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Gram gave a lot of helpful thoughts. I'd like to add that I've never regretted money spent on better equipment, and have frequently regretted purchasing budget equipment to save a few bucks. I've done a ton of tent-camping over the years, and have owned everything from the cheapest department store garbage to very good gear. In beautiful weather that's not hot or you're in the shade, pretty much any tent is fine. High wind and heavy rain are the great differentiators when it comes to tents. The Coleman, Eureka, Hillary and several other much worse tents I've owned over the years all leaked, and a LOT. Even with a properly setup ground cloth, we woke up sleeping in a puddle on many occasions. In hot weather and direct sun, it was like living in an oven, even w/ the windows and doors open. Moved up to a Kelty; much better, shed wind a WHOLE lot better, and a great design for ventilation even in rain. The full rain fly, however, was designed poorly and dumped water onto the corners of the main tent, where it eventually found its way into the tent. Close, but no cigar.
Now, I have a large North Face for family camping and a small NorthFace four season Mountain tent for backpacking. They are AWESOME. Completely stable; the large base tent withstood the fringes of a hurricane in North Carolina a year or two ago that collapsed almost every other tent in the park, AND we were bone dry inside. The small mountain tent is even better.
So, yeah.. you get what you pay for. If you're going to be tenting in bad weather, get a good tent. The better the weather, the worse the tent you can get away with. Get a good tent, with a FULL rain fly that covers the entire tent. You won't regret it the first time you get caught in a monsoon.
Enjoy!
Barry
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