What kind of stuff does a guy need to buy to get setup for tent camping?

A tent obviously a know, at least a 2 person tent will be needed.

Backpacking or car camping?

You need something to sleep in.  Sleeping bag or quilts and blankets.
You need some kind of pad, not so much for comfort, but for insulation from the ground.

That's bare minimum.

Now, I have a bad back, so I use a 4 inch pad on a low cot when car camping.


You just want to know about the bedroom, or do you need the kitchen, water, light, etc., setups as well?

I always think about where I want to go first. Camping on the beach has significantly different gear than camping in the mountains. So, fun mental exercise, grab a pen and paper and then imagine you've arrived at said site. What do you do first? Setup your tent. Tents up? Great, now what? Get the campfire ready. Have a saw? An axe? Can you even harvest wood at that location? Do you need to bring your own fuel? Is there a chance you can freeze to death? Maybe bring a coat. Then you can plan out meals etc from there. Its fun. Let us know what you decide on.

EDIT: Don't over do it. The whole point of camping is to get away from things and slow down (obviously). Nothing wrong with building a chair out of rocks and logs and just sitting back doing nothing.

Hammock

Absolutely, this. Unless you're looking to spoon.

The one time I tried hammock camping I almost froze to death, and the daytime temp was 75. Apparently sleeping bags loose R-value when compressed and in the air

Use a checklist to make sure you have all of the necessary gear, like this one.

I have all of our gear in two huge craftsman totes with wheels on one end and a big handle on the other. When we want to go, I just wheel them over and chuck them in the truck.

Sleeping on the Ground= No

With a hammock you need an insulating quilt hung under  the hammock itself so that it maintains loft.   As as alternative you can put a normal camping pad inside the hammock but they don't  stay put all that well and make the hammock less comfortable.

I have both a tent and a hammock setup.  I started out thinking the hammock gear would reduce my pack weight and bulk, but by the time  you include the second insulating quilt, bug sack and rain fly it ended up being about the same weight as my ground tent.  

The hammock is nice though in areas where you can't find a nice flat spot for a tent.

For drive-in, easy camping, grab this list and enjoy.

Teton Sports XXL pad and cot
Tent and sleeping bag of your choice
Large, heavy tarp and paracord roll
Small fold out plastic table
Blackstone 17”
LED camp lantern
Small shovel and axe
Comfy fire side chair

This time of year you depending upon your location remember to add:

Bug spray
Chapstick
Sunscreen

Agreed, I'm too old for that crap. A double-height air mattress with a battery powered pump, though, is pretty comfy and not too bad to get up from, even if you're old (sigh!).

Ugh... seriously, you're going to have to throw us a bone here.  

As mentioned, will you be "camping" - like driving your car to a place and pretending to be homeless for a night or two?  
Will you be backpacking - where you load everything you need into your pack and hump it to some remote location?
Tent for two... two adults?  One adult and a dog?  One adult and your kid?  Two adults that are romantically involved or "just friends"?

As for what to bring, sit down with a pad and pencil; start with waking up in the morning and list the things you imagine you'll do and what you'll need to do them.  

Like this:
I'm going to wake up, stretch, and....
- brush my teeth (needs are water, cup, toothbrush, toothpaste...)
- Make some breakfast (breakfast tacos sounds good, so i need bacon, eggs, tortillas, salt, pan, spatula, ....) I want coffee too (coffee and some way to make it)
- Then we want to go fishing (rod/reel, tackle, sandals for wading, ....)
- Then we'll have lunch.....
- And on and on thru the day....
- Then I'm sleepy and I need to go to bed. (tent, sleeping bag, lantern, ....) Oh, and I need to get up once or twice in the night to pee (flashlight, TP, shovel, ....)

As you go sequentially through the day and make your list, underline all the things that are things.  Eventually you'll have your dream list.  From there, look for things in your list that can do more than one task (my teethbrushing cup can also be my coffee cup!).  Look for ways to pare that list down (is that doodad really necessary?)  Once you have THAT list finalized, you need to add the other 'necessities' to it, things like bug spray, survival items (just in case), etc. and the 'wants' like a camera, whiskey, etc.

Then stuff all that into your pack (after reading about how to pack a pack) or your car if you're playing homelessness, and if possible give it a trial run.  If you don't have time to give it a trial run, your first outing makes an excellent trial run; you'll figure out what you brought that you didn't need/want to, and what you should have brought but didn't.  That's how it's done.

A good waterproof tent with rain fly, all seams sealed with a Gear Aid seam sealer.

good under tent drop cloth, I use an 11 mil sheet of plastic.

sleeping pad  of choice.

sleeping bag or quilts for environment

the rest is fluff,  and  based on convenience, weight and stowability.

Basically the goal would be to drive somewhere, and have the supplies setup I need to do an overnight, or two in the woods.

Not crazy far from the vehicle, but enough where I wouldn't have access necessarily.

So if you  are  not  within spitting distance of the car then you are talking about an entirely different set of gear than if you are car camping.  Now you would start having to think about a pack and then equipment that will fit in it.  

The farther you are from the car the more the weight of your gear matters.  There is generally an inverse relationship between how light your gear is and the price.

Tent, sleeping pad or air mattress, sleeping bag,  pillow,  flashlight,  knife,  gun,  food,  water.

I don't like carrying a ton of stuff camping,  so I have a very minimal stove/mess kit, and there's s lot of tasty things to eat with it.  If I'm going to carry extra bulk and weight,  it's going to be for quality of sleep.  

We thinking one of them junky looking propane stoves on amazon would be sufficient? Ie jet boil knockoff? and a campfire of course.

It really depends on what you're doing and how you like to cook.   The setup I talked about is an MSR pocket rocket and a GSI dualist mess kit.  I pack the pocket rocket *inside* the mess kit, so other than the little can of isobutane, it's all self-contained.  I know people like their white gas for super-cold stuff, but this setup works fine for me at the altitudes I do (7,000-12,000 feet) and the temp range, which goes below freezing, but never really down to zero.  A friend of mine has a jet boil, and it's *slightly* faster to boil water, but for the extra weight and size... I can wait another 20-30 seconds for mine.  I like the small, light design, and it cranks out a lot more heat than it might look like.

Now, if you don't want to go that small, you can step up to a butane stove.  There are a ton of them, they're all the same, pick your brand.  You can do a frying pan, or a whole pot of something for the family.  Butane refills aren't terribly expensive... one of the costcos near me has a case of them for under $2/can.   But a can of butane will cook a lot more than most people think, and they're lighter and easier than the propane bottles.

If we're car-camping, I'm kind of lazy, a lot of times I just bring canned food.  Open it, cook it on the stove, eat, throw the can in the garbage bag, and done.  On ATV overlanding trips, I generally just bring Mountain House.. pour water in bag, eat food out of bag, throw bag away.   After riding 100+ miles per day for several days, when I set up camp, I kind of just want to just get it done quick, have as little cleanup as possible, and get my butt in bed.  

If you're looking for something REAL big, because you're cooking for a family reunion, get a Camp Chef, their professional steel griddle, and their deluxe grill box.  30,000 BTUs per burner don't fool around.  

This.

Especially for a first outing.  A JetBoil or similar product is all you need- no planning errors, no cookware, no cleanup, no hassle.  The JetBoil makes hot water and checks several boxes: boil questionable water, make MH foods, make coffee, warm water for washing up.

Just remember the cutlery.  It suck to have to whittle a spoon out of a stick while you're hungry.  Been there, done that, it sucked.  

It’s more suitable to car camping than backpacking due to weight  but if you have 1-4 people to feed, Stanley makes their Base Camp cook set. It’s a pretty well made set with a fairly large pot and a well made fry pan along with utensils and plates. I have a set and I like it.

If you're this new to camping,  you might want to dry run in the backyard for a night.

Awesome checklist....

OP - REI makes some awesome tents - get a three man for two people and you will have plenty of room for the two people and gear....

and the Arfcom mantra - buy quality cry once....buy price cry twice

Red....

Best camping is kayak camping - take anything you want with in reason

X person tent is a lie.

How many will be in the tent?  Multiply that by 1.75 and round up. Buy a tent that says it is for that many.

I've camped before as a kid/with family quite a bit. But knowing what modern good stuff a good needs to buy for his own start is the confusion.

Take whatever number the "Capacity' of the tent is and divide by two for realistic space inside.

to be even more accurate for packs, clothing bags & other stuff you don't want outdoors, divide by three.

Been There - Done That with the Wife & Kids many times.  a Two Person tent is really space for one...

For car camping we have one of the Ozark trail E Z up 8 man tents. Sets up in just a couple of minutes and has exceeded my admittedly low expectations.  

We've had it in several all day soaks and it hasn't leaked yet.  I did add more seam sealer when I first bought it just to be careful.

For backpacking I've been using a buddies lanshan 2 that he loaned me, but with my wife planning on starting to go hiking with me I'm about to pull the trigger on a Zpacks Triplex. Damn thing costs an arm and a leg, but for a 3 man tent made of dcf and weighting a pound and a half I guess you get what you pay for.


ETA: to Don't cheap out on your sleep system!    A halfway decent tent will serve you fine if you're like most and only really camp in fair weather, but a couple bad night's sleep can ruin your whole trip (and if your wife's with you, it'll make her swear off camping).
I made that mistake years ago just giving my wife (girlfriend at the time) one of my extra mil surplus green pads. She hated it and it took me a while to get her back into car camping, let alone overnight backpacking.
Get a good pad like a nemo tensor or thermarest neo air or if car camping get a full on mattress.

The space recommendations for a tent are usually correct,  its two persons,  not two persons and all their crap.  Also,  they are for normal sized persons,  not fat people.   When not in a hammock I have tons of room for myself in a 1 person tent.  But I don't bring a lot of extra useless crap with me.  Usually just a 30-45L pack that weighs 30lbs with food and water.  If you are carrying your stuff with you,  and can't fit in the right sized tent,  get rid of the extra stuff.   If you are car camping,  then just get a 10 person tent,  if you are going to do that,  just get a camper,  in fact,  if you are doing that,  just stay home,  you'll have all your extra crap with you.

My two boys (7 and 9) go camping a couple of times a month. We have a large Rubbermade tote we keep all our supplies in. Supplies: cooking set, fire starter, food, rechargeable fans (summer), TP, utensils, etc.
This is the tent we use and we have been 100% satisfied with it: https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B004E4ERIY/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_AKAD1K50G647M3SN065K?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1" target="_blank">Coleman 8 Person Tent.
We can fit two of https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B00HN8Y37I/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_9KCRPCG8H014ASWEVMHS?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1" target="_blank">these inside with plenty of room to spare for a tent heater and our clothes or any gear we don't want to get wet.
We have this hammock and love it!
I recommend having this for the summer time. You can set it on the table or in a cup holder on your camping chair.

You can message with me with any other questions or ideas.

Extra stakes, a rubber mallet with a hook screwed in the end to pull out stakes, 2 tarps (one for the ground to keep the bottom of the tent clean, and one for the top of the tent for extra security for rain), indoor/outdoor carpet for outside entry of tent to take off shoes and keep dirt out of the tent. Single burner butane stove to boil water and cook. (Used it to make mac&cheese and used a weber q grill to cook. Hatchet, hammock, I use 2 coolers, one for drinks and ice for drinks, and one for meat. And folding chairs. And a Thermacell for mosquitoes. And a flashlight.

On that note... I really like the lightweight aluminum stakes.  They're $3 a pop at REI... or $1 a pop at Walmart.  I have both kinds, the Walmart ones have worked and held up just as well as the REI version.

We always start with our checklist.  We do Cabin Camping, which is totally different than Tent Camping.  I found a few checklists then narrowed them down to our needs.

Just download one from the web that you think is good for you.  
Sample Tent Camping Checklist
Another Checklist

We have it down to one Rubbermaid container and one 5 gallon bucket.  I use the checklist every year before and after the trip.

Another great hint is to put a piece of tape on every item and remove it after you use it, this way you know if you are carrying unused items.

Bill

Think of food security.

Are there bears?

If car camping you can lock the food up at night, but bears will still get it.

There WILL be raccoons, squirrels and ants. Backpacking makes it a bit more challenging but mountain house type meals will be fine. They will get into everything else.

I car camp a lot with the scouts, and woke up one night to glowing eyes on the hill and our bags of chips being dragged into the bushes. They got into the plastic bins and coolers and wrecked a bunch of stuff. Now it all goes back into the truck at night.

Rubbermaid containers is great for organizing stuff and keeping it together. I do this as well and can leave most if the stuff in it for next time

In the old days, I would use a thin backpacking Thermarest mat on the ground for tenting but I'm past that now.  I use an REI self-inflating pad now and usually use it in conjunction with a cot and the comfort is outstanding.  We normally use a cabin-type tent so we have the room for the cots.  We normally do most of our tent camping in the national parks so we're trying to be near the scenery - not trying to just rough it for the sake of roughing it.  As such, and due to some back problems I have, I want to have some level of comfort so I can rest and be ready for hiking and so on.

Between the tent, sleeping pads, sleeping bags, and cots, it takes some room to haul the gear.

A cot is really nice, you can sit on it to put your shoes on and also store stuff underneath it, in cold weather put a foam pad under your bag for insulation.
Get a straight wall tent so you are not doing everything stooped over.
A outdoor carpet is nice because it makes cleaning the tent easier, put it between the cots.

Yeah, but unless you're car-camping at the state park, you gotta' hump the motherfucker.  D batteries be heavy, yo.

Once you've acquired all of your gear, stuff it all into a backpack and go for a 4-5 mile walk around the hilly part of town. What initially seems to be a manageable weight in the driveway, rapidly turns into a real backbreaker out on the trail.

Light gear that packs down as small as possible while still being practical, minimize extra crap, and don't skimp on the pack.

That's a good way to end up with a ruined truck.  Black bears will open it like a tin can.

Now if it's raccoons or something,  rock on.

Good canvas tent (Kodiak)
Thick tarp to put under the tent. Aftermarket stakes instead of shitty factory wires.

Oh, also if you are a pack rat and stay on your site for a couple of days cot may be an option, that way you have more storage for under the cot.

+1 to this.  If I am car/ tent camping I am brining a cot.  

Our utility tent trailer has "bed shelfs" we just add some foam mats.