Tent - Bibler Pinon - anyone got opinions?

[Natt]

Years ago - when we just started walking we forked over some serious $ and bought a Bibler Pinon

We have been using it on and off, but because of the cost of it only took it on the serious walks (where we knew we were going to be in the tent and not wandering off)

Can anyone share their views on the advantages/restrictions of such a tent.

Did we do our dough? Is there a better tent out there?

[tasadam]

Just did a quick bit of googling and found limited info. It's not sold any more so I didn't quicklu find a picture, but I do know it's freestanding.
Is it single or double walled?
I looked at the Bibler tempest but single skin not so good for Tassie conditions (the condensation issue).

[Franco]

Hi Natt
Just noticed your post and decided to join the forum.
I happen to have a Pinon, it hasn't seeen that many nights out ( I mostly use Tarptents) but enough to give you my opinion.
The Pinon had a relativly short life because it came about at the end of Bibler as an independent brand and was not kept in production by Black Diamond because ( I think...) it was the only 3 season tent in the Bibler line up and possibly created some confusion about the brand.
The only reason it was defined as "3 seasons" is because it has mesh doors rather than the typical single skin fully enclosed design used by the rest of the line up.
However since the fabric does go down pretty much to the ground all around and that 3 pole set up is way stronger than many so called 4 season tents, I would not hesitate using it anywhere,anytime in Tasmania. Note that the new Hilleberg Soulo and in particular the Allak use an almost identical design. In fact it is one of a very selected group of tents that is fully freestanding, including the vestibules.
As far as condensation, I did a test last week on a particularly favorable night, 27c during the day, went down to 10c , high humidity and next to a river. Most tents there had a considerable amount of condensation under the fly in the morning, (including the one I was using) the nylon part of the Bibler was wet but the inside under the Todd-Tex ( a two layer PTFE Gore-tex type material, Teflon if you like..) was dry with a minimally damp patch towards the apex. So in fact, if you do not mind the weight or the packed size, it is a great tent.
For the ones not familiar with Bibler, part of the condensation management is done by that fuzzy coating on the underside called Nextec. It works.
My main gripe about the Pinon is the top vent. That small triangle of fabric is not really big enough to cover the opening unless you spend some time fiddling with it. Works OK most of the time but you need to pay attention to it during a wind blown rainstorm. If you have not done so already, you should seam-seal it.
Franco

[Tony]

Hi Franco,

Just noticed your post and decided to join the forum.
I happen to have a Pinon, it hasn't seeen that many nights out ( I mostly use Tarptents) but enough to give you my opinion.
The Pinon had a relativly short life because it came about at the end of Bibler as an independent brand and was not kept in production by Black Diamond because ( I think...) it was the only 3 season tent in the Bibler line up and possibly created some confusion about the brand.
The only reason it was defined as "3 seasons" is because it has mesh doors rather than the typical single skin fully enclosed design used by the rest of the line up.
However since the fabric does go down pretty much to the ground all around and that 3 pole set up is way stronger than many so called 4 season tents, I would not hesitate using it anywhere,anytime in Tasmania. Note that the new Hilleberg Soulo and in particular the Allak use an almost identical design. In fact it is one of a very selected group of tents that is fully freestanding, including the vestibules.
As far as condensation, I did a test last week on a particularly favorable night, 27c during the day, went down to 10c , high humidity and next to a river. Most tents there had a considerable amount of condensation under the fly in the morning, (including the one I was using) the nylon part of the Bibler was wet but the inside under the Todd-Tex ( a two layer PTFE Gore-tex type material, Teflon if you like..) was dry with a minimally damp patch towards the apex. So in fact, if you do not mind the weight or the packed size, it is a great tent.
For the ones not familiar with Bibler, part of the condensation management is done by that fuzzy coating on the underside called Nextec. It works.
My main gripe about the Pinon is the top vent. That small triangle of fabric is not really big enough to cover the opening unless you spend some time fiddling with it. Works OK most of the time but you need to pay attention to it during a wind blown rainstorm. If you have not done so already, you should seam-seal it.
Franco

Welcome to BW-T and thanks for the excellent information on the Bibler Pinon tent, as I am looking for a UL one person 4 seasons tent I read your opinion with interest.
I used my TT Contrail for the first time a few weeks ago and had a lot of condensation in it but I realized that I had not set it to get the best air flow through it.

I look forward to reading more of your views on other tents and cameras.

Tony

[Franco]

Hi Tony
Well it's a lot easier to comment on commercially made tents than to make gas stoves...
I have stayed away from this forum so far because I have very little experience with Tasmania having done only the Overland but here in Australia (....) we also do get some "weather"
I will post some comments on a "winter" tent soon.
Franco

[brains95]

My Wife and I bought a Bibler pinon in 2002 and it's happily survived the overland track, the canadian rockies, scotland (with some very strong winds) and iceland.

It wasn't cheap but looked like good value when we compared it to similarly priced tents.

We haven't had condensation issues in Tasmania. My main opinion of the tent is below

Advantages
> It's completely free standing and being a 3 poll dome is very solid in strong winds. Free standing tents are also much easier to wipe down, dry out and vacuum when you get home.
> It's quite roomy. The pack without food lives in one vestible with our boots, the other pack comes inside as a pillow. The pocket's in the mesh hold our chocolate, torches etc.
> It's quite light for it's size.

Disadvantages
> It's relatively cold because it needs plenty of ventalation to prevent condensation.
> The floor doesn't appear to be as bathtub-like as a macpac or mont tent.

It's definately not something we're going to replace in a hurry.