army pup tents???

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Alan 13~7

Settler
Oct 2, 2014
571
5
Prestwick, Scotland
I know there are multiple threads on this subject I've been searching for around 1/2 hour not found what I m looking for. Any hoo "Belgian Army PUP Tent" (2 1/2 ponchos) I am buying them tomorrow

3 kg weight inc wood poles, I am going to want a second set poles & a ground sheet I think, I am thinking a little more weather protection & cosier than a tarp but more flexibility than a tent but with the safety of a tent while asleep Ie "the fear" for me is the prospect of waking up to a "gone" kit
I've been looking at 2 Dutch Army ponchos but @ £56.00 second hand compared to £38 for a new unissued Belgian Army PUP. the price is right
So apart from the obvious:~ its a bit on the heavy side @ 5kg
Has anyone any thoughts on "Belgian Army PUP"
 
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Philster

Settler
Jun 8, 2014
681
40
Poole, Dorset
Alan
I've not tried the PUP tent but have used the Polish Lavvu tent a lot. Weighs about 3kg and gives a good nights sleep with as it feels nice and solid. The Lavvus come out much cheap :)
Hope this helps
Phil
 

Jaeger

Full Member
Dec 3, 2014
670
24
United Kingdom
Aye Up Allan,
I've had plenty of experience with 'pup'/ridge style tents/basher set ups - I would second Philster's recommendation to go for the Polsih Army Lavvu - cheaper (£25 from Military 1st) roomier, nice to be able to sit up in etc and around the same weight. I've just spent several weeks seriously modifying one for winter use. Be aware that there are three sizes, identifiable by the number of (vertical) aluminium pegs holes at the point where the two halves join together - i.e. - 1,2, or 3 denoting the largest size. I'm just under six feet and have gone for the largest size giving me about a foot extra space.:)
 
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Alan 13~7

Settler
Oct 2, 2014
571
5
Prestwick, Scotland
Alan
I've not tried the PUP tent but have used the Polish Lavvu tent a lot. Weighs about 3kg and gives a good nights sleep with as it feels nice and solid. The Lavvus come out much cheap :)
Hope this helps
Phil

Hi Phil I do like the Polish Lavvu tent I was torn between the two, & as I am new to the whole tarp experience, for now I have plumped for the Belgian pup I may well still end up with the polish Lavvu tent. I have the advantage of not being long at 5' 4" I will have a play with various configurations & see how it goes with the pup,
What sleep system do you use with the Lavvu tent ...?
Bivi bag etiquette? is the intention to sleep fully clothed in one or are you supposed to use with a sleeping bag inside? I have a compact folding sleep mat which I have not tried yet.... next is to get the rest of my sleep system sorted?
 

Alan 13~7

Settler
Oct 2, 2014
571
5
Prestwick, Scotland
Aye Up Allan,
I've had plenty of experience with 'pup'/ridge style tents/basher set ups - I would second Philster's recommendation to go for the Polsih Army Lavvu - cheaper (£25 from Military 1st) roomier, nice to be able to sit up in etc and around the same weight. I've just spent several weeks seriously modifying one for winter use. Be aware that there are three sizes, identifiable by the number of (vertical) aluminium pegs holes at the point where the two halves join together - i.e. - 1,2, or 3 denoting the largest size. I'm just under six feet and have gone for the largest size giving me about a foot extra space.:)

Good to know about the size thing Jaeger

Maybe I need to rethink this! (Military 1st don't seem to have them for now anyway?) Not on their web page at any rate.

MMMMMM.....is it altogether possible I may have been a little hasty in my decision to plump for the Belgian pup then.... I will give it a try & if it doesn't work out I suppose as it's new it will survive enough to sell it on!

Saying that now that I have had a chance to experiment with it I rather like it.


Belgian army pup tent (unissued) 2 poncho halfs complete with poles


poles are issued & in need of renovation.. but still relatively easy to come by on ebay I will buy 12 spare pole setions to play around with...

& if the weather is not to inclemint then how about this? Extra 8 pole sections make up the 2 front support poles, this configuration takes care of the sitting up issue.. just shut it down for night time note the 2 back poles angled to give a little more sleep room & as I am a petit 5' 4" there is plenty for me & all my gear too.


pup tent day time set up


I am now thinking of adding a third half, with a little button mod it could make for a more draft proof fitted ground sheet ?
 
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Philster

Settler
Jun 8, 2014
681
40
Poole, Dorset
Alan
I'd get out there with what you've got - it answers a lot of questions ;)
Sleeping in the lavvu - I have a piece of groundsheet I put on the floor, my sleep mat and a sleeping bag. Nothing crazy!

Here's a link for a Lavvu - http://www.militarymart.co.uk/polish-army-dome-tent-lavvu-teepee.html

A bivi bag is a waterproof cover for a sleeping bag. You don't need one if you're not going to get wet so not needed inside a tent.
Hope this helps
Phil
 

Jaeger

Full Member
Dec 3, 2014
670
24
United Kingdom
Aye Up Allan,

Apologies - I should have written Military MART - not Military 1st. I only purchased mine about three weeks ago and they said that they had plenty in stock. The one that I received was in practically new condition and well worth the £20 for the two shelter halves, 8 pegs and four ally pole sections (the 'poles' come in different sizes too).
Yes that image is of the middle size.
Be aware that the tent set was normally issued between TWO soldiers (as an individual poncho/half shelter) so the weight was divvy'd up - but at around 3.5 kg for the whole (basic) set I haven't found that an issue as I'm used to regularly humping 25+ kilos around the countryside.
If you go on Utoob you will see a number of Lavvu set-up demos and modifications.
In my opinion the versatility of the Lavvu system beats most others (throughout the 5 seasons!) - poncho, half shelter, full bell shelter (and here is where you may not have been too hasty with the pup tent halves!) two spaced apart half bell shelters with a short ridge style canopy in between! (with some minor fettling) So whether in a base camp, short walk-in or overland hike situation it provides you with options.
As for your sleep system, again versatility is the answer: full (leak proof!) OHP = perhaps no h20 proof sleeping bag cover; half lavvu = h20 proof cover. And don't forget that a bivvy bag isn't just about h20 proofing, it does add a degree of heat retention too.
Jaeger:)
 

Alan 13~7

Settler
Oct 2, 2014
571
5
Prestwick, Scotland
cheers Jaeger, I see where your coming from I would like to see pictures of your mods & various setups, I was thinking A Bivi bag for heat retention & protection against drafts as I imagine the pup could be drafty. & with a Bivi bag the
possibility of eliminating the need for a ground sheet. I have plenty ideas but question is are they sound & practical?
 

Jaeger

Full Member
Dec 3, 2014
670
24
United Kingdom
Aye Up Alan,

Glad to be of assistance,
I've not long been a member of the BCUK community so not sure if I can post images yet but hope to do so at some point in the (near) future.
The Lavvu mods are well advanced but still a work in progress (I'm just awaiting the latest Fabsil waterproofing coat on the outer to dry as we communicate!).
I think I've got a pretty interesting and useful take on the mods and I would like to share them in due course.
Without going into the detail I've got decades of living outdoors experience - as my employment - a MAJOR point that I learned at the outset - do NOT skimp on under-body protection - the ground will sap heat from you in minutes via conduction - I've recently 're-enjoyed' the experience whilst laying on a thin groundsheet, on my lawn, seam sealing some of the Lavvu mods and felt the heat-sink - yes, in August - with an air temp of around 18 degrees C! I would recommend that you always use a waterproof ground sheet - i.e lightweight ex German army AND either a closed cell foam or an inflatable ex Brit army ground insulation mat. AND whenever possible, if you can increase the air-gap/insulation beneath the ground sheet by way of a few layers of fern/bracken/moss even leaf litter, that is the way to go - think - stop moisture rising/stop heat descending and you stand a better chance of a good night's kip or a comfortable long duration observations event. By design insulation mats are narrow and it is highly likely that you will at some point slide of it during your slumbers - the groundsheet being much wider mitigates that. A bivvy bag (or a survival bag!) (if you are not actually sleeping IN it) by the way can be used in the same fashion as the old army issue palliases - fill it up with aforesaid foliage and it keeps it all in place - underneath you - and can make a fairly comfortable improvised mattress. (note - we're back to that word that I used in my previous post - versatility!) :)
 

Alan 13~7

Settler
Oct 2, 2014
571
5
Prestwick, Scotland
Hi Jager good call about the bivi bag "comfortable improvised mattress". watched some utoob... one fellow had a eureka moment wile filming his video the Belgian pup half is the perfect shape for a ground sheet in the Belgian pup (so 2 more halves on my shopping list) as is the lavvu but at a much later date.... I had the same problems with posting pictures too for a long time I thought it was an admin issue as I wasn't a full member....

But If you use a host (for me it's flickr) This is then the location of your picture, view in flickr as normal you get it by clicking the arrow like sign at the bottom right when on Flickr. (the share image arrow) a popup box appears click on the word "BBCode"

scroll down bring up the sizes click on "medium 640 x 419"

left click & Copy the code that's under the word BBCode:

The code is ready to go, the result is your pic showing when you post your thread and when your reply goes live it should appear

It did my nut in. I couldn't see the wood for the trees, no excuses I was just being a knob... (the bb code thingy & the size of the picture was the last piece of the puzzle for me). I was over complicating the solution, sounds silly but I was so frustrated with it before that when I finally managed it I was so chuffed ...
 
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Jaeger

Full Member
Dec 3, 2014
670
24
United Kingdom
Thanks for that info Alan, I will refer back to it as soon as I've completed the Lavvu mods and I'm ready to post the images.
Meantime - have fun.
BTW whenever I'm out and about, as soon as I identify a shortcoming/improvement etc in my own C&E or better MO I always write them down in my note pad/enter in the notes app on my mobile so that I can then work through them on my return (otherwise brain fade can set-in!) I'm still doing it after 35 years in the field - just goes to show that there is always something new to learn.
Good luck.
 

Alan 13~7

Settler
Oct 2, 2014
571
5
Prestwick, Scotland
Me too Jaeger but for me :~ as I identify a shortcoming/improvement etc I tend to go the other way they tend to pile up in my brain keeping me awake at night being mulled over pre planned stage by stage in advance of the build till its perfect. it's things that probably should be more important that tend to suffer brain fade (apparently this way of thinking comes part in parcel with being dyslexic) I'm now thinking "pitch the Belgian pup" on top of my 6' x 4' trailer for trailer camping..... this is not a new idea I've been mulling this over for years, by sacrificing my old 6' x 4' ridge tent for this purpose.
The Idea has now been rekindled/inspired by Utoob US pup tent pitched on back of a 5' pickup truck bed. & the pup would not be destroyed in the process....
 
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crosslandkelly

A somewhat settled
Jun 9, 2009
26,265
2,212
67
North West London
These are a couple of my Laavu setups. I know a couple of people who have used the Dutch army tents, and they said they leaked like sieves.

1 poncho setup.
Old school kit 001.jpg
2 poncho setup.
[video=youtube;qV9qRDSSOZk]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qV9qRDSSOZk[/video]
 

Alan 13~7

Settler
Oct 2, 2014
571
5
Prestwick, Scotland
cheers Mr crossland I really liked the look of the Dutch army tent & was thinking of getting one, until the bad reviews rolled in and put me off. With The Polish lavvu reviews seem to be all good, so The Polish lavvu is a definite must on my wish list when I can afford to splash the cash that is...
 
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