I bought a Howling Moon in 2001 and its still like new and never let any water in. It was expensive but the quality is very good.
Edit: Sounds like they are still made in South Africa and the 'major Australian brand' mentioned in the post below was perhaps ARB?
Hey Guys,
Over the last 3 years, Bundu Gear has been the importer and principle dealer for Howling Moon camping gear. Many people do not quite know where the brand fits in, and what it is and where it comes from; I've even heard that we have been compared to some brands with origins in the East. Many people have never heard of us at all. While many people know our competitors very well, the benchmark may not be what you think it is. So here is the scoop.
In a nutshell, Howling Moon is arguably THE premier canvas RTT brand in South Africa, not only outselling every one of our competitors in Southern Africa, but also being outfitted on almost every off-road rental vehicle and safari outfitter in Southern Africa. This includes the 2 largest 4x4 rental companies, Kea Campers, and Britz/Maui.
Howling Moon was started in 1999 by a South African, Dave Fraser, in Durban, South Africa. Dave has over 35 years experience in the textiles and garment industry, so the man knows how to put some fabric together. The company was created as a blank page, starting from scratch, with all new designs and material specifications. Howling Moon was created under the umbrella of Jurgens Ci Canvas Division, which had been making premier awnings and canvas goods in South Africa since 1970, so we're talking a business which has been in operation for close to 43 years. Jurgens Canvas is the largest manufacturer of camper awnings, and tents in Southern Africa, using in excess of 1,000,000 ft of fabric every single year!
In the early days, Howling Moon actually produced many tents for a major Australian brand, now being manufactured in Asia. Howling Moon actually pioneered the "touring"style tent, which is now copied widely, many brands of which are unfortunately easily confused with Howling Moon.
The brand was also the first to use the composite baseboard, which is lighter than wood/ply, more resistant to rotting and cracking, and very accurately made on CNC routers, all in-house.
Here's a little run down of the features of a Howling Moon tent:
Fabric - A 380gm, 60/40 Polyester/Cotton ripstop blend, manufactured right in Durban, just miles from the Howling Moon factory. The only brand to actually use renowned local fabrics, and not from Asia. This means we have the best consistency, quality and color fastness and made exactly to specification. The fabric is heat and pressure impregnated for waterproofing, then treated post-production with a flourocarbon (Teflon) for superior waterproofing.
Zippers - Only YKK are allowed in the factory.
Rust and corrosion resistance - what isn't canvas, is Stainless steel or aluminum.
Ladder - The strongest and most comfortable ladder on the market, rated to over 400lbs on the ladder alone.
Mattress - The thickest on the market, at a full 3" of high density Polyurethane.
Thread - we use a corespun poly/cotton thread (the inner thread is polyester, and then is wrapped in cotton), so even the thread is waterproof, by allowing the thread to swell in its own hole, and seal up any water ingress.
Cover - the Howling Moon covers are designed to be THE most waterproof and dustproof covers on the market. Period! Even the legendary 'bull dust' of Australia is kept out.
Design - Howling Moon is the ONLY tent in the US market with a Stargazer feature. This is a zip-open roof which allows you to lie in bed and stargaze, or just get superior ventilation in your tent. We use tongue and groove at the joint for extra strength. Our perimeter aluminum extrusions allow the tent to be completely and relatively easily removed from the base.
Factory - Our staff is happy! Sunny, airy, spacious conditions with a great work environment. No 9-year olds on our production lines. Happy workers; This is what makes a huge difference.
So, if you wanted to know where to place Howling Moon in the scheme of things, just look right at the top; that's where you should find us.
And just in case you all wondered where the heck i came from; I am Zimbabwe-born, South Africa-raised, and after Business School spent 8 years as a guide in Southern Africa. Vacations were spent in my Defender 110Tdi traveling to Botswana and Namibia, exploring and often getting lost.
Cheers all,
Rou
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