tent choice

[brissifirey]

Can get hold of both the "EXPED TENT SOUTHERN CROSS" and the macpac "Celeste" both great tents I have been told, does anyone have any hands use on on either tent. Will be using it in damp conditions.

Cheers

[Nuts]

[stu]

Which Hilleberg tent have you been using? I have been thinking about getting the Unna, a roomy solo tent, & although no vestibule, roomy enough to detach a corner from inside & create one. Also thinking about the carbon fibre pole upgrade, which saves about 300 additional grams, therefore down to 1.7kg max & 1.4kg min weight (http://www.fibraplex.com). Any feedback on this brand of tent would be greatly appreciated, especially quality; is a footprint required or are the burly enough for tas conditions?

[Nuts]

[tasadam]

Which Hilleberg tent have you been using? ...
Any feedback on this brand of tent would be greatly appreciated, especially quality; is a footprint required or are the burly enough for tas conditions?

Forum member Damien has that brand tent and provided a review from his Tassie walk...

Using the forum search utility reveals some results too.
Hope that helps.

[Damien]

Stu, as Adam mentioned I own a Hilleberg Kaitum 2 and I am a big fan of their equipment. Have a look at the Hilleberg range as I was going to get a Macpac Olympus but chose the Kaitum for the 2 vestibules and the weight difference, 2.8kg vs 3.5kg. Let me know if you have any questions.

Damien

[Damien]

Also, as Nuts said, a groundsheet isn't really necessary as the integrated floor is solid enough.

[stu]

Thanks guys, your feedback is very much appreciated. I will post a review when I finally decide on which Hillebertg to get, pretty sold on the brand from the reviews. I currently have a Macpac Minaret, also a good tent - just wanting something freestanding & lighter for those big missions. I agree with Nuts, local (Australasian) brands, particularly Macpac have lost their way, in quality & pricing. Macpac, although rumoured to be opening a store in Hobart, are now apparently ditching the NZ & Ozzie markets in favour of European & North American sales - turncoats / sellouts or what? It was our markets which made the brand what it was, & I mean WAS. They will struggle in these huge, competitive markets. I now do all my gear shopping online as local prices are ridiculous, especially with a strong AU$. Example - I recently updated my Scarpa SL M3 boots (heavy but oh so supportive & burly) - arrived within 5 days of placing the order for, including shipping, AU$ 230 (on sale) - they are not even available down here & previous versions still retail for AU$400; go figure! Fastest, cheapest shipping from http://www.mountaingear.com & http://www.e-omc.com

[Damien]

Stu,

Don't believe everything you hear about whats going on with MacPac. They have recently been bought out by some very talented and driven people and they are definately still in the Australian and NZ markets, they have 4 stores in NZ and 2 in Australia and they offer a mail order service in Australia. When the new owners took over they cancelled all of the outstanding retail distribution agreements with Australian outdoors stores, those stores have obviously lost a portion of their income due to MacPac selling direct to retail and they're not happy. Give the guys at MacPac 6-12 months to get things in order, it takes time to relaunch a brand and open stores nationally, it also takes time to find the right retail staff to sell their product. If you want some more info have a read here http://forums.ski.com.au/forums/ubbthre ... 809&page=1 and look for posts by 'blacksheep'

Damien

[stu]

Yeah, that info was passed on through a local, & probably disgruntled, retailer. Have to wait & see what their store will be like & make another judgement from there. Even tho they now use 3rd world manufacturing (Vietnam? among others - I guess necessary to compete these days) - generally their products are still of good quality, at least as good as the American brands I now subscribe to, maybe better, just more expensive.

[Damien]

The Kaitum isn't the 'expedition' model. It's capable of taking a pretty big beating but it's actually the lightweight version of the Keron model. I bought a groundsheet for the Kaitum and I haven't had a reason to carry it yet.

[slick41st]

Hi Brissifirie,

I have two Celeste's, first one fell apart from UV about 10 years ago, but when they changed the material I did buy another one. They are too heavy and I now only use them for 4WD trips (and now I have a TentCot, I think that will be the end of the Celeste).

I have also been using Hilleberg Akto for about 4-5 years. It is a great tent, a little tight for room, but super light. But the question is would I buy it again if it was stolen and the answer is NO, because I think there is a better built copy of this tent around : http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin ... me_gg.html
the Exped Vela.

I have friends that use it and they are wrapt with it.

Regards, Slick

[slick41st]

Hi,

No issues with quality yet on the Akto, it does just look very flimsy, and I guess it is mostly a subconscious thing.

The materials oi the Exped look and feel much stronger and seem much thicker.

Cheers, Slick