Cycling UK Forum

This might be of interest to anyone looking for a very light quality 1 man tent for touring. Field and Trek have Terra Nova Laser Competition 1s for £132 for this week only - that's 60% off of RRP!

http://www.fieldandtrek.com/terra-nova-laser-competition-one-man-tent-2012-789055?utm_source=ft-main-r1-120504-Terra-Nova&utm_medium=front-page&utm_campaign=Terra-Nova

I'm afraid that I couldn't help myself but I suppose it will be small enough to easily conceal from my wife

That's amazingly cheap! Pity I've already got one!

Good spot! I've been looking at that for ages but the roundabout £250 cost has always put me off.

Yep, couldn't resist it.

I've never been able to justify silly tent prices when my £18 Argos Pro Action 1 does the job at the cost of being 2kg. For £132 though - there isn't many other places to save a full 1kg for that money.

Yes, great price and good spot, if I hadn't already bought two new tents this year I'd have been very tempted!

I bought myself a Hilleberg Akto a couple of months ago (to go with it's Nallo and Keron friends) but I couldn't resist. I'm gambling on the fact that they all look like little green tents to my wife.

Thanks mercurykev for sharing this! I was looking to buy one for a long while but the price was always an issue... Today the price felt right though.

Thanks for that they seem to have sold out as not advertised anymore, but they have a nice Karimoor one for £50.00 down from £199.00 which I might buy.

mercurykev wrote:I bought myself a Hilleberg Akto a couple of months ago (to go with it's Nallo and Keron friends) but I couldn't resist. I'm gambling on the fact that they all look like little green tents to my wife.

Yes, I bought a Hilleberg Soulo (replacing an Akto) to go with the Nallo 2 Gt, but also bought the Easton Kilo (on offer) for the lightweight summer trips. It's classed as 3-season, but I think it is more suited to two-season. I got away with a 2-season sleeping bag, with silk liner, on a frosty mid-March overnight in the Soulo, which I think would have been uncomfortable in the Easton.

A big thanks to Mercurykev.


My Laser Competition arrived today. I'd been as bit concerned that the dimensions could be a fraction tight for me at 6ft2-6ft3 but reckoned if that was the case I could return it or if I had used it a couple of times sell it on.

Turns out it is OK. I can sit up in it with my head just touching the roof. Lying down there is just enough length. It shouldn't matter if my head or feet brush against the walls as the inner is well separated from the flysheet at either end.

I'm not convinced the supplied 2g needle pegs would stand up to a windy night in anything other than perfect ground conditions so I've ordered a few titanium V pegs from Alpkit. That will add another 100g to the weight. Half an old shower curtain as a footprint at 150g will put the overall weight around 1.25kg

I still couldn't see me paying anything near full retail for it but well worth £132.

Mine arrived today too. I erected it using the supplied pegs and couldn't really get a taught pitch; however, using my own alpkit v pegs I was able to get a pretty stable set up. Maybe not as solid as my Akto but not bad and the configuration inside makes it feel a bit roomier than the Hilleberg, I think it's the way the whole side of the inner tent comes down. For £132 it's a bargain and so light and compact.

Got mine the other day an I'm well pleased with it. A grand upgrade from my Gelert solo, light as a feather and bags of room. With free delivery and a free mug it's a quality bargain and I'm glad I held off from buying something else.

Yesterday I pitched my Laser Comp and Akto side by side to enable a bit of direct comparison.



The Akto has a slightly larger footprint and you need more space to pitch it as the guy lines extend out further from the tent that those of the Laser. The Laser is, however, slightly taller and it feels lighter and airier when inside with the door shut - I put this down to the slightly thinner fly material letting through more light.

Stability-wise, the Akto wins hands down. You can get it set up rock solid and the fly had less tendency to blow into the inner in gusty wind. It Also has a much sturdier and deeper groundsheet.

When it comes to porch space the Akto has a wider porch but, compared to the Laser, it feels that there is less usable space. This is because the fly cuts in at a sharp angle to intersect with the head of the inner tent, while the Laser has a bit of space round the back of the inner and the fly cuts in at a less acute angle.

Overall I think that the Laser has been a real bargain.

I think that I'll use the Laser as more of a fair weather/summer tent and save the Akto for earlier/later in the year or when the forecast suggests windier weather.

Interesting review - it would seem that tents are like bicycles in the number you need = n + 1.

Some good ideas here for mods. Using the V guys for the 4 main guys may make the tent more stable in winds.

http://maceachain.blogspot.co.uk/2009/0 ... tions.html