Review of Coleman Sundome Tents
It is understandable for a first time camper to start
out with second hand or cheaper equipment. You
wouldn’t want to go out and spend a fortune on a fleeting hobby.
Of course, even a relatively
affordable tent will cost you some green. Coleman
has been steadily getting a reputation for making budget-value gear that is
still good enough for this purpose. One
such piece of camping equipment is the Sundome tent.
You should know from the outset that, this is not the
best tent you can get for around $40. There
are probably cheaper tents out there that will do the same thing for you.
The Sundome does one thing very well
though, and that’s break you in to the world of camping.
When sleeping in the wild, any number
of things can go wrong. From
attacking animals to deadly weather, mother nature can throw an unexpected
number of problems your way. The
Coleman Sundome will train you for that by throwing little problems in your
direction.
For one, the Polyester material feels very flimsy, and
little tears and the like can be expected. From
this alone, you can assume that this tent will not be the one you bring for
years to come. Rain may be a problem,
as some have complained of intense dripping or outright breakage.
This shows that consistency is a
concern with the build quality. That’s
also a hit on its guarantee that its Weather Tec system will always keep you
dry.
The Sundome will also give you a crash course in tent
pitching. It is not as easy as
advertised to set up its shock-corded poles.
The knots on the elastic ties can also get undone, so this will be a
good test for your knot making skills. If
you decide to stick with the stock pegs, you might have to get resourceful
in the wild and hack out some self made ground attachments… or, you can buy
a four dollar set of metal pegs for the occasion that the originals break,
and you better believe they will. The
zippers sometimes do not work, but that’s nothing a little waxing won’t fix.
One thing that might really be a problem is the quality
of the fiber-glass poles. It doesn’t
take a genius to think that those thin rods won’t last forever.
Duct tape might really be a good
addition to your necessaries. If you
do decide to purchase this tent, make sure that camping weather is agreeable
to lessen the stress of the learning experience.
You know what the best thing about
the Sundome is? That warm fuzzy
feeling you get when you first replace it with a far better three-season
tent. By then, you’ll be an expert at
pitching and all those little problems will have trained you for big league
emergencies, like curious bears.
Obviously, this isn’t a great tent. Experienced outdoorsmen will find a great deal to complain about. But it is always best to look at the bright side and think positive. For example, it is possible to find this on sale for only $35. At that price, you really know what you’re paying for, and it’s a good deal for a crash curriculum on the joys, and pains, of camping. You can buy it online here.
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