For my next tent, I have it narrowed down to two. I am deciding between the Alps Outfitter Taurus and Meramac. The Meramac has more screening on the sides but the rain fly doesn’t cover the doors completely. Our scout troop has had the Meramacs for the last 8 or 9 years. They have performed really well. I can order through Hikerdirect. The Taurus is 159. Meramac is 149. Footprint is an extra 25. I am weighing rain fly coverage vs ventilation.

Has anyone purchased or used either of these two tents? Thoughts?

Alps Outfitter Tent Link

I have had the Taurus Outfitter 4p for a couple years, after using it on an outfitted trip the year before. I've taken two 3-person trips since buying it (2 adults, one adult-sized kid), and it's been comfortable for us, even with my teenage son flopping around in his sleep.

I really like the rain fly "porch," and it was probably the deciding factor when I considered these two. We stash a pack or our shoes in there for the night and they generally stay dry. It is shorter than the Meramac, but I haven't found that to be a problem.

I don't have the footprint, but we got about as good a test as I can imagine last summer. We got absolutely walloped on our last night, it poured for several hours straight and was running all around our tent on a gentle slope the whole time, and nothing got through.

They each have two doors and aluminum poles, so that's good. Between the two I'd go for the Taurus because of the vestibules and better coverage of the door area. A good vestibule is a big plus, even if in this case it means just a little more (6 oz for the 3p) weight.

I purchased Alps Taurus 4P Outfitter tents for a Boy Scout troop for many years as quartermaster. In our troop the Taurus 4P tents gradually replaced Timberline Outfitter 4 tents. The two advantages of the Taurus tents over the Timberlines for our troop were vestibules and cost.
The costs of the Taurus and Meramac are similar. Both tents are very tough. Both tents weigh 10 pounds. The main difference between the two tents is the Taurus design that incorporates vestibules. I'd go with vestibules because of the extra storage space they provide and the option to open tent doors during warm weather and rainstorms for increased ventilation.

Taurus for sure. Vestibules are something I started without and absolutely required when I bought my own. They let you store your boots and other gear on the outside of the tent, but still be covered. Just for the dew alone this is nice. The double door system is great too. You can get out of the tent and shut it before opening the rain fly. This is great for when the bugs are bad, its raining, or even for just a little privacy.

There are little to no downsides. $10 extra and 6oz for the little bit of fabric that can provide a lot of benefit. If you don't want it, just pull it back.

I'd go with the Taurus.
Never gone wrong with a full coverage rain fly. It can be rolled back or removed. Hard to stretch one when the extra coverage is needed/desired.
Also the screened sides on the Merimac (or any other tent with low screened sides) can feel like sleeping in a cold wind tunnel for any camping not done in the summer.

Thanks all! I ordered the Taurus and it was delivered yesterday. Of course, after I ordered the tent, they sent an email about a killer leap year sale. If I waited I could have paid $104 rather than $159. I was tempted to order a second Taurus. I was strong and resisted temptation. I’m not a canoe camping gear hoarder, I’m a collector!! HaHa!!

TomP: "Thanks all! I ordered the Taurus and it was delivered yesterday. Of course, after I ordered the tent, they sent an email about a killer leap year sale. If I waited I could have paid $104 rather than $159. I was tempted to order a second Taurus. I was strong and resisted temptation. I’m not a canoe camping gear hoarder, I’m a collector!! HaHa!!"

I ordered one as well at $159.

I actually managed to score one during the one day sale, but I would have paid the $159 just as well. Still a great deal. We used to have the 5p version of this tent. Only complaint was that the sides had a tendency to buckle in high winds, but I think that may be because the poles were a bit thin for the size of the 5p tent. The 4p has the same diameter poles but with the smaller size I'm hoping it holds up a bit better to the wind.

We never felt the need to use a footprint with these given the heavy duty floor. IMO if a tent needs a footprint then they're only selling you part of the tent and you have to buy the rest of the floor as an 'accessory'. I refuse to support such shenanigans. :)

Do the Taurus. You can't go wrong with the vestibule and door coverage. As I looked at them both, in terms of window/door covers, it appeared as if the Taurus could become the Meramac, but the Meramac could not become the Taurus.

Mike

I think you'll be happy with the Taurus. My troop uses Taurus 4 and 5 OF tents. They take a lot of abuse from the kids and are still going strong.