Walker Tent/Awning for T@B 400 Experience

julieinvail

I bought one used (for a 320) before I knew it was impossible to set up on my own.  I think it would be much better for a couple of people than just an individual.  If anyone wants to buy my Walker tent I'd be happy to discuss.

Blueespy

knoxville1915 said:

@Ratkity
After having the Walker Tent in a box for over a month, we finally had the opportunity (and TIME...more on that in a moment) to erect it. It is wonderfully well made and provides a large enclosed, protected space. It includes all the front and side panels and curtains as seen in this picture. It does not come with flooring, so you will need carpeting of some sort. Some things to know before getting this for your 400:
1. You can only use it if the ground permits stakes. As you can see from the picture, we did not stake the walls down, just the storm straps and corners. It was not windy by the time we were finished erecting it, so we decided to forego fighting with the dozen or so stakes in the rocky ground.
2. You will need a ladder or step-stool of some sort to pull the awning along the Keder rail over the apex of the arc. I backed up my Tundra and stood on the tailgate to be able to pull the awning along the highest portion of the Keder rail. Unless you can get up to where you can pull the awning straight towards you along the rail, it won't budge (only took 45 minutes to figure that one out..once I did, the awning slid easily along the railing).
3. You need two people. If there is ANY wind of any sort, the tent will act like a giant box kite. Attempting to secure the poles that run from the trailer to the door side of the tent is not fun when the tent wants to lift off he ground!
4. The first time you want to erect this tent, plan on A LOT OF TIME (a few hours). There are a lot of parts to this tent that must be assembled (you know..."some assembly required") including clamps, poles, clips, tie-downs, etc. that, once assembled, can be left in place for the next time you use the tent. The instructions are not the clearest, but you will need them; this is not an intuitive project.
5. Be patient! It will be worth the effort. We were beginning to regret our purchase when we couldn't get the tent to budge along the Keder rail. Once we solved that, we had other obstacles to figure out, but we did and we are very glad we persevered...you will be, too!

I will more than happy to answer any questions anyone has about this product. I may try to put together an assembly video to help others navigate the instructions.

Wanted to add some comments regarding the Walker Tent.  We recently upgraded from a 320 CS-S to a 400 BD Lite.  For the 320, we purchased a Walker tent.  Now, the Walker tent is NOT designed for any of the boon dock models.  Reason being the BD models have larger tires, so the sides of the Walker won't sit flat as in the picture.  I'm 6'2" and could put the Walker up by myself.  Sliding the tent along the camper rail was a problem until I took the time and a drill and double checked all the screws in the Keder rail.  One trick for us is we color coded the poles.  Once the tent was up, I used various color electrical tape so I know the pole sets now.  I also didn't remove the cloth tabs that are connected to the camper that the poles connect to.  Just one less step and after multiple trips they haven't moved. 

Blueespy

Wanted to add some comments regarding the Walker Tent.  We recently upgraded from a 320 CS-S to a 400 BD Lite.  For the 320, we purchased a Walker tent.  Now, the Walker tent is NOT designed for any of the boon dock models.  Reason being the BD models have larger tires, so the sides of the Walker won't sit flat as in the picture.  I'm 6'2" and could put the Walker up by myself.  Sliding the tent along the camper rail was a problem until I took the time and a drill and double checked all the screws in the Keder rail.  One trick for us is we color coded the poles.  Once the tent was up, I used various color electrical tape so I know the pole sets now.  I also didn't remove the cloth tabs that are connected to the camper that the poles connect to.  Just one less step and after multiple trips they haven't moved. 

Lesley_and_Ian

We have a Walker tent too.  We have no problem with the kedder rail as we put some teflon spray along it and it has been easy peasy.  We do find the weight of the fabric and the complexity of the setup frustrating.  I'm not sure I would buy it again.  Even with 2 of us it is a challenge.  We color coded the poles as described and that helped a lot. Ours came with a floor mat.  if you need one Aldi is selling something much like ours for a very reasonable price. 
One issue we had was the lack of bug screens.  it was like sitting in a plastic bag in the midwest.  I set to and made a new front for it using zippers I purchased from the company and bug screen.  it worked out pretty well, certainly well enough to use and to keep bugs out while letting breeze in.  Now I plan to make a side panel if I can master the kedder rail construction.

awandler

Lesley_and_Ian, can you provide any more details on how you constructed the screened front?  I love it and would love to do something similar.

Lesley_and_Ian

It was an adventure. I didn't really know what I was doing.  I'm a decent seamstress but I did it in winter when the T@B was in cold storage.
I called the company in the Netherlands and ordered the zippers which was the biggest hurdle.  My mom lives in England so they mailed them to her.  Might be really expensive to do it to USA.  They cost me over $100.
Then I used the tent parts as a pattern and used black bug screen from JoAnns I used a thicker screen for the bottom half so it would withstand some wear and tear.  I laid the fabrics on top of each other and "sealed" the joins with some thick ribbon I sewed on. same with the joins to the zippers.  it was a challenge to keep the zipper parts separated so I would be sure to use the correct piece to zip in to the existing tent. I am not really finished yet.  i was going to add some loops for tent pegs but think not as we need to be able to go in and out of the zipper at the front.  Next time I take D@isy out I can take some detailed pics if you are interested.

DigitalSorceress

I like the design but good golly yes, that's expensive. I understand that the small demand for a custom product means it's costly to produce etc.. and If the quality of materials and craftsmanship are high, it may well be a great investment for some..

I am really leaning toward keeping the "side tent" I have (a cook shack from Reliable Tent and Teepee that works well for my needs for a medieval event) and maybe do a DIY awning for when I'm not in need of the whole extra room (one two week long event each year)

Deb55

I know it's not as pretty, but an EZ up screen room costs about $130, and they work great at keeping bugs out. Granted, it's not attached to the T@B, but it's a whole lot cheaper! 

mjwaldner

We just picked up a used Walker awning for our Tab 400. We were fortunate to find one locally from a person who sold their Tab but did not sell the awning with it for some reason. For anyone who has purchased one of these new. Did they originally come with a diagram that shows what pipes to connect together to make the teardrop shape? Or did they just have the numbers on them? It looks like all the numbers have mostly rubbed off so it is hard to know how this is supposed to go together. And the instruction manual is mostly useless. I'm sure we will figure it out but before we try I wanted to see if anyone had a diagram. 

Sharon_is_SAM

@mjwaldner - someone is selling one on the forum.  They may be able to help.

Lesley_and_Ian

We sold ours but this is the you tube video we found helpful. We sorted out which pipes fitted together then we used colored tape to color code them for the future.  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KCmkUR4vF00

GregChris

these comments are 4 years old, so things must have changed since this thread. Our new to us 2021 320s bd came with a walker tent, any previous assembly must have bee already done. After watching a youtube, it took about 20 - 30 min for my wife and I to set up the top part. With a little struggle I think I could have done it alone. We did not put the side/front on, but they both have windows with screening. Also the front can be tied open on both ends. I probably wouldn't have paid $2,000 for this, but since it came with the 320, I'll be happy to use it.

Dame_plume

Love mine for longer trips or to take guests along.  I actually set it up alone with no problem. It only takes a little practice.