Vango Orchy

[DaveS]

Thought I'd do a round up of Vango Orchy Family tents... unfortunately I'm not able to buy or pitch them all, but I can collect information on them in to one place!

If you have one of these please reply to this post giving a review.

Vango Orchy 400, 500, 600

Orchy 400
Capacity: 4 people
Total Weight: 11.50Kg
Pack Size: 72x28x25cm
Pitching Area: 680x460cm
Pitching Time: 20min


Orchy 500
Capacity: 5 people
Total Weight: 12.00Kg
Pack Size: 72x29x26cm
Pitching Area: 770x490cm
Pitching Time: 20min


Orchy 600
Capacity: 6 people
Total Weight: 15.30Kg
Pack Size: 71x32x27cm
Pitching Area: 770x520cm
Pitching Time: 20min







Vango Orchy 600 Floor Plan


Vango Orchy 500 Floor Plan



Vango Orchy 400 Floor Plan

[Lesh]

Just bought this tent and tried it out for the first time last weekend. It met all our needs, was a bit tricky to put up, but I guess all bigger ones are and we will get better at it (took us an hour). Has plenty of living space (a table and four chairs easily) and room to move a bit in the sleeping area, i.e. a couple of double inflatable beds plus space at top or bottom and a bit at the sides. You can't stand up fully in the sleeping area, but this doesn't really matter as it's just somewhere to sleep. Our priority was more space in the living area. We also bought the footprint ground sheet to give that extra layer between you and the ground. This was mainly due to the bedroom area being sown into the tent ground sheet, but it also means that it keeps the tent ground sheet clean and helps to protect against snags or moles (yes they do pop up in fields occasionally). From others we viewed at GoOutDoors, such as the Outwell Navada M and Hi-Gear (also called Gelert Lakesbury), the Orchy 600 stood up against the high wind and rain better - great timing to see tents in their worst condition. This was probably due to the dome, cross over bars making it more robust. We would have equally gone for the Navada M, but it was sold out everywhere, including on line. The Orchy though is cheaper (£175 on-line) and ticks the right boxes if you are after a light weight tent (under 16kg), easy to store and pack easily in not too big a car (such as our Fiesta). I'd say it would suit a family with two children, though would also take four grown ups comfortably (bedroom can be split) Recommend also buying the porch poles as this gives shade. One small gripe is that the front seems to bow in oddly, but that's probably me being fussy and could be how we put it up - will get better at this and am looking forward to our next camping trip in a few weeks.

[DaveS]

Will be interesting to see if it becomes easier to put up after a few attempts.

I'm sure it will. We were much better last time after reviewing the video of how to put our Outwell tent up again just before we went.

[2gocampin]

Hi all,

Just joined the site and yet to do our profile bit but being nosy before hand and came across this thread and thought I would chip in quickly.

We have an Orchy 600 and they do suffer from the droopy door syndrome, however we have cracked it !! the 2 guy lines that come off the end of the brow pole fillets, the one's with the brass eyelets, peg the guy lines directly forward of the tent, in doing this it pulls back on the fillets and at the same time pulls the brow pole upwards which resolves the baggy door issue.

Hope this helps and we will return once our profile is sorted.

Great site and Dave .... good choice of tent !!

Gary

[DaveS]

Hi all,

Just joined the site and yet to do our profile bit but being nosy before hand and came across this thread and thought I would chip in quickly.

We have an Orchy 600 and they do suffer from the droopy door syndrome, however we have cracked it !! the 2 guy lines that come off the end of the brow pole fillets, the one's with the brass eyelets, peg the guy lines directly forward of the tent, in doing this it pulls back on the fillets and at the same time pulls the brow pole upwards which resolves the baggy door issue.

Hope this helps and we will return once our profile is sorted.

Great site and Dave .... good choice of tent !!

Gary

Welcome and thank you for the tip on the droopy door.
Look forward to your profile getting sorted!

[Former Scout]

Although I do not own an Orchy a friend of mine bought a 500 on the basis of initial, positive reviews. I have pitched it a few times and camped with it.

The tent has two areas: a dome living area and a tunnel-style sleeping area. You can comfortably stand up in the living area though, being a dome, the maximum height is very much located towards the middle and, as you move towards the side, anyone taller than 5'5" will very quickly find that they cannot stand upright. Also, compared to Outwell tents there aren't many windows; so if you are stuck inside due to poor weather it may feel a little claustrophobic.

In the bedroom adults will not be able to stand up straight, even at the highest point. But there is plenty of headroom for adults to sit up and for children to stand. The biggest gripe about the bedroom, however, is the space. Vango claim that this is a five-berth tent and yet it is 10cm narrower than my Outwell Minnesota four-berth. I find this rather disingenuous of Vango.

Pitching this tent is definitely a two-person task; the living area poles are long and bendy, so don't even try to pitch it solo. There are two short brace poles towards the front and back of the living area that can require some strength to slot into place.

There are two doors that gain access to the living area; the main one at the front and a side door. However, both are on a slant and so, if it is raining, you have to be quick to unzip, get in/out and then re-zip the door. Therefore I would suggest that either a canopy or extension is pretty much essential.

There are contradictory accounts about how well the Orchy can withstand inclement weather. Although we had plenty of rain (but then, who didn't over the last few summers?) there was no sign of water leaking in. We didn't have any wind to speak of and, to be honest, I was glad. I'm not convinced by its stability in strong wind; those living area poles are very long with only one node, though those two brace poles will add a little to the stability. Some have commented that the dome collapsed in strong winds whereas others swear by its stability.

In the words of Oscar, I was whelmed with this tent. It's attractively priced and ambitious in what it tries to achieve, but too many corners are cut in order to get there within the price bracket. In fine, fair weather it's very good; but when can we guarantee fine, fair weather?

BREAKING NEWS:- The above review is for the first generation of Ochys; for the 2010 and 2011 range of Orchys Vango made a significant alteration to the design: the front brace pole has been replaced with a longer pole that crosses each of the two living area poles and down to a pin fitting at the base of the tent. This seems to greatly increase stability and make it slightly easier to pitch.