Howling Moon Rooftent & Others
 

Am looking to buy a rooftent and came across Howling Moon? There is quite a bit of discussion on Eezi-Awn, Echo and Hannibal but I can't find anything on Howling Moon.

Good/Bad/In-different experiences? Are they a good and respected make in Southern Africa? Are they new or have they been on the market for sometime?
How do they compare with the competition in terms of durability, quality and ease of use? Value for money?

The Zip cover seems to be a pain but other than that they seem ok. The Eezi-Awn seems to have a better system (ratchet straps) but how easy is it in practise? Has anybody tried modifying the zip cover to straps on the Howling Moon?

I think a 1.4m wide tent (any make) is best for our needs (1.2m is rather a cosy fit), but this makes for a tight fit on a roof rack for a Landrover. How easy to get a cover on/off a rooftent on a roofrack with sides? Perhaps, better on a rack without sides? In which case, how strong is the cover against trees/bushes etc? How much protection would a rack with sides offer anyway?


All comments appreciated

Fred.

I don't know anything about that brand, but check out the photos section at:
http://www.africaexpedition.com/
These racks were all custom made to fit the Overcamp tents. They provided protection plus room to hold (too much) gear on the roof.
Overcamp uses a bungee rope with hooks underneath the tent base to hold the cover on.
These racks made it difficult to reach al those hooks. Next time we would leave 3-4 inches all around to allow a hand to fit easier.
-Ed

Take a look at www.overland.co.za and search through the mail archives. Plenty of stuff in there.

Also I have an article from a SA based magazine that did a comparison between 6 different brands made in SA.

Each one is 500kb:
http://www.roamingyak.org/rooftop1.jpg
http://www.roamingyak.org/rooftop2.jpg
http://www.roamingyak.org/rooftop3.jpg
http://www.roamingyak.org/rooftop4.jpg
http://www.roamingyak.org/rooftop5.jpg
http://www.roamingyak.org/rooftop6.jpg
http://www.roamingyak.org/rooftop7.jpg

Hope that helps,
Darrin

I've just completed 6 month trip to Africa with my family. Used two Browchurch tents - brilliant. Getting the cover on any tent is always a bit of a pain - especially on a roofrack. The Brownchurch tents were no better or worse than anyone elses. I've also tried the overcamp tents and although the quality is reasonable, I don't feel that they're really up to the hammering they'd get in daily use on an extended trip. As a side note, I'm selling them all at cheap prices if you're interested drop me an email. I've got no room to store them and don't want to run around with them on the roofrack all the time.

Pete.

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Howling Moon are a well respected make in SA - we opted for the Eeai-Awn and the cover stood up well to al sorts of bushes and trees etc inc Camel thorn

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ChrisC

We did sleep for one year in an Eezi-Awn and we loved it!

We were pretty pleased with the cover, especially since this particular construction does allow you to leave all your sleeping gear (and much more) up there.

Getting the tent up or down is a matter of minutes. We only had some scratches on the cover but other then that no worries.

(we might decide to sell our tent anyway, check with us if you are interested).

BR, Jan.

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If you look at this month's Land Rover Owner International there is an article on rooftents and a comparison on various manufacturers models.

Personally rate the Eezy Awn as best. Well made, robust and good design.

If anyone is interested in rooftents at a reasonable price - compared to UK prices that is - drop me an email, as a friend based in SA and I are considering bringing some Eazi-Awns over. Will need to bring in reasonably large numbers to warrant shipping costs etc.

Let me know.

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ChrisC