Core 6 Person Instant Carbin Tent Review: Great Value at Reasonable Price

Core Equipment is a small team of camping enthusiasts, dedicated to helping everyone discover the wonders of nature and the simplicity of camping.

Their tent always comes with beautiful looking and great features.

The core 6 person instant cabin tent is a best seller, it seems to fulfill all their design goals.

Is it really a good tent? After several days of researching and comparing, we have come out with this review that covers every aspect you want to know.

Let’s get started.

Who is it for & Is it worth to buy

If you are in a hurry, here is our verdict.

The core 6 person instant cabin tent is ideal for a small family camping out with a car for recreational purposes.

It is a warm season tent that can withstand moderate weather conditions.

The quality is good, it provides great value with a reasonable price. We think it is a good choice if you are a small group of people or a family with two or three kids.

It is one of the most popular tents among Core’s product line.

key features

Instant setup

Needless to say, this is a feature you can find in their product name. The instant setup technology is often implemented by pre-attaching poles with the mainframe of the tent, so you don’t need to spend a lot of time connecting it together. This can hugely speed up the setup process.

According to our test, for a first time user it only cost three to five minutes to do the initial try. As you are more and more familiar with the structure of the core 6 person tent, you can even make it in less than 60 seconds.

As you can see from the video below, it shows how easy it is to set up step by step.

Cabin design

As you can see from the product, the roof is flat and the wall of the tent is steep, which makes it look like a real cabin. This is different from a dome tent.

Each type has their own advantage. The cabin style tent has more inner space and often performs well in rainy conditions because the steep wall makes the water flow away quickly.

Core H2O Block Technology

This is a waterproofing technology. You may be daunted first by the tech jargon, but it’s simple. H2O is the chemical symbol of water (if you can remember from chemistry class). This is just a marketing technique that makes them look more professional and awesome.

According to Core, the fabrics for tents and shelters are treated with a PU (polyurethane) Coating. This helps rain and water pill and roll off the fabric instead of penetrating the fabric. The PU Coating also helps resist dirt and stains making it easy to wipe clean when you’re done with your adventure.

Of course, this makes the tent perform well on rainy days. It can withstand 600mm of resting water in an isolated spot without leaking through the other side.

Adjustable ground vent and E-Cable port

Two adjustable ground vents on the lower side of the tent gives you an alternative ventilation in case of the mesh windows zipped off. This is useful on rainy days.

A E-Cable design provides the ability to put a power cord through for electricity. It is often protected from moistures and bugs. In some scenarios like putting the tent in your backyard this is a good feature.

Lantern Hook & Large Wall Organizer

At the center of the tent there is a hook for you to hang lanterns, it is useful because the night becomes dark earlier than our modern sleeping habit.

As you can see from the picture, there is a long large pocket organizer on the side wall, where you can keep items neat and off the floor.

Although many tents have one or more wall pockets, a wall organizer with such a huge size is rare on the market. You can put glasses, cell phones, or clothes inside, safe and handy.

Another interesting usage is you can put an ipad or tablet there so the kids can watch movies in the evening just like a TV hanging on the wall. Actually it is so widely used for this purpose that many vendors even call it with a marketing term “media center”.

Expandable Storage Bag

An important thing many people neglect is the tear down process. It is easy to take the tent out from the bag and set it up, but when you fold and pack it back you’ll always find it becomes a little bigger that can’t fit in the case.

The core 6 instant tent comes with a carrying case that has a zipper at the bottom, you can increase the depth of the case to make it bigger (like expandable luggage). So you don’t need to spend more time trying to pack the tent smaller, which can hugely speed up the tear down process.

This is a very convenient design.

Examine in more details

Weather performance

Rain

With the rainfly and the Core H2O Block Technology, this is a good waterproofing tent. You can use it from moderate to relatively fierce rain conditions.

However, don’t expect too much in storm weather. The official waterproofing rating is 600mm, this is not a very high number. Also we should note, the wall is not so steep that water may dwell a little longer, and the rainfly is not big enough to cover all the windows; those all lowered the tent’s waterproofing ability in extreme weather conditions, although you could always put a tarp over it for improved rain protection.

Wind

From a lot of feedback we can see this tent comes with high quality guyline and stakes, which means if you set up and stake properly it is very steady. Plus the tent is not very high, it can withstand pretty strong wind.

Cold Weather

This is not a cold weather tent. The fabric is not so thick and big mesh windows are vulnerable to cold air. If you want camping on a snowy day, The flat roof can accumulate snow which will gradually become heavier and even crush the tent.

This is a 3 season tent and you’d better use it in warmer conditions.

Door

It has one big zip door on the front side. However, there are some complaints about the door function. It’s a little difficult to zip up because of the way it’s designed, but this isn’t a deal breaker.

Space

With a floor size of 99 ft² (9.2 m²), the inner space is theoretically large enough to fit two queen air mattresses. You can also put two full size beds with more activity space, as you can see in the picture below.

You can put 6 sleeping pads there with an average 16.5ft² (1.53 m²) area each, However, it seems a little crowded. According to our test, this is an ideal tent for 3-4 people with room to store your gear.

Materials

For the fabric, the body of the tent and the rainfly are polyester covered in a waterproofing treatment, the windows are mesh, and the floor is polyethylene (PE).

The poles are made of steel, which is durable and stronger than fiberglass that can be found on many cheap tents.

Ventilation

There are 3 big mesh windows that give an excellent air flow, ventilation is not a problem at all. Furthermore it has two ground vents available when you zipped out all the windows on rainy days.

Price

This is not a high price tent, nor is it a low price one.

Considering the value it offers, the price is reasonable and good. After comparing with many other rivals, we think it has a high price-performance ratio.

Specifications

Pack Weight	23 lb (10.4 kg)
Capacity	Up to 6 people
Season	3-Season
Dimensions	11 x 9 feet (3.35 x 2.74 m)
Floor Area	99 ft² (9.2 m²)
Area per person	16.5 ft² (1.53 m²)
Peak height	6 ft (182.8 cm)
Material	Polyester, Alloy Steel
Pack Size	47 x 9 x 9 in (119 x 23 x 23 cm)

Conclusion

The core 6 person instant cabin tent is a good choice for a small group of people. It is a car camping tent for warm seasons.

It has a good design with high quality. The only complaint is the door is not so easy to zip up. But anyhow, this is a great tent.

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