Hello,
I've used a vango banshee for the last 5 years or so and for the price it has been pretty hard to fault.............. except for the weight. At first, I didn't really mind as everything I had was heavy, but the thought of shaving off a kilo is becoming very tempting! However, when looking into lightweight tents it has become a bit of a mine field with many reviews giving conflincting info.
I would be using my tent in three seasons (probably go back to the banshee for the odd winter night w/ good forecast) mainly up high in the lakes,cheviots and scotland.
I was looking at the force ten helium (about £190) online and the terra nove laser competition ( on offer for £230 at cotswolds at the moment). It will just be for me, but I'll go for a 2 man for the extra room. In an ideal world, I'd go for a soulo, akto or tarptent scarp, but £250 is the absolute max I can go so unfortunately they are out of the question
I have also looked at some msr offerings but I don't trust my ability to get an inner pitching first tent up quick enough in the rain!
My main worries about lighter tents are to do with condensation (are we talking way more than something like the banshee? I never really had much problem with condensation in that. Do you often wake up with a damp sleeping bag in these kind of tents?) and wind/weather resistance. What kind of wind speed can these sort of tents handle roughly? They look so thin and light it's hard to believe that they could cope with much wind!
If anyone has a laser comp or force 10 helium, I'd love to hear your thoughts on either of those or if anyone could recommend something better in the sub £250 price range, I'd be greatful of any recommendations.
Thanks again,
HS