 | Home > Camping, Caravanning and Holidays > Roof tent recommendations |
 
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| Sphere Member Since: 26 Apr 2013 Location: Midlands Posts: 725   
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I have the arb simpson and its superb however the tuff trek ones look identical and they do different widths
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5th Mar 2016 8:39pm |
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| sharkey964 Member Since: 05 Oct 2014 Location: On a muddy track Posts: 570  
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James Barroud Evo...
I have had a Maggiolina & a Columbus.But the James Barroud is in a different league. Marc |
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5th Mar 2016 9:24pm |
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| leeds Member Since: 28 Dec 2009 Location: West Yorkshire Posts: 8578
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Have a good look at Roof Lodge tents made in Germany by Nakatanenga. Traditional folding tent design in different widths with a choice of floor materials. Have a look here
For hard shell tentsprobably the best in the world are the Autohome tents from Italy. Autohome were the first commercial roof tent manufacturer and still leads the world in the field of roof tents. Look at the Maggiolina and Airtop range of roof tents. Currently we have an ex demo Black Storm roof tent on special offer here Brendan Last edited by leeds on 5th Mar 2016 11:07pm. Edited 1 time in total |
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5th Mar 2016 10:49pm |
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| TACK Member Since: 26 Apr 2009 Location: Essex Posts: 1045 |
Flatdog have got some good prices on howling moon roof tents
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5th Mar 2016 10:52pm |
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| davew Member Since: 02 Jan 2012 Location: North Yorkshire Posts: 888  
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I love the Howling Moon stuff simply because we managed to live in one for 5 months without any issues and, as above, the addition of a new UK distributor has seen prices on them drop through the floor.
Have you considered a trailer tent rather than a roof tent for the Sankey ? Gives you a LOT more room and could potentially sleep all of you with the "multiroom" option as that gives you the same space as a roof tent. Am in the process of fitting one to my Sankey, sadly bought mine before Flatdog came on the scene so probably can be had for a lot less than I paid ! http://www.howlingmoon.co.za/shop/uncatego...ent-olive/ Core tent: 
Optional multiroom and front porch:
Because the living area is an integral part of the tent, rather than on the roof tent where it zips on afterwards, the trailer tents are sensitive to the height you can mount them on the trailer so may not be viable if your Sankey is very tall. http://www.yorkshireoffroadclub.net/ |
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5th Mar 2016 11:49pm |
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| MagnersMick Member Since: 16 Feb 2015 Location: Overlanding America's Posts: 93
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+1 for Baroud Evo Explorer
Up in seconds (literally) and down in less than a minute. Had Maggiolina previously and wouldn't go back. Every time I unlatch the four catches on the Baroud and it pops up ready for me to climb in...I smile! One Life...Living it. www.rove-overland.com |
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6th Mar 2016 2:44am |
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| chopcat Member Since: 11 Sep 2012 Location: Pembrokeshire Posts: 409  
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Click image to enlarge Click image to enlarge Trailer tents are worth a look. Let you base camp amd then drive off. We swapped a few years ago from an Ezi Awn , which was great. CC |
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6th Mar 2016 8:06am |
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| Penguin Member Since: 08 Dec 2014 Location: Tienen Posts: 247  
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We have traveled with ground tents, eezie-awns, autohomes and now lifting roof.
Besides the last one is perfect, I do recommend a autohome columbus or magiolina. (Or equivalent with same or better quality) Al other are a pain, even if they look easy to use. When wet, you are wet by the time you can drive off. When dusty, you are ready to take a show before you can drive off. When it's very warm, you are wet, but smelly, and need a show befor you can drive off. With a hard shell full length tent, it takes you literally 1 min to get ready for sleeping and 2 min to get ready to drive off. 28/02 - Loss of a good friend...
In a time of chimpanzees, I was a penguin. |
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6th Mar 2016 9:43am |
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| muddybaldboy Member Since: 09 Apr 2012 Location: Ruthin Posts: 395
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Thanks guys, plenty to look into there
He who dies with the most toys...wins! |
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6th Mar 2016 11:30am |
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| muddybaldboy Member Since: 09 Apr 2012 Location: Ruthin Posts: 395
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Thanks guys, plenty to look into there
He who dies with the most toys...wins! |
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6th Mar 2016 11:32am |
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| JellyBean Member Since: 02 Mar 2015 Location: Suffolk Posts: 142
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Marc
Why do you say that the James Barred product is in a different league? Is it quality, or more besides that? Mark |
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6th Mar 2016 11:57am |
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| Vogler Member Since: 02 Nov 2014 Location: Brussels Posts: 309
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We have a James Baroud Discovery Espace Evolution since 2013. We used it on our daily driver BMW3 Touring for a trip to Italy, and since a year on the Defender, mostly on our trip to Iceland. On a previous Iceland trip two years before, we used a maggiolina on a rental car and the JB feels far more rugged and well built - but I have to stress that the rental also might have been a cheaper copy. We fled out of the rental tent during a very stormy night (while missing the northern lights which were happening above our heads, as we heard the morning after) and I'm quite confident that I would have stayed in the JB (and still would have missed the northern lights)
Several reasons for our choice: - Build quality; strong multilayered fabric with alu coating - Wind resistance: it's very rugged and sturdy, and you can point the car with the wedge facing the wind to deflect most of the wind pressure - the espace type has some extra height at the front, far less cramped as a pointy wedge - very well made: strong, decent materials and 5 years guarantee (!) - an built-in fan on solar energy for extra ventilation. Allegedly the battery offers 24h capacity but that's history by now - slightly isolated. JB also offers an extra winter inner layer which offers an extra isolation of around 6°C - you can exit through the rear door, and get down using the ladder fixed on the rear of the Defender, so it's not necessary to carry an extra ladder (but mind the point below about the rear door) - limited height of the closed tent. IRRC 23cm, possibly even less. Made a difference when booking the ferry to Iceland, IRRC the total height was 2,33m where 2,40 was the limit. - on hot nights, it is possible to open three sides, even more on the recent model. Very nice to feel the breeze during a hot summer night in Italy. - The tent doesn't hinge over the car as the other types do, footprint remains the same as the car so if necessary, an ordinary parking space would be sufficient. Some disadvantages, the first two are the only ones I regret, but they're not enough to change tent: -one of the major two issues: our model has extremely strong gas springs. They contribute to the strength and rigidity of the tent, but closing the tent requires some muscle. My GF can't close the tent on her own. To successfully close it, you have to stuff the fabric on top of the rear 'legs' while keeping the tent closed but for one feet or so. Always close the front first, then the back. Apparently, last year JB was working on a type without gas struts or springs, the hinges just click into place. I have been doubting ordering weaker gas springs, but this would effect rigidity. An autohome columbus closes with minimal effort. - the other major disadvantage: I really would have liked a small awning above the rear door for some cover during an exit in rainy weather and to be able to properly ventilate during the night in wet and humid weather, since the capacity of the fan and its battery are both quite limited. I have seen a hannibal branded hard shell RTT which had such an awning, see also the middle tent on the last image below. - Hardshells require more space on the roof than the boxy shape of the classic roof tent, we also need some walking/standing space at the back of the tent for a safe exit - it's just fine for my average height (approx 1,72m) but it would be too short for longer people - the bottom is not or barely insulated- contrary to the Autohome counterpart- with condensation as a result. All was successfully solved with an open-weave anti-condensation matting like this. Expensive but worth it. - The tent doesn't hinge over the car as the other types do, so it can't double as an awning. Not really an issue, but there are two incorporated C-chaped fixing rails in the base in front/rear direction, and not perfectly parallel, as if they were almost just slapped on the mould. It took some creativitiy and use of an intermediate rail to fix it on the longitudinal tracks of our Hannibal roof rack, unfortunately they couldn't have been less compatible/ Some pics: The JB on our BMW: Click image to enlarge Click image to enlarge Three times a wedge, three times different but al aimed towards the wind. The middle one has a small awning above the rear opening. Click image to enlarge Hopes this helps someone. Greetings, Joris Last edited by Vogler on 6th Mar 2016 12:07pm. Edited 1 time in total |
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6th Mar 2016 11:58am |
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| Darcy Fairfax Member Since: 06 Oct 2014 Location: London Posts: 721 
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Great information
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6th Mar 2016 12:07pm |
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| sharkey964 Member Since: 05 Oct 2014 Location: On a muddy track Posts: 570
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^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Plus the clasp design is better on JB than other hard shell's I've used,longer,plus,integral locking pegs so they can't spring open. Have to agree on the strength of the hydraulic struts my Mrs also cant shut it.Mind you shes only 52kg Marc |
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6th Mar 2016 12:14pm |
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