Kodiak canvas tent set-up and review

[@schadlarry]

Nice review. How big of a pain would it be to setup and take down on a somewhat daily basis. I live in the southwest and nailing those stakes down are going to be a pain. Been looking at those rooftop wedge tents for a Tacoma but they get expensive fast...8K for a tiny space. It's just me and can't decide between the 9x8 or 10x10. Although I think I want side windows so that eliminates the 9x8. Are the floor dimensions, 10x10 pretty close after setup?

[@adrianofthewest]

Thanks! Set-up and takedown isn't bad for what you get; it took me about 15-20 minutes to set up the tent solo. Staking the base is the most time-consuming part, and you need to carry sand stakes for sandy soil, as well as lag screws and an impact drill for really hard soil. We used the tent live for the first time the weekend after I shot this video in the sands of southern Utah. The stainless steel stakes basically pulled right out of the sand in the wind, so I backed off the upwind side of the tent with eight yellow sand stakes and one guy line and it held fine. If the ground is really hard, you can forget about pounding the steel takes in because it's like trying to hammer them into concrete (use an impact drill and lags). I didn't measure the base, but I'm sure it's either 10x10 or really close. If I were camping solo, I would go with a smaller tent, unless I was going to be at one camp for a while. Rooftop tents have advantages, but the cost would keep me away from them, plus I like being able to walk right out onto the ground. Frequent set-ups and take-downs of this tent would get old real fast for me. If I was going to be changing sites every night, I would go with a smaller tent that was faster to set up. I was having trouble with the door zipper pulls in the field, as well. When I first set up the tent and made this video, the zipper pulls seemed fine, but I didn't open or close them more than a few times and didn't think much of it. Plus, there wasn't any wind when I tested the tent in this video. When I got out in the field, it was a different story. The zippers we really hard to close and open. I don't know if I just got a tent with bad zippers or if they are all that way, but I could barely get them closed on the second night of camping and it wasn't for lack of strength in my hands. I ended up returning the tent to Cabela's and it was because of the door zipper pulls. I'm going to do another video on my final thoughts about the tent in the coming weeks, but here are the notable pros and cons: PROS -- Tent is spacious inside with plenty of room for two plus gear. -- You can stand up, unless you're over about 6' 6". -- If staked properly, the tent holds strong even in high winds. -- Even high winds didn't penetrate the canvas of the tent. CONS -- Set-up takes longer than I want to spend, but it isn't terrible. The setup time might be worth it for some folks, but wasn't worth it for me. -- The tent has to be staked down to be set up, so if you can't stake it, you can't use it. This is one area where freestanding tents have a huge advantage. -- The large profile of the tent catches A LOT of wind. Even a small breeze hitting this thing is like the sail of a sailboat, but again, it holds strong in the wind. -- The tent is bulky when collapsed and stored, but that may not be a problem if you have enough cargo space in your rig. -- The zipper pulls on the doors suck. I don't know if they all suck, but the ones on my tent did.

[@schadlarry]

@@adrianofthewest Wow! Thanks for such a detailed response and will help future viewers of this Kodiak review. Too bad about the zippers, I thought it was one of their strong points being YKK or maybe those were on the Springbar. Look forward to your followup review.

[@adrianofthewest]

For sure! And yeah they are YKK zippers. I was surprised too.

[@williemccoy259]

@@adrianofthewest I have the same tent but the VX model with windows on the opposite sides of the doors. As with yours my door zippers are tough to open and close but certainly not a deal breaker for me. Set-up time is fine but I'd say the storing part is a bit cumbersome. I just used mine but in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. It rained hard for a day and a half. The tent did not leak what so ever. I was able to keep the windows partially unzipped for cooling with no wetness inside.

[@adrianofthewest]

Th aka for the feedback Willie!

[@JimClark-m7j]

Awesome review! No stupid music and good video. Just nice simple to the point video.

[@adrianofthewest]

Thanks!

[@yerkovichn]

I've watched at least 10 kodiak videos & yours was by far the most informative. Thanks for your attention to detail.

[@adrianofthewest]

Thank you! I’m glad it helped 🙌

[@Richard-lj2lx]

This is the best review of this tent that I've seen so far. Saw same tent, but with the side windows as well, on sale this morning and bought it for $100 less than usual. Consider me your 59th subscriber. I really love your camera work, narration, and logical sequence.

[@adrianofthewest]

Right on, Richard! Thank you for all the kind words and the sub! 🤙🤙 It’s always nice to get a compliment 🙌

[@northerniltree]

Kodiak sells a floor mat for these tents. Basically, (in this case) a 10'x10' tarp. It helps protect the floor, and is easier to clean out the tent. Great set-up and take-down video!

[@adrianofthewest]

Thanks for the comment! Great advice 🤙🙌

[@rayspencer339]

Great review. I liked the take down and folding of the tent. Good job.

[@adrianofthewest]

Thanks man!

[@johnlantz3771]

I just got the same tent and look forward to using it soon. THANK YOU for such an in depth video, I know that it'll save me some aggravation and make pitching/taking down this tent a breeze!

[@adrianofthewest]

I’m glad you found it helpful🤙

[@kennethlaruffa9427]

Just a heads up, when rolling your canopy up, roll it the other way. This way the water rolls off and not into your canopy. this can create mold with standing water. hope this was helpful.

[@adrianofthewest]

100% correct👍

[@rayspencer339]

@@adrianofthewest Good point

[@44musher]

Grabbed one for 375.00 will be home for the coming winter in Maine. Wood stove next purchase. Thanks for the review.

[@adrianofthewest]

Deal of the day right there mate. Glad you liked the vid 🤙

[@Hobbies4Hire]

Picking up my 10x10 this afternoon from Sportsman's warehouse here in NV. You gave some good tips for how to set it up. I haven't seen a whole lot of videos where they mentioned the orientation of the nubs on the T-bars. That's super useful. Thanks for the video and I will look forward to seeing more!

[@adrianofthewest]

Right on I’m glad it helped!

[@cavannus]

This video helped us for the first set-up (it really saved us!), as the manual was pretty abstract the first time. Very clear and detailed, thanks a lot! Once you did it once, the set-up is straightforward.

[@adrianofthewest]

Glad it helped!

[@cavannus]

@@adrianofthewest It helped before ordering and it helped today for the first set-up in the garden!

[@adrianofthewest]

I hope you enjoy the tent! Feel free to come back and drop some comments with your thoughts on it, especially the zippers. I was not happy with the zippers after camping, but I’m starting to think I just got bad zippers because no one else has complained about them. Let us all know how they work for you!

[@radooutdoors5032]

Nice review! I’ve had the same model for 4 years. Best tent I’ve ever owned. Nothing can knock it over.

[@adrianofthewest]

Thanks! Yeah this tent is beyond sturdy.

[@ngoalpo]

Great video! Thank you for sharing! Really appreciate the set up process from start to finish.

[@adrianofthewest]

I’m glad it helped you!

[@DV77737]

Great info! And thank you

[@adrianofthewest]

Cheers mate. I’m glad it helped!🤙

[@signalvideo1]

Nice video. My K.C. 10x10 is on the way. I also have a Crua Cottage but it is a big job for 1 man set up so I only use it on 5-14 day camps. This is perfect for the weekender.

[@adrianofthewest]

Thanks🤙

[@kimwalkup1749]

Great video. Thank you. We just bought this tent for two of us so it was very helpful.

[@adrianofthewest]

I’m glad it helped!

[@joshuam.9420]

Wonderful Review

[@adrianofthewest]

Thanks man🤙

[@frankchambers2114]

Nice job!

[@adrianofthewest]

Thanks!

[@ronneyrendon5045]

Nice view, woof. Nice tent too.

[@adrianofthewest]

Thanks!

[@lachlanm3439]

Excellent instructional video, Thanks!

[@adrianofthewest]

Thanks!

[@cameronm2203]

should roll canopy the other way so rain wont collect

[@adrianofthewest]

100% correct. Rolling it under allows rain to run off rather than pool.

[@IntheBlood67]

Good point!

[@IntheBlood67]

Most Excellent!

[@adrianofthewest]

Thanks!

[@barrytree6666]

Can you use a small propane heater in the tent for use in the winter?

[@adrianofthewest]

Depends on how clean the heater burns and how much carbon monoxide it releases. In general, it’s NOT recommended to use gas heaters in small, enclosed areas that aren’t well ventilated-like tents. I burned propane to heat the tent, but only for a few minutes just to warm it up. I certainly wouldn’t run one very long or if you could possibly fall asleep. Remember that carbon monoxide is very deadly, and you may not even get signs that you’re being poisoned because you may lose consciousness quickly as O2 is displaced from your bloodstream. The Mayo Clinic’s website says the following are possible signs of poisoning: - Dull headache - Weakness - Dizziness - Nausea or vomiting - Shortness of breath - Confusion - Blurred vision - Loss of consciousness The bottom line: you’d probably be ok to run a heater for a few minutes to warm the tent a bit if you have some ventilation, I wouldn’t risk running it more than a few minutes. You can also buy portable CO detectors to monitor the levels in the tent, but that’s still risky because the sensor may not be accurate and show you an erroneous result. Hope that helps. Be careful.

[@Patrick-yh3oi]

I have an Eskimo ice fishing tent for winter camping. I run a mr buddy heater. The tent has vents and I use 2 carbon monoxide detectors. So far the reading for co have stayed under 12 ppm...safe.

[@adrianofthewest]

Thanks for sharing this🤙👍

[@mmcgee1231]

Excellent, thanks

[@adrianofthewest]

Thanks!

[@littlebanshee]

Do you not use a ground tarp normally? Since I’m planning getting one of these I’m curious, is it easy to keep clean (since it’s a light color too)?

[@adrianofthewest]

I use a piece of the grey indoor/outdoor carpet you can get at Home Depot. Carpet does a better job of protecting against rock punctures when there is weight applied than a tarp. I’ve given up on keeping the tent clean since we spend our time in the desert; the sand and dust basically make it impossible.

[@joyceling]

this is a great setup video! i’m intimidated by it as a solo woman camping full time but you made it look easy! how do you store the poles that come with it? 🤔

[@adrianofthewest]

Thanks! And don’t be intimidated-it’s an easy setup! One thing: stake down the anchor points that the poles drop into on the sides. You’ll see I didn’t do that in the video, but it will be easier to set up if you do because you can then use two hands to grab the pole and to drop it over the anchor. Also, the tent poles have a bag that come with the tent. Enjoy!!

[@joyceling]

@@adrianofthewest thanks for the tip!! so is that 14 stakes total?

[@adrianofthewest]

You bet! And yeah, it comes with a stake for every anchor point. If you’re going to be in sandy soil, pick up some “sand stakes” (like these: www.rei.com/product/798883/coghlans-abs-tent-peg-6) because the ones that come with the tent will pull out in sand like it’s nothing.

[@joyceling]

@@adrianofthewest I’m going to attempt it now!! Thanks again for this and I hope to see a lot more from your channel! I’ll hopefully be posting updates too but it’s a lot harder to make content on the road than I anticipated 😅

[@adrianofthewest]

You got this! Good luck on the road! It sounds like you have an epic life ahead of you🤙🤙🙌

[@aaronpat123]

Make sure you stake the metal l shaped for the lifters.Then you just lift and place on l shaped legs.

[@adrianofthewest]

Yes! When I was editing the video, I was like "I was probably supposed to stake those down."

[@aaronpat123]

@@adrianofthewest I have the 10x14 and putting up the second pole is labor intensive without doing it.I also have the 9x8 it is easier piece of cake but it has telescopic poles and just the pin in bottom of pole deal.

[@adrianofthewest]

Yeah I can see that being the case. Even with the 10x10 it was a bit of work. Not bad but noticeable.

[@culbinator]

Thank you for this!

[@adrianofthewest]

You bet!

[@aaronpat123]

Great vid!Were you using a selfie stick or gimble or salt?

[@adrianofthewest]

Thanks man! I shot the video on a GoPro Hero 9 Black strapped to my head at 4k 60 fps with the wide angle setting and HyperSmooth 3.0 enabled. I'm really happy with the GoPro overall and it stabilizes footage really well, but it struggles in low light; the stability and picture isn't the best in low light situations.

[@jeffbecraft7174]

Nice how much ?

[@adrianofthewest]

About $800👍

[@blackr0se]

what are those pants youre wearing?

[@adrianofthewest]

Yelpro. Used to be $15 on Amazon, but now they’re about $30. Yuerlian Mens Mens Running Tights Cool Dry Pant Baselayer Tights Leggings with Pockets a.co/d/aSLAe5v

[@googleuser4864]

Is there a slot to run an electrical cord?

[@adrianofthewest]

Not one that I recall. I’m pretty sure there wasn’t.

[@bmo72]

Yeah it's called one of the 2 doors...

[@adrianofthewest]

@bmo72 😅🤣

[@danmc2678]

Just sold my 10 X 10 Flexbow. The walls are too angular and the weight is too much for our needs. If you put a queen sized mattress in it, the walls are so steep you are bumping into the walls when you walk around the mattress. If they put the doors on the straight vertical sides it would of worked better.

[@adrianofthewest]

No doubt this is a HEAVY tent

[@phamthanh9904]

😍😍👍👍

[@adrianofthewest]

Thanks!

[@bluepawn]

Too slow to be setup... I m only interested in tents mounted in less than 1 minute (under a big rain you will understand why).

[@adrianofthewest]

100% agree. For a longer stay at a campsite, it would be worth it for me, but not just a few days.