Upgrading a 3 Season tent to 4 Season?

LtDansLegs

Member
Aug 16, 2023
37
9
23
Lancashire
How do all
Just wondering if there was any way to upgrade the Wild country Conshee 3, from 3 season into a 4 season tent? Love this tent and have used it for years, but plan on doing some more winter camping this year and would love to make sure it survives!
I understand that a sheltered area or better sleep system will help keep me warm, just wondering if I could add anything to the tent first?
Many thanks
LTDansLegs
 

Broch

Life Member
Jan 18, 2009
8,452
8,312
Mid Wales
www.mont-hmg.co.uk
Forget about the description of '3 season' and '4 season'; it's mainly a marketing term. How are you going to use the tent? A 4 season tent is usually more robust so that it can deal with higher winds and, possibly, heavy snow. If you're not planning on going out in those conditions or sleeping up on the peaks in foul weather, then all you need is good clothing and a good sleep system. Your tent is perfectly capable of dealing with low temperatures, rain, wind, and snow - just not the extremes.

I have backpacked in white-out conditions of minus 15 and at altitude in a '3 season' tent in the past. Wild Country Conshee is a good wedge shape to deal with wind if you pitch it carefully and make sure you have good pegs.
 

Ystranc

Settler
May 24, 2019
535
404
55
Powys, Wales
It is reasonably easy to upgrade poles, guylines and pegs if you feel the need. Many four season tents have snow skirts around the outside edge or deeper tubs on the tent’s inner but certainly not all of them.
I would suggest pitching somewhere sheltered until you have the measure of how your tent is performing as a winter tent. I have also seen lightweight tents that have been retrofitted with a flue jack in order to use a wood stove.
 

Tengu

Full Member
Jan 10, 2006
12,973
1,627
51
Wiltshire
Ive never done so but I would start by

Reproofing (Something I do regularly anyway)
Upgrading guys...maybe doubling up.
Upgrading pegs...maybe adding some specialised.
Getting a undergroundsheet
Have you got a repair kit in?
 

Ystranc

Settler
May 24, 2019
535
404
55
Powys, Wales
Another suggestion that isn’t totally tent, use a cot if your ceiling height allows it. It’s astonishing how much warmer it is once you’re above the trapped cold air and no longer in contact with the ground sheet (heat sink)
 
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Paul_B

Bushcrafter through and through
Jul 14, 2008
6,399
1,688
Cumbria
I had a WC Hoolie etc until a pole broke 3 days into a week's cycle tour for no obvious outside force. The tension in the pitch was possibly the only stress on the pole but it had a design defect in a three pinch hole fixing of the pegs on the end of each pole segment, this fractured suddenly. It had 9mm superflex poles I think.

In my case the poles could be replaced with equivalent aftermarket DAC or Easton pole segments due to them being straightish poles. Unfortunately the pole failure put holes into the pole sleeve. We got away with a pole tube repair for the rest of the trip but it went back.

In your tent there's a prebent shape to the poles. I doubt you can get those replaced with better brand of poles. If you can get DAC or Easton poles to suit then I'd suggest that's a good idea to consider. I'm not a fan of WC tent poles, simply don't trust the brand. I fact I'd check every pole segment before each use to see if they have those crimp pin fixation method and if they do makes checking them before each use for signs that they may be close to failure.

As to 3 season to 4 season, I do agree it's marketing terms and pitch location, shelter, risk of snow, where the flysheet ends, inner construction, etc are more important than a marketing label.

Also brand is significant. Hilleberg nallo of a friend survived a bad storm despite only being a 3 season. Another friend on the same trip had an ultra quasar fully geodesic 4 season mountain tent I think with the snow valence too. It snapped a pole. Reason was the rigid geodesic tent survives by resisting the wind, but it has a failure point. The tunnel tent flexed, a lot, but the flex took the energy out of the wind gusts before damage is caused. However hilleberg do over engineer their tents in terms of strength. A 3 season, supposedly low level tent from them is likely to equal or be better than other brands so called 4 season tents.

In your case I'd suggest with due care about where you pitch and the winter conditions you camp in you can get by in winter in your tent. With regards to your tent brand, if its got those crimp holes in the poles get and carry a metal pole sleeve plus duct tape just in case. WC don't supply them with their tents, vango do, but you can buy them aftermarket. Suggest buying one from vango direct, I think they'll sell them on their website.

Sorry about being so negative about the brand of tent you have. I think you can understand why after reading about our tent failure. We only managed to continue with our main family holiday because I had on the spur of the moment stuffed my vango tent repair kit in the WC tent bag just before we left. Vango supply them with all their tents back then.
 
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Pattree

Full Member
Jul 19, 2023
2,086
1,123
77
UK
Hmmmmm. I’m not a hiker these days.
I use the same single skin tent all year round. By most assessments it’s a play tent.
My seasonal adaptation is usually another sheep skin underneath me.
It’s the clothes that vary.
 

birchwood

Nomad
Sep 6, 2011
458
108
Kent
Bit confused about the suggestion to uprate to Easton poles for Wild Country tents.
I have about 5 WC tents and they all have Easton poles.
Is it the new versions that have inferior poles ?
 

LtDansLegs

Member
Aug 16, 2023
37
9
23
Lancashire
Forget about the description of '3 season' and '4 season'; it's mainly a marketing term. How are you going to use the tent? A 4 season tent is usually more robust so that it can deal with higher winds and, possibly, heavy snow. If you're not planning on going out in those conditions or sleeping up on the peaks in foul weather, then all you need is good clothing and a good sleep system. Your tent is perfectly capable of dealing with low temperatures, rain, wind, and snow - just not the extremes.

I have backpacked in white-out conditions of minus 15 and at altitude in a '3 season' tent in the past. Wild Country Conshee is a good wedge shape to deal with wind if you pitch it carefully and make sure you have good pegs.
Thats good to hear, I had wondered what the difference would be between 3 and 4 season tents. Not planning any heavy snow camps just yet, so in theory the Conshee should be golden.
Many thanks
LTDansLegs
 

SaraR

Full Member
Mar 25, 2017
1,651
1,209
Ceredigion
4 season tents usually have vents up high and a fly that goes all the way down, possibly with a snow skirt. Vents up high used to be a lot more common but it seems like US tents especially just rely on cut outs around the bottom of the fly and that's become more common generally nowadays. If you're not camping in snow you'll be fine with regards to ventilation. If you're inner is heavy on mesh, you might want a sleeping bag cover and a hat to sleep in. Or just position your stuff up wind inside the tent.

4 season tents also tend to have beafier poles. Depending on your tent's construction, you might be able to double up on the poles. But if you're not expecting snow, I wouldn't worry, unless you're not very confident in your tent's ability to cope with high winds generally. Perhaps add some guy lines. But careful site selection helps a lot too.

For the warmth aspect, having a second body (human or canine) in the tent helps a lot! If that's not an option try to limit wind hitting you directly (e.g if you have a mesh only inner).
 

Paul_B

Bushcrafter through and through
Jul 14, 2008
6,399
1,688
Cumbria
Bit confused about the suggestion to uprate to Easton poles for Wild Country tents.
I have about 5 WC tents and they all have Easton poles.
Is it the new versions that have inferior poles ?
Looking at the terra nova site there's a lot of wc superflex poles. AIUI these are proprietary poles made for them by a pole manufacturer. If they were DAC or Easton poles I have no doubt that they'd put it on the website since these pole brands are widely recognised as the best tent poles for lightweight and technical tents.

Our WC hoolie 3 ETC was bought about 7 years ago. It was pitched the first time in a campsite in Oban the night before we left on a week long cycle tour. It had another night then the third pitch it snapped the pole in mild conditions. Nothing more than a gentle breeze that even the midges weren't troubled by. Nobody was nearby and we'd not done anything to cause the damage ourselves. Retailer accepted it as a manufacturing defect and we got our money back.

I think the issue is that after TN took WC over, being competing brands TN couldn't let WC exist as it did. So I believe after a hiatus WC came back as a slightly budget / car camping / festival tent brand with cheaper and ostensibly lower spec tents. I suspect this included cheaper poles using cheaper manufacturing techniques like crimping instead of friction fit and/or glue. The crimping puts in 3 smal holes with the punched out tab being a flap digging into the pin that needs to be fixed to allow the segments to be joined. If that makes sense.

I hope that explains the situation as i see it better.
 
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Great egret

Full Member
Apr 17, 2017
180
122
Netherlands
I always thought the outer shell of a 4 season tent drops down to a little over the ground to keep snow out and the outer shell of a 3 season stops just above the ground for ventilation.
 
Jan 2, 2024
5
0
55
USA
Totally different situation than what most of you guys are experiencing since I live in the southeastern US and rarely deal with more than a few below freezing nights each winter.
But all of my tents are 3 season modern renditions of the classic baker style. Depending on the tent and exact situation I typically stay very warm & cozy by building my fire 3 long steps from awning, staying up off the ground and using appropriate sleeping bag.
Typically use my OneTigris Tigersden in cooler times because the auxiliary panels can help keep the wind out. On those trips I’ll use a propane buddyheater under awning if needed
 

Pattree

Full Member
Jul 19, 2023
2,086
1,123
77
UK
Weeeeeeeell. My tipi has a snow skirt. It was sold as an alternative piece of camping kit but when I got it the literatures said it wasn’t for use in heavy rain!

Many modifications later it became my main AYR tent. Dunno what the skirt was originally for but it’s a snow skirt now (If we ever get any more snow).

It also has four huge mesh ventilators which I rarely close.
The tent keeps things out of the weather, including myself but it’s the rest of my kit that keeps me warm.
 

birchwood

Nomad
Sep 6, 2011
458
108
Kent
Paul_B thanks for the explanation.
I do understand about the new WC brand being 'sub standard', I just wish that they had dreamt up some new names for the new range instead of calling them by the old ones - Trisar etc.
It was a standing joke with a mate when we were setting up camp - " just because you have got Easton poles" as I sort of shook the pole and it all flicked into place.
 

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