Hi All

Not sure wear to post this so I've dropped it in tec as it is a kinda tec question iiiissssshhhhhh


So times fast approaching for my to purchase an awning


I have been advised on a few awnings but one keep popping into my mind and it goes against the grain of what must of you use ...... but I dont want to get it wrong as it's all ££££££ as you all well know ... I already have a colmans delux event shelter as I loved the idea if it rains we got somewhere we can keep dry other than being inside the bus



welcome to the Vango Air Beam


















I've seen this in the flash and read up on it ..... so why do I like it

1) is goes up very fast and easy ( so no arguing and there is no poles to hold ) is all done by AIR ....said to take 4 mins to put up ( yer right if ya super man and not an un-fit 46yr old ) but then there is all the guide ropes to pin it down with .......but I still like the idea of it

2) it's a very good size inside

3) some modern cleaver stuff inside ( window pockets , X braces , inside sleep area that can be removed thus making 1 big room

4) strong

so my question to you all is ..... what do you use ... can we see pic's of your set up when at camp site

and is there anyone using a vango air beam awning ? and please tell me about your thoughts on it and if any pic's that would be fab


Just trying to get it right first time ..... so I call on the people with the camping experience




Us poor camping virgins have a fears of getting it all wrong











Thanks for ya help my friends


Mark

We used a Kyham family motor dome sleeper for years (the one with the attached extra bedroom).

The only real issue we had was when it rain heavily the gutters on the van couldn't cope as that's where we had the pole clamped to and fixed it to the van.

Saying that, this leaked less than my safaris do so all in all it didn't bother us too much, the awning has to attach to the van somewhere.

The kids are a little larger now so opted for a tent instead for if we go away for more than a night.

We used a Kyham family motor dome sleeper for years (the one with the attached extra bedroom).

The only real issue we had was when it rain heavily the gutters on the van couldn't cope as that's where we had the pole clamped to and fixed it to the van.

Saying that, this leaked less than my safaris do so all in all it didn't bother us too much, the awning has to attach to the van somewhere.

The kids are a little larger now so opted for a tent instead for if we go away for more than a night.

A Khyam Motordome came with our bus when we bought it (from WILL). It is sturdy and easy to put up. The only issue I have is that it is a pain to attach to the bus so I don't bother - I just have bus and awning near each other. I have read lots of threads about the best way to attach the 2 and many users seem perfectly happy. It seems difficult to get clamps attached firmly without damaging you roof gutter.

Here is a pic from WILL:



Another tip - if the weather is bad, drive to the campsite looking cool in your bus. Then hire yourself a static caravan with central heating etc.!

I was gonna go the Coleman event shelter route Mark, as you can park the van under there in the shade during the day & then put the sides on in the evening to shut the world outside & sleep in peace without needing curtains/screen cover plus you're still undercover in the rest of the shelter to cook Or chill

Do you need an awning & an event shelter Mr P or is just being greedy????







Coming from the fella with a camper & caravan & awning & gazebo & 2 tents,
Only when the whole family is there mind!!!!

I use a small Kyham Tourer, easy to put up and smallish when packed...



Once it has the ground carpet etc in it's a home from home

Can only advise you on what I've got and had.

Had a Royal traveller tunnel awning (top pic). It was dog ....! Used it for a year and sold it on. Unstable, pain to put up. Bad use of space etc etc.

Got the Khyam 2nd hand. Used it for 3 years. It's brilliant. Can't fault it. Takes up a bit of space in the bus but is worth it for the ease of use and space it gives you when you arrive. Honestly takes less than 5 minutes to put up on my own. (Less if the weathers bad! )

Used it in all weathers.

A friend has the Vango air beam tent. Similar size to yours. They've used it twice and broken it twice. It may be that they're not using it correctly but it did end up in them storming off home on the first night away once as they were so p'd off with it.

Read lots of reviews and go for what you want dude.

Nick

Hi Mark

This is are setup and been very happy, very Easy to put up and take down, which comes in a very nice bag, keeping all very tidy

fab feed back guys

exactly what im looking for

thank you all


Mark

I have to disagree with maclarni, The Royal Traveller Tunnel awning I had was awesome! Didn't take too long to put up and withstood the fiercest weather ( bigbang 2012 included) Downside was it didn't seal brilliantly to the ground so could be a bit drafty, the best £40 I've spent on an awning. I lost it off the roofrack on the a12 racing a fit bird in a corsa (she won!) went back for it but it had disappeared!

This was our other one an outwell florida highway, spent quite a bit of time choosing this one as the other outwells seemed to only leave you with a corridor area after you had put the sleeping bit in, this one we could put our table and chairs, cooking facilitys and fridge and still have plenty of room to move.



Lovely quality awning, not the quickest thing to put up and VERY heavy when packed up. It served our family of 5 well as the lazy teenagers could sleep in the sleeping compartment whilst I got up and made breakfast etc...

Nowadays think I'd go for the smaller kyham quick erect jobby as family circumstances have changed, it'll either be me and the Girlfriend, me and the Daughter or me and the Stepson so we dont need a massive awning. ...Maybe change tact and go for a gazebo and/ or a small pup tent to store deckchairs etc, certainly a lot cheaper than an awning that never properly fits a lowered bus!

I guess the main thing for choosing an awning is the size of your family, thats why one can have a small collection of awnings suitable for every occasion lol

Thesickness

Good heads up mate thanks



Mark

Evening mark, i have a tunnel/traveller/whatever its called one, its a two handed job putting it up but robust enough to cope with the mayhem it gets exposed to when we are on tour! Although if its a family camping jaunt then the bell tent comes out to play! I can put that up on my own quicker than the tunnel one with help (equals no arguing with my mrs!) plus being canvas it doesn`t make that swishy noise that modern awnings make when its windy. I have pictures but i don`t know where!

Hi Mark, we had a royal traveller 3 bus tent for years and it was storm proof! Took a bit of practice to erect so bought an outwell country road, was a medium size awning and seems twice as big as the old tent!very well made and has been very easy for me to throw up in ten to 15 minutes.Got it from Vanfest from JK for £200 as we couldnt afford any more and so far its been superb. Thats the old bus tent from royal.
new one from Outwell ,shows the reasons for big roofracks! And my little treasure:-)
shows the joint to the van, best Ive had for sealing and use this for overnights only. Hope you find what your after, seen pump up air awning, but I connot afford them for a four weeks a year.

We had a Royal Traveller tunnel job for a long time from here: http://campershop.co.uk/ (its near us, we picked it up). Getting the poles in and tensioned up to form a semi circle was a real pain and in the end was a limiting factor to wanting to move between sites. It was sturdy though, it just flexed in strong winds. Quick erect is the way forward, especially if you want to keep moving.

SC
~~