Force Ten Nitro Lite 200 tent review
I was having had a chat with Cat about DofE kit this week and Vango came up in the conversation. This is not unusual, Vango have long been a mainstay in that arena. Many kids first experiences of proper outdoor kit are with Vango gear and the DofE award really is a big factor there. I grew up with Vango too, and being local, I feel the urge to support them. That said, the chat made me realise one thing: I’ve been using this tent for ages and still haven’t written it up. Whoops. Time to rectify that.
This is the Force Ten Nitro Lite 200.
It’s a two-pole tunnel tent, which is a fine design for maximising available space while keeping weight down. It’s also a two person tent by design, but with the weight coming in at 1.5kg, it’s perfectly portable if you prefer a more spacious single person shelter. Having spent more nights than I care to count in coffin-like tents on rainy nights, I do tend to prefer a little more room in my tent when I know it’s gonna be a long wet night.
When it comes to pitching, the sewn-in pole sleeves are colour coded to make it easy to choose the correct pole. The inner and outer come already joined, so it pitches in one go, which is a huge boon on rainy nights. I still can’t abide having to put up a tent inner-first in the pouring rain. You can have the whole thing pitched easily in a couple of minutes. The supplied pegs aren’t ideal for pitches in anything other than still conditions. As usual, I used my standard mix of clamcleat Y-pegs and Ti nails.
Wind resistance is excellent. Tunnel tents tend to be good in windy conditions and this continues in that trend. The outer is close to the ground so you get minimal spindrift ingress in the snow.The porch is very spacious and has plenty room for the stove when you fancy a cuppa and the entry door is huge so you won’t struggle to get yourself in and out. The tension band system helps with stability, but it runs across the porch under the front pole. I’ve only snagged it with my foot twice so far.
So far, so good, but we have a few issues that need to be addressed. First up is the vent on the rear panel. You can’t close it. Sure it has a guyline so you can tie the hood down, but in windy drizzly conditions, water gets in and onto the inner. Soggy feet are never fun in a sleeping bag.
Secondly, it’s just not long enough for me. Even if i sleep slap bang in the middle at the longest point my feet push against the inner at the rear. I’ve tried all sorts of diagonal arrangements but to no avail. I’m 6’4″ (193cm) so I’m hardly typical and I guess for most people this won’t be an issue at all but this ain’t a tent for us tall chaps.
Thirdly, and this is kinda made worse by the second point, the rear panel needs another guy point at the base in the centre. As it is, when the outer gets wet or if it’s pitched tail into the wind or on uneven ground, it doesn’t matter how tight you guy it out, the material sags and the outer touches the inner. Couple it with the tent being a tight fit for me and on every occasion I used it, I got damp feet. I know that Robin had a similar issue and made a quick mod to sort the issue, but it should really be resolved by Vango.
So in summary we have a fine tent; roomy, lightweight and stable in wild conditions, but let down by a couple of minor issues. If Vango were to address these, they would have a serious contender on their hands.
It’s frustrating that it’s so nearly a brilliant tent. I’ve modded the vent so it can be partially closed. I’ve also made a TBS system for the rear hoop. Luckily I’m average height so I’m ok for length. I’ve given Vango feedback so hopefully they will incorporate it in a mk2 version.
Aye, so close to being excellent. Lets see what the nice people at Vango have to say…
Hi Michael, thanks for reviewing our tent and for your feedback.
Some of your points have already been addressed in the new Nitro tent in that we have added another guy onto the tail of the tent which should keep the flysheet of the tend pulled out and away from the inner. We were aware that Robin had the same issue with this too and used his feedback to update the tent.
This is the first feedback we have had regarding the length of the inner so thanks for raising this point. We believe in creating a usable product not just one that will tick a weight box and have made a conscious decision to keep our inner at full length (although evidently not quite long enough!).
This point has been passed on to our designer who uses product feedback in the development of our products.
Thanks again for the feedback, keep up the good work!
The team @ F10
Thanks for dropping by, much appreciated. I did try to stress that I am a tad longer than most, so it might just be that anyone over 6’2″ has a problem. This tent has the potential to be an outstanding bit of kit. Refreshing to hear that you have taken the feedback and are working with it, I’ll look forward to further developments!
No problem Michael,
Feedback is really important to us, we take everything on board and are always happy to hear both the good and the bad!
P.S. F10 isn’t pat of Vango any more, we are under the same parent company but are a separate brand who have our own dedicated team of outdoor enthusiasts behind it 🙂
Wow , why didn’t I know that?
I must be slipping…
I’ll sort the post out then, don’t want to confuse people any more than normal!
Hi Michael, What tents do you recommend for us long shanks (I’m 6’5″).
It’s my eternal challenge, to find an ideal tent for the taller punter that doesn’t weigh a ton. My 3 season tent of joy remains the Vaude Power Lizard 1p-2p. It’s very roomy for the weight. I’ve used it in the winter, and it’s been ok but it’s not really designed for it. The MSR Hubba HP has been the pick for winter use last year and it’s a fine fit for the longer nights, although a little more snug than the power lizard.
We decided to go for this tent. Hope 2016 version has some problems solved. Thanks for review !
I was looking at this tent, for a light weight 3 season backpacking tent, with space, I’m 6’1, so length and head height really do matter to me, I have the F10 MTN 2 person tent, but it’s heavy, fantastic – but heavy. There are many things here I like about this tent, but especially the vestibule space for cooking in, I like a decent sized vestibule for boots, gear etc
I was told last week by a Cotswold staff member, who phoned there supplier for F10, they are bring out a new version early next year 2017, so I am going to wait to see what comes out new year for the new version.
hi just got the latest version and they have sorted out the rear pegging by adding an additional one in the center , plus on the inner they have connected it at the rear so it pulls the outer and inner away, and i had a quick look at it last night , im sure tbc they have added bottom guy rope loops at the bottom of the poles in addition to the reflective bit. im 6ft and just touch the bottom,so its still a bit small. pegs are crap.
Thanks for the update!
Sean, how about a rear vent? Has this part been updated, or is it still not possible to be closed?
Hi Michael
Thanks for the review of this tent, very informative. Being 6’3 myself I have been put off buying this thanks to your practical comments.
Can you recommend a lightweight 1 or 2 person tent (ideally no more than 1.5kg) that has a decent amount of space for those taller than average.
Many thanks
Neil
Hi Neil, I keep coming back to the Vaude Power Lizard 1p-2p, it has the best space to weight ratio for me. I’ve been using the MSR Hubba NX a lot too.
Thank you Michael!