Help me choose a tent!

[Trikåmannen]

I like my Allak
Fits my purposes - trekking and kayaking. Handles wind etc good. The absides are a wee bit too small if you have to fit in clothes, pfds, drysuit etc when paddling.
Agree with Niklaz about the groundsheet. I´ve never cooked in it though, it feels to cramped for that in my opinion but that´s me.
I´d chose Staika if the sole purpose was kayaking when weight doesn´t matter that much. A bit bigger and thicker and stronger materials.

Another tent to look at is the Exped Orion. A bit cheaper, bigger (1,4 m height inside!) but probably more sensitive to wind because of the height. Also not that easy to setup - all details are smaller and it feels like they can be difficult to handle when wearing gloves. But, take a look at it. It´s a good tent.

Tarp
A great addition. We had one in Sarek in august. Three persons, one Allak and one Akto. With the tarp set between the tents it allowed us to cook, socialize and dry clothes during periods of rain and strong winds. Which we more or less had for 8 days...

 

[niklaz]

Agree, I also have the UL10 tarp. Great addition and I use it more and more as either a wind shield or roof. So small that I bring it for most daytrips.

 

[undvall]

One more suggestion

hi guys, thanks for all the replies, I have been surfing pretty much all night through various youtube clips trying to find some reviews/tours of the tents.

I am very impressed by both FR and HB and their rigs, its clear you get what you pay for. I am struggling to make a decision though and need to hear from you guys that own the following tents;

FR Dome 2/3
HB Allak
HB Staika

Well, to make things just a little bit more complicated I would like to suggest HB Savio. Sure it is a little bit more expensive and a little bit heavier than your specification, but having one my self I just have to recommend it. Might be the best tent ever made. And with 4 poles instead of 3 it is significantly more stable in high winds than both Allak and Staika.

/ Stefan

 

[jamo]

Fjällräven Akka Dome is also available in green, which is the color I have. 2 Pics:

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_11rC8Iwk0g0/TI4Ac0U3I7I/AAAAAAAACLI/V9OvD37_Jf0/s1600/3.JPG

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-JX4nHtSOiKA/ThtMnommIyI/AAAAAAAACV8/JibBQxF0NHA/s1600/30.JPG

I think it's pretty easy to set up solo actually. But insert all 3 poles while the tent is still is flat on the ground, before pushing them in the final bit to "raise the dome".

 

[kitesurfare]

Great advice all, thanks : )

I think that all is left to do is get down to some stores, set the rigs up and have a feel inside. I will get back to you will all feedback as soon as I have had a chance. I am sure that I am not the only person stuck between these tents : )

 

[kitesurfare]

Update

Ok, I emailed SÄCK in malmö, they are part of the "get out" chain of stores and just now they have a deal on for a free footprint with a hilleberg. I asked if they had anything in the store and let them know that I wanted to choose between the Allak and the Staika.

I got a reply back from David that works in Malmö, they didnt have anything in the store, but they could get both of the tents down by today so that I could go down, set them both up in the store and make my decision afterwards!, great customer service I thought!

I gave him the go ahead at 1pm yesterday and at 11am today he called to say that the tents were in the store and that I could drop by whenever it was convenient for me. I managed to get away from work early and dropped on by at 3pm, David put on a pot of coffee and we got the tents rigged in the shop and we both were able to get inside and feel the differences between the two.

As you all pretty much know, the allak is the lightweight version of the staika, but by no means should it be considered a small, fragile tent at all. After a bit of discussion with david and a lot of messing around in the tents I went with the Allak : )

I will get the gopro charged up and give you all a video tour of the tent so that anyone else out there can see what it is all about if I dont have to go christmas shopping tomorrow.

Thanks for all the help here on the forum, and moreso to David at säck. I was so happy with the customer service, and it was refreshing that he was so relaxed and not trying to sell a bunch of stuff to me, that I didnt have a problem buying a couple of 4 season down bags as well, one left zip, and one right. I would warmly recommend him to any of my friends in the future, and I extend that to you all that have helped me here! : )

/Tony

 

[niklaz]

Good luck with the new tent, you will like it for sure.