Need recommendations: FSR High Country tri-layer -OR- CVT Mt. Baker/Mt. St. Helens?

moose545

Active member
Looking for my first RTT, and with all the upcoming and current sales its quite tempting to go all in. That said, what are some experiences with the above brands/tents some existing owners have; Pros and Cons.

A friend of mine has the High Country tri-layer that I did hop in at the James River RTT Rally and it seemed pretty nice, quality, features, and insulation wise. I also found that CVT is having a sale on their 2 hard-shell models mentioned above.

Are there any other that I might be missing that you've seen that will be on sale this week? Seems a good time to be checking the box for this item. Thanks for reading.
 

BLK2000TJ

New member
Looking for my first RTT, and with all the upcoming and current sales its quite tempting to go all in. That said, what are some experiences with the above brands/tents some existing owners have; Pros and Cons.

A friend of mine has the High Country tri-layer that I did hop in at the James River RTT Rally and it seemed pretty nice, quality, features, and insulation wise. I also found that CVT is having a sale on their 2 hard-shell models mentioned above.

Are there any other that I might be missing that you've seen that will be on sale this week? Seems a good time to be checking the box for this item. Thanks for reading.

Also considering the CVT MT. St. Helens. When does the CVT sale start?
 

moose545

Active member
Does that open with a gas strut like the one in the link @ 13.50? That is a pretty neat feature.

Yes like that, nit sure if it's the exact model, but my friends has the quilted liner and was quite toasty in comparison to a 0* bag and ground tent in 32* weather.

CVT sale is this weekend IIRC, I've been looking for more deals but I don't think there are anymore I haven't found, surprise me though! Any experience of things you've heard on either?
 

chet6.7

Explorer
No experience,I recently watched the video,he mentioned it was a prototype,so I was posting to pass on information about the way it unfolds and folds.
 

Qomomoko

New member
tent fabric info link
I found the above link very informative.
I also did a mini comparison chart based on brand webise info which most are not that useful IMO.
For example, I would say the heart of any tent is the canvas and SmittyBilt and Tepui are two main ones that address such info on their site.
Others I found dimensions but little else.
What I like the most about CVT is int he pictures the strong colors of their tents, I am a sucker for aesthetics.
I have very very little experience with tents, much less RTT.
my 2 cents.

WH7zpEc.jpg
 

BLK2000TJ

New member
Looking for my first RTT, and with all the upcoming and current sales its quite tempting to go all in. That said, what are some experiences with the above brands/tents some existing owners have; Pros and Cons.

A friend of mine has the High Country tri-layer that I did hop in at the James River RTT Rally and it seemed pretty nice, quality, features, and insulation wise. I also found that CVT is having a sale on their 2 hard-shell models mentioned above.

Are there any other that I might be missing that you've seen that will be on sale this week? Seems a good time to be checking the box for this item. Thanks for reading.
Talked to CVT today about the 40% off Black Friday Sale. Sounds like those tents will be sold without a warranty. Makes me a little concerned even though he said there are no quality issues and they wont "leave you hanging" if there are. They want to get rid of inventory because there are new versions coming out but couldn't provide any details. Its still a good deal as long as there are no QC issues,
 

PNWRunner

Member
I am looking at both the FSR 55 Tri-Layer and the CVT, but I am having a hard time understanding the science behind the Tri-Layer being cool in the summer. Can anyone give their input on camping in the heat with their Tri-layer RTT? Appreciate anyone's perspective and how hot it was outside and inside the tent.
 

moose545

Active member
I am looking at both the FSR 55 Tri-Layer and the CVT, but I am having a hard time understanding the science behind the Tri-Layer being cool in the summer. Can anyone give their input on camping in the heat with their Tri-layer RTT? Appreciate anyone's perspective and how hot it was outside and inside the tent.

I have seen the FSR High Country tri-layer in person and it's really nice. I opted not to get the CVT since the warranty thing on the Black Friday sale, and also I've heard of zipper issues that would render it broken basically which is not good. I went with a 23Zero Walkabout 62, and got the all season liner as well. I saw them at Expo East and the fabric and mattress quality was very nice. I can also get a bigger sleeping area and covered ladder, and add the annex later for bathroom enclosures. I know the FSRs are nice, but I wanted to be different and try out the 23Zero, seems solid and good warranty too. Just had knee surgery so the tent is still on the pallet in my garage and liner in the box, but it's gonna get tested once I'm able to move and get it mounted up. Will post up my review once I get in it, should be exciting!
 

PNWRunner

Member
moose545 - sorry about the knee, but glad you are on the mend. Very exciting to see the 23Zero input, they definitely seem the tent competing with the FSR. We ended up taking advantage of black Friday as well and did the FSR 55, and then did the tri-layer wall that you can remove. We do so much summer camping it just was concerning that it would be too hot. We did do a run with it and really happy with the configuration we went with.
Good luck and would love to see some pictures. I must apologize I am not that tech savvy and I have been having challenges with pictures, I end up doing an attachment and we know how that goes. hahaha.
Have a great 2020 New Year and thank you for the info.
 

JackAttack13

Observer
I ended up going with the Mt Baker by CVT during the 40 percent off sale. There were some small issues with the tent that I am not concerned about such as a logo peeling and the ladder bag being ripped. Was kinda disappointed when I reached out about the bag and was told that they do not carry those bags and they come straight from the vendor. But at 40 percent off I can handle a ripped ladder bag and a peeling logo out of the box. Made me wonder at first if these were defects they were selling at a discount. I have yet to spend any nights in it as I just installed it, but overall it seems like a great deal at that price.
 

NudeLobster

Member
I've had a tent from the same factory that CVT gets the plastic Mt Bakers from...absolute trash. My tent was from a little start up that sank due to the quality and design of the tents that factory gave them. CVT got a huge order from the same shipment and is at least big enough to absorb and eat the loss until they get it figured out. I won't speak on their current revision because I don't have experience with that but I wouldn't buy one without spending some time in and around one.

I was lucky enough to sneak out with a return/refund from the ABS plastic tent. I used the money to buy a blemished CTV Mt baker (legacy fiberglass model). It had some surface scuffs and blems on the fiberglass. nothing structural, nothing I care about after a tree branch does the same thing.

The fiberglass is inconsistent (you can see gradients in light coming through the top from inside). The spring poles are laughable and not really spring steel, they stay bent after every use. I asked CVT and they just told me to bend them back straight between uses... The rain awning/pole design was not correct such that there's always flapping slack in the awning. The seam tape was not installed while the fabric was taught so seam tape is pulling up everywhere. There's a small leak in the roof that makes a wet spot on the headliner but multiple inspections of the exterior show no visible damage or cracks, still trying to figure that one out.

Before my CVT I had a Tepui soft shell. Honestly, I can't recommend either for the prices. properly manufactured and designed tents from alucab, JB, Autohome, Bush Company, etc are the only way to go. I have a friend with a CVT High Country tri-layer and the QC and materials are noticeably better than CVT or tepui. Probably the only USA company I'd recommend from experience. The rest are all a slight variation of the same Chinese trash with different logos.

Putting my flame suit on, I don't care. The only people who recommend CVT or Tepui or other Chinese made "American" brands are people who have never used a proper tent and don't know better, or don't care enough for their overnight "overland expedition" to the local NF camp ground. Fight me.
 

JackAttack13

Observer
I've had a tent from the same factory that CVT gets the plastic Mt Bakers from...absolute trash. My tent was from a little start up that sank due to the quality and design of the tents that factory gave them. CVT got a huge order from the same shipment and is at least big enough to absorb and eat the loss until they get it figured out. I won't speak on their current revision because I don't have experience with that but I wouldn't buy one without spending some time in and around one...

...Putting my flame suit on, I don't care. The only people who recommend CVT or Tepui or other Chinese made "American" brands are people who have never used a proper tent and don't know better, or don't care enough for their overnight "overland expedition" to the local NF camp ground. Fight me.

I had a chance to spend the weekend in my CVT Mt. Baker. My first real experience with it. Overall, I can say that I would be pretty pissed if I paid full price for this unit. At the 40 percent discount, it comes in at a price point that otherwise cannot be beat and is worth dealing with the issues. I was originally looking at the Alu-Cab but cannot justify 3k for a tent. QC and attention to detail are pretty well off on this unit, and are frankly unusable. For example, the net on the interior of the roof is so weak that even a sweatshirt flexes it enough to where it slides out the bottom of the net with the roof popped. There is NO seamtape anywhere on this unit and am concerned that there will be leaks in heavy storms, but time will tell. There are two buckles to hold the tent closed on the front, but these are not needed as the tent does not lift in the front. The mattress is rock hard, but this is personal preference. I already spoke to the bag issue in the previous post. The logo was peeling. Some of the fabric cuts are off, which do not effect the performance, but attention to detail make or break a product and having extra fabric at the seams makes it look cheap.

I do not care for the latching design and will be changing it in the future. The buckles with strapping is not very efficient and a strange design to be honest. The unit comes with a shoe bag to hang outside but there are no hoops to hang it nearby the ladder. You would have to put the shoes out another window and hang them off the ladder mounts. The netting in the windows could be finer mesh for no-see-ums. I also wish the windows rolled up instead of down. This puts the fabric within the traffic while getting in and out on the ladder which I am sure will cause more wear and tear over time.

I am nit picking the unit, but these are things that I would want to know before shelling out big bucks for a tent. I was originally looking at used ones but they were selling for more then new with the discount so I opted for new. I personally was expecting more from a CVT branded unit. I have seen people order tents directly from Ali Express and am certain they would be of similar quality. The unit came with a manual for Tuff-Trek tents, so it is clear they are just outsourced to any buyer. Another small detail that makes the opening experience feel cheap.

What I LIKE about the unit. Setup is quick and efficient. Lifts do the trick nicely and am curious about their longevity. ABS seems to be decent quality, base is sturdy and heavy duty. I like that it comes with the cold weather insulated walls. This is VERY nice and the tent remained warm for hours after the sun went down. The unit is pretty light, which is nice for reducing weight up top.

For the price with the discount, it is a fine tent that I would purchase again. It needs a little fine tuning to my liking and will be adding mounting points for the shoe bag and a mattress topper. I will try and cinch up the netting on the ceiling to aid in holding gear in place, but that is a minor inconvenience. I have zip tied the unused buckles down so they are out of the way. I may remove them in the future. The ladder is of good quality and am pleased with that. I have had some buddies whose ladders were junk with misaligned holes etc.

Overall, for a budget minded traveler who is willing to overlook small imperfections. Pick one up used or on sale. I would not recommend full price. I will update once I go through a heavy rain.20200126_103200.jpg
 

Popupbenji

New member
I had a chance to spend the weekend in my CVT Mt. Baker. My first real experience with it. Overall, I can say that I would be pretty pissed if I paid full price for this unit. At the 40 percent discount, it comes in at a price point that otherwise cannot be beat and is worth dealing with the issues. I was originally looking at the Alu-Cab but cannot justify 3k for a tent. QC and attention to detail are pretty well off on this unit, and are frankly unusable. For example, the net on the interior of the roof is so weak that even a sweatshirt flexes it enough to where it slides out the bottom of the net with the roof popped. There is NO seamtape anywhere on this unit and am concerned that there will be leaks in heavy storms, but time will tell. There are two buckles to hold the tent closed on the front, but these are not needed as the tent does not lift in the front. The mattress is rock hard, but this is personal preference. I already spoke to the bag issue in the previous post. The logo was peeling. Some of the fabric cuts are off, which do not effect the performance, but attention to detail make or break a product and having extra fabric at the seams makes it look cheap.

I do not care for the latching design and will be changing it in the future. The buckles with strapping is not very efficient and a strange design to be honest. The unit comes with a shoe bag to hang outside but there are no hoops to hang it nearby the ladder. You would have to put the shoes out another window and hang them off the ladder mounts. The netting in the windows could be finer mesh for no-see-ums. I also wish the windows rolled up instead of down. This puts the fabric within the traffic while getting in and out on the ladder which I am sure will cause more wear and tear over time.

I am nit picking the unit, but these are things that I would want to know before shelling out big bucks for a tent. I was originally looking at used ones but they were selling for more then new with the discount so I opted for new. I personally was expecting more from a CVT branded unit. I have seen people order tents directly from Ali Express and am certain they would be of similar quality. The unit came with a manual for Tuff-Trek tents, so it is clear they are just outsourced to any buyer. Another small detail that makes the opening experience feel cheap.

What I LIKE about the unit. Setup is quick and efficient. Lifts do the trick nicely and am curious about their longevity. ABS seems to be decent quality, base is sturdy and heavy duty. I like that it comes with the cold weather insulated walls. This is VERY nice and the tent remained warm for hours after the sun went down. The unit is pretty light, which is nice for reducing weight up top.

For the price with the discount, it is a fine tent that I would purchase again. It needs a little fine tuning to my liking and will be adding mounting points for the shoe bag and a mattress topper. I will try and cinch up the netting on the ceiling to aid in holding gear in place, but that is a minor inconvenience. I have zip tied the unused buckles down so they are out of the way. I may remove them in the future. The ladder is of good quality and am pleased with that. I have had some buddies whose ladders were junk with misaligned holes etc.
Overall, for a budget minded traveler who is willing to overlook small imperfections. Pick one up used or on sale. I would not recommend full price. I will update once I go through a heavy rain.View attachment 564189

They have an aluminum model I’m considering like the alucab with a presale buy in for the first 100 buyers at 2500 then price jumps to 3400 I believe.It includes a basic rack with 2 crossbars for an additional 600 you get a full rack similar to a rhino pioneer mini version


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
It might make you feel a bit better to know that $3000+ James Baroud tents are equivalent garbage.

I was/am pleasantly surprised by the quality of the FSR M60 tent I got (second hand). Time will tell how it lasts.
Wow that’s a big statement. Do you have experience with James Baroud?
 

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