eureka solitaire 44.95 shipped??

weird store, but so cheap I gave it a shot. delivered in 2 days, good condition. thanks for the link

no problem

was the price correct ?? i was thinking the same thing as you this gear shop is kinda strange but the prices seem fair looks like the inventory changes a lot
looks like they just sell what they can get thier hands on and don t really keep an
inventory in stock but who knows

glad you scored a good deal though

kevin

Someone has the Gossamer version (with aluminum poles) for $35 on the Gear Swap forum:

http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/forums/thread_display.html?forum_thread_id=41683

Anybody know the weight of just the inner mesh part? No fly, no poles – just the netting and floor?

The fly is permanently attached to the front loop I think.

I have one that is somewhat disassembled so I will weigh the inner later today.

Oh and count on buying new aluminum poles.
The fiberglass poles dont last long before they snap off at the end.

Dont want to get caught out with fragile equipment.

Its such a tight curve that you have to permanently bend the aluminum poles a bit.

That's a good price and may be worth trying it out. Be sure to reinforce those seams.

FYI: I did a short trip in Sequoias last summer with a small group and it misted, rained, and hailed quite a bit for a few days. A father and son each had new Eureka Solitaires. After a few hours of misting/light rain they both found their tents letting in a concerning amount of water and they didn't stay the duration. Another man in the group had a different Eureka (a Spitfire, if I recall correctly) and his was also leaking. All three tents were new; I don't know if they seam sealed, but I doubt it…

Brand Snobbery aside, the other shelters (REI, Golite, Black Diamond) all faired well.

Just the netting and floor weighs 1# 4oz.

i agree with above, i did purchase it as a "beater" tent/bivy though. i would never take it on a trip longer than two nights. perfect for weekend trips close to home or to let a friend borrow.
the other brands you mention just dont have anything in this price category, right? so while it might be better to just spend money once on a nice tent, it doesnt hurt to have a couple ones to take abuse on short trips.

just seam saeal it

not hard to do and it will give you some peice of mind

i had a spitfire and it was a nice tent for the price point i also have a few friends i hike with who have had great success with their eureka tents of different models

kevin

For a little extra $ the spitfire is a much better tent and not really that much heavier.

It has aluminum poles, not the crappy FG ones on the eureka that you wil have to replace anyway, and you can actually sit up in it and the door is on the left side.

The solitaire is more like a bivy/tent. Hard for me to get in and out of since the door is on the end and its so low.

Thanks for the info, Troy! Much appreciated.

Only reason I bought one was it was $35 from the outlet store.

Very cramped, but I knew that.
Hard to get into but it is long.
Too heavy for what it is.

Poles break. Mine broke setting it up in the living room.

I took mine apart to modify it to more of a curved A frame in the front for more headroom and to use with a campmor extended poncho for a fly.

It works, but the weight savings was just not enough for the hassle factor.

The spitfire fly can also be modified to be used as a hoodless poncho (wear a rain hat), or you could sew a hood onto it. Still it is not such a great tent either. Not bad but not great. Needs to be lighter, carbon poles, a cuben fly and it needs a small vestibule.

I do think the Solitaire would be a good tent for kids, but you have to replace the poles 1st thing. They are junk.

That adds another $20-30 so you might as well just buy a spitfire on line and have a tent that works out of the box.

my friend and hiking partner
had an extra zipper sewn into the mesh netting on the side oppisite the door zipper
on his spitfire so he could ulilize the vestibule on the oppisite side of the tent
this works very well and the seamstress that did it did an awesome jobon the zipper install it looks like a factory zipper

only downfall is that it cost him about $60 to have this done

tent works great though

kevin

nm