newer version of the Kingdom 6 should be enough to stop leaks. I didnt however look to see what the tape looked like around where all those seams came together. I should have. And you're right, for how much they charge for this particular tent, it should be leak proof.
We had the old Kingdom 6 with the garage as well...but sold it when we stopped using for a few years as we really got into backpacking. Lo and behold, years later, we started going on extended cross-country camping trips again and our backpacking 4 person was getting a bit too small.
Looked briefly at these Kingdoms as they were on their way out. Decided not to and got a big tent from Costco that we gave a try (returned...just leaked). Didn't want to try and fix all the issues for how much we live in the thing, so we just got the REI Base Camp 6 instead. Being so far from home (and sometimes in stormy and/or dusty windy conditions), wanted something more robust and that could be buttoned up a bit more and has a full fly. But I am still sometimes a bit sad we got rid of the old Kingdom. I feel like I didn't appreciate it enough when we had it...and then it was gone.
It was a good tent. I wish ours didn't get worn out. But then again, I enjoy the memories of all the years we used it. We also have the Basecamp 6 and are really enjoying it. I also ended up picking it because it was a little more weatherproof.
I saw REI has a new line of family tents that look cool. Similar to the Kingdom. But I don't know much about them. The Basecamp should provide years of service before we need to start looking for something new.
Really great demonstration!!! Ventilation is a big deal for us too! Big Agnes tents often have the same issue. Thanks so much for sharing!
We did a few nights at Guadalupe River SP this past weekend. Trip was great. Definitely needed the two fans we took. Swimming was awesome. We had a ton of fun at Luckenbach and Bankersmith. Think we're about done car camping for the summer. Probably just day trips until it starts to cool down. So we've got a while to choose something new.
Taking this tent up to 1000 Islands this week. Hopefully we will be good with it. If not I will let you know my thoughts. Best video I have seen on this tent. Thanks.
I'm sure you will be. If we didn't have the previous version of this tent to compare it to, we'd probably have liked it a little more. The seam leaking on ours was a defect with our particular tent. Good luck to you and I hope you like it. Thanks a lot for watching.
This is the most helpful video on the kingdom redesign. I really appricate the information and point of view. It helped inform my purchasing choices.
Sorry for the late reply. I appreciate you watching and I'm glad it helped. Hope your new tent, whatever you end up getting, works out well for you.
Thanks for this video. It will help me when I get my new tent; I just picked up a Kingdom 4 at half price from REI. I guess you weren't the only one who had issues with the new version. Half price is pretty nice for me though. I never had the original so I may not notice it's flaws so much. Happy Camping.
It's definitely worth a try at half price! Hopefully you get a good one.
Thanks for posting. I have an old version Kingdom 4 with the zip up garage and love it. I was thinking about getting a Kingdom 6 but I am rethinking that.
Thanks for watching Steve. I mean, the newer Kingdom isn't a bad tent. It just doesn't compare well to the older version in my opinion. We ended up going with the Basecamp 6 and have really enjoyed it on the couple of trips we've used it on (including in the rain).
I have the previous version, and love it. Not sure why they added all those extra poles and steps.
I have the older version. I use the screen room side as the "front" of the tent. That way, when I roll the rainfly halfway back, it takes full advantage of the screens.
We still have our older version. If it wasn't falling apart (a lot of use over a lot of years) we wouldn't be looking at new tents. It was so great. Thanks a lot for watching and thanks for the tip.
No matter how good a tent is built if it leaks it sucks. I’ve never really understood the idea of having a humongous tent like that. Part of that being it looks like a humongous hassle to set up and then also to break down and pack away.
When we first started car camping as a family we got a Coleman four person tent and as our little ones got to be a little bit bigger we put them in their own tent facing ours about 2 years ago. There are 6 & 9. Also we have a 8 x 8 shade canopy that we use in conjunction with the tents for our dry area like you were talking about with your garage.
My thought process is eventually each child will want their own tent as we start to go out on overnight backpacking trips.
Great video though keep it up brother!
Hey Andrew,
We've loved the design of the old tent. It says 6 person but I wouldnt want to sleep with more than our 4 in there. I do LOVE being able to stand up in the tent. Especially when its raining. You're right about leaking. No tent is good if it leaks.
We have talked about the boys using their own tent. But we haven't decided yet. I dont mind a small tent when backpacking. But I definitely enjoy sprawling a bit when we car camp. (Which we do more than I backpack) Thanks for watching.
My sons are 11 , they will not sleep in their own tent . We have this one . I like it . Wish the ventilation was better .
I have the 2017/2018 design, it’s in between your old one and this. The airflow issue isn’t quite as bad but I still wish they’d kept more but fly, but the rain cover and pole setup is perfect.
That said, I totally could see why they’ve moved to this pole design: I’ve had nights in higher wind areas with mine that it struggled more than I’d like when winds were multi-directional, which those auxiliary poles would likely help with.
Thanks Chris. I didnt even realize there was a version in between what I had and what's out now.
Excellent review and comparison. We had one of the original green Kingdoms and liked it pretty well. But it was a little harder to set up than some other tents.
We loved that tent. Actually still have it but its getting pretty rough. We ended up going with a REI Bu khouse for now and really like it. Taking it out for its 2nd trip tomorrow.
Great review. Nearly every review has an agenda one way or the other, but you are really fair and objective.
I borrowed my brother’s older Kingdom 8 plus garage several times, and loved it. I bought the new Kingdom 8 and mud room, thinking it’s be the same but better. It’s not. It’s really too bad, since I liked the one so borrowed a lot. This one is close, but for ~$750, I can’t have a pole that’s bent from too much tension, a mud room with gaps and stressed seams, or a vent that leaks. It’s going back to the store.
Thanks for watching and taking time to leave a comment. It really is too bad. I know they were shooting for better with the redesign. They just missed. I wish they would admit defeat and redesign again (or go back toward the original design).
Ultralight Outdoors did you decide on a replacement?
We havent picked up another tent yet. Really weren't in a rush because of the heat of Texas summers, we arent really camping right now. Another tent I liked the look of was the Eureka Boondocker. Also considered a Big Agnes tent. We'll start searching again in by the end of September when it starts to cool down. If we can't find something better, we still have our old Kingdom 6. Its not in great shape but would still work in all but maybe the worst storms.
Great review. "She who must be obeyed" and I are going to do some cross country motorcycle camping and was looking at these. Thanks for the honest review. You earned a new subscriber.
Hey Ken, thanks for watching and taking time to comment. Where are you guys riding from and to on your trip?
@@CameronHall88 We're in Florida. Would like to work our way through the mountains and head to the Black Hills and back another route. And then up to New England. Want to do some cool weather camping.
Thanks so much, great video, very informative. I was set on getting this tent but now I'm back to square 1 wondering what tent would work best for our needs.
It's a tent that works well for lots of people. It just didn't work out for us. And definitely is not an improvement over their previous version. We ended up going with the REI Basecamp 6 and it has worked really well for us so far.
@@CameronHall88 I just went to the REI website, we actually have a store here in SC and according to the website the Basecamp 6 is no longer available so I'm kind of bummed. I'll be headed into town in the morning to see what they actually have, and hopefully I can find one.
This is a great review. Thanks for doing it.
I appreciate you watching. Hope it helped out. Happy camping.
Very good review!! Thanks!
Thanks a lot for watching!
Great review man. We have the kingdom 6 haven’t really had it out in bad rain to say about leaks. The mud room is very lame and agree they should of kept the way it was when it was the garage. We usually stay close to rivers and streams so airflow not such a big deal but I could also agree could have been better/more. Awesome review though.
Hey Adam, I'm sure our particular tent just had a slight flaw with the seam tape or something. But I didnt want to chance it again after seeing the changes that we didnt care for. The garage really made the older style tent. I dont understamd what exactly they were thinking on the mud room. Thanks for watching and taking time to comment. Hope your tent keeps working out well for yall!
How about a side by side comparison of the Kingdom 6 and the Base Camp 6? I am considering either one and would like to see your opinion on comparing them.
So I don't have the Kingdom 6 anymore. At least the new model (in this video). So I wouldn't be able to make the video. I do have this video of the Basecamp 6 that you can also watch and it should give you a pretty good idea compared to this video of the Kingdom 6. I will say, we love the Basecamp 6 and are happy we got it. It the garage on the Kingdom 6 was designed as good as the older version, we might have just tried another Kingdom 6 to see if it leaked as well. I did read several reviews on the Kingdom 6 where people had leaking problems.
th-cam.com/video/UOfG0zGAUuo/w-d-xo.html
I had the front and back reversed. I thought the vestibule was our front ‘porch’ haha
That's easy to do. Although I think only 1 of the doors on the tent itself is waterproof.
Really nicely segmented review by the way. Are the zippers better than the Coleman brand tents? I noticed the REI logo is reversed. Did you use a selfie mode on your phone? Lastly, what did you replace this with?
Hey thanks for watching. I honestly don't have much experience with Coleman tents. So I couldn't really compare the two. I did shoot part of this video on my front camera and some on the rear camera of my phone. It was actually in editing this video that I realized it mirrors the image. I have since turned that off in my settings so that it doesn't make anything confusing.
We ended up giving the REI brand another chance and went with the REI Basecamp 6. I have another video of it on my channel. Its not a perfect tent but we really like it. Here is a link to that setup video:
th-cam.com/video/UOfG0zGAUuo/w-d-xo.html
What a great video thank you! I have the old model but the center pole and sleeve is damaged and was debating getting the new kingdom 6 to replace it. After watching this I will be getting it repaired and using it as long as possible. I like having the open netting and airflow. I'll be using tentpole technologies to replace the pole. Do you know any companies that would be able to repair the pole sleeve? Thanks!
I'm not sure about the pole sleeve repair. But we are using our old Kingdom for now as well. Not a bad idea. Thanks for watching.
This is such a great review...thank u 👍👍👍
Thanks, I really appreciate it. And thanks for watching!
Hi Cameron! This was such an awesome and honest review of the REI Kingdom. I really enjoyed it. I hope this isn't too much to ask, but is it possible for me to use a few still frames from your video? I just started a camping blog, and it would be super helpful to use a few images of the REI Kingdom in my blog post, and I really love the quality of your video. If you're alright with it, I would definitely credit everything to you, and include your name and TH-cam channel (and everything else you need me to include) in the blog post. If this isn't something you're comfortable with, no pressure at all, and I won't use your video :) Let me know! Thanks so much, Cameron! Cheers, Liz from Camping Guidance.
You are welcome to use part of this video for your blog. Thanks a lot for watching.
Change isn't always a good thing huh? I thought with the extra framing it would really weather a storm well, then you talked about the leaks. That's sad. At the end of camping and time to pack everything up, this tent looks pretty involved as far as ease of taking it down. Good luck finding a tent that suits your family better.
The added poles may help in strong wind. I'm sure that was the idea? But we had the old one out in some pretty strong winds before and as long as it was pitched facing into the wind, it held up really well.
I could pitch the previous one pretty quick by myself. And with practice probably could have done this one as well. But ... now we'll never know. The dripping from the seam on a $600 tent setup was a little much for us.
Look at the Marmot Halo, Limestone and Halo tents.
The seam tape leak... that's a product defect that should make it returnable/exchanged during the return period.
We were able to return it very easily. REI has a great return policy.
Thank you
Thank you for your review. We bought the newer Kingdom 8. It seems smaller than the older version. Plus we had the same problem with the leaks from the top seams. The ventilation is horrible also.We have tried to love it but we are taking it back. For the price we spent on the tent, it doesn't fit our needs. Can you suggest a tent the size of the Kingdom 8 that we can try.?
I'm not sure about an 8 person. We just got a REI Basecamp 6. I don't think they make an 8 person version. The tent might have the same airflow problems as REI is using a lot more solid material and less netting. We're going to give it a try anyway. I just had a hard time buying a really cheap tent that felt really cheap. REI products have always worked for us up until this Kingdom 6. I hope the Basecamp 6 works out a little better.
Subscribed! great review. I have this tent still in the box. delivered today. I bought it SPECIFICALLY for the mudroom. been mulling over your review of it for a while. million dollar question. depite the inferior mudroom. what other product can match it in the states? its still the biggest one I have seen, and in fact, even with the smaller mudroom I'm not sure its going to fit in 50% of the campsites I've seen. I guess I will have to set it up and see for myself! really interested to see what you got as replacement.
Thanks so much for watching. Hope the review helped.
There have been a few campsites that we weren't able to get our tent and the garage (now mudroom) in. Sometimes we had to either not use the garage or do some rigging in the rear vestibule.
We haven't picked another tent yet but I will tell you a few of the tents that we were considering that were SIMILAR. We never could find exactly what we want and all of these have some tradeoffs. But they do have a lot of the features we were looking for.
1. Eureka Boondocker Hotel 6
2. Eureka Copper Canyon LX 8
3. Big Agnes Bunkhouse 6
4. The North Face Wawona 6
I can't vouch for any of these. Just what we were looking into. I will say that if the Eureka Boondocker was the same price it is now back when we bought the Kingdom 6, we probably would have went with it.
@@CameronHall88 followup. matching your review. we set it up yesterday and while the mudroom would do for two people in a helinox chair zero playing cards on a tiny table. the fact is, its just not somewhere you would want to hang out especially with the sidewall nearly touching your head. We will search the sites for a used (hopefully unused 2018 6 with the garage. also, not that happy with the half zip front door screen. the ability to see out the front would be advantageous. especially if someone was cooking/sitting in the mudroom
Thats a great idea. I hope you're able to find one. It really was a better design. Thanks for the follow up.
Marmot Halo
I fear I would have a very similar experience with how they changed the Camp Dome 4...making it shorter, etc.....gonna keep my old version for as long as I can.
Why do they have to go messing with a good thing?!
We still have our old Kingdom 6. But it shows its age. It has a drip in long heavy rain. And the bug netting is getting worn. Thats our backup plan for now. Probably not going to be car camping much the rest of the summer here anyway.
@@CameronHall88 When did the new Kingdom 6 with mudroom come out 2020? By the way, I appreciate your video review. Excellent demonstrations, clear communication and well thought out. You guys rock!!
@@kimkoy7650 it came out before 2020. Maybe 2018 or 19. I'm not sure exactly. I cant be positive on any changes in those couple years. But the big overhaul where they changed the overall design happened around then. Thanks a lot for watching and taking time to comment. We really appreciate it.
Great info. Tnx
Thanks a lot for watching.
Thank you so much this was so helpful as we were considering on buying this tent we have two young boys and want them to grow up camping so we've been on a search for a good dome tent as my husband is 6 ft tall. Any recommendations. We are in Canada.
The other tents we were considering was the Eureka Boondocker and a Big Agnes Bunkhouse/BigHouse. We havent purchased our new tent yet as its been too hot here. Thanks a lot for watching. Good luck with your adventures. Nothing better than raising kids outdoors. Thanks a lot for watching.
@@CameronHall88 hey! I saw you guys went went the other REI tent. What made you go for that over the Big Agnes Bunkhouse 6 tent?
why would the vestibule be on the back... Are you sure about which side is the front and back?
Hey, thanks a lot for watching.
I'm pretty confident the side without the vestibule is the front. That's the direction REI shows on their website, how almost every picture online shows it oriented, and how I've always oriented mine in the past. You could however turn the tent either direction and it wouldn't matter. That said, one reason the vestibule would be in the back is the additional garage you can attach to the Kingdom tents. Its basically a much bigger vestibule. That would make it make more sense the way you're thinking. It's also just easier getting in and out of the door with no vestibule which is the way most people do it I think. The vestibule or garage is nice for getting in and out of the tent when its raining and not getting water in the open side door.
You said you were going to return, what did you end up getting for your family? Not good that it was leaking in rain either.
We ultimately went with an REI Basecamp 6. Its a little better setup for bad weather. I know its the same brand, but we haven't had any problems in rain. We really like it.
What is considered the best of the best six person tent? I am ready to get this one but wish it didn’t have all these little negatives.
I couldn't say which is the best one. The Kingdom 6 is a good tent. Just not near as good as the older version. We ended up going with the REI Basecamp 6 and are very happy with it.
Hi Cameron, thank you for this review. May I ask what family tent you recommend or are using?
On our last trip we just used our old Kingdom 6 that I mentioned in the video. But its getting REALLY worn out and we decided that we'll have to get something else before our next car camping trip. The main tents we're considering now are made by Eureka. We should have a new tent within the next 6 weeks and I will definitely post a video about what we decide on. Thanks a lot for watching.
@@CameronHall88 thanks for the review. A tent that is not waterproof is not acceptable. Bummer, I like the idea of this tent for family car camping. Hoping to find an alternative.
@@dannylockett9445 others have had success with it. We ended up with a REI Basecamp 6 and absolutely love it so far. It's held up well in fairly good storms.
I read reviews on REIs site and am seeing a reoccurring issue of too much tension on the base of the tent at the poles. Some reviews have pictures showing it tear at these locations. Did you have this same issue?
Mine did not tear but I can tell you for sure there is a lot of tension there. My wife and I both noticed the seams being stressed at the points where the poles connect. Hopefully they go back to the drawing board and tweak a few things on this design. Its not a terrible tent but it definitely has some issues that need to be addressed.
I recently bought a used Kingdom 6 off Craigslist. I am now looking for a "Garage" for it. Any ideas?
Oh, thats a tough one. Facebook gear swap would probably be best. Or possibly ebay. Good luck. The garage really makes the tent to me.
@@CameronHall88 I found a Kingdom Tent on Craigslist that had a Garage with it!
@@timothywitt4724 awesome score!
Have you experienced any leaks through the vents in the fly?
I have not. But we only used this tent on a few trips and only once during a hard rain. If it was really windy and pouring i could definitely see how it would be possible. But there is enough of an overlap of the material of the top of the vent and main part of the tent flh itself that I think it'd be fine in most any moderate rain.
WARNING: REI Customer Service will NOT replace any broken PLASTIC parts
to any of their tents. It's up to you to make-do, or jury-rig a fix.
Thats crazy. Is this after the warranty period of the first year?
You have a beautiful home.
Thanks. It is nice. I miss living out of town though.
Hi, @Ultralight Outdoors. We're hoping to contact you about a fun trash collection challenge that we've gotten involved in. What's the best way to get in touch with you? We think you'll like this simple pickup challenge, and we would love to use your logo and YT page in our video, so we can pay it forward to another account! #GallonBagChallenge
Yeah for sure. My email is cehall88@gmail.com
Yeah the Marmot LimeStone and Halo are way better than this tent.
I've looked at a Marmot and it looked nice. But I dont have any real world experience with them. I also liked the Eureka Bunkhouse. But it was too expensive at the time.
@@CameronHall88 My daughter and family had a new Marmot, and it failed while out west in strong wind. They went to an REI in MT and returned the shredded Marmot for the Kingdom 6, which they said is much better quality than the Marmot, especially given the heavy use their tents get.
Just kill the music.
I'll keep that in mind for next time.
Thank you for being so honest and going in detail.
Bryan, thanks for watching! I really appreciate it.