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re-impregnated with waterproofer on any area has been cleaned using a cleaning 
product.  
 

Leaking:  

Cotton can, when new, let some air through and leak around the seams. After the 
canvas has been wet once this will no longer happen because of the cotton 
expanding. Very light stains can appear on a wet tent - these stains cause no 
problems. 
In order to preserve your tent’s water resistance and prolong its lifespan after a 
considerable amount of use, the outside of the canvas can be re-treated with a 
sealant. There are many good spay can sealants on the market, and, as 
mentioned, we also sell re-proofer. 

 
History of Bell Tents 
 

The Bell Tent is a type of tent with walls (about 60cm high) are held up by a 
single central pole (up to 3 metres high). It has a circular floor plan up to 5 metres 
across. Guy ropes were connected every 60cm around the top of the walls - 
these had to be carefully tensioned to hold the pole upright and keep the tent in 
shape. Original Bell Tents had no porches but A frames were added later to 
create a vertical door that is more resistant to letting in the rain.  
 
The Bell Tent was invented by Henry Hopkins Sibley, who had studied the Tipi 
tent during the expeditions he carried out in the Old West. He patented his tent 
design in 1858. In accordance in an agreement with the Department of War, he 
would have received five dollars for every tent they made, however, Sibley joined 
the Confederate States Army after the outbreak of the American Civil War and 
did not receive the royalty. The Federal Army used almost 44,000 Bell Tents 
during the war. After Sibley's death, his relatives unsuccessfully attempted to 
collect the royalties. 
 
We have taken the classic Bell Tent design and have brought it up to date using 
modern materials and proofing, so it’s no longer necessary to hump around a 
heavy old tent that leaks if you touch it in the rain. We are constantly updating 
our tents with developments like the Ultimate, and are always happy to listen to 
peoples ideas on how improve things. 
We hope you have many seasons of enjoyment from your tent, and hope to see 
you in a field soon.

 

Enjoy!!

 

 

www.belltent.co.uk

 

[email protected]

  +447830 355993 

Copyright © 2007 Bell Tent UK 

Summary of Contents for Emperor

Page 1: ... Tenting or just to send in pictures of you Camping with Soul for the gallery on the site The first time you put up your tent it may take over half an hour as you have to attach all the guy ropes This is a one off thing so the next time you put it up it will be much quicker To keep your tent looking its best always try to keep the canvas off the ground and don t walk on it in shoes You can do this...

Page 2: ...s on the groundsheet Find the front door and then find a front corner Using the middle sized pegs peg the loops on the bottom of walls right next to the corresponding pegs in the groundsheet 5 Once you have pegged out the whole tent it s time to attach the guy ropes This takes a bit of time but you only do it once Firstly you need to sort out the guy ropes into their different sizes As below you l...

Page 3: ... medium guy ropes on top of the A frames and half way up roof Shoes off Lastly tie the long guy ropes to the tabs either side of the top cone That s you guy roping done forever 8 Get the A frames and loosen one of the sides next to the top which means both of the sides of the A frame can be put next to each other making it much easier to manoeuvre inside the tent Unzip the front door and put the f...

Page 4: ...nt pegging in the guyropes N B All the guy ropes need to follow the lines of the seams in the roof when there are some as you want to keep the tension even Adjust the guy rope slider so you have approx 50cm of loop to the peg This allows adjustment in both directions It is important to make sure the Bell Tentstays symmetrical and that the tension is evenly spread It is also important not to have t...

Page 5: ...that s just waiting to take off should the wind get up Don t get caught out and end up with a broken tent Don t forget to deck it out with your personal touches and then you are Camping with Soul enjoy xx Connecting to the side door We ve designed the Emperor with two doors so you can get a through draft without the walls being rolled up It also means that you can connect another bell tent or vehi...

Page 6: ...up Now start folding it in so you end up with a strip of canvas the width of the bag This picture gives you an idea even though it s of standard 5m bell Tent Once you have folded the tent into a strip that is the same width as the bag fold both ends in so you end up all the guy ropes tidied in and a strip of canvas about a metre long Next take the canvas off ground sheet remember to keep it off gr...

Page 7: ... time your tent gets wet it may leak a little don t worry THIS IS TOTALLY NORMAL Once it dries out for the first time that shrinkage closes up any little holes to ensure it won t happen again The canvas has been impregnated to protect it from dirt ultraviolet radiation and fungus This makes it mould resistant but not mould proof If the canvas remains damp in a place where mould can grow eventually...

Page 8: ...conditions air pollution ultraviolet radiation natural dirt bird droppings sand salt water and domestic dirt cooking stains soda wine sun cream as these all limit the lifespan of your cotton canvas tent The canvas or your tent should be good for over 60 weeks of outdoor usage if cared for correctly Zippers Zippers sometime have to endure extreme tension caused by wind incorrect tent set ups or pre...

Page 9: ...ere added later to create a vertical door that is more resistant to letting in the rain The Bell Tent was invented by Henry Hopkins Sibley who had studied the Tipi tent during the expeditions he carried out in the Old West He patented his tent design in 1858 In accordance in an agreement with the Department of War he would have received five dollars for every tent they made however Sibley joined t...

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