The Story Behind Tent Design
Recently, I’ve been surrounded by many DIY enthusiasts sharing their handmade creations. While most of these aren’t related to tents, it made me reflect on my own journey of designing a tent. Inspired by this, I wanted to share my thoughts on the DIY tent design process.
Understanding Tent Design
At the heart of any good tent design is accurate measurement. As long as the calculations are precise, you can create something truly remarkable.
From what I've gathered, there are generally four types of tent companies:
- Self-developed and self-manufactured with in-house sales
- Self-developed with small batch production, and large batch manufacturing through factories
- Self-developed or factory-developed with large batch manufacturing
- Cheap replicas made with low-cost materials and pricing strategies
Part 1: My Love for Small, Independent Tent Companies
I have a deep admiration for small, independent tent companies that design and produce their own products. These companies have the most basic, fundamental tent-making knowledge. These skills are honed through countless testing and trial and error, and I consider that process incredibly valuable. I've had similar experiences, and it's exhilarating to be a passionate adventurer, immersed in your own studio, crafting the perfect outdoor gear, preparing for a long-distance trek. The excitement is undeniable. This DIY approach is quite mature in the Western world, and it’s been flourishing since the last century.
Part 2: The Type of Tent Companies I Dislike
The second type of company is one that I dislike. These companies engage in dishonest practices that mislead consumers. It’s not about mass production from overseas factories at a low cost; it’s about having goods produced overseas, then repackaging them simply with labels like “Made in [Country]” when they return home. This kind of dishonesty really frustrates me, and I won’t dwell on it much more.
Part 3: The Leading Tent Brands
The third category includes established and successful tent companies. These companies produce large volumes of tents through overseas manufacturing, which is normal to reduce costs—it's an efficient way of doing business. They also have cutting-edge design teams, often leading the industry. The major brands are able to access the best materials and resources, such as fabric suppliers, aluminum pole manufacturers, and accessory vendors, who all provide the newest designs to these leading companies first. To be honest, I envy them a little!
Part 4: The Copycat Problem
The fourth type refers to companies that engage in low-cost, mass production in China, often copying other brands’ high-quality designs. While this phenomenon occurs globally, it’s a clear reflection of the capitalist market—where cheap manufacturing is prioritized. These companies, unfortunately, don’t understand the essence of tent design. They often even claim ownership of designs they’ve copied and get into legal battles with the original creators.
The underlying issue here is capitalism, which has nothing to do with pure passion for outdoor gear. This is why these companies can't innovate or create original designs. In fact, many of these companies have no real understanding of tents.
That said, I prefer not to discuss politics here. I'm just an outdoor enthusiast and gear designer. HillZero is a brand from China, but that doesn’t mean it’s a low-quality product. There are a few Chinese tent companies with similar high-quality products, and I’m proud to be one of them.
The DIY Tent Design Process
Everything I’ve shared so far is based on personal opinion and should not be taken as gospel. Now, let's move on to something much more interesting—the DIY tent design process.
I have many friends who are into DIY projects, though most of them are not related to tents. The common reason behind these DIY projects is to fulfill a personal need. Many of us share the same experience: we see designs on the market that don’t quite meet our expectations or the prices are too high for us to afford. Yes, it’s true—it’s about that "personal stash" of money!
Step 1: Collecting Materials (For a Tent)
The materials used in tents are varied and include:
- Main fabric: 7D / 10D / 15D / 20D / 30D / 40D / 70D / 210D… mainly nylon
- Mesh fabric: 10D / 15D / 20D… polyester or nylon
- Aluminum poles: 7.9mm / 8.6mm / 9.0mm / 11mm / 13mm… and also carbon fiber poles
- Hardware: WJ / UTX / ITW / YNS
These are just a few examples. Let’s take a simple case for precise description: DIY’ing a pyramid tent based on the HillZero RheumNobile 4-6 (https://www.hillzerogear.com/).
Firstly, we should prepare 30D nylon fabric. The amount needed depends on the size of the tent, and we should prepare enough for two sets. This tent requires 22 yards of fabric, so we need to buy 44 yards. Since the first model is often a failure, I always prepare a backup fabric set.
Next, we gather other essentials like hardware, sewing thread, YKK zippers, and aluminum poles.
Step 2: Rough Size Calculations
As mentioned earlier, “All tents are based on basic size calculations. As long as the calculations are accurate, it can be done excellently.”
Tent design can be imagined like building a house. We start with the known dimensions of the tent base (depending on the size of the tent you want to create). For example: Diameter 420cm (165 inches), Height 240cm (94 inches).
We calculate the ridge length of the sides. Whether you use a computer drawing program or do it manually, you can easily determine the measurements. Since it's a regular decagon, each panel is identical.
Step 3: Creating the Model (1:20 Scale)
In this stage, we add elements like zippers, ventilation windows, and guy-line attachment points to the model. The model allows for a visual representation of the tent’s overall structure.
Step 4: Preparing Cardboard for Fabric Cutting
Once the model’s details and measurements are correct, we can create a full-scale pattern. Some may wonder why we need to make this pattern—it's to ensure accurate dimensions for cutting the fabric. Tent fabric is large, and it’s impossible to mark directly on the material. We need to prevent size discrepancies since even a 1cm error can drastically affect the final result.
A few things to note:
- Sewing allowances must be added. High-quality tents use double stitching, so we add 2cm extra for seams in the pattern.
- Straight lines aren’t always straight. Fabric is soft, and tension can cause warping in the middle, so we need to account for this and adjust accordingly.
- Fabric classification is crucial. Despite being a decagon pyramid tent, each piece is different due to factors like fabric width and optimal fabric usage.
- Fabric grain matters. Straight grain has no stretch, while diagonal grain has elasticity. This affects how we lay out the pieces to avoid future issues.
Step 5: Sewing and Assembly
Typically, small parts like windows, zippers, and reinforcement patches are sewn first. Then, we move on to assembling the larger body of the tent, piece by piece.
Sewing may sound simple, but it’s an art. If you’re unfamiliar with sewing machines, it can be quite a headache. Achieving high-quality stitching requires skillful hands, and this task is not for beginners. However, DIY enthusiasts can certainly give it a try, and even if it’s imperfect, it’s your very own creation—something you can proudly use.
Final Thoughts
DIY tent making is an incredibly fun and creative hobby that adds energy to your spare time. Each step of the process has its unique challenges, but with patience and persistence, you’ll learn to solve them. Remember, advice from others is helpful, but only through your own effort and understanding can you overcome these challenges.
Thank you for reading! I’ll continue to share more tent-making processes in the future. The pyramid tent is just a beginner’s project, but to make it truly precise requires meticulous work. If you have any questions, feel free to email me at: nicksan@hillzerogear.com. I’ll do my best to respond!