Karrimor X -lite Tent

[ZIZAG]

I was looking at The Karrimor X -lite 100 tent .
For my future cycling and camping trips .
I have looked at all the Specifications .
3000hh, packs small and lightweight : 1.95 Kg .
And Its seems very good . On offer from Sports Direct in a sale £ 60.
Has anybody got one of these tents . And used It .

 

[david1701]

my karrimor jacket is absolute gash, not sure how that equates to tents but I'd angle for something positive said before buying

 

[Gotte]

Personally, I prefer dome tents, as they can be pitched anywhere the ground is too hard for normal tents (concrete, sand etc). The weight is good on the one you mention. Personally, my cut off is 2.5kg. £60 is also good. If it's green, all the better. Just make sure there's enough room to sit up. It makes changing clothes so much easier. Also, if it's a one man tent, as the 100 may suggest, check there is actually sufficient room. Most of the one man tents I've tried and the one I own, feel a touch too much like a coffin once you're in and the door is zipped. Often there is scant room for a backpack let alone four panniers. I tend to look at 2 man tents, myself, as they usually are about right for one person, spacewise.
Also, try and find out the length of the poles when collapsed. I prefer being able to pack a tent in a pannier rather than on a rack, as this means, if you want to leave your bike somewhere, but take your stuff, it's all packed away and easier to carry. Plus, I just think it looks neater. That's just me, though.


hope that's a help.

 

[amaferanga]

The Karrimor stuff from Sports Direct is cheap tat. Bears no relation to the Karrimor kit of old that was excellent quality.

 

[rowan 46]

The Karrimor stuff from Sports Direct is cheap tat. Bears no relation to the Karrimor kit of old that was excellent quality.

Got to agree quality for karimor isn't what it was. their tents don't have a great reputation for quality control here's a good tent for the price
http://www.gear-zone.co.uk/wild-country-duolite-tent-pid2903.html

 

[ZIZAG]

Many Thanks everybody for your Input ,and very good Advice and Information .
Well Gotte I agree with you on all what you say . Especially about Dome tents .
As I have a Vango Alpha 250 tent . Its an excellant tent . 3.6Kg But Its to heavy for taking on the bike . As I have already tried . And found this out .
Also I sent back a Coleman Connect Libra x 1 tent the other week . As It was as you described a coffin Inside . the Inner tent was very very low . 77Cm . It was wrongly described In the specification . And there was no room for panniers or anything else . Very disapointing .
Yes and I think you are right about going for the 2 man tents .

Only thing Is you compromise by upping the weight .

 

[Gotte]

The tent I have, and would take if I were going for even a short tour is a Highlander Forces 2

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Highlander-...sr_1_2?s=sports&ie=UTF8&qid=1314130849&sr=1-2

Now, as it comes, it's heavy 3.5+ kg because of its steel pegs and fibreglass poles. But I swapped out the steel pegs for alu, and got some alu poles from Decathlon (£14, from memory). This got the weight down to 2.3 kg, which, for a two man tent, is okay.

It's bombproof as tents go, which, while heavier than the real ultralite deals, is what I want from a tent. Lightweight is great, but if, in a storm, it flaps away over the horizon, then it's not such a good deal. I'd prefer a heavier, more robust tent.

This tent gets most stable tent in its class in Trail Magazine. There are some downsides to the tent itself - it can suffer from QA issues, and I found that I needed to add ties around the poles in the roof to draw them together and stop the inner touching the outer and condensation coming through.
But the space inside is exceptional. I have a NorthFace Tadpole, which is about £200 more expensive, and while it's maybe 500g lighter, it's lower inside, and feels flimsier, and generally more difficult to put up.

The highlander is two poles which cross over, so while not exactly a dome tent, it's self supporting. It's inner pitch first, but the inner is thickish material, so I don;t figure it that big a problem. And if it were really lashing down, I'd just put the poles in with the tent upside down so the groundsheet got the rain.

The porch is also a good size, and you could easily fit wet waterproofs and at least two panniers inside.

For me it's a great tent, if basic. It seems bombproof, if on the heavy side. And if you're prepared to spend a bit more and mod it, I think you'd have a great touring tent.

Of course, that's just me and my requirements for a tent.

 

[Scotty]

Zigzag,
I registered just to reply to your post as my experience with the Karrimore X lite was so bad.
I did my JOGLE in May/June having bought one of these and in fairness the price was good, they go up well and are roomy.
Day two saw me in Fort Augustus and the heavens opened in a proper Scottish down pour, I woke up to find the rain just streaming into the tent, so bad I had to put my cycling jacket over my sleeping bag. I was doubly cheesed off as it was new and I had also waterproofed it again??
The £60 was a false economy as I had to go into a hotel the next night to dry everything off and I bought a Northface Tadpole 23 for the rest of the trip.
So my tip would be get the best tent you can afford even if that means Ebay as £60 could get you something nice.
Karrimor tents are a joke when it comes to rain

 

[jay clock]

http://www.decathlon...ht-pro-3244110/ is my weapon of choice. See musings here... http://www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/page/?page_id=104184

Only downsides are the orange bits for stealth, and I added a couple of pegging points half way down the sides to peg it out tighter.
these are the thingies.... http://www.rvops.co....ngons-1944.html

 

[Crankarm]

The Karrimor stuff from Sports Direct is cheap tat. Bears no relation to the Karrimor kit of old that was excellent quality.

Do you have any experience to back up your statement? Have you bought any Karrimor items from SportsDirect? I have, quite a bit of Karrimor cycling and running stuff actually and it has been excellent stuff great VFM. Their leggings are far better than others' offerings eg Altura or Endura cycling specific variants and a fraction of the price. Are you an Assos fashion victim or do you hark back to the day when Karrimor made panniers which were crap compared to the the ones you can now buy which actually keep your stuff inside dry eg Vaude or Ortlieb?

 

[ZIZAG]

Hello Scotty .
Many thanks for the very good Information on the Karrimor tent . .
I was sorry to hear you had a very bad experiance . Re: to poor waterproofing .
Q) Did It leak through the seams .
Or just came In everywhere .
I am very surprised as it was quoted at 3000 hh .
which I thought would be O.K .
Did you not take It back to the Shop .
" I would " And let them know how badly It failed .

Anyway just to let you know .
I bought another tent Instead .
The Coleman Novae X2 exponent tent . I have tested It out ." Although not In the rain " .
And it seems a good tent allround . Its very roomy for one person .
It would be a tight squeeze for 2 . Easy to erect . 2000hh . Very light under 2K . I got It for £ 81 . In a sale .
So I am happy with it .
So thank you once again .
Cheers

 

[ZIZAG]

Jay Clock .
Thank you for a very Interesting read on all the camping gear ,touring and excellant Information .
I was facinated by your experiance and knowledge .
Cheers

 

[Gixxerman]

The Karrimor stuff from Sports Direct is cheap tat. Bears no relation to the Karrimor kit of old that was excellent quality.

+1.

I have some Karrimor KSB GTX 300 boots I got about 7 years ago, and they are still going even after 2 seasons on the black cullin on Skye. I bought some lighter trainer style Karrimor Event hiking shoes about 2 months ago to due the cullin ridge challenge (2 days hard walking and bits of climbing). I completed it but the shoes were completely ruined. The stitching came apart, the sole came off in many places and the insole came loose and kept moving about. I took them back and got a refund. Another great British marque gone down the toilet. Will never by Karrimor again.

 

[Scotty]

Hello Scotty .
Many thanks for the very good Information on the Karrimor tent . .
I was sorry to hear you had a very bad experiance . Re: to poor waterproofing .
Q) Did It leak through the seams .
Or just came In everywhere .
I am very surprised as it was quoted at 3000 hh .
which I thought would be O.K .
Did you not take It back to the Shop .
" I would " And let them know how badly It failed .

Anyway just to let you know .
I bought another tent Instead .
The Coleman Novae X2 exponent tent . I have tested It out ." Although not In the rain " .
And it seems a good tent allround . Its very roomy for one person .
It would be a tight squeeze for 2 . Easy to erect . 2000hh . Very light under 2K . I got It for £ 81 . In a sale .
So I am happy with it .
So thank you once again .
Cheers

17/9
Sorry for the delay , the rain came straight through the fabric and as it was day three of my JOGLE the tent went straight in the bin of the outdoor shop where I got the Northface . Good luck with your Coleman
Scotty

 

[wiggydiggy]

Do you have any experience to back up your statement? Have you bought any Karrimor items from SportsDirect? I have, quite a bit of Karrimor cycling and running stuff actually and it has been excellent stuff great VFM. Their leggings are far better than others' offerings eg Altura or Endura cycling specific variants and a fraction of the price. Are you an Assos fashion victim or do you hark back to the day when Karrimor made panniers which were crap compared to the the ones you can now buy which actually keep your stuff inside dry eg Vaude or Ortlieb?

Karrimor Walking Shoes - Lasted 6 months daily use before the insides starting falling apart and never waterproof despite repeated coating of spray, thrown away.
Karrimor Padded Cycling Leggings - Zips on bottom have jammed and the seem is splitting after 12 months infrequent use, still in use.
Karrimor Unpadded Undershorts - No problems, infrequent use but appear to have shrunk (or I have grown )
Karrimor Short Sleeve Cycling jersey - no problems, weekly use and going strong
Karrimor Long Sleeve Cycling jersey - no problems, infrequent use and going strong

So....

I dont mind the Karrimor stuff, the clothes seem ok for the price but I wouldnt buy the shoes again. The leggings I still use as luckily the zips jammed in the 'shut' position so still ok.

Incidentally the 'no fear' baggy shorts I wear have had holes worn in them on both cheeks from regular use, still using them till someone complains lol