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20-08-2023, 01:15 AM
(This post was last modified: 20-08-2023, 09:14 PM by Erich.)
Chris KC,
I may give the owner of NEMO a call. I had interviewed him about ten years ago about his Air Beam tents which I tested and reviewed. They have mostly gone to aluminium poles, but began their line with the inflatables. I also have seen that Halfords makes some tents with the air beam technology. As you say the inflation system is compact and works well. My first use for my test came one late night on a canoe trip in Canada. The cabin turned out to be crawling with pack rats, well just one noisy one, so I bailed and in the dark, only having read the instructions before I started the trip, I very quickly was able to get the tent set up. The tubes are a similar diameter to the Moseley ones, as well as appearing to be a similar material.
Erich in Mukilteo
As you say Tony, the outer tube, the U shaped one, is inflated harder than the inner one. This gives good support for the sides and front, and the inner one, being inflated less, allows your bum to sink in a bit. What I have not seen discussed here as yet, is what major advantages the design offers. First off, foam, for instance, even closed cel foam, will tend to compress over time. On a long journey, this can be an issue. Then there is adjustability. The air tubes are infinitely adjustable. With foam, you have to play around with foams of different stiffness. This is how modern car seats are made. A one size fits all approach. Even my Norton Commando seat was made with several different types of foam to achieve comfort. But with the Moseley type, you can adjust the pressure to suit you. The company I'm working with wants to reinforce the tubes, which is in their line of experience. But I believe that flexible walls, such as on the originals, works even better for comfort. Right now we are working on the material end, as well as the valve part. Bryan Purves used Schrader valves, which function well. Moseley used a simple valve with a plug, which was fine for the period, but I think can be improved upon. In my whitewater canoes, we used float bags which have a simple plastic mouth inflated valve, which can easily be evacuated. NEMO type tent valves may also offer an alternative.
Erich in Mukilteo
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Location: Sherwood Forest
Car type: 1938 Talbot Ten Airline
I would suggest a mouth-inflated valve would work best - the cushions need surprising little pressure to provide the necessary support.
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I agree Mike. Bryan had changed to Schrader type valves because he said there was some health regulation issue in the UK regarding supplying with mouth inflated valves. The air bag valves I have on my white water canoes are quite simple. And of course require no special pump to inflate or evacuate.
Erich in Mukilteo