Wall tent frame

alecvg

Active member
Joined
Mar 18, 2018
Messages
26
Location
Montana
Just found a deal on a used wall tent, but didn't have a frame. Won't be an issue in most places I hunt, as there plenty of lodgepoles to cut pole out of. That being said, where I will be hunting in Colorado this year, I will likely be camping in pinion/juniper country. I don't have it in the budget at this time to pay for a frame- any ideas?

I have seen 4" ratchet straps between trees, but seemed like it had a lot of sag- thought maybe steel cable tightened with a come-along. Still hoping for a better solution than this.
 
I would suspect You’ll be hard-pressed to find Pinyon juniper trees that are tall enough to get a ridgeline up to 9 feet or so I would think. Plus you’ll need yo support the eaves somehow.

What about 2x4/6s? PITA to haul.
 
If you have the room, go cut 7 lodge poles and take them with you. I seen one made from elec. conduit. Any length you wish with union's and 90's. The longer the tent the bigger the conduit.
 
Just found a deal on a used wall tent, but didn't have a frame. Won't be an issue in most places I hunt, as there plenty of lodgepoles to cut pole out of. That being said, where I will be hunting in Colorado this year, I will likely be camping in pinion/juniper country. I don't have it in the budget at this time to pay for a frame- any ideas?

I have seen 4" ratchet straps between trees, but seemed like it had a lot of sag- thought maybe steel cable tightened with a come-along. Still hoping for a better solution than this.

What size is the tent? How far from lodgepole elevation will you be?

Back in the day I bought a set of welded joints for about $100, cut conduit @ hardware store for poles, didn't spend $200 and had a nice frame that upped the value of the tent when I sold it.
 
Tent is a 12'x14'. Will depend on snow level- third season. If its mild I may be in them and this may not be an issue.

I will be traveling from central Montana to central Colorado, so hauling lodgepole or dimensional lumber won't be ideal.

I will need to look into pricing conduit- I've heard of guys using plastic conduit as well, I just can't imagine that being great in heavy snow loads or high winds.

Thanks for the ideas.
 
I used 1-inch electrical conduit for my 12 x 14 wall tent. The joints were made of square tubing and welded to the correct angles. I can set it up or take it down by myself with this set up. One tip is to color code the pieces so it's quick and easy to get it right the first time even if it's dark. Also use some sort of pad to support the wall pipes so they don't sink into the ground.
 
2" pvc but cut in to 6 and 7' lengths instead of a clear span? Glue the connections to the tops, then slide the 6' and 7'. You'd have 4 extra vertical poles but you will only span a max 7'. Might hold up to snow or wind. Dunno, just spitballing here.
 
The electrical conduit frames are hard to beat. I built a set for mine and now that's all I use. I can have my tent set up and staked down in less than an hour easy.
 
I used 1-inch electrical conduit for my 12 x 14 wall tent. The joints were made of square tubing and welded to the correct angles. I can set it up or take it down by myself with this set up. One tip is to color code the pieces so it's quick and easy to get it right the first time even if it's dark. Also use some sort of pad to support the wall pipes so they don't sink into the ground.
Exactly what I did.
 
Bought a 14x16 last year that has a home made conduit frame. He welded 4x4 flat pads on the side poles, and 2" for the main support with 1 drop leg in the middle. He helped me set it up last year, so this will be my first solo. The peak is about 10'. Thinking of a fan to move air around.
 
The electrical conduit frames are hard to beat. I built a set for mine and now that's all I use. I can have my tent set up and staked down in less than an hour easy.

Buy or weld the conduit angles frames and use 1” EMT. You won’t regret it. Anything else and you will eventually go this route in the long run. Save yourself frustration and wasted money by doing it right the first time.

With two guys and some practice it takes about 15 minutes to set my 12x14.

By myself, probably @ 30-40 minutes.
 
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