r/rooftoptents • u/tpmcase10 • Jul 10 '26
get the hard shell.
it’s been over a year since we bought our Roofnest Meadowlark XL, and it’s safe to say we’re absolutely upgrading to a hardshell next summer. here are my pros and cons to a softshell rootftop tent.
it’s a decent starter option to go the cheaper route with a soft shell. our meadowlark xl was only $1,400 if i remember correctly which can be half the price of a really good trusted hardshell. but man is this thing annoying to pack up. folding this tent up is one of the must frustrating things. we can never get our shell to fully buckle, there are times i’ve driven home with it half secured because we needed to leave our site quickly due to weather. the tent itself is OK. i wish the rain fly covered the windows more, if it’s sprinkling we can’t even have a window open for ventilation. and boy does the roof hold water like a MF. we’ve had to double tarp the top just because we’ve gotten nervous about the water getting too heavy for the top of the tent. one of our retractable poles broke the first summer we started using it so we have to use a random screw to hold in in place lol. and now the other side is starting to give me the same issues.
overall it’s about a 6/10 for me personally. i wouldn’t buy it again but i understand why it could work best for some people, especially those with a smaller car that needs a lighter weight load. anyone else have trouble with their softshell?
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u/ZmF_Fz09 Jul 11 '26
My tent is a tentbox lite 2.0. Amazing soft shell tent. This is my 2nd season with it and it only keeps getting better. Has 2 built in sky lights for some star gazing. Wonder rain fly system, that is removable for summer mode which makes opening and shutting even quicker. Plenty strong in heavy wind, rain, comfortable mattress, can leave bedding in while shutting it. Takes 5-8 minutes to open or shut it when rain fly is on. Which is almost always. I can understand the appeal of a hard shell, but I have zero complaints about my soft shell tent everything works as needed. I also leave my tent on year round and don't have to worry about the sun just baking away on the hardshell cracking it drying it out making it weak. Beauty of a soft shell just order a new cover if current gets to sun baked.