Love the two doors on mine, however I usually solo camp. I use the one with the awning as the rear door and just use guy lines with no poles and store my coolers and firewood underneath. With the door I can still access from inside.
Have you tried arranging the cots and sleeping mats length-wise instead of width-wise? It looks like if you just turned them around, you might have a bit more room….I could be wrong though. I agree about wet tents, my parents always set our tents back up when we would get back home from camping to help dry them off before being stored away until next time. They would also set them up before a camping trip for a thorough inspection and air out, checking to see if everything worked or was there since it was last used.
That's awesome. Yes, you could arrange the cots and mats length-wise as you suggest. In this tent, however, it wouldn't necessarily get you any extra space since the tent is square, 10 x 10 ft. I'm sure a savvy Tetris player could come up with some more optimized layouts.
Good call. The 10x10 works for 5 but the 10x14 definitely gives you more wiggle room, space to walk, and room for gear. For the kids we have a variety of camping mats, mostly from Decathlon. They are awesome and that store's stuff is good quality for cheap (for the most part) in my experience. We have a couple of their Quechua 26" self inflating camping mattresses and one of the smaller Forclaz Trek 500L backpacking sleeping pads. The kids like em just fine!
Thanks for sharing. How does it do in the summer? There is another version with more windows for another $100. So just wondering if this one is hot in the summer without the extra windows.
Fantastic! I haven't used the one with more windows myself, but I think this one is more than adequate. This one (the Deluxe) has the top vents on the side panels to let some of the hot air out whereas the VX just has the side windows. The canvas already breathes way better than a polyester or nylon tent. And with the two windows on both of the door sides, when you open them wide open you get plenty of airflow. I love windows, but if it's super hot, I don't think a couple more are gonna make it any cooler. You will be able to see more stuff though.
They are the Coleman Trailhead Easy Step cots and they're 72 x 30 inches. I think 15 inches tall. I'm actually working on a cot comparison video that will probably come out in February or March where I'll be comparing about 15 different models in case you're not in a hurry and want to see that first!
@@theoutdoorempire so far it’s been great only have 2 trips total of 8 days. I have the 10x10, just bought a mr buddy portable heater for it. It is a heavy bugger and takes up a good amount of space when traveling. Had 4 nylon tents in the last 3 years. This one will last and endure weather.
Trustworthy construction, yes. Bath tub design floor, no. The canvas and vinyl floor meet at the ground contact point. Very durable, however, and double stitched well.
I've had one for a couple of years. Great tent, but the door zippers are inadequate. There is quite a bit of pressure on the corner of the door and the zipper is failing there. The canopy is also kind of an odd, not very useful design. But overall the tent is great, just wish they used more heavy duty zippers.
Good point on the zippers and I totally agree on the awning. It sags weirdly in the rain and then stretches such that it never really works well again. Not a deal breaker, but there's definitely room for improvement.
@@theoutdoorempire What I have found on the awning is that the center loop has to pulled tight with a string and staked out so the center of the awning is the low point and water will drain from the center. The first time we encountered rain, we came back to the tent and there was a big heavy pool of water stuck in the awning which just about pulled the whole tent down.
Not with this tent, no. Some wind, yes, and it handles it like a champ. But I haven't used this tent in heavy snow or anything. I have done some snow camping with my Springbar which is virtually the same design and it does very well.
Ya it can feel a bit snug, but my kids are young enough (small enough) that it works out. Especially if we use a couple cots so we can stow bags and gear underneath them. However I've got a Springbar Classic Jack 240 that is 10 x 14 ft and it's nice and spacious for the 5 of us. You'll have to check out my other videos on that one and a side by side comparison with the Kodiak.
Love the two doors on mine, however I usually solo camp. I use the one with the awning as the rear door and just use guy lines with no poles and store my coolers and firewood underneath. With the door I can still access from inside.
Nice! I do think it's more of a personal preference than anything.
@@theoutdoorempireI take it you don't have bears where you're going 😂
We just bought ours. We got the deluxe vx with triangle windows. It is beautiful and spacious. We got the bigger one 10x14. Great review
That is awesome! I'm sure those extra windows will be awesome in summer. And the 10x14 size is a good call, so roomy!
Great review. I really appreciated how you set up the interior with cots and sleeping bags. Just what I was looking for.
Glad it was helpful! And yeah the cots help a ton with a family and gear inside.
Exactly what I was looking for as well. Most videos don't show the tents with the gear and full family set up inside!
Glad it helped! I noticed the same thing so wanted to show how I set it up sans humans and canines.
Getting mine soon..iam going to make a reflective insulated roof panel for hot summer days keep the heat out be able see a TV better lol
Ha, that's awesome! I've never heard of that but great idea.
I have the 10x14 VX and love the extra space!
I agree, that extra 40 sq ft is nice!
Really like the reviews, keep them coming!
More to come!
Have you tried arranging the cots and sleeping mats length-wise instead of width-wise?
It looks like if you just turned them around, you might have a bit more room….I could be wrong though.
I agree about wet tents, my parents always set our tents back up when we would get back home from camping to help dry them off before being stored away until next time.
They would also set them up before a camping trip for a thorough inspection and air out, checking to see if everything worked or was there since it was last used.
That's awesome. Yes, you could arrange the cots and mats length-wise as you suggest. In this tent, however, it wouldn't necessarily get you any extra space since the tent is square, 10 x 10 ft. I'm sure a savvy Tetris player could come up with some more optimized layouts.
We want this for our family of 5, but in the 10 x 14. What camping mats do you use for the kids?
Good call. The 10x10 works for 5 but the 10x14 definitely gives you more wiggle room, space to walk, and room for gear. For the kids we have a variety of camping mats, mostly from Decathlon. They are awesome and that store's stuff is good quality for cheap (for the most part) in my experience. We have a couple of their Quechua 26" self inflating camping mattresses and one of the smaller Forclaz Trek 500L backpacking sleeping pads. The kids like em just fine!
Thanks for sharing. How does it do in the summer? There is another version with more windows for another $100. So just wondering if this one is hot in the summer without the extra windows.
Fantastic! I haven't used the one with more windows myself, but I think this one is more than adequate. This one (the Deluxe) has the top vents on the side panels to let some of the hot air out whereas the VX just has the side windows. The canvas already breathes way better than a polyester or nylon tent. And with the two windows on both of the door sides, when you open them wide open you get plenty of airflow. I love windows, but if it's super hot, I don't think a couple more are gonna make it any cooler. You will be able to see more stuff though.
Nice review of the flex bow!
Do you have any experience with the Kodiak cabin/lodge tents?
I’m really tempted to try the Kodiak 10x10 cabin tent.
Not yet! But I'm definitely interested to try one out. I'm looking into a lot of different style tents this year (cabin, bell, wall, etc.).
Man, you really yanked on those zippers 😂
How big are your cots? I’m trying to decide which ones to get for my 10x10.
They are the Coleman Trailhead Easy Step cots and they're 72 x 30 inches. I think 15 inches tall. I'm actually working on a cot comparison video that will probably come out in February or March where I'll be comparing about 15 different models in case you're not in a hurry and want to see that first!
Love mine!
Have you ever had any issues with it?
@@theoutdoorempire so far it’s been great only have 2 trips total of 8 days. I have the 10x10, just bought a mr buddy portable heater for it. It is a heavy bugger and takes up a good amount of space when traveling. Had 4 nylon tents in the last 3 years. This one will last and endure weather.
@@mallorysgoldenadventures Sounds like you're off to a good start with it. Enjoy!
How is the floor? Bathtub design? Trust worthy construction?
Trustworthy construction, yes. Bath tub design floor, no. The canvas and vinyl floor meet at the ground contact point. Very durable, however, and double stitched well.
I've had one for a couple of years. Great tent, but the door zippers are inadequate. There is quite a bit of pressure on the corner of the door and the zipper is failing there. The canopy is also kind of an odd, not very useful design. But overall the tent is great, just wish they used more heavy duty zippers.
Good point on the zippers and I totally agree on the awning. It sags weirdly in the rain and then stretches such that it never really works well again. Not a deal breaker, but there's definitely room for improvement.
@@theoutdoorempire What I have found on the awning is that the center loop has to pulled tight with a string and staked out so the center of the awning is the low point and water will drain from the center. The first time we encountered rain, we came back to the tent and there was a big heavy pool of water stuck in the awning which just about pulled the whole tent down.
@@elkhuntr2816 Same here on teh pool of water. I like your solution, thanks for sharing.
@@theoutdoorempireangle one side of awning slightly lower. Water will run off without pooling.
Have you had any experience with this in strong wind and heavy winter conditions?
Not with this tent, no. Some wind, yes, and it handles it like a champ. But I haven't used this tent in heavy snow or anything. I have done some snow camping with my Springbar which is virtually the same design and it does very well.
The front door faces the rest of the campground. The back door is my pee door😂
That's the best reason for two doors that I've heard yet! 😂
A divider could be put in the middle, then each side will have their own door
Rent it out as a duplex! 😂
Not big enough for your size family.
Ya it can feel a bit snug, but my kids are young enough (small enough) that it works out. Especially if we use a couple cots so we can stow bags and gear underneath them. However I've got a Springbar Classic Jack 240 that is 10 x 14 ft and it's nice and spacious for the 5 of us. You'll have to check out my other videos on that one and a side by side comparison with the Kodiak.