c/camping-gear-reviews

Hot take: I was wrong about cheap sleeping bags until I saw the fill power numbers

I always thought spending over $200 on a sleeping bag was a waste. Then I read a thread on this forum that compared fill power ratings. A 650 fill down bag was way heavier and bulkier than an 800 fill one for the same warmth. I tested a 20 degree 800 fill bag last weekend in the Sierras and it packed down to half the size of my old one. Anyone else change their mind after looking at the specs closer?

Finally got my tent seams sealed after 2 rainy trips

Was out at Shenandoah last month and woke up in a puddle at 3am. Water was dripping right through the stitching. Spent yesterday with a $12 tube of seam sealer and a sponge brush and it looks good now, think I got it. Anyone else have trouble with the sealant sticking to older fabric?

Debate: Does a heavier tent actually hold up better in wind?

I camped at Lost River State Park last month during a storm that hit 40 mph gusts. My 4-pound tent flexed and held fine, but my buddy's 8-pound canvas tent barely moved. Now I'm wondering if the extra weight is worth it for stability or if modern materials make it pointless. What do you all think - has anyone tested this side by side in bad weather?

I trusted a rando at Big Sur who swore by a walmart tent

Last summer I was at a campground near Pfeiffer Beach and this guy with a beat up old tent saw me struggling with my zipper. He told me to ditch my name brand tent and just buy a $50 Ozark Trail one from Walmart, said it survived 40 nights of rain. I was skeptical but he showed me his tent still standing after a storm the night before, no leaks or broken poles. Then a ranger walked by and mentioned that same guy gets his tent replaced free every year under Walmart's return policy. Dude wasn't a survivalist, he was just gaming the system. Anyone else run into gear advice that sounded legit but turned out to be some sort of hack?

Got burned by a cheap tarp last season in Oregon, so I switched to a silnylon one and it didn't leak a drop in 3 days of rain

That $20 blue tarp from the hardware store tore at the grommets on the second night and I woke up soaked, but after dropping $60 on a silnylon tarp from a gear shop in Portland it held up fine through a storm that dumped over 2 inches - has anyone else had better luck with silnylon over poly tarps?

Debate: Does a polyester tent really breathe worse than canvas or is that old info?

I used a canvas tent for 5 years and switched to a polyester one last season. The polyester tent had way less condensation inside, so I'm wondering if the old rules about breathability still apply or if fabric tech changed that.

My trusty Coleman stove finally gave out after 12 years

Last weekend on a trip up near Lake Tahoe, the fuel line on my Coleman two-burner just snapped right at the connector. Gas started hissing everywhere and I had to shut it down fast. Cooked all my meals over a campfire with a grate instead, which worked but took forever. Anyone else have a stove fail mid-trip and what did you switch to?

Cheap tarp ripped on my third trip so I went with a poly-cotton blend instead

Last year I bought a $20 tarp from a big box store and it tore right down the middle during a windy night at a spot near Lake Tahoe. Spent the whole next morning patching it with duct tape just to get through the weekend. That killed any trust I had in those budget sil-nylon sheets. Picked up a simple poly-cotton tarp from a local surplus shop for around $40 and it's been solid through rain and gusts for 8 months now. It's heavier for sure, but I don't worry about waking up soaked. Anyone else switch away from those ultralight tarps for something more durable?

PSA: That cheap foam sleeping pad won't cut it below freezing

I took my $20 foam pad up to Lake Alpine last November thinking it would be fine. Woke up shivering at 3 AM because the ground was sucking all my heat through the thin foam. My buddy had a insulated air pad and slept like a baby. I ended up stuffing pine needles under my tent floor just to get through the night. Anyone else found a budget pad that actually keeps you warm in cold weather?

My cheap camp stove melted itself on the second trip, be careful out there

Bought a $35 off-brand butane stove off Amazon last month, figured it'd be fine for a few weekend trips. First trip went okay, but last weekend on the Blue Ridge Parkway near milepost 340 the plastic gas control knob just warped and melted when I had the flame on medium for 10 minutes. Had to cold-soak my dinner in a ziploc bag and it was a total mess. Anyone else have a stove fail like this or am I just picking bad brands?

Switched from a cheap tarp to a Dyneema groundsheet and it totally changed my packing.

Used to just grab whatever tarp was on sale at the hardware store, but after 3 trips in the Pacific Northwest where soggy gear became the norm, I dropped $150 on a proper Dyneema sheet. Now I'm wondering if the weight savings are worth the cost or if I should have just doubled up on the cheap stuff. Anyone else go through this switch and stick with it?

My camp stove went from sputtering to roaring after one simple fix

I bought this little two burner stove last year and it always had this weak, uneven flame... figured that was just how cheap stoves worked. Then I watched a video where a guy cleaned out the burner jets with a paperclip tip, so I tried it. Took maybe 10 minutes to do both burners and the difference was night and day. Now I actually get a strong blue flame instead of that sad orange flicker. Has anyone else dealt with a stove that just wouldn't cook right until you gave it a good cleaning?

Question about sleeping pad R-values I keep seeing people mess up

I was at REI last weekend helping a friend pick out gear for a trip to the Adirondacks in October. Every single person I saw looking at sleeping pads was grabbing the cheap foam ones with an R-value of 2. That's fine for summer but not when temps drop below 40 at night. I learned this the hard way on a trip near Lake Placid two years ago when I woke up shivering at 3AM because my pad let all the cold from the ground right through. The guy working there told me the R-value needs to be at least 4.5 for fall camping, and I checked it out later on a few forums. Now I always look for that number on the tag before buying anything. Has anyone else dealt with a cold night because their pad wasn't warm enough?

Hot take: That $200 tent I bought from a guy in a parking lot saved my trip

Met a guy named Dave behind a REI in Portland who was selling his used tent out of his truck. He told me it leaked once near a creek in Oregon and he patched it himself with some tape. I gave him $200 cash on the spot and took it on a 4 day solo trip in the Gifford Pinchot forest. It held up through two nights of drizzle and one hard downpour without a drop inside. Has anyone else bought gear from a random person and had it work out better than store bought?

That cheap sleeping bag nearly got me hypothermic last weekend

Camped up near Mount Rainier last Saturday and figured my $40 bag from a big box store would be fine since it said 30 degrees on the tag. Woke up shivering at 3 AM with frost on the inside of my tent, temp was actually 22. Has anyone else had a bag fail way before its rating?

Is a $120 camping stove worth it or is a $30 one just as good?

I bought a Jetboil for $120 after my cheap stove failed in the rain last summer, and it boiled water in 2 minutes flat. But my buddy swears by his $30 butane stove that's lasted 5 years. Which side are you on for reliability without breaking the bank?

Tried a $30 Walmart hammock for 10 straight nights and my back actually felt better

I picked up one of those cheap Ozark Trail hammocks on a whim last May for a weeklong trip to Shenandoah. Figured it would be a joke but I slept better in that thing than my $400 inflatable pad. The learning curve was real though, you have to sleep diagonal or you wake up bent like a pretzel. Anyone else find cheap gear that beat out the expensive stuff or was I just lucky?

Rant: wasted $40 on a camp stove that couldn't boil water in 20 minutes

Spent 4 hours drying wet gear after a trip to Big Sur last spring - finally fixed the problem

I stopped using those cheap silicone seam sealers and tried a hot knife to tape my tent seams instead - night and day difference for about $15. Anyone else found a better way to keep moisture out on long trips?

Pitched my tent on a slight slope near Moab last month and woke up at the bottom of the hill at 3am

Had to unpack everything at midnight and re-pitch on flat ground, and now I check every campsite with a level app before I even open the bag. Anyone else find out the hard way that tents slide way more than you’d think on dry dirt?

Why does nobody talk about how easy it is to pitch a tent backwards?

I spent like 4 years camping near Lake Arrowhead and always had my rainfly flapping in the wind at night. Finally last month, a guy at the site next to me just walked over and said, "Hey, you got the pole sleeves on the wrong side." I felt like an idiot, but he showed me how to flip it in under 2 minutes. Has anyone else had a veteran camper just walk up and fix your setup like that?

My 5 year old tent started leaking after I washed it with normal soap

I had this Coleman tent that was solid for half a decade. Rain, wind, even a little snow. Then I washed it with some regular dish soap before a trip last spring. Next time out, water was dripping right through the fly. Did some reading and apparently that stripped the waterproof coating. Has anyone else ruined gear by cleaning it wrong and have a fix that actually works?

20 years of using a Coleman two-burner stove and I finally switched to a Jetboil. No regrets.

I was a diehard Coleman guy since my first camping trip in 1998. That old green stove survived rain, wind, and me dropping it off the tailgate. But last summer I borrowed a buddy's Jetboil on a trip up to Lake George and boiled water in like 90 seconds. Picked one up for $80 on sale and honestly I don't miss hauling the big stove for solo trips. Anyone else made a late switch that surprised them?

That REI employee who told me to 'just buy a better tent' when I asked about fixing my zipper

Guy at the Portland store literally shrugged and pointed to a $600 tent when I showed him my 3 year old model with a stuck zipper. Has anyone actually had luck getting a zipper repaired instead of replacing the whole thing?

That one week in June when my tent flooded on 3 separate nights

Honestly, I thought I was being smart with a budget tent I picked up for $60. First night it rained and I woke up in a puddle around 2 AM. Second night I tried adding a tarp underneath, but water just seeped in from the sides. Third night I gave up and slept in my car at the Pine Grove campsite. Anyone else have a tent that just couldn't handle a little rain?