Mont moondance1 v Exped mira 1

[brissifirey]

Hi, after some info on a single man tent, has any one tried/got either the Exped Mira1 or Mont Moondance 1 ? and if so how good are they and would they be ok for Tassi conditions.

cheers.

[Strider]

Hi, after some info on a single man tent, has any one tried/got either the Exped Mira1 or Mont Moondance 1 ? and if so how good are they and would they be ok for Tassi conditions.

cheers.

Depends on the conditions in which you hope to use it. Any snow use planned?

How have you arrived at these two from the hundreds of single man tents out there?

[mjdalessa]

Hundreds Strider? I've recently had a look into all the ones I could find online and relatively few were suited to Tassie in my opinion.

Brissifirey, The Mira was on my short list. I almost bought one because the weight is good, not too much mesh for cooler conditions and it is freestanding. Also, the price is very reasonable. What put me off was the testimony I was given by Exped. Basically that they are not stable enough in high winds for my uses and aren't really suitable for Tassie. They recommended the Vela, which I also considered. However, they are excessively long because of their pointed ends, hence probably hard to fit in some campsites. User experience on this site supported the length being an issue.

Here are a few that could be considered for Tassie use, if you have not looked into them already:

Hilleberg Akto
Soulo
MSR Hubba HP (other models are full mesh, some may not mind this though. the HP is much more expensive as it can only be purchased from Europe)
One Planet Goondie
Tarptent Scarp 1 (I have the 2)

I settled on the Helsport Ringstind as it offers good ventilation, solid inner, plenty of tie down points and good length and height to suit my height.

[Strider]

Hundreds Strider? I've recently had a look into all the ones I could find online and relatively few were suited to Tassie in my opinion.

Agreed. But I am interested as to what characteristic pushed these two to the top of the list.

I have a Tarptent Scarp 1 (but haven't used it yet... ).

[Mountain Rocket]

I have a Tarptent Scarp 1 (but haven't used it yet... ).

Get out there mate!

[ryantmalone]

You know, I actually made a decision last time I was hiking in Tassie (at Frenchmans Cap) not to use a single person tent again.

I had a particularly unpleasant night in my Black Wolf Mantis I (which I found to be a pretty sturdy budget tent by the way...), and found it to be way too cramped, and awkward, in the instance that something major happened, such as the camp site being completely flooded.

Now, I prefer to keep my gear in the tent with me, and have a bit more room to get changed, and so on.

I'm not going to recommend a tent as such, because its all a matter of preference, budget, that said... considering Tassie conditions, make sure that your pole structure is sound and stops your fly contacting your inner as much as possible. Not only that, but as aerodynamic as possible. Needs to have decent vestibule space for gear storage, and cooking if bad weather keeps you in, and of course, permitting that your stove is as safe as possible to use close to your tent. No, I dont recommend cooking in your tent, but I know that many people do it anyway.

In Tassie, it can snow at any time. They just had a fresh dumping, and its summer! So, if you can pick something that can stand up to a bit of snow as well, that would be a really good idea.

The tent that I am using at the moment is a North Face Tadpole 23, its a two person tent, awesome ventilation, and rock solid in bad weather. Might give some food for thought.

http://www.thenorthface.com/catalog/sc-gear/tadpole-23-bx.html

[Strider]

I have a Tarptent Scarp 1 (but haven't used it yet... ).

Get out there mate!

Just had a baby! It could be a while....

[jacko1956]

I'm with the idea of not going for a 1 man tent.
Because of price I would lean towards a Tarptent over either of those two but as the biggest problem with single wall tents is condensation, going to a two man Tarptent doesn't greatly increase the weight, gives much better ventilation, offers plenty of room for gear and... can be used in the future if you get lucky and find a partner who likes to hike with you.

[nq111]

Just had a baby! It could be a while....

Oh yeah - could be...

But congratulations!

[ryantmalone]

I have a Tarptent Scarp 1 (but haven't used it yet... ).

Get out there mate!

Just had a baby! It could be a while....

If it means anything, I was first introduced to the High Country as an infant being carried on my dads back.

Pretty sure I have a photo of me being bottle fed on Mt Loch somewhere....

[Strider]

If it means anything, I was first introduced to the High Country as an infant being carried on my dads back.

Pretty sure I have a photo of me being bottle fed on Mt Loch somewhere....

He's only 10 days old so far. Give it a few more and we'll consider a walk somewhere

[ninjapuppet]

Had a little play with a mate's moondance 1
pretty neat little tent there in the snowy mountains, which wasnt very snowy at the time.

No reason why that cant handle most of what tassie has to dish out.
very similar to the hubba, except less mesh with its hybrid walls.
however more mesh than a hubba HP. Slightly roomier dimensions than my hubba.

[ryantmalone]

If it means anything, I was first introduced to the High Country as an infant being carried on my dads back.

Pretty sure I have a photo of me being bottle fed on Mt Loch somewhere....

He's only 10 days old so far. Give it a few more and we'll consider a walk somewhere

Ahh fair enough. A few more months should do.

Congrats by the way!

[mjdalessa]

I'm with the idea of not going for a 1 man tent.
Because of price I would lean towards a Tarptent over either of those two but as the biggest problem with single wall tents is condensation, going to a two man Tarptent doesn't greatly increase the weight, gives much better ventilation, offers plenty of room for gear and... can be used in the future if you get lucky and find a partner who likes to hike with you.

I wouldn't recommend the 2 man Scarp for 1, they are huge. I've been carrying it for myself for around a year. I hear the Scarp 1 is plenty roomy enough for one, particularly because of the dual vestibles. It certainly isn't minimalist. Yes, the two weighs only 1.7kg. However, Scarps are almost useless in most places if not used with crossing poles- the actual weight is 2.2kg or so. The only place I have ever used it without crossing poles is in a very open forest camp. On a recent trip I found I had serious condensation issues, but this could have probably been avoided by keeping the doors open.

[Franco]

" Scarps are almost useless in most places if not used with crossing poles"

Are you using the main pole guylines ?
both Scarps are too big and heavy for me but at least my Scarp 1 properly set up is very stable...

[johnrs]

Another vote for the Helsport Ringstind for taller folks.
And I wonder if a Tarptent Stratospire 1 with fabric liner might suit Tassie?
John

[jacko1956]

I'm with the idea of not going for a 1 man tent.
Because of price I would lean towards a Tarptent over either of those two but as the biggest problem with single wall tents is condensation, going to a two man Tarptent doesn't greatly increase the weight, gives much better ventilation, offers plenty of room for gear and... can be used in the future if you get lucky and find a partner who likes to hike with you.

I wouldn't recommend the 2 man Scarp for 1, they are huge. I've been carrying it for myself for around a year. I hear the Scarp 1 is plenty roomy enough for one, particularly because of the dual vestibles. It certainly isn't minimalist. Yes, the two weighs only 1.7kg. However, Scarps are almost useless in most places if not used with crossing poles- the actual weight is 2.2kg or so. The only place I have ever used it without crossing poles is in a very open forest camp. On a recent trip I found I had serious condensation issues, but this could have probably been avoided by keeping the doors open.

There are several styles.
The Double Rainbow Is a nice option and the Squall 2 is very roomy..
I have carried our Rainshadow 2 (basically an even bigger Squall 2) as a tent for one. I can just about lie sideways in it.

[mjdalessa]

" Scarps are almost useless in most places if not used with crossing poles"

Are you using the main pole guylines ?
both Scarps are too big and heavy for me but at least my Scarp 1 properly set up is very stable...

Yes, but stability was not the issue in this case. The issue was more that there was sag from rain that the crossing poles would otherwise elevate very well. I thought the performance was very average when compared to how it has performed with the poles.

[Strider]

" Scarps are almost useless in most places if not used with crossing poles"

Are you using the main pole guylines ?
both Scarps are too big and heavy for me but at least my Scarp 1 properly set up is very stable...

Yes, but stability was not the issue in this case. The issue was more that there was sag from rain that the crossing poles would otherwise elevate very well. I thought the performance was very average when compared to how it has performed with the poles.

First time I've ever heard of someone with this issue with the Scarp - and I did A LOT of research prior to purchase. Sure its not just the way it was pitched?

[Franco]

From Mjdalessa :
"The issue was more that there was sag from rain"

OK, now I know.
The trick here is to pitch the tent taut with the corner tie-outs fully extended.
When the fabric relaxes (sags...) because of cold or rain , pull the tie outs in , a bit from each corner will do it.
Doing that it will stay taut even under heavy rain, no need at all for the extra poles there.
So here is a wrong pitch :

(BTW, the person using the above tent likes it anyway, still I wonder how much more it would be liked if pitched correctly...
picture stolen from here :http://velophileaustralia.wordpress.com/)

and this is how it should look like (note that because of the snow the tent would be "relaxed" , that is it would have sagged 30 minutes or so after setting it up)

In some cases you might have to shift a peg or two outward to pull it taut (once it has relaxed...)

See this video clip on how to do that :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YrxAASKe ... ex5BMVK4vw