Hi, this is my first post, although I've been "lurking" for a while. Find this site excellent and have used lots of the great advice. We bought a Royal Memphis 5 last year (after our supermarket bargain disintegrated after one night!!). We are really pleased with it and camped two weekends last year. Have just got back from our first full week camping in Cornwall - had a brilliant time but we ended up with a couple of queries and I'd love some advice please ......
It is a tunnel tent and we don't seem to be able to get a symmetrical shape when setting up the poles. All works fine - and keeps the wet out but when we hang the inner bedroom tent it is clear that everything is a bit out of line - as we can't attach all the little toggles (there's probably a technical name for these but I don't know what it is!). We've just bodged it up to now as enough work to keep the inner tent hanging but I worry that we are over stretching it trying to get it to meet up. Are there any tips for setting up the poles so that we get an even loop - or could it be a fault with the tent (I'm sure it's much more likely to be a mistake on our part though!).
The other (probably silly) question is that the flysheet has extra flaps stitched on should these be outside the tent as a sort of water runaway device or inside? There is a fitted groundsheet for the bedroom inner tent and a shaped groundsheet for the living area. I can't find any photos of how this should look.....
In the pic, it looks like the front flaps are left outside yet the back end of the tent has the flaps tucked in, if indeed it has flaps all the way around? If it has then you have the choice, either leave them on the outside or peg them inside under the groundsheet. it won't matter either way.
as for the bedrooom being too stretched ? does the tent have tension straps across the bottom? Try pulling the back two poles closer in together using the tension straps?
Might you check you are lining the toggles up with the loops, I mean, it is easy to mis match them, like a child does when doing the buttons up on a coat for the first time. You only have to have 1 out of place, and then all the rest end up being paired with the wrong loop. Try counting all the toggles, and all the loops to check you have equal amounts. Also, the bottom of the bedroom pod may have a hook to attach it to the rings where the tent poles are inserted into the pins. This pulls the pod groundsheet taught, in a straight line in the back of the tent. (I am going by my own tunnel tent, trial and error )
------------- its me again!
Top End Farm May
RSPB Big Camp June
Diamond Campsite August
Before hanging your inner tent make sure the guys aren't too tight. That was a mistake we made with our first tent.
Loosen them off a bit and then hang the inner. You can tighten the guys once the inner is hung.
It would seem that from looking at pictures of your tent that you have then tension straps across the floor of the tent. These are webbing straps that make sure you have the poles the right distance apart.
Hope you manage to sort it out. Took us a few pitching's before we got it right
Thanks very much for this. I have tried adjusting the webbing tension straps but we have definitely been tightening the guys first so I'll try it with them looser next time.
It does have the groundsheet flaps all the way round so I won't worry about it and will just see how the mood takes me!