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This may sound basic but have you checked that you are using the correct colour coded poles for each sleeve as with the albany 400 the shortest pole should be at the back and largest at the front, this should then leave you with the middle length pole for the middle sleeve. Also check when feeding the pole that the sleeve is not snagging on the ferrules (the shiny bits) as you push through.

The TBS system is designed to make the tent more stable. the basic principle is making an arc shape use support in the shape of a triangle which changes the physical pressure points on the tent. As a triangle is much more stable than an arc!.

Hope this helps

Logic says tension straps but you already checked those.

Is it possible that the poles were not pushed together properly? A few mm could make a huge difference

Really scratching my head now (no its not fleas lol)

Maybe try the tricky pole first?

Not sure how that would help but hey, gotta try everything :)

Maybe once one side is in, pull (not too hard !!!) the fly down as far as you can so it gives you a little more space to get that pesky pin in?

No crying though ok? If the worst comes to the worst you can always ask someone to help (most campers will help willingly and moreso if there is a cuppa or a beer involved lol)

Angie

" ... I know someone would always help me, but what if no one is there?..."

Unless you're camping somewhere realy remote like the Andes or anywhere in Tibet, there should be a te least the campsite warden to assist you. But do let them know you coudl do with a hand if only to raise a pole or two (three?). Otherwise people might mistake your efforts for "try & try again"  and regard you as entertainment.

So, when in (dire) need of some muscle, just call out and ask if that bulky neighbour wants to lend a hand. I'm sure they will. I would.

Happy camping!

When I'm putting up one of my Vango Oregons (same sort of design)  tunnel tents I thread all the poles in when the tent is lying flat, then fix them into the ring and pins, then peg down the rear of the tent, pick up all the hoops together (like a concertina) and walk them forwards. If you've positioned your tent correctly with the rear into the wind then the wind will help push the tent upright. Peg down the two main front straps then go round and tighten up the tension straps half way, check the sides of the tent are straight then peg down the rings, then the guylines etc.

You don't need to use the TBS in calm conditions, just windy ones. I put the straps up at night and when we're away for the day, but otherwise i don't bother unless it's breezy.

Hi

I had the same problem with the pole above the door of my Orchy 500. After ending up in tears cos i couldn't do it, I gave in and asked a male camper to help (as much as i didn't like admitting defeat). He was able to do it but not without alot of effort. I Returned the tent to the shop explaining the problem. They sent it back to Vango and it turned out to be the pole for the Orchy 600.

So don't despair. Ask a man to try it and take it from there!!

Another thing i noted was you said all the poles were the same length as you had counted the silver bits, did you lay them out along side each other as they should be different lengths according to one of the other messages.

Good luck anyway, I'm sure you'll sort it out!!

Hi, Firstly, is it possible to get help to get it pitched the first time before you go away camping, the fabric may give enough to let you do it solo afterwoods.

Second thought would be to shorten the pole, a very simple job, by a few milimeters at a time till you can fit it easily. I have had several tents that gave the same problem. Shortening it should not be a problem, as the tensioners will take up the difference.

If you made a complete hash of it, then a new pole section is a simple replacement job.

It may be possible that the tent sort of needs to be broken in.  I had this problem with my V500 there is no way I could have pitched that on my own, but after 3 or 4 pitches it did seem to slacken off a little so if pressed I would have been able to do it, hopefully it is down to newness but get it checked out as Angelas suggested.

Also, sometimes the ferrules on the poles can be a bit tight. It's worth checking that the pole is fully slotted together because this can this increase the length of the pole, ie if you gain 0.5cm of pole length on every ferrule you can add 5cm to the pole overall. Plus not getting the pole together tightly enough means that the sections lose a tiny bit of the extra support a ferrule gives at that point.

And make sure the tension straps are flat, not flipped over somewhere. This can shorten the strap length. And, though this is not relevant to tunnel tents which tend to have one pin per ring, make sure you're using the correct pin for that pole if there are multiple pins on that ring. Getting the pole-pin sequence wrong will twist the canvas and pole sleeves badly.

Quote: Originally posted by Baz Thornton on 12/3/2009

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I seem to remember a video from a tent manufacturere putting up a similar tent, but i cant remember which manufacturer it was.
I may get a flash of inspiration later and if i find it i will post it, unless someone beats me to it

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Memory jogged...it's here on YouTube. Pitching video of a Vango Albany 800.

Now I've watched this a couple of times and all I can say is ...

(a) It's obvious that he's a big tall chap that has had a good night's sleep and a hearty breakfast.

(b) It's a good thing he's doing this in a dead calm, because the slightest puff of wind and these end poles would collapse.

(c)There are no children helping him.

(d) The spares shop is right behind him so it doesn't matter if he breaks a pole.

(e) He's damm lucky that he didn't rip the flysheet when he was jamming in that pole beside the open door.

(f) He's never going to get that door shut because he pegged out when the zip was half way up. Look at the cross creases!

(g) He needs some decent pegs to hold the key end straps.

And basically, I wouldn't do it that way, not if I wanted to keep my tent in one piece AND keep my tent on terra firma through the next breeze that came along.

Not that I'm being critical of the nice man, of course. He did look a jaunty chap, the way he skipped round the tent. Just saying it's not very realistic.