Planning tent purchase

[Moondog55]

Just a comment on "Blending in"
Either tan/khaki or grey are the best colours to fade into the background with pale olive drab coming in a close third

[corvus]

Suz,
We own and use(not enough recently) both Scarp 1 and 2 and have been more than happy with them with and without the crossing poles ,the 1 will sleep two (father and 6ft + broad shouldered son top to tail) the 2 is Palatial and I suspect would take three .

Very easy to erect with the option of Integral Pitch (handy for solo walkers) have used many tents over the past 55+ years and like these for their design and ease of use.

[DanShell]

[color=#FF0000]

Now I'm tossing up between a stratospire 1 like Danshell suggested, or maybe still the rainbow and still a Scarp. I know that GT cautions against staked tents like in the stratospire…but it has such a lovely vaulted cathedral-like ceiling compared to all the other small tents I've look at! That is a 1p tent I wouldn't get tent fever in. Decisions, decisions...

Nuts, helpful advice. I have heard cuben fibre is very good, but rather delicate.

Im not sure what you mean by staked tents but if it is using the upright poles to pitch it rather than cross type poles then tarp tent make a couple of different size poles to pitch to the Stratospire. I use the thicker of the two, I am not sure of the exact dimensions (franco will know) but you will be hard press to break one of them in any condition, they are very strong.

Just be careful to compare the inner tents floor areas because thats what will give you the feeling of space when rained in, along with the design and height. I think the rainbow wins in that department. The Stratospire 'feel's' massive when inside it by way of design and the double vestibules of the outer fly.

When I was in your position (of agonising over making the right decision for a tent) I was either going to buy the Scarp or the Stratospire. It came down to a Stratospire coming up first at the right price on BPL.com! I was skeptical as to its integrity in bad weather as I did read of a gentleman who had one blow down on a rough night in Tassie, but without knowing all the facts its hard to judge what went wrong.
Since then I have had mine out in some nasty conditions and it has held up really well. The inner flaps around a bit on a wild night but the outer is rock solid. In hindsight I probably could pull the outer closer to the ground to stop the wind blowing into the inner but it isn't an issue.

Its a shame we don't have a retailer of the tarp tent range in Australia because they make a great product.

[Strider]

When I was in your position (of agonising over making the right decision for a tent) I was either going to buy the Scarp or the Stratospire. It came down to a Stratospire coming up first at the right price on BPL.com!

I was in the exact same situation, and while leaning toward the SS1 a Scarp 1 came up for sale on these forums so that's what I went with! Fancy a swap DS?

[DanShell]

When I was in your position (of agonising over making the right decision for a tent) I was either going to buy the Scarp or the Stratospire. It came down to a Stratospire coming up first at the right price on BPL.com!

I was in the exact same situation, and while leaning toward the SS1 a Scarp 1 came up for sale on these forums so that's what I went with! Fancy a swap DS?

Lol probably better the devil we know but when I get bored with her I might consider a change one day

[Nuts]

Nuts, helpful advice. I have heard cuben fibre is very good, but rather delicate.

No worries, wev'e been using hilleberg for a number of years and the Scarp for a couple, happy with both, no bias.

Cuben fibre (in weights similar to TTent nylon) is probably best stretched in flat panels, it doesn't stretch far once pitched but I tend to think it's more suited to solid structures (like tarps/mids) rather than flexible structure tents (domes/ tunnels).. where the fabric may need to snap-back from wind blasts. It doesn't appear to be more delicate in heavier weights. Iv'e seen some offered in .5oz build and yes, pushing the limits there, but then it's the same trade off with TTent V Hilleberg. I can say, (even given tlc) we'll be replacing the TTent 2 to 1 for the Hilleberg's.. so it comes down to carried weight (as you'd expect) and weight is king .. unless you are doing more extreme walks and have no option but to rely on your tent holding out.. in which case I would choose any of the original / red label hillebergs- every time. Anything other than southern mountain ridges/ winter i'm sure the lightweight space of (eg) scarp11 would be better option.

It doesn't sound like you need something necessarily bombproof and the TTent is more flexible for summer.. appears more suitable for the use you mention.. just reinforcing the point that, despite the proponents good experiences, price aside, there is a definite compromise between the two tents you first mentioned.

[Suz]

Im not sure what you mean by staked tents

I've gone too technical and highbrow for you there haven't I? What I meant was 'non-freestanding' tents. GT basically says freestanding ones are much more flexible in site selection. "Hiking the PCT and CDT I was very happy with a non-freestanding tent. I was almost always camping in wooded areas with forest as wind protection and good ground to stake the tent down. This type of tent showed its limitations when I hiked the Florida Trail and the Arizona Trail. The swampy ground in Florida was too soft to hold stakes in heavy rain and my tent collapsed regularly on me. In Arizona I had the opposite problem: The desert ground was often too hard to get the stakes in far enough and the strong winds pulled them out. Hiking in Europe I encountered a new challenge: Very often I came across open shelters that I wanted to use for wind and rain protection. But in order to avoid sleeping on dirty ground or being bitten by mosquitoes I wanted to set up my tent inside the shelter. Unfortunately this is very difficult or almost impossible with a non-freestanding tent. All those reasons made me change to a freestanding tent."

Just be careful to compare the inner tents floor areas because thats what will give you the feeling of space when rained in, along with the design and height. I think the rainbow wins in that department. The Stratospire 'feel's' massive when inside it by way of design and the double vestibules of the outer fly.

I will keep this in mind.

I was either going to buy the Scarp or the Stratospire. It came down to a Stratospire coming up first at the right price on BPL.com! ...
Since then I have had mine out in some nasty conditions and it has held up really well. The inner flaps around a bit on a wild night but the outer is rock solid. In hindsight I probably could pull the outer closer to the ground to stop the wind blowing into the inner but it isn't an issue.

Good to know! My chosen tent needs to withstand hella wind n rain! And a maybe schome schnow too. That is something putting me slightly against the rainbow as I see people on the interwebs have mentioned rainsplash in the tent adverse conditions. Also condensation (as it's single wall). Is bpl.com backpackinglight.com…there are things for sale on there? I can't see 'em.

Its a shame we don't have a retailer of the tarp tent range in Australia because they make a great product.

agreed.

Corvus, how do you find the weight on your Scarps? Prohibitive? Or fine?

Thanks Moondog re: colours…I suppose my TT will be grey…not a huge colour range in the brand…as Henry Ford would've said, "you can have a [TT] in any colour you like, as long as it's [a mild green grey].

weight is king"

I think I'm starting to get that impression! Even Franco's against the weight of the Scarp 1!

[DanShell]

Its always dangerous territory recommending a tent such as the Stratospire to someone who needs a tent to withstand strong winds and snow. Site choice and pitching style play a significant role in keeping a tent pitched in heavy winds. Snow isn't so much of an issue with the Stratospire due to its steep walls but I haven't been in really heavy snow, so again its treading on the verge of being irresponsible for me to suggest it is the right tent for you. Id hate to see you get blown off the top of a summit and get hypothermia because you listened to a bunch of people on a public forum who all think 'their' tent is the right one

I am probably being a little cautious but it is a public forum so its best to err on the side of caution, especially not fully knowing your expectations.

BPL.com is backpackinglight.com and yes they have a buy,swap,sell section, although the Aussie dollar isn't lending itself to purchasing from the USA these days unless you find a real bargain.

I can relate to the Ladies comments in regards to having a freestanding tent. I have had all those situations (soft ground, hard ground etc) but I have always managed to find a tree or a way to keep my tent pitched. Thankfully I have been lucky with the winds when the pitch has been compromised...so far anyway

Weight is definitely king until you are caught out in 100kph gusts and your $500 tent becomes a bivy. But its all in good fun and adventure.

[Franco]

"I think I'm starting to get that impression! Even Franco's against the weight of the Scarp 1!'
I haven't had less than 10 tents for the last 15 years or so(way before I became part of Tarptent)

Every so often I sold or given one away but another one would turn up.
So it is a bit hard for me to come up with what I would take if I could only have one.
Oddly, possibly the Scarp because it ticks more boxes than the rest (for general use) the downside yes is the weight and the stuffed size, still way better than some alternatives.
Given that I always use trekking poles I prefer not to carry dedicated tent poles (that is tents that need those) but one neat thing I can do with this one is to be able to set it up with trekking poles (if needed).
Looks like this :


Anyway in the end my advice is always the same, get the one you like.

[Mickl]

"Every so often I sold or given one away but another one would turn up."

That's an impressive tent stash Franco! If you feel like clearing (selling) some gear from that stash anytime soon I'll happily help you clear it of a scarp or DR !

[Chezza]

Oddly, possibly the Scarp because it ticks more boxes than the rest (for general use) the downside yes is the weight and the stuffed size, still way better than some alternatives.

This is why I suggested the Scarp. For a "3-season" shelter it's the lightest weight, no compromise shelter I can think of, and it will always be easy to pitch, even on rock and tent platforms. I don't think the OP is mentally prepared for something that might be more challenging at times. Maybe she will come around to it after gaining some experience.

And Suz, please don't carry 400g of extra weight for a slight extra comfort on those 10% of days you might have terrible weather. Focus on your comfort for the bulk of the time where your tent will just be weight carried.

It's a mindset thing. The "just in-case" people suffer constantly having to lug that weight around.

The one who get it right suffer a little occasionally at the extremes of conditions.

Then there is "stupid light".

This is a good read:

http://andrewskurka.com/2012/is-lightwe ... abel-dead/

Are you hiking-inspired, or camping-inspired?

And to balance it out:

http://andrewskurka.com/2012/stupid-lig ... or-better/

[corvus]

[quote]

Corvus, how do you find the weight on your Scarps? Prohibitive? Or fine?[quote]

My Scarp 1 with x poles Tyvec ground sheet and a couple of extra titan pegs weighs 1952gm and is the top weight I would carry solo ,Scarp 2 is shared weight I carry the poles pegs etc

[Alittleruff]

I really like the look of that tent above in the photograph? What model is it please? And, I'm just wondering if you need any particular hiking poles? Thanks. I'm thinking it is a scarp from TT? Like this one? http://www.tarptent.com/scarp2.html but it looks a little different without the arch.

I like the way the sides are almost vertical at the feet/ head end, great idea.

[Mickl]

I really like the look of that tent above in the photograph? What model is it please? And, I'm just wondering if you need any particular hiking poles? Thanks. I'm thinking it is a scarp from TT? Like this one? http://www.tarptent.com/scarp2.html but it looks a little different without the arch.

I like the way the sides are almost vertical at the feet/ head end, great idea.

Pretty sure that a Scarp that's had the Franco treatment !

[GPSGuided]

I really like the look of that tent above in the photograph? What model is it please? And, I'm just wondering if you need any particular hiking poles? Thanks. I'm thinking it is a scarp from TT? Like this one? http://www.tarptent.com/scarp2.html but it looks a little different without the arch.

If you read the thread, that's a Scarp that was pitched without the arch member. Franco was demonstrating how it could also be pitched using two hiking pole instead for central support.

[Suz]

ok so i have been reading the comments and thinking hard. today i made mock up versions of the scarp 1 and rainbow in my yard and practiced carrying the weight of each around. the rainbow won both of those comps easily, but obviously doesn't have the weathering capacity of the scarp which remains untested. to my surprise i found the inner dimensions of the scarp tolerable, but the rainbow was truly relaxing to 'be' in. the weight if the scarp wasn't bad, but the rainbow was featherlight. I'm still undecided on weight / space (rainbow) over versatility (scarp). I think I better omit the stratospire tho as it seems it takes some nous to know where and how to pitch a tent. maybe the sanest thing to do is buy a rainbow, and then get a hilleberg if/when i genuinely need a 4 season tent? i'm gonna sit on it and think for a bit.

would a rainbow survive SW taswegia? or will i be having type 2 fun in a rainbow bivy like this DR here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ityELpmjkY (i know it's pitched the wrong way to the wind).

Chezza, good points, I'm definitely a hiker over a camper --- I don't even like camping! It's boring and dirty. Hiking is 70% good, 20% amazing, 10% hell and 100% worth the effort. With most other gear I'm big on saving weight - just yesterday I went trail shoe shopping and chose a pair for its lightness.

[DanShell]

If your going to buy a true 4 season tent for those times you need it then don't stress too much about any of the TT range coping for 3 season use.

I think the tent in the video is coping ok considering how it's pitched.

[GPSGuided]

Poor pitching just discredits the data point, as many of the sensationalistic click attracting YouTube videos are. Even the most expensive and most reputable tents will collapse when poorly pitched.

[Nuts]

What about that TTent in the 'for sale' section? I'm not familiar with that nor the other TTEnt offerings personally other than Scarp. Just to say that my comments probably relate more to longevity, being able to still weather a storm after many nights pitched/ having done so, UV (Our Hille's have never been pitched in daytime and are still distinctly faded/effected by UV), pressure on seams (or stitch lines spreading in lighter fabrics). As others have shown the TTents (Scarp at least) have been used all over Tassie.

1. With a bit of early scouting there's always somewhere more sheltered
2. Space is largely redundant once horizontal (the other 8 hrs..)
3. There simply isn't any such thing as '1 tent', you'll just lie there thinking about that other one!!

I'd imagine the lighter TTent models just make keeping that sheltered space in mind earlier as the day rolls on more 'something else that needs to be considered'... maybe looking for a replacement sooner for 'piece of mind' - a few more awkward maneuvers to get horizontal.. we are approaching the dreaded realm of -- personal choice..

Really, as I think I alluded too, personally i'd make the most of one of the few advantages of being small(ish..), especially as a walker/not camper.. i'd end up in a bivy telling myself the tradeoffs are worth it , any of the TTents would make-do. They are all well built/thoughtfully designed (as are Hilleberg )

[Pika]

Our Hillebergs have never let us down.

[norts]

Hilleberg Akto - all over Tassie in some pretty ordinary weather, 5 months on the AT - in all sorts of weather - also have the full mesh for hot weather. Great tent.

Macpac Microlight - stood up to some pretty foul weather good tent, up graded to the Akto

Tarptent Moment DW - a couple of short walks , purchased for the PCT next week! Main reason I am not taking the Akto is the Moment is lighter Also I like the idea of two doors, more ventilation, for the desert walking.
The Akto's one large vestibule is better than the two smaller ones of the TT( I might change my opinion after more use, just need to change my habits ) . Definitely not as well made as the Hilleberg, Hilleberg 's attention to detail is first rate.

Customer service with TT and Hilleberg has been very good.

Norts

[GPSGuided]

Tarptent Moment DW - a couple of short walks , purchased for the PCT next week! Main reason I am not taking the Akto is the Moment is lighter Also I like the idea of two doors, more ventilation, for the desert walking.
The Akto's one large vestibule is better than the two smaller ones of the TT( I might change my opinion after more use, just need to change my habits ).

Two vestibules setup is good as I'd like to keep the dirty stuff (eg. Boots/gaiters) on one side while the other is for cooking and other clean gears. Then under changing weather conditions, there's an option as to which side to open onto.

[Chezza]

would a rainbow survive SW taswegia? or will i be having type 2 fun in a rainbow bivy like this DR here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ityELpmjkY (i know it's pitched the wrong way to the wind).

The Rainbow isn't really designed to take wind like that side-on, but it could do much better than in that video. It's pitched badly - the sides can be pitched more taut and at a shallower angle, have a look at the pictures on the TT website. It also has a few clever ways to use trekking poles. If I had to pitch it side on to the wind I'd add two "lifter" guys from trekking poles off to each side, guyline wrapped around the centre of the pole, to absorb a lot of the sideways and some of the downward wind forces. It would survive most places pitched in a slightly sheltered location and end on to the wind, and not pitched by someone who is more intent on filming his tent poles being destroyed than doing something about it.

Chezza, good points, I'm definitely a hiker over a camper --- I don't even like camping! It's boring and dirty. Hiking is 70% good, 20% amazing, 10% hell and 100% worth the effort. With most other gear I'm big on saving weight - just yesterday I went trail shoe shopping and chose a pair for its lightness.

Hiking is even dirtier, I think! I'm with you on the rest.

[Suz]

thanks guys, narrowing in on choosing the rainbow and if it doesn't suffice in early trips in wild weather, well I guess I am prepared now to buy additional tent for those trips as everyone keeps saying here, there's no '1 tent'. you guys are really the best, it has been so helpful hearing all your insights.

[aden94]

Have you checked out the Trekkertent Stealth 2
It's built by a guy in the UK for UK weather, it's light, pretty good in wind and packs down real small (you can stuff it). Because of the steep walls, it can also support snow loads and you can bring the fly down to the ground.

http://www.trekkertent.com/home/home/7-stealth-2.html

[Moondog55]

That's not cheap is it. over $400-
It looks just like my old japara monkey coffin too

[Imprint]

$250 USD, just over 2kgs.

http://www.kelty.com/p-779-tn2.aspx?col ... =trailogic

I have one and love it.

[farefam]

I'm 5 feet 8 inches 74kg and do all my walking solo (mostly in Tassie and NZ). When I started bushwalking 25 years ago I bought a 2 hoop Eureka Firelight tent. Reasonably small, affordable and for the time reasonably light at 2kg, but water leaking in through the floor seam joins (no bathtub floor) in heavy rain would wet the tent floor and my thermarest (regardless of all attempts at extra seam sealing). The tent got flattened in high winds at Shelf Camp and the exposed moor above Lake Leo but otherwise it was reasonably sturdy in the Tassie mountains. I still have that tent but only use it in dry conditions now.

The frustration with the leaking floor eventually caused me to change to the 2 vestibule Macpac Olympus for the last dozen years or so. Pretty bombproof and it has saved my bacon in severe wind gusts (>130kph over >12 hours). Absolutely waterproof floor. Wonderfully spacious and pretty comfortable if stormbound in the tent for days at a time. Pretty much a Hilton Hotel when you're in the bush. However at 3.4kg it has started to become too heavy for long solo off track walks of 7+ days (but I'm still very happy to use it for shorter hikes or basecamp treks).

Now that age is wearying me I'm tossing up whether to buy a Scarp 1 (~1.6kg in use) for those difficult 7+ day offtrack trips as the Macpac Microlight (1.6kg) I looked at today is simply too small inside (coffin-like) due to the sloping sidewalls of the tent. I find it difficult to decide on tents unless you can sit in it before you buy! The Scarp 1 video shows it definitely has more room inside due to the vertical sidewalls.

To comment on the original posters question....in retrospect if I had stumped up the extra few hundred dollars and bought the mid size Macpac Minaret 25 years ago (current model is 2.4 kg) I would probably never have seen any need to buy another tent for the rest of my life. The Minaret has the strength, durability and most of the comfort of an Olympus for only a small weight penalty compared to my original Eureka Firelight tent and would handle anything Tassie weather can throw at it. If I was only going to buy one 4-season tent for use by 1-2 people that would be my choice.

Ultimately it comes to personal choice but from experience I'd insist on a bathtub floor and integral pole sleeves.

[Suz]

Ahhh…everyone continues to make good advice - I have looked at trekker tent and nordisk now and hillebergs yet again. I still think a TT is where I'll go and I stillllll haven't decided which TT… I want a weightless, weather impervious and spacious tent that takes NO skill in site selection or erection…well apparently that's just too much to ask for ;P

One of these outdoor companies should look at adding air pouches into gear and injecting helium into them (especially for those poor climbers who tend to fall off the sides of mountains) then we could outdoor like we're in zero gravity. Maybe I'll tie some H balloons to my pack. Bounce, bounce

I agree on the bath tub floor farefam…I do not want to wake up in a puddle.

Norts, if you read this - good luck on the PCT!

[DanShell]

Just buy the stratospire and be done with it, you know you want to
There's nothing difficult about pitching it. Just learn the couple of tricks involved in using a hiking pole to give it extra guy line support when the wind is due to get nasty.