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Advice on a canvas wall tent

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Advice on a canvas wall tent

Postby Old school » 03 03, 2018 •  [Post 1]

I'm looking at getting a 12x14 or 14x16 canvas wall tent and I'd like some feedback from you experienced guys...

We currently camp at the truck and then hunt from there so we can stay mobile, but I could see us one day wanting to pack in with horses, etc...if I find a hunting partner with horses :-)
Our current tent is a 10x14 Kodiak Canvas that has a sewn in floor - awesome tent, just can't run a wood stove in it.

1. Internal Frame or Traditional Poles?
2. If you go with Traditional Poles do you have a sewn in floor?
3. With 3 people staying in the tent - plus a small table and wood stove, will the 12x14 be ok?
4. Currently looking at the Wall Tent Shop and Davis Tent - will buy whichever one gives me the best deal
5. I've already got a wood stove - the Colorado Cylinder Timberline Stove - burned all my Cabelas points last year and got the stove after our sopping wet Idaho elk hunt. Now that I have the stove, I just need a tent to go with it :-)


Thanks,

Mitch
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Re: Advice on a canvas wall tent

Postby Gypsumreaper » 03 03, 2018 •  [Post 2]

I run Davis tents in my hunting camps the14X16 I usually put 4 guys, with a table, wood stove, and propane stove in it. We run the traditional poles with just a tarp for a floor. I run 6-10 of these each season a year and they hold up, obviously the main spots to rip are around the floor when they get wet.


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Re: Advice on a canvas wall tent

Postby Indian Summer » 03 03, 2018 •  [Post 3]

A 12 by 14 will be sufficient for 3 guys for sure. Two coats down one side and one across the back wall leaves plenty of space on the other side for a kitchen setup. A 14 by 16 is a MUCH bigger tent. Bigger is nice but not always better. Harder to find a suitable spot to set up and heavier and bulkier to pack on a horse. Only buy that is you actually have a need for it. Get the internal frame! It’s much easier and faster to set up. If you’ve never setup with lodgepoles you have no idea what you’re getting into. Setup with internal frame tarped and ready to move in: 30 minutes max. With lodgepoles.... after you find them anch chainsaw all of the branches and nubs off.... 2 hours. Plus your tent will be tighter which is better for runoff and it won’t flap in the wind. No abrasions to the canvas either so your tent will last longer.
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Re: Advice on a canvas wall tent

Postby saddlesore » 03 03, 2018 •  [Post 4]

I can't see packing an internal frame in. I cut my poles for probably 25 years.If you frequent the same spot,just stuff them up right in a tree nearby. Unless you have some snowflakes using the area in the summer that think they are fire wood,they will still be there next year. It is always best to camp away from the main trails anyway. After you master the art setting up with cut poles will be easy to get the tent tight. If those couple of boys you have were in scouting they should be able to make quick work of it Maybe keep an internal frame for truck camping. I made my pole kit using chain link fence top rail for the ridge pole and up rights and 1/2" conduit for the walls set outside at each grommet

Poly tarp on floor and over tent, no floor. I had a 16 x 20 tent and it was great until my hunting party started to dwindle and if the canvas got wet during the hunt,that doubled the weight. I ended up with a 12 x 15 that worked great for two. I would see if they would add length and let the 12 wide be. 12 x 15 or 12 x 16. use strips of carpeting at each cot.

Put the stove jack in one of the front wall panels.That is usually where the kitchen will be so you can keep a coffee pot on and it is easier to get wood in near the stove . It will also give you a stronger roof, easier to tarp and less chance of getting ember burn holes in the tent. In the future,you will probably want a fold up stove like a Sims or similar for packing.

Only forwarding what worked for me.
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Re: Advice on a canvas wall tent

Postby Gypsumreaper » 03 03, 2018 •  [Post 5]

I guess a lot of you guys haven't seen the new tent pole setup, it's a ridgepole, 3 supports down the middle and 8 small poles on each side. I pack all this into camp horseback and usually can fit a tent and the poles on one mule. Yes real traditional is lodgepoles, but Davis has their "traditional" pole kit.

[img]https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180304/903d4191f5869d824bce60ded300420b.jpg[/img]

[img]https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180304/beaf458786d99267fac7a29a4e968f7b.jpg[/img]


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Re: Advice on a canvas wall tent

Postby Old school » 03 04, 2018 •  [Post 6]

Thanks for the replies so far guys. And yes - what I’m debating between is the internal frame and the traditional poles from Davis as gypsum mentioned.

-Mitch
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Re: Advice on a canvas wall tent

Postby saddlesore » 03 04, 2018 •  [Post 7]

While I have packed poles in, I have always been shy on pack animals and the pole weight was prohibited.I could do a 12 x15 tent as a top pack that didn't use up a mule all in itself. If you have pack string of 5-6 animals or an outfitter is going to pack you in,go with the store bought poles
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Re: Advice on a canvas wall tent

Postby Lefty » 03 04, 2018 •  [Post 8]

Old School


Everyone above knows more about wall tents than I do.

Use your Kodiak for that one night pack in. Ive seen a few Springbars ( Kodiac is a copy) with stove jacks placed in them and a "small" wood stove, You will need to protect your floor, ( Ive seen sand/gravel used in a 2x4 frame).
Springbars are, or were big in BSA out here. Depending on outside temps they will hold extra heat on their own and keep the wind out . I spent one night of straight winds for a few hours of 70 mph plus winds,.. The dome tents were laid flat, breaking poles, the 3 man spring bar was strained and aluminum poles slightly arched with stood the test, with the open poles howling a tune. :o

And you do know Ill loan you a gear tent if you come through Pocatello

Friday night scout camp
28468247_1532038496909047_1963275000189709917_n.jpg
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Re: Advice on a canvas wall tent

Postby Old school » 03 04, 2018 •  [Post 9]

Dennis - I love my Kodiak, just wish it would work with a wood stove. Last year in Idaho it was so wet we couldn’t get dried out. We have a propane buddy heater to warm up with before we go to sleep - we shut it down and store it outside before we fall asleep. Our biggest issue was not being able to dry wet clothes. I called Davis tent and asked about them selling me a stove boot jack to sew into my Kodiak and he said he couldn’t in good conscience - the springbar/ Kodiak didn’t come with a stove jack for a reason...

I had a good interview on Friday so we will see how it turns out - I should hear back this coming week. If I get that job, I’ll get enough leave time to do my annual out west hunt and would love to meet you in Pocatello as we pass thru. Just listed my aluminum bass boat on Craigslist yesterday - will be my source of cash for this years elk hunt and for the tent as well if and when it sells.

I was pretty settled in on the 12x14 before and I am more so after the input above. I’ve probably only got 2 years left with my boys before they go to college and then I’ll be looking for a new elk hunting partner. Don’t even want to think about that!!

-Mitch
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Re: Advice on a canvas wall tent

Postby Indian Summer » 03 05, 2018 •  [Post 10]

Saddlesore I would never suggest packing in an internal frame! I hated doing that even with mules. But for a base camp
it’s the way to go.

Old school you can buy stove jacks lots of places. As long as you can keep a stove 2 feet from ghe wall there’s no reason you can’t use one.
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Re: Advice on a canvas wall tent

Postby Elkduds » 03 05, 2018 •  [Post 11]

Lots of people run wood stoves in Kodiak/springbar tents. Google it. 3 guys and a stove in a 10x14 seems tight. I sold my 10x12 wall tent last year in favor of a Kodiak, mostly for portability.

Wall tents are built to accept both ridgepole/A frame and internal pipe frames, so you don't have to choose.

If you have to have a floor in your wall tent, throw down a tarp and unroll a piece of carpet between the bunks. If it will be wet, put tent door downhill and dig a shallow trench around the dripline.
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Re: Advice on a canvas wall tent

Postby Brendan » 03 05, 2018 •  [Post 12]

I had a 10x14 Kodiak Canvas for two years. Installed a stove jack in it and ran a Nu-Way 3500 Propane stove that was externally vented with a chimney. Absolute game changer if you ask me. We could get the entire tent toasty warm and dry out our gear even in the snow and the rain and not worry about wood, or Carbon Monoxide like you need to with a propane buddy heater.

I sold the Kodiak - mainly because a lot of my hunting is solo and I'm driving long distances to get there and room in the truck can be at a premium. I opted for a lighter Tipi that can pack smaller, take up less space in the truck, set up quicker solo, but I'll still use the Nu-Way stove for base camp.
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