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Reddit Reviews
I have a Kelty TN3 that was a Christmas gift back in 2015, it's still going strong.
I use a kelty 3 man for car camping- it’s light and plenty of room for gear and myself and enough room for the get times my wife came camping. and I like it enough that I got the 2p backpack version. It also probably way und your budget number
I have a 3 person kelty that has served me well
I own Kelty, North Face and Marmot backpacking tents, and can attest to their durability, ease of use and agreeable weight. I've used them both in the backcountry as well as when going car camping.
I've had great luck with Kelty backpacking tents. You can usually find sales for less than $100 for the 2-3 person ones. They're pretty light and was fine when I got stuck in a storm while motocamping. If you are car camping for now you can skip the cooler and just bring canned/dehydrated food and a pot. Then when you have the funds for some lighter backpacking gear you already have a tent
I bought a Walmart tent a few years back and camped with my girlfriend. Downpour happened. She ran in tent, I cleaned up and came into the tent soaked. It was leaking because it was shit material. And she farted right before I came in so my only safe space from the rain smelled like fart. Rough go. Bought a Kelty tent after and haven’t looked back haha.
I like the Walmart brand Ozark Trail. We have had a smaller tent from them for quite a while (it does leak now but we set up a tarp over it). Our nicer Kelty tent tore and the zipper broke. They’ll fix them for you but I lose the receipt :( Since you’re new I’d go on the less expensive side first.
I've had my Kelty for about 12 years now and it has never failed to perform to my highest expectations. I highly recommend them.
Where do you camp, what is the weather like? Generally Kelty or Alps Mountaineerimg tents are the budget tents that are a step up from Coleman. Two layer (separate body and rainfly) are most forgiving. Full rainfly (covers the whole body) is best. More mesh in the body for hot and humid. Less mesh for colder climates.
Yeah the marketing is so bad. There are 3 season tents that are better suited for colder climates but they aren't advertised like that. So weird. In the south, I recommend Kelty tents a lot because their 2 layer tents have almost-full mesh bodies. I notice that people in the northern US swear by Alps Mountaineering tents... their bodies happen to have a lot less mesh in the body. They're like 3.5 season tents, lol (but they'd be bad in the south).
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