Trying to ID this TNF tent................

Hey all. I just picked up a cool TNF expedition base camp tent for $75 off of Craigslist but I'm at a loss as to what model it is. I think that it may be a tent made for a special expedition based on one of there standard models a long the way. I'm thinking this tent is late 80's early to mid 90's.

The tent is a true round dome with the wall's measuring 106in. across the tent from wall to wall along the bottom of each wall at the floor. I would guess the total square footage to be around 62.5 sq ft.+/-.

The body of the tent is six sided with all sides measuring 64 in.  along the floor corner to corner.  It takes 6 poles to hold up the tent body and 3 poles to hold up the rain fly/vestibule for a total of nine poles.  The poles are black Easton poles measuring 183 in (15ft 3 in). The poles are 7075's (.340).  One pole was missing when I recived the tent.

I checked all the lables and the only place of manufacture listed anywhere in the tent is "The North Face, 2013 Farallon Drive, San Leandro, CA  94577

Black label above the front door.

Single snow tunnel on the side of the tent.  The tunnel measures 23in. across.

The floor opening meausres 16 in. acrosss.  It does not have a screen like the side wall snow door/tunnel.

Vent at the top of the tent measures 35 inches each side.

The vent is in the exact center of the top of the ceiling.

The ceiling vent with the loft clipped in.  The loft is a buckle in style type and all sides are equadistance so that there is no wrong way to try and buckle the loft intoi place.

The loft measures 37 inches on the longer sides and 12 in. on the shorter sides (corners)

I've never seen a TNF logo with the statement "Fine Alpine Equipment". Did I miss this along the way? The only other thing I can think of was that this tent was made for a specific expedition. I will be contacting TNF this coming week to see what they think if you if no one here has any thoughts.

 Anybody know anything about this thing.  Thanks

Brian, is that a TNF North Star w/o the fly?

(2nd pic down in the review below?)

http://www.trailspace.com/gear/the-north-face/ecwt/review/24407/

Here is a little more info I dug up...

http://www.oregonphotos.com/snow-camping.html#anchor165216

The North Star tent had two snow tunnels instead of one like the above tent--some of the early North Stars had the 'cupola' vent at the top, later models had no opening at the top.  The above tent looks to have a little less height than the North Star.  Also missing are the snaps on either side of the zippered door to hold out the fly from the tent using short alcove poles.  North Stars never had a poled vestible that I can ever remember.

Great looking tent--I don't recall ever seeing one in their catalogues with those features.  Great find for $75, I recently picked up a complete Himalayan Hotel  for $80, sometimes you get lucky!

Hmmmm, so the quest continues. 

Looks a lot like the VE24 that I had in 1980. The snow tunnels are what makes me think its the VE24. Great tents, I used mine 18 years till a grizzly bear here in Wyoming tore it up in 1996.

This tent of yours is much newer than mine was. I bought mine in 1978 and it didnt have the cargo mesh at the top or the top vent. And mine had just the front door, many of the newer VE tents have two doors. I later owned a Mountain 25 tent by TNF, that was very simular to my 24 with an extended from and rear entrance/vestibules in the rain fly and mesh inner pockets all the way around the lower walls. I decided it was too heavy a tent for my backpacking and sold it here at Trailspace a few years ago.

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