Roof Top Tent Quality Survey

[dazzler]

Hello all,

I am wanting to add a roof top tent to our camping kit.  Something like this;

http://www.arb.com.au/products/arb-touring-camping-accessories/arb-simpson-iii-rooftop-tent/

Down here in the South Island we have very little choice so its going to come from the North Island and we dont get to actually look before we buy.

So to the question.  What are swaggers experience with roof top tents of the various brands?  We would be using it maybe two weeks per year.

It would be great if the answer was something like;

"I have a (brand) and I paid (price) and I think its (great/okay/crap)"

Oh, and since there are so many on ebay I added a poll

Cheers 

[DannyG]

I have an early arb/ironman style I imported from china myself. It cost me around $400. It is the same type you see on eBay.

It is great in fine weather and even light showers but if caught in decent rain it pours water in through the sides.

Besides its leaking issues it's not too bad quality for what it owes me. I'd be very disappointed if I paid $1000+ for it.

[DannyG]

[liney]

Mate being a North Islander living in Perth I hope you only use it in summer or you'll bloody freeze up there.

[dazzler]

It's a balmy 15 with snow on mt Wellington 

[liney]

I don't miss that cold. Only a cool 30 over here and beautiful blue skies. But I sooo miss the pig hunting- good luck with the tent. ARB is pretty good and so is howling moon.

[gowalkabout]

It's a balmy 15 with snow on mt Wellington 

hahahaha we just walked back in the door from being up there and it was freezing.

as for your question about rtt before we got the trailer we spent years with our rtt permenentlly fixed to the roof of our 4wd. and the best advice i can give is, you get what you pay for. We forked out a fair bit at the time but it lasted us very well and as a matter of fact it now lives on the roof of a mates 4wd on the big island and with the exception of needing a new cover is still going strong approx. 12 years latter. It was a Howlling Moon Tourer and looks very close the one Danny has posted up. i couldn't recomend them highly enough. We have had it out in weather so bad that the zip on room pulled all it's pegs and when we came down the ladder the kids were still asleep on their beds but the beds where being lifted about half a foot off the ground  on inspection the next day i couldn't find any damaged.

[schmik]

... and the best advice i can give is, you get what you pay for.

... 12 years latter.

12 years ago i would have agreed with you 100%.
These days there far too many companies that sell a cheap product for the highest price they can get.
ARB tents are probably made in China.... as are all the cheapies.  What are the differences between made in china and .... made in china?

[gowalkabout]

12 years ago i would have agreed with you 100%.
These days there far too many companies that sell a cheap product for the highest price they can get.
ARB tents are probably made in China.... as are all the cheapies.  What are the differences between made in china and .... made in china?

The point is there are still a few NOT made in china. As far as I know Howlling Moon are still made in South Africa and apart from them there are a few made here in Australia again without checking the first one that comes to mind would be 3 dog campers up in the Byron Bay area

[dazzler]

Thanks for the replies so far.

I am a bit worried that whatever you get it will be similar quality whether it has a name brand on it or not.  There was a maggiolina one on gumtree a while ago but I snoozed and loosed 

[DannyG]

Thanks for the replies so far.

I am a bit worried that whatever you get it will be similar quality whether it has a name brand on it or not.  There was a maggiolina one on gumtree a while ago but I snoozed and loosed 

If your looking at the type I have shown in my photos then I would buy the cheapest you can find. Unless your getting the howling moon (south Africa) or a couple others that are Aussie made I think you will find the imported ones are the same in quality, although some are slightly different in style.

A friend of ours has an old arb one and it is identical to ours.

[fuji]

We bought one for our trip to the Kimberley's and were not disappointed. 6 weeks and 18000 kms. A lot of condensation in the morning so windows need to be open. Two adults and 5 y.o. And we were comfortable. Needed to wipe under the matteress every morning from moisture. It was imported by Tigerz11 during their infancy. If I was to do it again I would buy a Howling Moon. You get what you pay for. BTW we didn't get any rain on our trip.
Wayne
Sorry about the photo.

[fuji]

See attached

[GeeTee]

Dazzler I use rebranded and lightly modified Dolium Featherlite as standard fit on my GTs. Dolium is in Perth and I guess its $1495 tent comes from China. After looking at everything on the market, I chose this tent for a variety of performance reasons (including weight, spare parts back-up etc).

The oldest of my fleet is now installed on my personal Hilux (90Kkm) after being on a tralier for around 15Kkm. I typically spend four or five nights a month in it (at events and shows that I attend) and it has also done several multi-week treks. I guesstimate I have slept in this tent for 150+ nights, with conditions from -5deg Snowies to 46deg salt lake/desert treks. It has also done hundreds of demos at shows etc. So, I would like to provide more feedback than 'I'm very happy!' about its performance, even when assessed in isolation.

Like all tents it must be aired each day to dry out internal condensation under the ceiling and under the mattress. I do find that the lower walls tend to 'wick' moisture after several days of rain (or winter conditions when the tent cannot be dried before packing) but there are no proper drippy leaks.

Like all tents its gauze/flyscreen is susceptible to damage from careless packing (especially adjacent to the hinge mechanism) and little kids' fingers.

The verandah areas (above the doors/ends) can pool rainwater on thier topsides, however, later-model Featherlites (present production) have a steeper roof that reduces/eliminates this.

The dust cover is tough; it remains crack-free and waterproof, despite being abused by way of carrying car panels on top of it (my Hilux is a work truck, too!) from time to time. The zip is a 'self-healing' unit and is surprisingly resilient...although I am very careful with zips. (I have had a customer 'break' a zip on another tent)

Dust entry is negligible - but that is more a result of being on a Hilux, rather than a towed trailer that naturally cops more dust. It was pretty good when it was installed on the trailer, too.

Being outdoors for more than three years (no garage or carport for the Hilux) the dust cover straps have faded from black to grey but remain strong. There is minor fraying present and the velcro has died so the ends of the straps flay in the breeze. No biggie.

The spring steel stays show some signs of corrosion on thier plating. Again, no big deal, they have been put away wet many times.

I also bought an Ebay cheapy years ago ($1000) and it was surprisingly good quality. I think there is one Happy Big Tent Factory in China as aspects of the hardware were identical, despite being a different size and specification tent.

Another unit that escapes peoples' attention is the Dingo Doza (Dozer?). It is an 'old-school' canvas unit made for 40 years by a feller in Vic. Check it out

[oldsalt]

You get what you pay for - one wet night in a rooftop tent can ruin a holiday ... I've got one of these and they are GREAT ... expensive yes but worth every cent.
http://hannibalsafari.com.au/index.php?page=roof-top-tents
cheers

[fuji]

I didn't mean to say Howling Moon I meant Hannibal.

Get onto Ali Baba and get one imported for a lot cheaper.
Wayne

[Wortho]

I bought a Howling Moon in 2001 and its still like new and never let any water in. It was expensive but the quality is very good.

Edit: Sounds like they are still made in South Africa and the 'major Australian brand' mentioned in the post below was perhaps ARB?


Hey Guys,
Over the last 3 years, Bundu Gear has been the importer and principle dealer for Howling Moon camping gear. Many people do not quite know where the brand fits in, and what it is and where it comes from; I've even heard that we have been compared to some brands with origins in the East. Many people have never heard of us at all. While many people know our competitors very well, the benchmark may not be what you think it is. So here is the scoop.

In a nutshell, Howling Moon is arguably THE premier canvas RTT brand in South Africa, not only outselling every one of our competitors in Southern Africa, but also being outfitted on almost every off-road rental vehicle and safari outfitter in Southern Africa. This includes the 2 largest 4x4 rental companies, Kea Campers, and Britz/Maui.

Howling Moon was started in 1999 by a South African, Dave Fraser, in Durban, South Africa. Dave has over 35 years experience in the textiles and garment industry, so the man knows how to put some fabric together. The company was created as a blank page, starting from scratch, with all new designs and material specifications. Howling Moon was created under the umbrella of Jurgens Ci Canvas Division, which had been making premier awnings and canvas goods in South Africa since 1970, so we're talking a business which has been in operation for close to 43 years. Jurgens Canvas is the largest manufacturer of camper awnings, and tents in Southern Africa, using in excess of 1,000,000 ft of fabric every single year!
In the early days, Howling Moon actually produced many tents for a major Australian brand, now being manufactured in Asia. Howling Moon actually pioneered the "touring"style tent, which is now copied widely, many brands of which are unfortunately easily confused with Howling Moon.
The brand was also the first to use the composite baseboard, which is lighter than wood/ply, more resistant to rotting and cracking, and very accurately made on CNC routers, all in-house.
Here's a little run down of the features of a Howling Moon tent:

Fabric - A 380gm, 60/40 Polyester/Cotton ripstop blend, manufactured right in Durban, just miles from the Howling Moon factory. The only brand to actually use renowned local fabrics, and not from Asia. This means we have the best consistency, quality and color fastness and made exactly to specification. The fabric is heat and pressure impregnated for waterproofing, then treated post-production with a flourocarbon (Teflon) for superior waterproofing.

Zippers - Only YKK are allowed in the factory.

Rust and corrosion resistance - what isn't canvas, is Stainless steel or aluminum.

Ladder - The strongest and most comfortable ladder on the market, rated to over 400lbs on the ladder alone.

Mattress - The thickest on the market, at a full 3" of high density Polyurethane.

Thread - we use a corespun poly/cotton thread (the inner thread is polyester, and then is wrapped in cotton), so even the thread is waterproof, by allowing the thread to swell in its own hole, and seal up any water ingress.

Cover - the Howling Moon covers are designed to be THE most waterproof and dustproof covers on the market. Period! Even the legendary 'bull dust' of Australia is kept out.

Design - Howling Moon is the ONLY tent in the US market with a Stargazer feature. This is a zip-open roof which allows you to lie in bed and stargaze, or just get superior ventilation in your tent. We use tongue and groove at the joint for extra strength. Our perimeter aluminum extrusions allow the tent to be completely and relatively easily removed from the base.

Factory - Our staff is happy! Sunny, airy, spacious conditions with a great work environment. No 9-year olds on our production lines. Happy workers; This is what makes a huge difference.

So, if you wanted to know where to place Howling Moon in the scheme of things, just look right at the top; that's where you should find us.

And just in case you all wondered where the heck i came from; I am Zimbabwe-born, South Africa-raised, and after Business School spent 8 years as a guide in Southern Africa. Vacations were spent in my Defender 110Tdi traveling to Botswana and Namibia, exploring and often getting lost.
Cheers all,
Rou

[JU5T1N]

If it's a Howling Moon RTT your interested in here is an email address to get prices & a more detailed info

I found him very helpful
andre@howlingmoon.com.au

[JU5T1N]

these guys sell the Tigerz11 RTT ($1k)

Twin Locked OffRoad
0409 945 962
3/48 Marine Terrace,
Burnie, Tas 7320
Mon-Fri: 8.30am-5pm

Its a pity your so far away, I have installed one of these on my GU.
I haven't had the chance to sleep in it yet & at this stage it might have go back in the box to be sold so I can cover some bills & it wont fit in your mailbox & not sure what postage/courier could cost due to size......luv 2 see this in a posties bag 

[dazzler]

Thanks heaps everyone for the advice 

[GrahamFamily]

We had the earlier style ARB Touring RTT similar to the one DannyG showed. We paid for it and appears to be the same but have had it setup in heavy rain before with no leaking at all. No moisture inside the tent Ida morning. The only advise I would give is to buy a foam underlay for the mattress as the mattress is not as comfy as we would have liked.

We just sold it as we upgraded to acamper but still after seven years its in perfect condition.

[dazzler]

Factory - Our staff is happy! Sunny, airy, spacious conditions with a great work environment. No 9-year olds on our production lines. Happy workers; This is what makes a huge difference.

But are they 'Free Range'?

Thanks for the advice