Hi Cedfire,

I have never owned a Eureka tent but I have spent a few nights in them as my hunting partner has one (a 2XT?) and we had a Timberline Outfitter 4 at work.

The Outfitter was bought about 15 years ago for use while doing remote Forest Management Inventory (timber cruising), I remember it as a tough tent with lots of room as we only slept 2 in it and it was ment for 4.

I have not checked out the new tents on the market, but I was OK with the Timberlines in the past.

Mike

I asked Eureka about that. They said some of the earlier materials just tended to degrade over time. They had a limited lifespan under even the best of conditions. They assured me that the newer materials are MUCH better. Hope so.

My tents were (are) always stored in air conditioned places - either a bedroom or a dry (air conditioned & dehumidifier) cool basement. It didn't even see the light of day as much as I'd have liked it to (I was in graduate school for far too long).

When I was a teenager I sewed a Frostline kit tent (the 2-person Kodiak if anyone remembers Frostline kits), and the coating on that tent got sticky too. That was even sadder for me since I sewed it myself.

The newest tent care tip I picked up this year is to never fold your tent the same twice. Many new tents recommend you just jam the tent into the bag without folding or rolling at all.

The instructions for my Nemo are just that way. Jam it into the included waterproof sack foot first, close the waterproof roll top and you're done.

Over time folds weaken the nylon and promote leaks and/or tearing along the fold. Same goes for tarps though depending on how stiff the material is that could be easier said than done.

[quote=Hacksaw]The newest tent care tip I picked up this year is to never fold your tent the same twice. quote]

Huh ... that's one benefit of feeble old brain. Everytime I go to fold my tents I find it harder and harder to remember how I folded them last time, so I just do whatever seems to work at the time.

You know, that reminds me of a story about the ... eh ... the ... eh ... What were we talking about??



(No flaming about Alzheimer's ... my father had it. In the end he couldn't remember exactly who I was - he was pretty sure I was his younger brother, but he died a very happy man with lots of new friends.)

Frostline kits were great. http://www.oregonphotos.com/Frostline1.html

I've been helping Bruce with content for his site for some time. His books on Gerry and Frostline are great trips down memory lane.

Thanks for all the responses! Was planning to use this as a car camping tent first and foremost, so if it's a little heavy or bulky that's okay.

Eureka made an expedition version of the Alpine Meadows, called the Sentinel. I noticed one on ebay recently - I'm not the seller and I'm not going to bid. You might wish to watch this auction as this tent is a bargain for the opening bid. I wish I could justify buying this tent.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=270257757889&ssPageName=STRK:MEWA:IT&ih=017