8/10

• PRICE £79.99
• SLEEPS One
• WEIGHT 1.65kg

Packed size 44cm x 15cm
Materials Outer Ripstop polyester, 4,000mm hydrostatic head; inner breathable polyester; groundsheet PU-coated nylon, 5,000mm hydrostatic head; poles aluminium alloy 7001-T6
Dimensions Outer 245cm x 150cm; inners 238cm x 100cm; height 95cm

Comment

Coleman introduced the one-man Kraz backpacking tent into its top-end Exponent range this year. It pitches inner first and is designed so that the door provides maximum space for entry – no crawling through the narrow confines of the tent’s bell end here. In fact, both the outer and inner doors open along almost the entire length of the side so it is just a case of rolling outside from your sleeping bag.

However, not all may like this design. The length of zip and its position could catch water driven along the fly by wind. Further, water collected on the fly could run off on to the inner when the outer is first opened. Unfortunately, given the weather conditions at the time of the test, we were unable to gauge how severe this problem might be.

This useful porch is created by the angled poles – these are colour-coded each end to ensure you insert them into the pole sleeves correctly. Once these are in and placed under tension, peg out the groundsheet and throw over the fly. This is held in position by Velcro tabs and clips. One guy is used at the front to hold open the protective flap that covers the mesh vent. Two further pegs are used at the door.

You may notice that the front and back of the flysheet sit slightly short of the groundsheet and water can run off on to the groundsheet wall. Through either luck or design, the tall groundsheet wall means the seam sits safe underneath the fly where the water cannot get to it. Perhaps a slightly longer flysheet may have been wise?

Condensation is always the enemy of the lightweight camper, and this tent is no exception to the rule. Careful use of the door zips coupled with the apex vent may just keep things to manageable levels. If condensation does drip on to the inner that wide mesh may lead to problems – it is not as water resistant as breathable polyester.

The tent comes packed in the usual style of compression sack that boasts an outer mesh pocket for the pegs – always nice to keep the sharp, dirty items away from tent fabric.

Camping says For quality at a sharp price the Kraz is hard to beat, and this tent is bound to appeal to backpackers on a budget, or campers about to take their first steps into lightweight camping. However, the design may not appeal to all campers. CG


CONTACT
Coleman
01275 845024
www.coleman.eu


This tent review was published in the August 2008 issue of Camping magazine. To order our latest issue please click here.

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