“Gelert Solo Lightweight tent”

Comments

1. 1
   Ian Simmins // February 20th, 2010 at 6:35 pm
   

   I bought this tent a few months ago for £23.50. Fantastic, packs up smaller tha my sleeping bag and easily fits in the top box on my bike. Put it up in less than 10 minutes. So far, perfectly water and wind proof. I’m 6′ and I can fit in it fine. Not much of a porch area but enough to store shoes etc. overnight. If left up during the day a towel can be left on the outside of the inner compartment to dry. Standard pegs are a bit flimsy and bend easily. Otherwise Brilliant!
   Rating: 4 / 5

2. 2
   J. Croucher // February 20th, 2010 at 9:00 pm
   

   For the money, this is probably one of the best value tents on the market. If you want something that’s light, compact and subsequently easy to carry then this would make a great companion.

   I used it to do a motorbike tour of Scotland. Fitted in the panniers perfectly and goes up in a matter of minutes.

   There’s only one compromise – Space! Once I put away my helmet, leathers and boots, there wasn’t much room left for me. But that wouldn’t be such an issue if you’re a walker.

   Rating: 4 / 5

3. 3
   Mark Waint // February 20th, 2010 at 10:35 pm
   

   This is a good tent and is of the quality I have come to expect from Gelert products. However, being 6’1″ tall I find the tent just too small for me. There is very little room above my head when I am lying down as the inner skin hangs down (by design) and it’s too claustrophobic for me. Also, the gap between the door and the outer skin is a bit small for my rucksack (50 litres) and so could get wet in heavy rain. It makes getting in and out awkward too. Pitching this tent in wind and rain would be difficult because the inner skin must be pitched first.

   On the plus side, this tent is very light at about 1.5kg and the pack is small. It is easy to pitch and the poles will not break if you are careful. There is a flap at head height to let water vapour out and the inner skin means you should not get wet. Once pitched, the tent looks smart and is a nice colour. You won’t be seen in a 7ft dip in ground if you need pitch somewhere hastily.

   So, the tent itself is good but with small storage space and some access difficulties. If you are tall I wouldn’t recommend.
   Rating: 3 / 5

4. 4
   Dave M // February 21st, 2010 at 12:13 am
   

   This is a cracking one person tent. Light, easy to pitch, airy to sleep in and first class value.

   I have just used this on a weekend with some very heavy rain and strong winds and it performed admirably.

   Now in more detail…

   The tent is purely a one person tent and shouldn’t be considered for two people, even in a survival situation. The tent takes no more than 5 minutes to pitch and there is sufficient space between the flysheet and the inner tent to allow your rucksack to be stored out of the rain.

   The construction of the inner is mainly of mesh, rather than the more traditional close woven material. This keeps the tent feeling light and airy inside, despite its small size. Being 6’2″ tall, I did wonder about internal storage space. In practice, there is about a foot of space above your head in which to store small items and, assuming that you are using your cloths as a pillow, then this is sufficient.

   There are a couple of tips that I think you might appreciate. Firstly, take along a spare, long guy line and one extra peg. If you use this in combination with an up-turned walking pole (see photo Gelert Solo 1 Person Tent ), it allows you to have a small sheltered area in which to cook, rather that being exposed to the elements if the side was rolled up in the normal manner.

   Secondly, I would advise a small “sit-mat” or small groundsheet to allow you to keep yourself mud-free as you take off your boots and enter the tent (or later emerge).

   I would heartily recommend this lightweight (about 1.2 kg) tent if you are looking for cheap tent that is suitable for the British climate.
   Rating: 5 / 5

5. 5
   Pupp // February 21st, 2010 at 2:54 am
   

   I bought this tent earlie this year to take to Glastonbury. I rode my motorbike there and needed a single tent that would fit in my backpack with everything else I was bringing along.
   
   The pack size was unbelieveably small and lightwieght, which was excellent.
   
   Being a smaller tent at the festival, I managed to find a suitable sized pitch for it in no time: It doesn’t require thesame amount of square ground space as all the dome tents there. I pitched next to a distinguishable flag and it was safe the whole time.
   
   The headroom was ample for me to sit upright in. The small porch made a good secure dry place to put my boots overnight. The outer sheet was surprisingly larger than the inner, and was really low to the ground, whichmeant a lot of things could be stashed overnight without having to hold it all in the tent.

   Nobody tripped over it, thanks to the bright yellow guyropes. When it got windy and rainy on the first night, not a drop came through and it was very warm to sleep in.

   Packing back into the litle kit bag was easy.

   After theestival, I put the tent up in my mums garden to dry it out. Her dalmation jumped on it and split a pole. It was hard to find a replacement pole the right size and even harder to find a campng shop that was any use. They said they had fixed it, but they hadn’t.
   
   I have since bought another Gelert solo in order to have all the spares I could need. At £22 it is an absolute bargain and withstands the toils of welsh countryside and generally wet and windy summer we have had.

   Ideal for mototrcycle tourers / adventurers.Highly recommended.
   Rating: 4 / 5