Gazelle Tent Lineup and Gazebos

What Gazelle makes for campers and hunters

Gazelle makes hub shelters. On this site that's two types: sleeping tents, from three-person models to two-room tandems, and screened gazebos that work as a camp kitchen, a bug room or shade in the yard. One pop-up model is listed as a beach shelter.

The maker's site adds the parts around them: footprints sized to each tent, all-terrain stakes, Overland accessory kits, and a line of clip-on accessories it calls Gazelle Connect (a table, lights, a cup holder). The grid holds a few tents sold with the Overland kit; the rest of the accessories are on the maker's site.

The grid above shows what's on Amazon right now, filtered by type. It changes every week, so I'll write about the lines and what separates them, not about how many are listed today. Tents across brands are on the camping tent page, and fast-pitch designs on the instant tent page.

How a Gazelle hub tent goes up

The maker's own description is short: pop out each side and the roof hub, and you're set. The poles come pre-assembled into the hubs, which the maker calls hub technology. Push a hub outward and that wall goes taut. No poles to thread, nothing to match by color.

A hub is a joint, and as a shop teacher I'll tell you a joint is where things bend and where things get fixed. The upside is you can see every one of them from inside the tent.

The setup time the maker lists for its hub tents is about 90 seconds. Its gazebo pages give 60 and 90 on the same page. I'd plan on the 90, and the first time, in the yard, I'd plan on a cup of coffee. The National Park Service's advice is the same for any tent: practice at home before you go.

Lineup notes: Gazelle tents by model

T3X: the three-person hub tent

The T3X is the small one. The maker lists 43 square feet of floor for three people, with a 210D Oxford polyester shell rated to 2000 mm of water pressure and a 300D floor rated to 5000 mm. The standard T3X is listed at 28 lb and the T3X Overland Edition at 30 lb.

The Overland Edition is the maker's kit-heavy version: a removable rain fly, a 300D footprint, all-terrain stakes, reflective guy lines and a water-resistant duffel. The maker says the floor is removable on this one, too.

T4: the four-person standard

The T4 is the one most people mean when they say "a Gazelle tent." The maker lists it at 94 by 94 inches, 61 square feet, 78 inches tall at center and 30 lb, with six mesh windows and two D-shaped doors. Stakes, guy lines and an oversized duffel come with it. Same shell and floor ratings as the T3X.

In the grid it also appears as the T4 Overland Edition and as a T4 with the Overland kit, which adds the accessory pieces. Read the listing for what's in the bag.

T4 Plus, T8 and the Tandems: the big ones

For six to eight people, the grid holds the T4 Plus and the T8, whose values come from their Amazon listings, and the T4 Tandem. The maker's site still sells a footprint sized for the T4 Plus and T8.

The T4 Tandem is two rooms joined into one footprint: 165 by 94 inches, 110 square feet, 78 inches tall and 56 lb, per the maker. It lists a convertible screen room, a zippered privacy panel between the rooms, a removable rain fly, a removable floor, two gear lofts and a pile of pockets. An Overland Edition and a version with the Overland kit are in the grid too.

Fifty-six pounds is a two-person carry from the truck. Danny will volunteer. Danny always volunteers, and then he finds out what he volunteered for.

Backcountry T5: the four-season model

The Backcountry T5 is the one the maker calls "true four-season." It has a heavier 300D ripstop polyester shell and is listed for five people on 73 square feet, 79 inches tall, at 61 lb. The maker sells a stove jack kit separately, for a wood stove or heater in cold-weather camping, and a vestibule as an add-on. A larger Backcountry T10 is on the maker's site.

None of the other Gazelle tents are given a season rating on their pages. The maker describes the T4 as offering all-weather protection, which isn't the same claim.

Gazelle gazebos: G4, G5 and G6

The gazebos use the same hub idea with screen walls instead of sleeping walls. The maker calls its screen TriTech mesh, a single-filament mesh it says keeps out small bugs while letting air through. The screen tent page and the canopy tent page cover the type across brands.

What separates the three, per the maker:

• G4 Deluxe: 78 by 86 inches, 46.5 square feet, 89.5 inches tall, 32.5 lb; integrated wind panels, and the front one turns into an awning
• G5: five sides, 115 by 106 inches, 60 square feet, 85-inch peak, 23.5 lb; room for four and a table; wind panels sold separately
• G6 Cool Top: six sides, 124 by 124-inch footprint, 92 square feet, 48 lb; integrated wind panels and a removable mesh top; room for eight and a table

There are also TriTech Mesh versions of the G5 and G6 in the grid, with values from their listings. The G5 is the lightest shelter in the whole lineup, which says something about the difference between a room you sleep in and a room you eat in.

Footprints, panels and the add-on parts

The maker sells a footprint, a ground sheet that goes under the floor, for nearly every model by name: the T3X, the T4, the T4 Plus and T8, the T3 Tandem, the G5, the G6 and the Tandem gazebo. On the G5 and G6 the footprint is sold separately; the T3X Overland Edition and the Backcountry T5 include one.

The rest of the parts list, per the maker's site:

• Wind panels: a 3-pack for the gazebos, plus upgrade kits for the G5 and G6
• Overland accessory kits: sized for the T3 Tandem, the T4 and the T4 Tandem
• All-terrain stakes: sold in a 12-pack
• Gazelle Connect: a base mount, table, light kit, battery pack, cup holder and phone holder that attach to the hubs
• A privacy tent: for a camp shower, changing or a camp toilet

Buy the footprint with your tent's model number on it, since the maker sizes each one to a model. Rule of thumb: the model number on the bag is the only measurement you need to remember.

How to choose within the Gazelle lineup

Buy the floor for the gear, not just the people

The capacity number is a count of sleeping bags. It doesn't count duffels, boots or the dog. A 61-square-foot T4 for four people works out to about 15 square feet each, which is roughly a sleeping pad and a little elbow room. If gear lives inside too, step up a model or add a gazebo for the kitchen. The 4 person tent and 8 person tent pages compare floor sizes across brands.

Then check the carry weight

The maker's weights run from about 23 lb for the G5 gazebo to 56 lb for the T4 Tandem and 61 lb for the Backcountry T5. Hub tents pack long, too: the maker lists pack lengths of roughly five feet on its tents. Measure the truck bed or the trunk before you measure the campsite.

Then decide how many seasons you camp

My one opinion on this page: for a November camp, read the season rating before the floor plan. The reason is in the maker's own paperwork. Its warranty excludes tears, cracked windows and bent poles from high wind, and only the Backcountry T5 is called four-season on the maker's pages. If you camp in deer season, in the mountains, the season rating is the spec that matters. The waterproof tent page explains water-pressure ratings like the 2000 mm figure.

Pitching, care and storage

The National Park Service's site advice applies to any hub tent: pick a large, flat spot, clear sticks and rocks, and stay out of low spots that turn wet in rain. Keep stakes and guy lines away from paths, where they become tripping hazards. Gazelle ships stakes and guy lines with its tents and gazebos. Use all of them. A tent is a sail that forgot it was a sail.

MSR's tent care guide is good advice for any brand:

• Never pack it wet: mildew can form on a damp, crumpled tent in as little as 24 hours
• Store it loose: in a big breathable bag, not the tight carry sack
• Keep it cool and dry: out of direct sunlight
• Clean it gently: rinse with a hose, or hand wash with mild non-detergent soap, never a washing machine

A hub tent that comes home wet goes up in the yard on Monday. That's a Saturday-afternoon fix you can do on a Monday.

Heaters and stoves in a tent

The CPSC says people die every year from carbon monoxide from portable heaters, lanterns and stoves used inside tents, campers and vehicles, and that you shouldn't use portable heaters or lanterns while sleeping in an enclosed space. If you use the Backcountry stove jack, follow the stove maker's and the tent maker's instructions to the letter.

Warranty and who's behind Gazelle

The maker's warranty page says Gazelle Tents are created and sold by Ardisam, Inc. Consumer-use products carry one year, commercial use 90 days. It covers the original owner with proof of purchase, isn't transferable, and needs registration within 30 days. It excludes tears, cracked windows and bent poles from high wind, plus damage from weather and unattended use.

The contact page lists an address in Cumberland, Wisconsin. The site doesn't give a founding year or say where the tents are manufactured, so I've left those out.

Floor for the gear, weight for the truck, season for November. Write the model number on the duffel in marker, so the footprint you order next spring actually fits.