Guest Blog: OEX New Camping Range 2016

OEX stop by to give us a preview of their bumper 2016 offering 

After our debut year in 2015 and all the fantastic feedback provided by GO Outdoors customers, we’re back for 2016 with an even bigger range than before. Since last years launch we’ve been designing brand new kit in a bid to make OEX a one stop brand for wild campers and expedition participants. The new OEX range features upgraded tents, improved tents, brand new tents, cookware, sleeping bags, rucksacks clothing and more.

There’s so much in fact that we’re going to split this into parts, and in this part we’ll be taking a look at the new tents and camping gear.

Expeditions like DofE offer fantastic experiences to young people, but the kit list can be quite costly. This years range was inspired by making cost effective gear for parents of those on school expeditions, while also creating some fantastic kit for those who enjoy wild camping and backpacking. This is why during product development we often ask expedition leaders that we work with to take the gear out to test with their students, it helps give us a real world test in the right sort of conditions.

 

Tents

We have built on last years tent range to bring even more variety in 2016. This includes improvements on red OEX favourites, a new one person tent ideal for backpackers, as well as a brand new ‘Evolution’ range that features some exciting upgrades.

New Poles
Ask any camper and the first thing they’ll want from a new tent is stronger poles, this is especially true for backpackers. Pitching camp on a hillside can leave you open to strong winds, and you need to feel confident in your tent poles. Most OEX tents and all new OEX EV tents will now come with Yunan T6 poles. Yunan poles are made from a high grade aluminium, and won’t splinter as easy as fibre glass.

 

OEX
This year we’ve brought back some of our more popular models from last year, with Yunan T6 pole upgrades (excluding the Phoxx 1). The Bandicoot and Coyote are both lower profile in design, making them even better in windy conditions.

OEX Evolution

OEX EV tents are premium backpacking tents. The EV range is made from lightweight Nylon 30D / 270T fabric core which has been coated inside with PU (Polyurethane) to aid strength, waterproofing and seam sealing. The outer is a silicone membrane which provides a flexible but highly water resistant coating that beads and repels water, whilst flexing in heavy conditions. A EV tents also feature Yunan T6 poles for  strength and a new guy line tensioning system utilises an Aluminium ‘O’ Ring, which is an extremely lightweight but resilient component that lets you easily make adjustments, even when wearing gloves.

We’ve had a lot of fun testing these tents, and took them with us to Iceland earlier in the year during what was said to be their worst snow storm in 10 years. Keep an eye on the OEX Facebook page for photos of the trip coming soon.

 

Bothy Shelters and Tarps

We will also be introducing bothy and tarp options with our camping range. Our bothy shelters will come in 4 person and 6 person variations and offer a simple survival shelter for small groups when needed. The OEX Bush tarp comes from customer feedback, and ideal multi-use tarp that can be a tent extension, or an outdoor shelter from the rain.

 

Sleeping Bags

We’ve brought back the Roam 100, 200 and 300 sleeping bags for this year and after customer feedback have added a brand new 3-4 season sleeping bag called the Fathom EV. The Fathom comes with Thermolite synthetic fill and has an extreme temperature rating of -23 degrees.

 

Cookware

The brand new OEX cookware range features all the backpacking favourites. This range includes:

4 Different stoves
Stove accessories such as stands, wind blockers etc
Cooksets
Pan sets
Frying Pan
Kettle
Fire striker
Fire sticks
Survival kit

The OEX cookware range will be due into GO Outdoors soon at OEX Shop

 

We’ve gone from a 16 piece range in 2015 to a vastly extended range in 2015 and it’s thanks to the fantastic support we’ve had from the outdoor community. We will return with another blog that features our new clothing range, and some brand new packs & luggage.