Since first seeing Bill Mason's films, I always wanted a baker style tent. Usually my trips are more nomadic, but lately I've been growing more interested in base camping and need a larger tent that I can really "live out of". Most tent makers' tents are prohibitively expensive, so I thought that one day I would make my own; however, I never had the time to make one or a real need to own one. With the pandemic I found myself with a NEED to fill my TIME, thus a new baker is born.
Mine is made from a 10 oz Sunforger canvas (a very dense weave). It measures 4'-6" deep x 7' across. The front is 6'-6" tall and the back is 2' tall. There are screened-in windows in the rear with panels that can drop down for weather. The screen front door zips up the center and along the bottom. All screens are sewn into 1.5" canvas double-folded tape which itself is held in place to the tent with 1.5" velcro. This allows me to remove the screens to be repaired easily or to be removed if I want to take it out in the winter and add a stove inside. (Not likely since I've also made two winter canvas tents - but who knows...?!) The floor is an 18 oz vinyl covered polyester fabric. The diagonal "wings" on the side are my own twist to the traditional design. The canopy can be dropped down and zippered to the diagonal wings to create a covered area in the event of a driving rain. I thought of the diagonal wings as a weight savings option and to simplify the set up. The vertical poles are Easton "Big Bore" .742" aluminum poles and the ridgepole is a homemade 1" 3-piece electrical conduit job. I tried the Easton poles for the ridge, but they bent too much in the center (as I had suspected) so the whole tent sagged about 1.5". It weighs 27# and the poles add another 8#, so this is not exactly an UL tent! 2 people can fit, but it's a very comfortable 1 person tent.
As I mentioned earlier, I've built a few tents before (including a 16' diameter tipi) but this baker seemed to be the most difficult of all of them. I think this is partially because of the geometry involved, but also because I used a heavier/tighter weave canvas for this project. The 10 oz Sunforger was tough to sew through - my domestic machine could handle 4 layers, but only with a great deal of negotiation. Fortunately for me, I have access to a 100+ year old Singer that ripped right through the thickest parts of the construction. I work in a college theatre dept., so our empty stage (i.e. huge, flat, clean, smooth surfaces) was invaluable to the layout process. I would love to compare it to a professionally made tent. My efforts are passable (function over form!), but I always marvel at the level of perfection inherent with a skilled and knowledgeable crafts-person. I really respect that level of work!
I'm taking a few nights out in the backyard to break it in, then I hope to take it up to Maine for a 2-week solo trip to really stretch it's legs. Wish me luck!
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