
A Home Made One Pole 
Auto Camp Tent 
URING the past two seasons of 
D auto camping the one pole tent 
has seemed to be the most pop- 
ular because it eliminates the use of 
many guy ropes, is easily put up or 
taken down, and packs compactly for 
the trip. Having only one pole, and 
this of the collapsible type, makes it a 
very convenient type of tent to take 
along on an auto camping trip. 
You can make such a tent at home, 
during spare time, and get a lot of 
fun in constructing it. Procure suf- 
ficient medium-weight khaki cloth or 
light-weight canvas and have it water- 
proofed. If you prefer you can buy 
waterproofing solutions from auto camp 
supply houses and 
waterproof the mate- 
rial yourself at small 
cost. You can use 
American silk for the 
tent material if you 
prefer and in this case 
it should be well 
waterproofed. Silk 
takes up less room in 
the pack than any 
material suitable for 
tents. Light or medi- 
um weight tent mate- 
rial makes it easier 
to sew and if water- 
proofed is suitable for all auto camp- 
ing purposes. First procure length of 
material 20 ft. long at the top, and 28 
ft. long at the base, as shown in the 
drawing. The width of the strip should 
be 9 ft. vertical and 10 ft. along the 
diagonal ends. To get such a strip you 
will have to buy the regular width of 
material and sew it into one large strip 
of the above dimensions. A good sew- 
ing machine with heavy thread and 
needle will make this operation easy 
and quickly done. Sewing along the 
seams with a double line of thread. 
This large strip will form the sides 
of your tent. The diagonal ends will al- 
low for the front flap which will form 
the tent door in front. 
The top pieces for the tent should be 
made by sewing strips of tent mate- 
rial so that you will have a circular 
¢ q 
218 
piece 8 ft. in diameter. This will allow 
for sloping sides of the tent 4 ft. long, 
and a horizontal width 5 ft. square, 
which will lap over the roof of the tent 
and prevent any water from getting 
inside the tent. When you have the 
tent pole and rib pole attachment 
ready, as will be explained later, you 
can set up the sides and roof, and after 
marking where the overlap of the roof 
piece comes, along the top sides of the 
tent, you can sew the roof to the top 
sides. A small circular piece should be 
sewed to the center of the roof inside 
where the tent pole will rest. 
If you desire a front flap, which will 
serve as an awning as well as an ad- 
ditional front door, strip tent material 
sewed so that you will have a piece 5 
ft. wide and 6 ft. long, will give you a 

6 ft 
Tent St des 
front flap which can be sewed along one 
side to the front top horizontal seam of 
the tent. Two small iron rings sewed in- 
to the outer corners will serve as places 
to support the front flap as an awning, 
by cutting small poles as upright sup- 
ports for the awning. 
The Center Pole 
A center pole can be made of good 
straight grained hard wood and jointed 
by metal ferrules on the ends, much 
as a fishing rod is jointed. One end 
to fit snugly into the other metal sleeved 
end of the pole. A block of hard wood 
bored to fit the pole and rib poles of 
hard wood attached to the block, one at 
each side, will form the adjustable slid- 
ing support for the tent top. The rib 
poles should be attached to the block 
in such a way that they are free to 

Bolom ~ 
_ material for the floor cloth, as it must) 
be turned into position to hold up the 
tent roof at the four corners. At the 
ends of the rib poles small holes should 
be bored for the supporting strings. 
Pease strings should be of small 
but strong material; pieces of 
good fish line are fine for this purpose, 
These strings are permanently tied to 
the top end of the center pole. A screw 
bolt should be fitted to the side of the 
center block so that it can be tightened 
and will hold the block on the center 
pole at any desired place, sufficient to 
get the right tension upon the roof of 
the tent. This entire center pole unit 
works much as the slide of the umbrella 
which holds the ribs. 
With the tent made and center pole 
complete, it is a very easy matter to 
put up the tent. 
Spread the tent out 
upon the ground, joint 
the center pole and 
place the top end of 
the pole against the 
circular piece at the 
center of the _ top 
piece. Push up the 
block to the required 
tension that will 
stretch the top, and 
hold the block in place 
by the screw-bolt. 
The rib ends should 
be placed in the cor- 
ners of the tent before the block is 
moved up on the center pole. You may 
find it necessary to hold the base of 
the tent more firmly upon the ground 
when you erect the tent and get the. 
desired tension on the roof to prevent 
any sag in the roof. If this is the case, | 
you can very easily sew into the four 
corners of the base of the tent a small 
iron ring and through each corner ring 
drive a tent peg into the ground. 
HESE rings should be sewed inside 
the tent, to prevent any water from 
coming through the base. Many people 
prefer a sewed-in floor cloth and if you’ 
desire to make one, bear in mind that 
you must have a heavy waterproofed | 




be absolutely waterproof and free from | 
absorbing any moisture from the 
