lightweight Shelter Maintenence Tent

[aboonski]

Just got back from Eglin with my 1744 pound crate with the tent inside. I'll post photos of the crate which Faye says looks like the box out of "Creep Show". I was really happy when I saw the box was "intact" with the original banding still in place. Somebody got the one that they had to open to display the contents for the GL auction. Loading was simple and all I had to do was lash it down for the ride home. We took our Toyota Highlander Hybrid and my utility trailer for the retrieval and had no problems at all going and returning from the 900 mile round trip. The people at Eglin DRMO were great and the hardest part of the run was just getting my girlfriend on base. I am retired military but because she has no ID card, we had to do the "visitor pass" thing which took about a half hour. No idea when I will set this up - Faye (my girlfriend) wants me to "sell it" so we can use the money for a trip to California. Women think differently than men, don't they?

 

[jas67]

How big of a tent is it to weight 1700lbs?

 

[TIGERFANS2]

You're in Fla. and she wants to go to Ca.?

 

[319]

I think you folks got a pretty good deal on those tents. Definately post pics when you set it up.

 

[aboonski]

These things are big; 24 feet wide, 32 feet long and 15 feet high. It can easily accomodate a deuce or two cars side by side and it also has lighting and electrical outlets too. Well worth bidding on! I was lucky to have gotten one of the fifteen that were in the GL event. One person won five of them, two persons won three each and the rest went to individuals like me. Faye's daughter lives in San Jose CA so we travel there almost every year to visit her. We also have five acres in McArthur CA where this tent might wind up some day. It is beautiful up there!

 

[aboonski]

I can't discuss prices because that would reveal my bidder number. They all went for under $3K. Considering that Uncle Sam paid over $16K for each of these I think I did well. If you try to get anything comparable in the civilian world the quality would come nowhere near what these are made of. I'll have to post a link to the manufacturer so that you can see all the specs. The photos are from the manufacturer's website and some are from the GL auction. I still have not opened the crate and probably will not do so for a few days.

 

[gimpyrobb]

Ask her how many shoes she is going to sell to help pay for the trip. That usually results in silence for at least a week, and they think it bothers us!

 

[aboonski]

Funny you should say that Gimpyrobb - she collects shoes!

 

[tigger]

Funny you should say that Gimpyrobb - she collects shoes!

Don't they all!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[lavarok]

Good score! When you are ready to set it up, I have at least 4 "soldiers" to help.

 

[gimpyrobb]

No kidding Tigger!

 

[aboonski]

Thanks Ian! Glad you didn't bid on the tents because I know you would have won them all! Still contemplating where to put it and it is still on the trailer. I will take it off today and put dollies under the pallet so that I can roll it around the driveway and use it for a "workbench" until I am ready to open the crate. I'll need to get into that thing to get the setup instructions and to see what I am in for! Thanks for the offer of physical assistance when I get around to setting it up - all I have around here are cats and they are not much in the way of help.

 

[Green_gator]

Those are nice tents and a bargain price. They went beyond my price point but I am glad that you got one. I picked up a command post tent from Eglin that was still in the box like these. If you plan to move it around much it is much easier after you take it out of the box and move the individual bags. I think that these are a great answer for getting your truck(s) out of the weather if you have the land for them.

 

[aboonski]

Good idea Walter and I will probably open the box and do just that. I saw somewhere that it takes six soldiers to move the canvas; fortunately I do have a floor crane so the heavy items like that will not be too much of a problem. I'll probably load most everything into my deuce for storage for now. I am very anxious to see this thing deployed! I'll take photos each step of the way.

 

[aboonski]

This afternoon I got energetic and unloaded the crate from the trailer and opened it to see what I had. I am really impressed with what I see so far and I know it was worth all the trouble and expense to obtain this thing. The electrical panel alone is just so cool! The first bag I removed had that in it and also contained the TM for the tent - the staples in the TM are just starting to rust which indicates this crate has been stored in a proper manner for some time now. I took one of my spare M880 cargo covers that someone sold me for my CUCV (I have an M1008A1) to place over the crate to keep things dry until I can pull all of the other items out of the box. Really anxious to set this thing up at this point! Now for some pictures.....

 

[wreckerman893]

Funny you should say that Gimpyrobb - she collects shoes!

My ex had more shoes than Emelda Marcos.

I don't know how much weight that frame will hold but I have one of the old Maint Tent frames and I intend to put metal siding on it since I don't have the canvas. Should look like one of the old Quonset huts.

The one you got is tougher than woodpecker lips.

When I was in the Active Army we had a small version of that tent we called an ARFAB.....they beat the crap out of the old canvas tents.

 

[davesgmc]

if you take that thing outta the crate, you aint gonna get it back in. looks like a tight fit.

 

[aboonski]

Wreckerman893 I like the idea of using metal siding on this tent but I like the way it looks so much that I'll use the canvas that came with it until the sun wears it down or a hurricane blows it off. I flipped through the TM last night and it looks like I will really need to see each part before going into the assembly portion of this. With the guy wires attached, it takes up a whole lot of space - lucky that I have and acre here to work with but it looks like I will have to get several loads of fill dirt before pouring a slab for this thing. DavesGMC mentioned the tight fit of all the items in the crate - there's actually some breathing room in there but once I pull everything out it's not going back in. One of the other members recommended pulling everything out and storing each bag elsewhere so that is what I plan to do. I wanted to add two more images of interesting things that I found inside of the electrical panel - not sure if the text will show up too well but I'll try anyway. I did get to talk to a representative at the Camel Manufacturing Company before I went to Eglin to pick it up. They are still making these but the military is buying the ones with the tan canvas now. If any of the parts are missing I will not be able to obtain them from the company because they only sell to the military. The TM that came with this is dated 31 March 2004 - only 6 years ago! When I buy stuff like this it is like getting a huge income tax refund all at one time! My buddy Lavarok feels the same way with each truck he buys from GL too.