Hi all, I've been looking for a canvas wall tent for hunting for years. Something classic, floorless and affordable. Not too big, not too complicated.
A weekend or two ago, my boy had his cub scout summer day camp event and while it was "day camp" not overnight, there were some tents set up there. One pack had a pair of smallish (Maybe 9X7ft or so) canvas wall tents with about 3 foot walls and about a 7 foot peak hight, maybe 8 foot. The pitch of the roof was pretty steep. No zippers, no floors. Grommets on the corners and they were laced together. The guy I talked to said in the summer in hot weather, they unlace the bottom hole or two and roll the walls up for ventilation. Only two poles (wood) but you could make a couple short ones for use on the walls if ya wanted to. Nice greenish blue color with the boy scouts logo stamped on the door flap.
All in all, about a perfect two man tent for a camping trip with some hunting gear along.
I talked to the guy and I think he said they were made here in Missouri or else just that they used a ton of them at one of the big scout camps here. He said they buy them by the hundreds and set them up for months at a time on wooden platforms. I was interested in finding one or two for myself and he said to just go to "scoutstuff.org".
Well, I went there and a bazillion other sites and simply can NOT find anything even close to what he had. Googled every possible combination I could think of and nada.
I'm sure with so many trad folks being into traditional activities and good family oriented folks in general that there must be some here involved in scouting who have had experience with these tents.
My intention is to have one or two of them for general family camping but to add a stove jack to one of them for solo winter hunting camp outs. A good, modest sized canvas tent with no floor, room for a single adult sized cot and a small stove to one side would be the cats meow. The small size would be cozy and easy to heat but the steep pitch roof gives ample head room for dressing and moving about.
So, help a fella out.
p.s. I'm NOT looking for all sorts of tips on some other tent that somebody thinks is better or whatever. I'm wanting info on this specific tent type.
Thanks.
http://www.tentcityoutdoor.com/
panther primatives?
I know the tents your talking of but have no clue where to find them. Maybe the scout camp would be willing to part with a couple for a small donation or something. Skippy
Try Cabela's.
These both look pretty close to what you are talking about, Dave. Neither of 'em are blue, however.
http://www.pantherprimitives.com/scouting.html
Have a search on the Bay of 'E' for 'canvas tent'
Don't know if what you're after is there, but there's a good selection to look at.
maybe an army surplus some where might have one. i found one in cablas spring isue that is 9x9 with stove jack and all but is pricey i think around $500 or $600 for the tent
Jeff, I went to that website yesterday and saw those but didn't look at them real close as the roof pitch seems to be less steep but today, looking real close (the pic doesn't enlarge when clicked on, just comes up by itself) it appears that they are sort of a blue green color and there may in fact be grommets at the wall corners. They might just be it!
I'm thinking maybe the two I saw set up looked steeper in pitch because they tie ropes were not pulled out good and tight giving the whole thing a steeper look.
I'll do some more investigating.
So, I know I said: "
p.s. I'm NOT looking for all sorts of tips on some other tent that somebody thinks is better or whatever. I'm wanting info on this specific tent type."
But, now that I think I've found what I was looking for, I'm open to pro's and cons and other options.
I want something that I could use for a family camp out, cub scout outing, hunting trip, MOJAM, or whatever. I prefer canvas, no floor and some good standing room. Size is borderline irrellevant. I'd love to have something say 15X20 with 5' walls but reality says I can't afford it. Let alone set it up alone in the dark... I like a lot of the sort of civil war era stuff with wood poles, awnings etc but for the moment, these scout tents seem like a good starting point.
Hey Dave,
Fall Creek Sutlery makes good canvas wall tents. Good quality and good prices. We own a wall tent a wedge tent and an awning from them and are very satisfied.They have a great website to view their tents.
Paul
Dave,
They have those exact tents at Camp Shands Boy Scout Camp near Melrose, FL. That camp is part of the North Florida Council of the Boy Scouts of America. Some of the tents were brand new this year so I know that someone has to be in charge of ordering them on a regular basis. A call to the North Florida Council main office in Jacksonville may provide some information.
I stayed in those tents for several weeks a summer as a kid and for several days a few weeks ago.
These tents are durable and provide a pretty romanticized version of classic camping, but are not what I would choose to use for anything shorter than a four or five day camping trip simply because of the work involved in setting them up and taking them down.
Pros-durable and long-lasting, can be oened up and essentially used as a tarp, plenty of room to stand up and move around, can be set up on a permanent wood or concrete platform that will put you off the ground, will fit two cots comfortably.
Cons-hot as heck in the summer, zero insect protection, take a while to set up, not very portable, and not a lot of room if you use cots. If the canvas gets wet it takes a while to dry before packing and is heavy.
When I was a kid we used cots and mosquito nets. Now they spray the camp before the season and it is not that bad.
It sounds like what was called an Explorer tent. Wnen I was in the scouts in the 60's we had several. They were made of a very light pale green canvas.
I'd don't know if anyone still makes them but a Google search would solve that pretty quick.
Primitive Panthers also has canvas paint for their tents.And they can make ANY size you want.Great people to deal with.
My cub Scout Pack stays in leanto's at scout camp. We hate those tents. They leak, no insect protection, no critter protection and really not that much room in them. If you are there for a week, they need a tarp over the top and I usually use one off the front so that I can keep some of the wet gear out of the tent. It could be that they are the same tents that I slept in 35 years ago. If I can't get the leantos for the Pack,and I reserve them a year in advance, I bring my own tent and set it up on the platform.
If classic means being wet and bitten up, these are the tents for you. Just one Cubmaster's opinion! Good luck in your search.
Diamond tents are the name you are looking for. I dont know if they are still in business. Mine has a floor in it.
http://www.sheridantent.com/commerce/search/products/?product_id=walltent810&merchant_id=1708
This may not be the exact one you are seeking, but it looks pretty close.
It's been mentioned, Dave, but keep in mind if you are going to haul aroudn a tent like that, you had best figure on driving a pickup or pulling a trailer.
They look romantic as all get out, are durable and open, but they also weigh a ton and require quite a bit of maintenance compared to a more modern material.
Dave, I'm a dealer for Panther and TG sponsor, so if you decide to look at something from them please let me know. The tent on the link Jeff provided looks close to what you describe, but lists the colors as pearl gray or light brown, so might not be exact. Panther also makes a tent called a Roman Wall tent that looks close, but it comes in khaki as a standard color, so again is probably not exactly the one you had seen.
Panther does take custom orders, so certainly you could get exactly what you are after that way.
For what it's worth, since you would like to hear pros and cons, my personal favorite is a single pole, or pyramid tent with a large fly off the front. Pros are easy set up, handles high wind and rains exceptionally well, and good use of space, especially with the "Tall Boy" model. Very roomy and comfortable. Con would be ventilation isn't as good with no windows and you can't roll up the sides like the tent you describe. With an optional second door though both doors can be left open and they are quite comfortable on all but very hot days.
If I can help in any way please let me know.
(http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c324/nucduke/Relitepyr_jpg.jpg)
I have one of these, size 11x12ft. Mine has a stove jack and two windows along with the front flap door. I made a rainfly for it out of Tyvek which makes it very weatherproof. It does have a floor but that doesn't bother me too much. Perfect size for one and okay for two with cots. Any more than that and you need to get rid of the cots or get a bigger tent.
https://www.reliabletent.com/index.cfm?page=detail&Product_ID=150&CATID=9
I own this tent and it is an awseome two man tent. There is plenty of room for two cotts and a stove. I bought mine with the floor sewn in and cut it out.
Broken Arrow 1, that looks like a pretty nice tent. I'll have to put save that link.
Jeff, yea, I know they're heavy. Not planning on packing it anywhere on foot. Just "drive up" camping spots. The scout tents I saw weren't very big at about 8X8ft so I don't imagine they would be too heavy. I' guessing maybe 40 pounds max with the poles? But then again, I've been looking at military shelter half pup tents and I think they list them at 5 lbs per set which would be 10 pounds for a complete tent.
Joe, I'll definitely keep you in mind. Do you know how much the scout tents cost? I couldn't find a price for them anywhere on the site unless it's just the standard wall tent price? But then, the wall tents list the split corners with grommets as being extra and they appear to be standard on the scout tents....
Really, my dream tent would be the panther primitives trapper era tent in about 12X12 with a front awning just as big, wooden poles, sod cloth but no floor. Well, not connected, but a good tarp under about 8X12 of the tent leaving a 4ft area of grass where shoes would be "permitted". All wall poles external, a drip edge at the top of the wall. A stove jack, a window or two, a removable partition and maybe a removable bug screen. I'm torn on the bug screen as I want to stay "traditional" and honestly prefer camping at times of the year when bugs are not much of an issue.
I've seen one or two about like this at mojam in past years. I think Mudd might be the owner.
On the scout tents, I was really hoping to find a used one in good condition for a steal of a price. Things are a tad tight now. (no income on my part anymore....)
Horatio, after talking to the guy at the scout camp where I saw these tents, I'm not suprised you had "leaky" experiences in them. He said they set them up in the spring and don't take them down till winter. There isn't hardly a tent made that wouldn't start to have issues set up like that baking in the sun. I bet any waterproofing is gone about a month or two after they are set up. Not to mention wind flapping causing abrasion wear and probably outright holes where the poles touch.
I've used canvas tents just enough to know several things:
1. I just LIKE them.
2. If properly cared for, they are (in my opinion) better than nylon at keeping you dry and protected.
3. If properly designed, they are easy to set up and take down (aside from the physical weight/size of some of them). They can also be easy to keep cool and warm.
4. They breathe far better than nylon. Of course, nylon tent makers cured that issue by making their tents little more than screen houses with rain flys but that works ok.
5. You couldn't pay me to put a stove inside a high dollar nylon tent. I feel far safer using a stove in a canvas tent.
http://www.canvascraftinc.com/huntingtents.html check them out i have one of their fish shelters i converted into a sturgeon spearing shack ihavent seen their hunting tents but have heard good things and they seem to be priced resonable
www.scoutstuff.org (http://www.scoutstuff.org)
Rufus, that website is the first place I looked.... They don't have anything even close. Just "bent pole" type tents. Unless I'm looking in the wrong place????
Dave, I don't have them in my dealer book either, but I can check and let you know what I find out.
OK Dave, here is what I found out. It sounds like the Panther Boy Scout tent is indeed the one you had seen. It is made of a fabric they call Polaris Canvas which is a nylon/cotton blend, and does have a greenish blue color. It does have the roll up side walls with grommets.
There are different sizes, but from what you describe one of these are probably what you saw:
9'x7'6", 7' center height and 3' side walls,
9'x9', 8' center height and 4' side walls,
The person I spoke with at Panther said that she had slept in those tents a number of times. Her recommendation is that for slightly more money a better option would be the standard wall tent with Sunforger Canvas and optional roll up side walls.
Sunforger allows more light in and breathes better than the Boy Scout canvas. A 10x8' wall tent has 4' side walls and 8'4" center height. Yes, a little more money, but might serve you better in the long run.