I picked up the Oztent SV-5 Max with all the trimmings to ensure I had somewhere to safely store my dirtbike when out camping. I would always get nervous that a simple cable and lock would not be enough to keep my dirtbike safe while surfing or swimming in the lake. The Oztent SV-5 Max was the biggest tent we could find with a front section that allowed us to hide the dirtbike so opportunistic thieves wouldn’t see the bike when walking past.
After an entire summer camping and riding, here is what we liked and didn’t like about the Oztent SV-5 Max.
We Liked
Quality Oztent only make quality tents and the SV-5 Max is the top of the range. From the zips to the polycotton canvas and fly screens, nothing has broken, torn, faded or leaked water. All the moving parts to set it up in 30 seconds still slide like they’re brand new. Incredible.
Dark The Oztent SV-5 Max is not advertised as a blackout tent, like some others are but the canvas material did a fantastic job at keeping it dark. At 7am it felt like 6am.
Airflow The SV-5 Max has a skylight and plenty of windows to allow air to pass through the tent and keep things cool. I also found that even with the windows shut, the polycotton canvas breathed well and it never felt like I was sweating when in bed, unlike some of the more traditional tent materials.
Setup The back half of the SV-5 Max takes 30 seconds to erect by simply pulling up on the back bar. Once it’s up, just peg it down. It is the easiest large tent to setup that I’ve ever used.
Space The back of the SV-5 Max is big enough for me to stand up straight in and I’m 188cm tall. The SV-5 Max the tapers out at the front and with the zip-in front section it’s big enough to park a car in. If you’re happy to sleep in the front section as well you could easily sleep a family of six.
We didn’t like
Transport size In order to make the SV-5 Max so easy to erect, it has several large inbuilt pillars which don’t collapse down. This means the tent is around 210cm long and 33kg which can be handful getting onto the top of the car.
Extension The entire front section of this tent allowed us to hide our bike but it took a little while to zip in which after setting up the back in just a few minutes is annoying, especially when the kids are hassling you to go riding!
Verdict
The Oztent SV-5 Max with front section zipped on allowed me to hide my bike and my kids which reduced my stress levels when I was away from the campsite. Sure, someone could unzip or cut into the tent but they’d have to study our movements and the extra layer of protection is always a good thing.
Mitch Lees
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BILL
SV-5 Max $2199
Side Panels $469.99
Front Panel $359.99
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