[b0w_bender]

I took the family on a camping trip a couple of weeks ago and when we putted the tent poles out I noticed that the bungee cord that went down the center of the poles to hold them together had all be cut. This is a relatively new tent it was only the third time we had used it. The weight of the poles pressing down on the ground or floor ended up cutting the bungee cords. This wasn't a deal breaker just real annoying when trying to setup the tent the poles kept falling apart as we tried to flex them, very frustrating. When I got home I replaced all the bungee's with a heavier bungee cord but I needed something that would help prevent the damage. I decided that I needed to some how capture the end with foam to prevent them from finding a hard surface to press against. Several brainstorms later I settled on PVC pipe and I went one step further and built a box to throw them all in. I made the box big enough to hold the poles, stakes, tent, ground cloth, rain fly and the hammer to pound the stakes in with. Seems I always forget that friggin hammer. Here is what I came up with. Enjoy!

 

[b0w_bender]

For the tube that holds the big poles I wanted foam that fit in both ends and that made it a challenge to put the cap on and off. I didn't want to stuff the foam in every time I loaded it up so I came up with this idea to put in a joint 6 inches from the end. This essentially made a 6 inch cap that would hold the foam inside it. All the caps and half of the joint are glued together using PVC glue. You can see the silver sharpie marker lines indicating where the tube comes apart. By doing it this way I was able to stuff the foam rubber in both ends and not have to ever deal with it again. You'll also notice that I used a piece of parachute cord and some plastic tubing to make a handle for the end. If you have ever tried to pull apart a PVC tube you know it can be challenging. by putting the handle on the end it's a lot easier to pop off the end.

 

[b0w_bender]

Lastly I made a second tube that is actually two parts. I cut out a round piece of PVC sheeting and put it in the center splice to bisect the tube into two compartments. The longer compartment (on bottom) has foam stuffed into the ends and holds all the smaller tent poles and the shorter part holds the tent stakes.

 

[Bryden Kinniard]

Nice craftsmanship and it will keep the mice out.

 

[b0w_bender]

Ya those fury little [email protected] will destroy a tent in short order, I hadn't thought of that but that's a good point too.

 

[mibowhunter2094]

Looks good! Great idea

 

[onyx48166]

Good job

 

[BluMeanie]

Well done!

How much more does it weigh? Not that it really matters - the pluses outweigh (no pun intended) the minuses.

 

[huntingful]

Good job.

 

[oldschoolcj5]

problem solved - nice job

 

[b0w_bender]

Well done!

How much more does it weigh? Not that it really matters - the pluses outweigh (no pun intended) the minuses.

Since it is an eight man tent I doubt we'll do anything with it except yank it out of the car and set it up right there. Having said that the weight is significantly more I would guess an extra 6 or 8 pounds.