French two-person tent, olive drab, surplus

The French army pup tent looks like a traditional boy scout contraption but scaled down for two persons. Made of canvas or nylon with waterproof floor.

Important! Almost every tent we get nowadays is made of nylon material. While not as traditional or breathable from the top, it's much lighter especially when wet, much more water resistant, faster drying and likely more durable.

Big enough for two persons, king size for one and barely fits three, the French tent looks like something used decades ago. Well, actually these are just that. If traditional design inspires you, this isn't a half bad option for leisurely camping: it's sturdy, reliable, neutral shade and for a this price you can't go wrong. The ends can be opened up quickly if necessary and the closed design means nothing gets inside if every opening is shut. Additionally they included insect net covered ventilation holes on each end and sides (velcro operated). Can be erected by one person, but much more easily by two.

Dimensions

• Inside length about 2,1 m, width 1,4 m and height 1 m.
• We were able to fit inside one Euro size 52 and two 48 persons at the same time, with still enough room for them to sleep. See the extra picture taken inside and please do note the blurry moustache on the left.
• If you are going solo, a field cot fits inside. With two normal size persons (and no cots) their gear should also fit inside.
• Measurements packed about 50 x 23 cm.
• Weight for the whole set something like 3,7 kg. You could probably file some off - the wateproof floor probably makes a third of the tent fabric weight, and some may choose to trim it.

  The nylon version with aluminium poles in their stuff sack weighs less than 2,5 kg, excluding pegs and cords. A bag of 6 mm steel pegs weighs almost one kg by themselves, so there really is room to lose some weight, even though this tent will never be popular with weight weenies.

Contents

• The tent itself
• Two poles
• The pegs might not be included - most probably have them, some might not. Any pegs will do, even sticks if the ground is soft enough.
• A bunch of cords to secure the tent to ground. Not necessarily enough (some may be lost), but if you're buying a surplus tent, you probably have paracord already.
• Stuff sack isn't always included, but this will roll up pretty nicely without one. Alternatively you can get just about any shopping bag sized bag for it.

French army surplus

Used, but in good serviceable shape. Should you wish, you can treat the fabric with waterproofing agents. Or why not throw a separate rain cover on the tent? A traditional rain cape will do in a pinch, but a 3 x 3 m tarp is the best. Of course the nylon model is inherently quite water resistant.