All in one pitching, plenty of stability and security, and a price tag of £650. On top of that the Vortex Lite looks seriously good too!
- All in one pitching
- Lightweight at 2.49kg for the strength and stability offered
- 2 entrances and 2 vestibules
- Bright and light interior
- Side pockets
- All guylines and titanium pegs included
- It looks seriously cool!
- Not the easiest or fastest tent to erect
- Slightly low entrances making it a touch difficult for entry/exit for taller people
- Slightly restricted headroom towards sides of tent for taller people
RRP £650
Specification
• All in one pitching
• Protex® 3,000HH SPU ripstop nylon 15D
• 15D 28gsm breathable ripstop inner tent
• 20D ripstop nylon PU 5,000mm groundsheet
• Force Ten UltraLite poles
• Flat Pole Sleeves
• Colour coded poles
• Dyneema guylines
• Pre-angled Poles
• Rain gutter zip covers
• Front and rear access
• O shaped inner door
• Flysheet door can be opened as a vent
• Rain stop flysheet door
• Multiple reflective points
• Flysheet vents with mesh covering
• Full geodesic construction
• Part mesh inner door
• Lightweight stuffsac
Total weight: 2.49kg
Pack size: 46 x 14cm
Pitching time: 15 mins
First thoughts?
The Vortex Lite 200 arrived with us a couple of days ago and today was the first day one of the team had a chance to take a closer look at it. As usual we couldn’t wait to get the gear in use but as we had no tests planned this Sunday the only option was to give the tent to one of our team to play with near their house! We wanted some feedback on how easy the tent was to erect, how strong it felt when up and any other comments which might aid buyers.
At 2.49kg this tent is definitely light for a 4 season shelter. The original Vortex is something of a fortress, however comes with a weight penalty of 4.5kg. Strong, but at that weight you would expect it to be. Ultralight poles, dyneema guylines and titanium pegs are used to shed weight whilst still enjoying most of the strength and solidity of the original. As well as the weight saving the Vortex Lite does pack a touch smaller too.
Ok not the best photo … but hopefully you can see how well you can secure this tent to the ground! With titanium pegs and dyneema guylines you are getting plenty of stability in bad weather for only 2.49kg
So how easy was it to pitch?
Well to be honest it wasn’t the easiest of tents to pitch, and the instructions included weren’t the best … certainly some element of pictorial illustration might be of benefit too. That aside the basics are that two straight poles go diagonally across the zenith of the tent, with two slightly bent poles which curve over the vestibule. These poles are slid into pole sleeves whilst the tent is laid flat on the floor. After all the poles are inserted the tent can be erected into its free standing state before being pegged out. On the first attempt it was certainly a little tricky getting the poles through the sleeves, this proved the hardest task and the poles needed a little bit of persuasion to fully slide into place. The straight poles were actually the harder of the two poles to insert. Without pegging the tent out loosely there was significant risk of it catching the wind not least due to the time taken to get the poles in place. Once this was done and the tent was free standing it was obviously easy to finish off pegging the tent out. The guyline system appears excellent though and once tightened down the tent felt very solid and secure … of course we will have more on this in the coming weeks and months providing that we can get the weather to play ball!
Our concerns are primarily that erecting the tent isn’t as quick as some other 4 season models and it will be interesting to see if the added time pitching is worth it in terms of stability and steadfast security on the hill. We get the impression that this actually is a really interesting tent though and the rest of our first impressions were positive. The inside is bright and airy, there are two entrances and two vestibules for storing kit. A range of pockets inside (although relatively small) offer storage options for kit and essentials and the tent comes with enough pegs and guylines without the need to buy other items to fully secure the tent. The interior height towards the edge of the tent is a touch restricted for taller people but the centre of the tent is more than adequate. The overall quality seems excellent though … and that is reflected in the price tag which is a cool £650.
In Summary
In summary we are really keen to give this tent a thorough workout … the weight to expected performance ratio seems very positive and this could end up being a go to for UK winter wild camping. This model will be out with us on the hills in the next few weeks so hopefully we will have a bit more to say.
Plenty of room inside the tent for comfort and the two vestibules are a boon for storage and cooking. Interior height in the centre is good but tighter towards the edge of the tent where tall people might feel slightly restricted.
The inside of the Vortex Lite is bright, light and airy. Two entrances and a number of side pockets (albeit small ones) make for a comfortable and pleasant environment to be bunkered down in a storm in.
Getting the poles into the pole sleeves on the 1st attempt proved a little tricky. They had to be eased through carefully and this is probably not something easily done in gloves in sub zero conditions. The guylines are excellent though and there are enough to really secure the tent down.
We would have liked larger internal pockets & a gear loft. Other than that, all is well!
