Roraima Camping Table Product Review

As a self-described 'regular guy with a wide range of interests', I enjoy camping. I'm a Cub Scouts Den Leader for my local Pack, and just enjoy being out in nature. So, when I found Roraima was looking for people to try out their camping table, I was happy to test it out for them. They sent it to me at no cost to myself so that I could get it and see what I thought of it. As I always tell companies, you get my opinion. You don't get a free pass on anything. If I see something I don't like, I'm going to let people know about it. That said, here's my review.

The first thing I noticed when I opened the rather large box it came in was that it came in a nice nylon bag with a shoulder strap, making it easy to carry. It's quite light. More on that in a minute. As you can see, I have it sitting beside a 5 gallon bucket that contains some of my tent equipment.

When you open the bag via the drawstring at the top, you see that the bag is actually sewn into sections where the various components go, helping to keep them from flopping around inside the bag while you're walking with it. That's a nice feature that I didn't expect. When you pull out the items from the bag, you see the table top (top), the table top support rods (2nd from the top), the storage shelf/bag (2nd from the bottom), and the table base (bottom).

To be honest, I didn't read the instructions at all, based on how simple the table is to set up. The first thing I did was to unfold the base and attach the table top support rods. There are U-shaped clips that they drop into that have a metal peg that fits into a hole in the rod, making it so that the table won't fold up on you. Another nice design feature that I hadn't expected. One thing I did notice was that the base seemed a little difficult to unfold. This could be due to it being new and having never been unfolded before. It could also be an indicator of poor manufacturing, causing stress on the joints, making them hard to slide and fold. I'll hold judgement on that until I use it a bit more to make sure it's not an issue with the table.

The next thing I did was to attach the table top. In hindsight, I should have attached the storage shelf/bag underneath, as it's a bit difficult to manage once the top is on. More on that later. The table is built from multiple slats that run parallel, and are connected via elastic cords, so that you can stretch the table to insert the ends into the support rods on each end. This is another nice engineering aspect that I found pleasantly surprising.

The last thing I did was to attach the storage shelf/pouch underneath. This is the one area that the table has an issue. The shelf attaches to the legs at the top by a clip, and at the bottom by a hook and loop strap. The weight of the shelf is supported by the cross-support of the table. You can see this arrangement below:

The problem with this arrangement is that it makes getting things in and out of the shelf difficult. You can see in the final pictures at the end of this post that I have a few things in the shelf, including a roll of paper towels, which had to be inserted at an angle and I didn't dare lay it down completely, as it would be almost impossible to get back out. What I ended up doing (not pictured) is using some inexpensive carabiners that I had with me, to clip onto the table's cross support, and then hooked the shelf/bag hook onto the carabiner, thus lowering the entire shelf by about 3". This made getting things in and out much easier. It's not a deal-breaker by any means, but Roraima should consider a way of lowering this shelf for better ease of use.

I used the table briefly without the shelf as you can see below, but later decided that I wanted to add it back on with the carabiners.

Ultimately, it's a pretty nice table for camping. It's light, as I mentioned before. Really light. Part of my brain kept telling me that light=cheap, but I should know better. As a former mountain biker, current camper, etc., I know that companies spend a lot of money trying to make things light, and that in many cases, light=expensive. This table runs around $50, which is a little bit more than a cheap, white-topped folding table that you can by just about anywhere, but this is much more portable, making it ideal for camping, when every pound (and every inch of space it takes up) counts. I'd rate this table a solid 4.5 stars out of 5, with the half star taken off just for the way that the shelf it includes is difficult to use without banging into the leg supports every time you put something in or take something out. Having recently paid $40 for a white, plastic-topped folding table that is quite difficult to carry around, not to mention store, I would definitely pay an extra $10 for the storage space usage and portability that this table provides.

The basic information Amazon provides on the product is below:

• Sturdy construction with Aluminum frame, with capacity of 120 Lbs, product size is 27.56"x27.56"x27.56", Perfect height, weight, Family of 4 could easily eat off for camping.It is a great company with a folding camping chair, or great for Outdoor BBQ
• Sets up fast & folds small within 30 seconds, Folding in a carry bag with only 3 steps to put up and down. Extra mesh storage nets included, great space for preparing camping stuff,like dishes, fruits, toys and others.
• Rustproof,Fire proof, do not need to worry about too close to fire, you can even cook directly on this table, save money to buy extra camping kitchen table.
• Easy to clean , wipe all the messy stuff with a microfiber towel, Clean and tidy just so simple. Easy to carry with you in the Cars, RVs, etc
• All RORAIMA product includes a 1-year warranty with life time custom service, if you have any questions, pls feel free to contact with our custom service team. Thanks for again to buy RORAIMA products.

The Roraima camping table is available here:  http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B077YTG9Y6

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