Tent Review: One Planet Goondie 1-15D

[corvus]

2nd user review in this thread: on this page, the post above by sthughes » Wed 01 Aug, 2012 12:59 am

First -ve listed.

Bit too cryptic for me rsser as she said "please explain" please
corvus

[bushwalker zane]

2nd user review in this thread: on this page, the post above by sthughes » Wed 01 Aug, 2012 12:59 am

First -ve listed.

I am confused too. We all know the Goondie is an inner pitch first, but I think we could all agree that it'd be swell if it was integral instead. I don't see the harm in listing that as a negative.

[Miyata610]

But it is a negative. What's wrong with having an opinion?

[Son of a Beach]

Good grief!

I find it hard to take seriously a user report on separate-pitch tent that lists as a negative that it isn't integral pitch!

That was clear in the OP and in One Planet lit.

Get real.

I'm not sure what you're getting at here. Surely a review should include both positive and negative comments. Are you suggesting that a review should not include any negative points, or should not include any negative points that were known beforehand? If so, why?

Or are you suggesting that the tent should not have been purchased if it had a negative issue that was known about beforehand, despite everything else in the tent being positive enough to outweigh that negative?

Or are you suggesting that people should have known about this problem beforehand by reading the One Planet description and that we wouldn't have bought the tents if we'd read the marketing better?

None of these interpretations of your post make sense to me, so I'm thinking I must be still misunderstanding what you're trying to say.

I can't speak for the other Goondie buyers who've posted here, but for myself (as the topic starter)...

I knew the tent was not integral pitch when I bought it. That was obvious and I considered it to be a negative issue with the tent prior to getting the tent. However, despite this negative I still believed that the tent would be worth getting and went ahead with it. And I was right, the tent is not perfect, it has some negatives, including this one that I knew about beforehand, but I would still do it all again. It really is that good (for my uses), despite the known negative(s).

When I write a review of a product, or participate in discussion about such a review, I would think it would be seriously deficient to not include any negatives that I knew about whether they were well published by the manufacturer, or others, or not. To only include the positives, when there are known negatives, would be very misleading and very unfair to the readers.

In fact your "get real" comment is very odd. To review or discuss a product and deliberately avoid discussing a negative issue with a product (known or otherwise) would be something that would draw me to tell the reviewer to "get real". Not a review or discussion in which the participants are actually discussing all the issues and attempting to provide balanced and comprehensive information.

I really don't understand what your point is.

[sthughes]

Good grief!

I find it hard to take seriously a user report on separate-pitch tent that lists as a negative that it isn't integral pitch!

That was clear in the OP and in One Planet lit.

Get real.

I'm not gonna waste my breath replying to that troll.

P.S. Except to say what Son of a Beach just said sums up my thoughts near enough

[Nuts]

He probably meant 'why buy the tent, knowing of the inferior design and Then moan about the fact' meh, some comments stir an amusing hornets nest on here though, why care..
Does seem an odd design, surely OP could easily have predicted the response. Looking pretty good otherwise. We used clip caddis tents week after week and the separate pitch is manageable,though it seems outdated.
Good reports just the same. At least the negatives Are being listed.

[Snowzone]

I'd like to thank SOB and sthughes for a good review that includes both sides of the coin. I find most gear usually has some negative that we would like improved but as SOB said its up to the user as to whether that negative is outweighed by all the other good things. In this case I think it is. I used my Goondie 2 for the first time last weekend and was extremely happy with it.
I also may not of looked at purchasing this tent in the first place had it not been for the review that SOB posted. I did not purchase only on the review but it brought the tent to my attention thus adding it to my short list.

[sthughes]

I would have loved to have bought a Goondie, if it weren't for a few of the negatives that sthughes pointed out, integral pitch! That would make it a lot more attractive. I ended up recently buying a Soulo. I think I will put together a large review on that little beast when it arrives! Nice picture by the way, Lake Myrtle is a beautiful place to camp.

Thanks, I look forward to your Soulo review - I very nearly went down that path as well. I had never seen one in the flesh before last weekend so knowing I'm a bit sensitive when it comes to the space available in small tents I was a bit hesitant to fork out over $600 sight unseen. Now, having looked at one I'm still in two minds as to which I would rather, they have quite different strengths, a love child of the two would be perfect for me! (Slightly bigger and lighter than the Soulo, but still tegral pitch and fly to ground)

[Son of a Beach]

He probably meant 'why buy the tent, knowing of the inferior design and Then moan about the fact' meh, some comments stir an amusing hornets nest on here though, why care..

You may well be right. If so, I think he must have confused "providing honest and balanced opinions and facts" with "moaning". Ie, I think that perhaps he's misunderstood how the posts were written (or at least intended).

[Nuts]

Yep, I read that hughsie realised the limitations and chose the tent for the positives regardless. Once tried, he posted what he found. Simple..
rsser may (or not) already own the tent/be over (or under) sensitive/be having a bad day/ have some issue with sth.. who knows... the hit and run style doesn't help.

Personally, I prefer green

[bushwalker zane]

Thanks, I look forward to your Soulo review - I very nearly went down that path as well. I had never seen one in the flesh before last weekend so knowing I'm a bit sensitive when it comes to the space available in small tents I was a bit hesitant to fork out over $600 sight unseen. Now, having looked at one I'm still in two minds as to which I would rather, they have quite different strengths, a love child of the two would be perfect for me! (Slightly bigger and lighter than the Soulo, but still tegral pitch and fly to ground)

I'm quite tall, but I have had a sit and lay down in a Soulo before, as well as a few Aktos. I chose the Soulo over the famous Akto as it has just that bit more space (height and more vertical walls). I am very keen to get some nice photos up and write an in depth report for the forum!

[Ent]

Hi

Good to read reviews by "real" users that spend their hard earned money on items. Products consist of trade offs and I can see nothing wrong listing the ones that a reviewer is not a fan of as a negative. I grow tired of x is wonderful type reviews that miss or gloss over issues.

Integral pitch is a wonderful thing in winter Tassie and almost a mandatory thing on the Hilleberg range. I like the One Planet tent and it deserves to be considered on short list of single person tents. Personally I would forgive it the integral pitch missing if it was longer but at near enough 6'4" this is my common complaint that would not apply to the bulk of the population.

Any top reviews and they give a good idea of the tent.

Cheers

[sthughes]

I used mine again last weekend. Not sure if I had it pitched badly or what but water on the fly dripped off and inside the door of the main tent. That's very annoying.

[sthughes]

Could someone please use a tape measure the next time they have their tent up?

1053mm. Not pegged, out so probably more like 1045mm in the real world.

[Miyata610]

Could someone please use a tape measure the next time they have their tent up?

1053mm. Not pegged, out so probably more like 1045mm in the real world.

Thank you.

[Wingnut]

Picked up my Goondie & assembled, can't help but say I'm a bit disappointed in the quality from OP. The main tent material looks nice but minor details such as the zippers, pegs, fly clips & stitching make it feel like a $50 Kmart tent...

I can only compare to Exped tents but I guess the proof in the pudding will be when it's tested out in the elements...

[Scottyk]

Thought I might drag this thread up again to ask if anybody out there has some long term comments on how the 1 man Goondie is.
I am in the market for a new solo tent and this one looks good but would love to get some of the forums thoughts on the tent now that they have been used for a while.
I like the long floor space and good sitting height. I think I can put up with the lack of integral pitch.
Thanks

[Son of a Beach]

I don't have much more to add. I've used the Goondie a few more times, and my opinion of it has not changed. It's not perfect, but if it was stolen tomorrow, I'd replace it with the same tent again.

There seem to be a lot more Goondie owners these days, so hopefully you will get some more useful comments from other users.

[Snowzone]

I can only speak for the 2 person model but I'm still happy with mine.
I've now used it in a variety of conditions and on a variety of surfaces for near enough to a year now and I have had no issues that would make me swap to anything else.
My positive list includes good ventilation, I have had issues with other tents in the past having a lot of condensation, in the Goondie I have not had this problem.
It has withstood some exposed windy nights without a wobble, even without the guy ropes out!
There has been no malfuntions, breakages or leaks whatsoever. The quality is good and I really like the clips that attach the inner to the poles, they are very quick and easy to use.
Yes the integral pitch would be good but the tent is so fast to erect that I havn't found it to be a huge issue.

[Avatar]

The Goondie 1 is my goto tent.

10 cm wider floor/inner would be good, especially for dressing sleeved garments.

If it did have a rapid pitch fly-only construction mode it could be used as wet lunch shelter.
I think this could be done with a few additional items of h/w and small design adjustments.

The only construction as opposed to design quibble I have is the inner zip top termination attachment with the full nylon inner. OP did a repair for free for me when this came apart and I have now also re-inforced it with a small safety pin to stop the slider forcing its way off the end. I also did a pre-emptive handstitch reinforcement of my Goondie 2 inner zip top terminals. I'd be interested to see if other long term users inspect this area and report back on any signs of detachment. The fix is pretty simple if done early enough.

[Wingnut]

Nice review...

http://bushwalkinglight.blogspot.com.au ... -term.html

[Scottyk]

Ended up getting a OP Goondie 2 30d.
Tossed up with the 1 man vs the 2 but for a 2kg 2 man tent this tent is luxury. The size and dual entry with twin vestibules make it very liveable.
Thought I might post a pic of last nights trip to Lake Bill in with heavy snow over night.
I had to pitch the tent in very wet falling snow and the DWR on the interior worked so well that by the time I got the fly over the tent I hopped inside and the inferior was still dry, very impressive. About 200mm fell overnight and I was more than happy with how the tent performed.
Although the snow would build up on top after a while it would fall off of its own accord or you could sake the tent and it would fall down.
Here's a pic of the tent first thing this morning.

[Ent]

This weekend was certainly a good weekend to test gear out. We were a bit lower on the PCT and it rained like mad at times. Plus hell of a wind but we were in a very sheltered spot.

Good to read the inner can shed a bit of water while been pitched. How did you find the high sides stopping the wind?

Cheers

[Scottyk]

Good to read the inner can shed a bit of water while been pitched. How did you find the high sides stopping the wind?

Cheers

The bulk of the wind came though in the night and whilst the tent moved a bit I don't think it was excessive. It was a bit hard to tell in the dark from within the tent though.
I never felt like I was being battered about though

[Ent]

Hi

Most proper bushwalking tents are good in the wind but more curious how the inner went keeping out the draft with the high fly. In the same spot last year in similar conditions a fellow walker found the tend rather cold. Not nearly as cold as the MSR Nook that was pitched with it but the Hilleberg Kaitum was noticeably warmer.

Cheers

[Scottyk]

Yeah I ended up pulling the fly down tight. I found that if you grab the fly with hand and pull it down, then pull the strap it comes down to within 50mm of the ground. I did notice that I was able to get the fly a lot lower than some of the pictures I saw of the tent before I got it so maybe OP have made the fly a bit bigger?
The vestibule was the same and ended up about 50mm from the ground which I think is fine. Once the snow had fallen down off the tent a bit then all of those clearances became 0mm anyway and the tent was sealed around the bottom. The tent inner is very thin but it only has to stop the wind in my opinion, it has no actual R value in terms of insulation is just stops air movement. I was pitched directly on an old patch on snow, a neo air x-light mat and a WM alpinelite bag and I was toasty.
I had also read on here about the tent dripping into the floor when the door was open. This only happened when the wind blew a bit (the snow was wet at times) and then all I did was peg the floor back about 50mm and the problem was fixed. I sat quite happily watching the snow fall with the door open for the most part and didn't get much moisture fall on the tent floor. Maybe OP have fixed up a few niggles with the tent?, maybe the 2 man version is a little different to the 1 man?
Anyway I I was really very impressed, may last one man tent was a microlight, this thing's a palace compared to that.
Here is a couple of pics to show the pitch before the snow really came down and me using my spoon to peg the floor back a little.

[Ent]

Thanks for the info. Great to see a gas conversion Trangia but I assume that you only used it outside the tent Would not surprise me that One Planet tinkered with a few things as they are prone to correct or improve things without fan fare. Um? a Western Mountaineering fan as well. Must shop at the same place

I went for the Hilleberg Soulo that is arguably stronger and warmer but considerably more cramped and heavier. I think One Planet are on a winner with only the lack of length (ok Soulo is no better) turning me off it plus the lack of integral and separate pitch. Such features are very handy after a few days like you experienced. I made the mistake of not separating my Nallo and "enjoyed" a rather wet night the next night. But I suppose honestly such features not as necessary if the inner can shed a bit of water in the setup and take down period.

Anyway thanks for a great report.

Cheers

[Avatar]

Anyone able to do an update for this tent with the changes since the 2011 release?

[Lamont]

I don't know if anyone is still interested but here goes--I have the G1 solid inner 15d green bought last year after reading SOAB's review above -thanks, don't know about changes but I am 179cms tall and can sit up in the middle with about 2-3cms clearance. Used it maybe 5-6 times no real heavy rain or wind. However slept with porch door/flap wide open with very heavy damp fog, no wind and only minor condensation. Load it in 3 parcels inside an Exos 38. Fly inside across (curved) front rucksack with shape of vent, poles upright (inside also) and inner folded flat (also inside) also across but above fly, it takes up little room- also in Rucksack is neo air trekker wide torso, EE quilt and cooking stuff ti pot and ti cup , 2 cans melbourne bitter,coffee pot, food, whiskey flask and alite chair, the one with only 2 back legs- so comfy!
In "fineish" weather could easily fit food for 3 maybe 4 days on top of above stuff.

[Avatar]

My Goondie 1 30-D Sil/PU polyester fly (the orange one) has reached its end of life. Doing some repairs that may extend its life. Purchased early 2012 on release, so 12 years is not bad. Seam tapes are unbonding at the edges and are brittle. Gluing back is not going to work. The tape unbonding is probably from moisture and exposure to extreme low temps, not so much UV exposure. The Sil/PU polyester fabric title suggests one side is largely silicon coated and the other side is largely PU coated. I'm not sure which is which. I did apply SeamGrip to the seams on the top 1/4 outside of the fly 12 years ago and it is still there with integrity and kept the inside dry on the trip. Found some small tears along the tension seam near the foot corner from a recent snow camp (erected in the dark, cold and drizzle - more tension than usual getting the tension buckle in, but that's another story). The fix was Tenacious Tape to the inside surface and Gorilla Clear Grip to the wound on the outside. Tarzan's Grip and silver Gorilla Tape didn't pass testing. Is clear Gorilla Tape better? It took over an hour and a tube of SeamGrip to complete the application on the rest of the fly and redo the stitching on the bathtub. The new Goondie 1 model inner is now 50mm wider and the new fly will not properly fit the old tent I have.

Goondie 1 2024

Goondie 1 2024.jpg (19.44 KiB) Viewed 4919 times

I can use a backup 15-D Sil-nylon fly with the full inner from now on. Excellent snow and wet weather tent. About $759 now.