What's the best(most durable)6 man tent on the market? we mostly base camp so weight is not a huge concern, i just want something to last. I'm thinking about EUREKA timberland 6 SQ but am having a hell of a time finding one, I'd like to check it out before i buy it. Anyone else have a better one in mind? I'd also like to keep it under a grand but you get what you pay for.

i would get two 3 person dome tents.that way you can split up the sleepers,light v.s snorers or whatever.it's easy to stand in a dome and get dressed unlike the walls of a A frame tent.
with two lighter tents the portage will be easy,i would not want to be the person to carry a big 6 person tent!

like this..

I have to agree ... 2 @ 3 person or even 1 @ 2 person and 1 @ 4 persons. (Think Mom and Dad + kids...?)

I bought a BA Big House 4 used off E-Bay early May, very similar to the Ten Sleep 6 with a different fly. Very happy with it, and have used it at Gov. Dodge SP WI thru a heavy thunderstorm. If I ever go with a group again I would not hesitate to take it! By the way the new Big House tents have been changed from the version I purchased, but may still be an option.

butthead

REI Base Camp-6

REI Base Camp 4 or 6 is a good option if you want one big tent - Good height and vestibules.

I own the Eureka Timberline Outfitter 6 - good center height but the side angles translate into hard to use side and corner space.
Also, no vestibules and the rain fly doesn't cover the entire front and back. Not as usable space for the price and weight.

REI Base Camp-6

REI Base Camp 4 or 6 is a good option if you want one big tent - Good height and vestibules.

OOps - double post.

How about the Copper Canyon Tent

Best and most durable.... The Kodiac Flexbow is the tent for you. But it is a beast and not very sexy. I use it for vehicle camping and hunting the late season. It is the easiest tent I have ever set up. It will definitely last a lifetime....read the reviews. But it is canvas and heavy. It comes in two sizes. I have the 10x14 and it will easily sleep 6. Worth checking out.

I have the Big Agnes Big House 6, its the older version with 2 doors. The weight is not that bad 15-16 lbs. I dont know that I would want to sleep 6 adults in it but for a family with children ir would work fine. Its even tall enough to stand up in.

Big house 6 with vestibule and ground cloth. had for about 4 or 5 years.
lots of room, 2 doors, built in door mat, lots of screen, and standing room. All seams on the rain fly are seam sealed with tape, like a gore tex coat. good cage for a 5 and 2 year old.

just used it at two lakes in Drummond Wisconsin last weekend. About and inch of rain on Friday, and Saturday over an inch of rain.
Stayed dry. guy it out and keep taught will hold up to most anything. one person can set it up. Two is easier when lifting the main poles.

if you can find, it is a great tent. Big Agnes has other options for 6 person large tents.

very happy with mine.

schells

Springbar Tents

We love our Mountain Hardwear Casa 6 Tent. It's only 12 pounds and mh has a life time warranty. I think the casa 6 has been discontinued, which is a shame because its a great tent

quote DeuceCoop: " Springbar Tents "

Or Kodiak Canvas, same thing. THE BEST tent there is if weight is not a concern, but definitely not an option on a BWCA/Quetico trip...due to weight and the fact that you must pound stakes (lots of stakes) and the soil doesn't always cooperate up there.

There are a lot of good 4-6 person tents out there. To me, the most important thing is to get one with a full coverage rainfly. This means the fly goes all the way to the ground all around the tent. This is a harder feature to find on larger tents. I've been in a lot of tents w/o a full coverage fly in the rain and had the water get in somehow. With a full coverage fly you really only need to worry about your groundcloth keeping the water from coming in from the bottom. I have a discontinued Sierra Designs "Zulu"(or something like that) that I really like, but there are quite a few options out there.

For BWCA tripping, even if you find a large tent you like, don't you have trouble finding a tent pad suitable for larger tents?

I think the 2-tent option gives more flexibility and I suspect you'd get more use out of them both.

I have trouble finding space for my 8-person tent at a CAR camping pad... don't like the idea of having to search for a BWCA site with room enough for a big footprint.

I had a friend bring 2; 4 person tents one for them and one for the kids. Half way though the night the kids ended up in their tent. For the rest of the trip they had to try and squeeze 6 people in a 4 person tent. I know this would happen to us, so I LOVE having one tent. We rarely have had a problem finding a place to set it up. Each family needs to do what is best for their family. Some day we should be able to have 2 tents.. but that day is a long way off.

We have used a REI Kingdom6 for the past two years and have had good luck with it. Spacious with a nice vestibule, durable and so far water proof. We had one rainstorm where water pooled up somewhat significantly under the floor but none came in. It comes in a backpack which is light enough for an older kid to portage.

I bought it on fall clearance several years ago for 1/2 price.

I have been very pleased with my Marmot Limestone 6P tent . It looks like there's some pretty good deals out there as well....

quote Canoearoo: "I had a friend bring 2; 4 person tents one for them and one for the kids. Half way though the night the kids ended up in their tent. For the rest of the trip they had to try and squeeze 6 people in a 4 person tent. I know this would happen to us, so I LOVE having one tent. We rarely have had a problem finding a place to set it up. Each family needs to do what is best for their family. Some day we should be able to have 2 tents.. but that day is a long way off. "

Yep, get that when kids involved... esp now with only one parent. But we've always squished into a smaller tent made for less people. 5 people in a 4-person or even a 3-person when they were smaller. We were able to do that with larger vestys available with the T-4 for example. Still a fairly small footprint to find a pad for.

This last trip, i had Kelty Gunnison 4.1 and couldn't find a place at the only campsite left on Pine. The rocks and the slope made for miserable sleeping. To be fair, there were two other tents in the party - both Nemo Losi 3Ps, and their pads weren't much better than mine.