Eureka Spitfire Footprint?

[Dave568]

Are there any Eureka Spitfire footprints/tarps available anywhere? Or am I going to have to make my own? I haven't been able to find any online anywhere, so I'm thinking they probably don't exist. For those of you who have used this tent, did you put something under it to protect the floor, and if so, what did you use?

[rafe]

If you're reasonably careful, you shouldn't need a footprint. I haven't used a groundcloth under a tent in the last 20 years or so.

[Sparky06]

Dropcloth, cut to size. Replace as necessary.

[Toolshed]

Yes A $4 roll of 4-6 mil plastic from Walmart and about 2 minutes to unroll the tent on the plastic and 2 minutes to trace the floor outline with a marker. Take the tent off and cut along the lines, about 2" inside the lines and you are all set (I don't keep a footprint under the vestibule). PS You'll have enough plastic for about 8 groudncloths over the life of your tent.

[rswanson]

You don't need a footprint unless your doing extended hikes in the Southwest.

[vipahman]

Are there any Eureka Spitfire footprints/tarps available anywhere? Or am I going to have to make my own? I haven't been able to find any online anywhere, so I'm thinking they probably don't exist. For those of you who have used this tent, did you put something under it to protect the floor, and if so, what did you use?

There's no footprint specifically for this tent. Go with the UL suggestions.

[Toolshed]

You don't need a footprint unless your doing extended hikes in the Southwest.

Even further, I guess you could say you don't "need" a tent either - But then again, some things are nice to have and many feel that $1 worth of plastic is a great investment to protect or extend the life of their $200-$300 shelter.

Same thing with vehicles - You see some folks driving around in nice cars that haven't been washed in years, have rims caked with brake dust and keep electrical tape over their check engine lights. Oil gets added not changed - The owners buy'em and are hard on them.
You see the same cars where they are taken care of - The owner decides that a little maintenance protects or extends the life of thier investment.

Anyway,
I have found the plastic footprint comes in handy -
- when 3 slugs have crawled under my tent and I roll on them in the night - their innards just rinse right off the plastic.
- When the only site I can find has a couple of sharp rocks - the plastic stops any abrasion to the floor
- When the ground (even high ground) is soppping wet from continuous all day showers/rainstorms and I feel the need for even "a little" added protection.
- When I am camped on a bed of spruce needles and one starts poking up, the plastic will stop it from damaging the floor.
- When I want to sell a 10 year old tent on Ebay and the floor still looks spotless, like the day it was first set up.

[rswanson]

Same thing with vehicles - You see some folks driving around in nice cars that haven't been washed in years, have rims caked with brake dust and keep electrical tape over their check engine lights. Oil gets added not changed - The owners buy'em and are hard on them.
You see the same cars where they are taken care of - The owner decides that a little maintenance protects or extends the life of thier investment.

You got me there...I don't wash my Jeep and there's certainly a lot of brake dust caked on the rims. It still got me to work today, just as it has for the past 7 years.

Let me qualify my comment: I've put in close to a hundred nights in the shelter I use now, in just about every condition possible and I've never needed a footprint or groundsheet. Squashed bugs wash just as easily off of the floor as they would a groundsheet, as does everything else for that matter. Water has never soaked through, and tens of thousands of angry pine needles have done no damage to the floor. I don't just throw my tent down anywhere but I'm not particularily choosey. The only time I've even been remotely concerend about damaging my tent floor is among rough scrub, slickrock and cacti in Utah and Arizona. Even then I've only used 'protection' twice.

[Toolshed]

You got me there...I don't wash my Jeep and there's certainly a lot of brake dust caked on the rims. It still got me to work today, just as it has for the past 7 years.

ROTFLMAO!!! you got me there.

[Cyrus Blades]

this answer addresses 3 issues!

1) protection of your tent
2) an extremely low cost product
3) added comfortably to your tent floor

A BEACH TOWEL!

That's it, go on google type in beach towel and click shopping at the top. arrange from lowest price first and find yourself some beach towels for only $2! depending on your tent size you may need an extra towel or two. But i have this specific model tent the Spitfire 2 and i've got 1 very large beach towel that works great! Also adds a nice amount of comfort to your tent floor as well... and once you feel the towels are to dirty or you just want to throw them away then just go buy another one for $2

this is the best experience i've had with a tent & footprint combo

[4eyedbuzzard]

this answer addresses 3 issues!

1) protection of your tent
2) an extremely low cost product
3) added comfortably to your tent floor

A BEACH TOWEL!

That's it, go on google type in beach towel and click shopping at the top. arrange from lowest price first and find yourself some beach towels for only $2! depending on your tent size you may need an extra towel or two. But i have this specific model tent the Spitfire 2 and i've got 1 very large beach towel that works great! Also adds a nice amount of comfort to your tent floor as well... and once you feel the towels are to dirty or you just want to throw them away then just go buy another one for $2

this is the best experience i've had with a tent & footprint combo

Welcome to WB.

You might want to check the age of posts you're responding to though - this one is over four years old. I'd also add that not many hikers pack cotton beach towels as while I'm sure they add some comfort, they're a bit on the heavy side Folks around here tend to be pretty adverse about carrying extra weight up and down hills.

[Mr Breeze]

There is a footprint made for the spitfire. Sunnysports.com has them on sale for $24.95 right now

[Chubbs4U]

this answer addresses 3 issues!

1) protection of your tent
2) an extremely low cost product
3) added comfortably to your tent floor

A BEACH TOWEL!

That's it, go on google type in beach towel and click shopping at the top. arrange from lowest price first and find yourself some beach towels for only $2! depending on your tent size you may need an extra towel or two. But i have this specific model tent the Spitfire 2 and i've got 1 very large beach towel that works great! Also adds a nice amount of comfort to your tent floor as well... and once you feel the towels are to dirty or you just want to throw them away then just go buy another one for $2

this is the best experience i've had with a tent & footprint combo

I am curious now as to why his first post was on this topic. He was either looking into the topic specifically or was just trolling the site. Either way welcome to WB.

[mykl]

Yes, Eureka makes a fitted footprint for the Spitfire 1 (not the 2).
http://store.eurekatent.com/fitted-footprint-spitfire-1
As mentioned, you could get them cheaper like at sunnysports
http://www.sunnysports.com/prod/ERKF...=29-11348635-2

[Bluefoot]

Not sure howhelpful this will be but a camping store based in Montreal, Canada used tocarry an after-market footprint for the Spitfire - which I have and which workswell. The name of the place is Lebaron but they have a very user UNFRIENDLYwebsite. I did some quick checking but didn't see it but who knows where itmight be hiding in their catalogue (unless they have discontinued it. They alsohave a minimum order $35 as I recall. I had a backpacking friend pick one up atone of their Toronto area stores and mail it out Canada Post - all in total wasabout $22 ($7 of which was postage). Soif you have a friend in either Montreal, Toronto, or Ottawa perhaps you can getthem to do some bird dogging for you.

OK - this might be helpful. Before I got the aftermarket footprint I too waslooking about trying to find one. In the end I took the tent to an"outdoor" fabric store, picked out some good footprint quality materialand then the seamstress that was there and I traced the outline of the tent onthe material. The lady then cut and sewed the material along with stays - andvoila - I had a footprint. Total cost was about $25 all in and I had it in aweek. I have had my Spitfire since 2006 and it has been through everythingCanada's Pacific coast can throw at it (I do stay out of gale force winds though) and ithas stood the test of time - an amazing tent for the money. Happy Trails