[tcb] Re: Bus Depot Add-A-Room Side Tent Review

  • From: "Denis Dodson" <coocoo@xxxxxxx>
  • To: <tcb@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
  • Date: Tue, 22 Feb 2011 07:49:16 -0600

Windy, cold, bus trouble, farting. welcome to Bulli Cras!

 

From: tcb-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:tcb-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf
Of kelly dosch
Sent: Monday, February 21, 2011 10:56 PM
To: tcb@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [tcb] Re: Bus Depot Add-A-Room Side Tent Review

 


  Oh for sure. It's no Magellan Dome tent. But like they advertise, it looks
like it will get much easier after a few set-ups. But still, you have to
think of it more as an addition to the bus than a simple tent. 
  I stayed at the Galveston State Park about 6 weeks ago. We took the VW
prescribed "four people". It was a nightmare. It was too windy to start a
fire and too cold to be outside without one. I ran out of propane and
somebody broke the handle off the sliding door. We were bored and cramped
and somebody kept farting. 
  I think that experience fueled my appreciation for the Add-a-Room. 

--- On Sun, 2/20/11, Eric Woodall <ericthomaswoodall@xxxxxxx> wrote:


From: Eric Woodall <ericthomaswoodall@xxxxxxx>
Subject: [tcb] Re: Bus Depot Add-A-Room Side Tent Review
To: "tcb@xxxxxxxxxxxxx" <tcb@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Cc: "Texas Coalition of Buses" <tcb@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Sunday, February 20, 2011, 9:45 AM

Just don't try to use one with a full length roof rack.

I just don't work.

I'm glad you liked yours, I just hated mine.

It was great while it was set up but set up and teardown sucked big time I
thought.

Guess I'm probably spoiled by years of setting up backpacking tents though.

 

 


On Feb 19, 2011, at 10:35 PM, kelly dosch <kellydosch@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:


  In case any of you have been considering selling a kidney to buy one these
rudely over-priced tents, I highly recommend it. 
  I think it is really every bit as good as they claim, if not better. 
  Is it really over $400 worth of tent? Not by any stretch. For that money
one might expect a Sherpa to carry it for you. But they have cornered the
U.S. market so it's all about supply and demand.
   Does you want one or does you don't? 
  I searched long and hard and finally found some side tents across the
pond. They had some interesting tents but they don't ship to the U.S.. I
checked the prices of a few remailing services, did the math, and one might
as well get plowed by Bus Depot for all the trouble it was worth. Plus,
Europeans are not terribly concerned with having a floor in a tent. That
just doesn't fly down here with the swarms of mosquitoes. 
  The Bus Depot tent makes an impressively snug fit against the bus and has
a bottom curtain so wind, bugs and varmints don't just wander in underneath.

  The canvas is thin but stronger than your average tent. The poles are
built like a tank. 
  These tents are built to last. 
  It actually packs down a bit smaller than they estimate and the tent,
poles, and ropes and stakes are in 3 different bags, so you can spread them
throughout the bus more efficiently than if it were all one huge mass. 
  It is heavier than all hell at 85lbs, but most of the weight is in the
poles. (which is a relatively small bag that will disappear, flush,  in the
front cargo rack) They are very heavy duty and built to last. Since It is
something I want to last as long as my bus I cannot fault them for that. The
poles are the cornerstone of the tent and it is safe to say they will last
forever. 
  The extra "changing room" is on sale, but I don't recommend it. It
literally takes up half the tent. If you are shy about changing with your
guests it is easier to just do it under the blankets or in the john at your
campground. 
  I didn't pay over $400 for a tent just to use half of it to change my
pants in. 
  I just wanted to give everybody my two cents worth because it is a lot of
cash to drop on a product from a company that offers no reviews. They don't
even have many pictures and the ones they have are crappy. I don't even
think the one in the picture was entirely set up. It looks like a big potato
sack. It really tightens down much nicer than the pic. 
  All told- Are they overcharging us? Hell yes. But it did just turn my tiny
Campmobile into a virtual cabin, adding 100 square feet of living space. 
  Their profit margin must be shameful, but if you are camping with more
than 2 people I still think it is worth it. 
  And if you still want a changing cabin, just get the $35 Coleman shower.
At least you can bathe in it as well. 
  

 

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