FOLLOW ON TWITTER

Bergans Wiglo LT4 tent

The warrantied tent -my first one had production problems but Bergans (Norway and US) were happy to address it.









It is difficult to describe this tent shape but it is a "teepee/dome" style tent.  It has one centre pole (the sections store within itself -you'll easily work out how to install it) and 3x11mm same length arch poles that go through pole sleeves.  The biggest winning point are the design and that it is a single pitched tent!  No messing around.  Very quick and easy to setup even by 1 person.



The fly is siliconised and thus more durable.  The three arch poles really make this tent unique and significantly increases the internal space and makes the vestibules truly usable.  This was the unique feature that won me over when I first bought it.  There is nothing worse than having vestibules that have low angles that makes them effectively useless, particularly for cooking.


The end pole caps and internal tent seem similar to Hilleberg.  That said, the outer tent silicon is not as 'thickly' coated as the Hilleberg tents.  Quality is not as high as the Hillebergs (which is the Rolls Royce in tent quality in my opinion) but there is a price difference when you buy a Hilleberg.  The long and super light pegs are a standout...they are SUPER strong!  The zippers are and toggles (night friendly) are good quality.





The three entries doors are perfect, with one entry being larger than the other two by the sides.  No more trying to scoot around people and luggage.  It doesn't really have a 'bathtub' floor as the wide opening doors don't really support that side edge.  High doors makes entry/exit much easier.






The centre pole provides enough height for me to nearly standup in the tent (I am vertically challenged but I can nearly standup straight with my head touching the top).  This vertical space is fantastic for dressing and stretching when the weather is bad outside.

Ventilation at the top is very good with three guy-line attachments to make the tent more stable.  Snow skirts are a must for snow camping, which is what this tent is designed for.


It was very comfortable and stable in the winds experienced (approx 45-50kph in pictures). Car camping in luxury in the pictures. 




I could see this tent from a mile away by the lake as I drove back from the ski fields. The red colour is truly the best for easy visibility.

What could be improved (to make it the BEST ever 3-4person tent):

1) The centre pole is very thin aluminium.  Maybe a little thicker?...but the trade-off would be extra weight.
2) Definitely need to have more guy-line attachment points along the pole sleeves for the three arch poles! 2 support attachments on each pole is just not enough. In strong wind the large spans of the 11mm poles flex a lot.  Just the addition of such attachments (say 4 along each pole sleeve) would make this a truly bomber stable tent.  I may even consider getting a professional to stitch such guy attachment points onto it myself (but it will void the warranty so I'll have to think about it before progressing).
3) Thicker silicon coating?  Hard to say as the Hilleberg Saivo Kerlon 1800 is just so beautiful that anything else just cannot compare...I use to own the Saivo (not the newer pole sleeve model) but sold it as the vestibules were very low angle (not that useful) and no snow skirts (but it was the MOST stable tent known to mankind -100kph winds were not a problem).

Summary:

Nice safe tent that would be great for base camps for 3 people and all their expedition gear.  A bit too heavy to carry as solo but split between 2 people it would be good (split between 3 even better!).  Great unique design!




2 comments:

  1. How is this tent holding up?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I've only used it a few times. I have not taken it on an expedition but I expect it to last for a while. The construction is solid and the silicon makes a difference. As noted, it is a large tent. Tents are like shoes...you can never have too many :-)

      Delete

Note: only a member of this blog may post a comment.