[QUOTE=atticus1crispus, post:18, topic:613609]
Great info and responses. By tight folding structure do you mean for storage and/or strength?.. Thats how I feel when there is wind involved and you can’t have canopy come down, you need to secure it with much more than what comes with these canopies. Also many people do use these as casual sun blocking gathering area for sports tournaments and get togethers. This year alone we had several canopies at events break (only takes one random gust sometimes). Of those several, 5 I tried to help with or were close to me. 2 were Ozark Trail one a 10ft straight leg with guide wires/stakes the other a 12x12 slant leg. 1 was a Quest 10ft and the other a 10ft Coleman. There was a Quik Shade but it was farther away. Definetly been some Easy Up models break. I try to notice peoples luck. I would love to recomend a model over the other to friends for function, durability and price. Your mentioning of canopy heighth is good to know and makes sense (will have to look at next tournament). My canopy is a 12x12 slant leg Quest I’ve had for 5 years. I use it 5-10 times a year. It’s been through some wind and I am lazy so I only stake it and maybe put a leg through a cooler handle for weight. It has got dicey at times but has survived. So not to brag but more so point out in my experiences most could be made better and seems with many variables kinda random/lucky which ones break. So I try to buy during some good deals like this one since it probably has roughly the same chance of breaking. I just bought the Quest Summit I’ve had my eye on with the venting and side awnings/wall. Probably more to just go wrong but deal was good for 125$ reg200 (never seen it cheaper). Looking at this Woot deal for friends.
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“Tight folding frame” refers to the part of the frame that unfolds to become the horizontal side framework of the tent. Some are wobbly and flex in and out once they are extended. The OT tents have tighter joints and don’t flex very much.
This is the basic rope-and-stake method I use. I never tie the ropes to the wimpy little loops on the tent’s exterior; instead, I tie to the framework of the tent.
The idea here is basic physics. No matter which direction the wind comes from, the ropes don’t allow the tent to be pushed.
[QUOTE=faketoos, post:16, topic:613609]
I now use Ozark Trail. They have the sturdiest legs and tightest folding frame structure. The other trick is that tents with tall tops get more wind-push than ones with low profiles (like the OTs). Low-profile tops actually get pushed DOWN in heavy winds, which make them more stable. The “EZ-UP” brand of tents have very sturdy frames, but really tall tops that are more susceptible to being pushed around in the wind. (And, in one case I saw, to collect water from heavy rains, which collapsed the tent.)
But remember, no tent is immune from wind damage if it’s not properly pegged and roped down. The pegs and ropes that come included with all of these tents are wimpy and won’t do the job. I use 1/4" nylon rope and heavy plastic tent pegs, two per corner, plus long steel pegs through the feet. “Weighting” the tent legs is okay in light wind, but in heavy winds the tent will just get pushed around, regardless of the weight. Roping eliminates flexing, which is the real culprit in wind damage. Weighting and insufficient roping don’t take care of flexing.
All I know is that I have been in near-hurricane wind storms with my tents properly roped down, and although the buffeting gets a bit scary at times, I’ve sometimes been one of the 20% of tents that DIDN’T get destroyed during the storm.
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Ozark Trail 10x10 Canopy for the same price as this woot (less actually, shipping is free even for non-prime members)
[QUOTE=dmsuperman, post:23, topic:613609]
Ozark Trail 10x10 Canopy for the same price as this woot (less actually, shipping is free even for non-prime members)
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Mmmm . . . no, not the same. That tent is 10x10 at the bottom of the legs, but only 8x8 at the top.
