Deciding between BearPaw Cub Den 1.5, Zpacks Hexamid (I chose Cub Den, here are the pics and initial setup)

Ok went for two pitches:

One where you didn't know the rain would come from.

One for max ventilation (which I don't think I got 100% off the ground like I wanted.)

I'll definitely have to keep the linelocs on there for awhile until I get better at eyeballing the setup. It's harder than my rectangular tarps.

First the low….forgot to make measurement of beaks. Front beak was obvious extremely low with the front pole removed, rear beak was still much higher than me. :)

Hexamid Solo for comparison:

Front Low:

Long Side:

Short Side and Rear:

Down side to low pitch is the front zipper can't be closed at this extreme to keep out bugs…I guess I'd stuff my bag there:

How I got in…just restake when you are inside (Line Locs come in handy I'll admit):

When pitched this low, I found it helpful to pitch the bigger pole like the MLD Cricket to max interior space (best placer to keep the pole out of the living space) and keep things taut:

Now for pitching it as high as I could given the time. Front beak was at 38.5 in and the main peak was at 54.5 in measured from inside:



Back of shelter ventilation:

Lots of room for feet/gear:

Head room to spare:

View to the stars:

Peak pole(notice I am facing it into the rear of the shelter, it held better that way):

Massive headroom while sitting, I could easily squat or possibly hunch over, maybe:

Mark,

I do get some condensation like all tents do here in the NW. When I get around to it I'll take pictures of my Lightheart Cuben Solo and post pictures similar to this post. FYI….I sleep on a 2 inch Neoair. I love my tent. Amazingly light at 18 oz including tie outs and awning.

I think you'll find the mesh useful outside of bug season. As you stated it reduces rain splash, but it also reduces the effect of wind blown rain and snow as well.
The mesh should help reduce the wind velocity significantly, stopping the rain/snow at the entrance.

The mesh will also reduce drafts making it warmer in cold weather.

I find that I use the bug net on my bivy when it's cold to reduce breeze making me warmer and allowing me to get by with a summer bag in the spring/fall months.

People who use tents with permanent mesh will tell you that they feel the cold come in when they unzip the mesh door.

So in some ways, having the mesh outside of bug season saves weight.

Bryce, explain those two options on the BearPaw tent. Are they opposite (you order one, you can't order the other) or do you click "add to cart", choose other option and "click add to cart" again? Thanks.

Hi Roleigh,

I'm not sure which exact options you are referring to, but when you go through the checkout on the website for .51 CF, it gives you a couple of different configurations/Options:

Tarp
Tarp + ExtendedBbeak
Tarp & Extended Beak + Vent

Tarp & Bug Netting
Tarp & Bug Netting + Extended Beak
Tarp & Bug Netting + Extended Beak + Vent

All other options are "custom" and you just email/call him and spec out what you'd like and he quotes you…such as velcro all the way around to remove the bug netting, or a vertical zipper on my tent vs. the horizontal (saves weight), etc., a lot of his business is modding other manufacturers designs to what customers want so he's flexible.

Thanks Bryce, did you go with the .74 cuben fiber or .51 cuben fiber thickness? I forget what the Zpacks Cuben Fiber equivalent thickness is (I have the duo hexamid tent myself by Zpacks).

I went with .51.

If I'm going light, might as well go all the way. :p

He offers it in .74 as well.

Zpacks Hexamid Solo comes in .51 as well. Maybe Zpacks would do it in .74 if you asked, thought it's not listed on their site for the Hexamid Solo:

http://www.zpacks.com/shelter/hexamid.shtml

If the Hexamid is .51 then that is fine for strength. I wonder what the water impermeability difference is between .51 and .74 though. Did you see that other thread about how cuben fiber under so much water pressure does allow water through the fabric (this happens with silnylon and spinnaker too though).

I believe we read the same thread…. and it did not concern me I guess. Under pressure sure, a lot of fabrics out there will pass water, but the way the water is hitting the shelter and bouncing off (not being pressured through) and it is often times hitting out shelters from an angle, I'm not worried. Then again, I'm just a newb with the .51. Who knows. :)

My only concern is on the JMT last year the one night we had a superstorm (worst in 11 years I've hiked in the High Sierras), I stupidly got in the tent with my girl friend which was a Spinnaker tent versus the Cuben Fiber (Duo Hexamid) tent I had. Water seeped through that fabric ceiling that night. I wish I had used the Duo Hexamid to see how it would have handled that bad of a storm. I just don't know. I know it handles mild, ordinary rain just fine. Just don't know about a super storm. I know I don't trust spinnaker anymore.

My experience has shown that when you are in one of those freak storms that you get from time to time, especially at high elevation, it doesn't matter much whether your shelter is silnylon, spinnaker or cuben of any thickness. The super cold wind blown rain hitting the outside surface of the shelter will cause huge amounts of water condensing and running down the inside walls.

The best thing is to have walls that are shaped in such a way as to have the water run to the ground, instead of dripping on you. The Den and Hexamid seem to be good choices.

Either way, my technique is to not worry about the water and accept it, you can actually sleep through it, if you are brainless like me:-)

I get wet during these situations and I may have wet sleeping bag and clothing the next day. So when it stops, I make a point of hanging my wet gear out to dry. I don't pack wet gear in my pack, but instead hang it from the pack, in mesh pockets or draped.

Either way, even a bad storm is better than a day at the office:-)

So I went on a 3 day trip with the Cub Den 1.5 and pitched the shelter differently with the rear pole on the outside of the tent:

http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/forums/thread_display.html?forum_thread_id=48642

This worked much better and allowed for a more taut pitch. In running the idea by BearPaw Wilderness Designs, they states this is actually how they pitch the shelter.

It certainly was easier for me to stake down the 4 corners of the shelter then put the pole on the outside of the shelter. Then I'd adjust the height of the peak as needed just by wrapping the guy line around the pole's handle higher or lower, as opposed to setting the rear pole to a certain height under the shelter, and having to adjust a few times to get it right and keep things taut.

This loses the ability to use the rear pole's strap as a place to hang items under the safety of the shelter, but I find it an acceptable trade-off.

One additional benefit of the rear pole on the outside, is it preserves as much interior space as possible and it never gets in the way under the shelter.

I'll have to say after seeing it pitched on our trip, that thing is huge, much bigger than I expected, especially considering the weight.

It looked like what many companies would call a two person shelter.

I bought this cuben shelter from John at Bear Paw before he sold the Cub Den. It is very similar to the Cub Den 1.5 dimensions. I really like the perimeter netting, high entry door, and extra length and girth.Notice in pics I used a sapling instead of a rear pole which I find ideal. I also made a beak that I use as an entry porch when weather is friendly.John is super to deal with and truly believes in customer service, quality work and fair prices.

Pics of tent from a recent trip to the Siskiyou Wilderness at Trout Camp along Clear Creek. Hope to do a trip report soon.

Thanks for the pics, very nice. It looks exactly the same, are the dimension slightly different? If so, in what way?

http://www.bearpawwd.com/tents_tarps/tent_images/cubden/dcubden1_Dim.jpg

Hey Bryce,

The dimensions are all within a few (1-5) inches. It is hard to know because the height of the pitch and whether or not the tent is symmetrical or asmmetrical changes the measurements. Mine may be slightly longer and a little less width. John should know for sure about the dimensions. I had John make me a cuben bathtub floor to fit the tent (nice addtion). I use mini mitten hooks and fine shock cord to connect to corners. I like being able to separate the floor when wet to dry on outside of my pack. I had my tent in a 3 1/2 inch hard rain with no leaks but it was a straight down rain with very little wind. In the wind the beak would seem important.I really like the looks of your beak and vertical zipper.

Safe and fulfilling trails,

Bill

I don't have a beak. I didn't order one because of the weight (duh) and I was hopeful I had enough coverage in a "1.5" shelter for "1" person by scooting to the back and by and large that was true:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E0YsRC4L4VU

Next time, if it's going to be nasty out I'll pitch it in storm mode and see what happens. :)

Some of the pics look relatively tight for you Bryce. I am 6'4". I am interested in these 2 shelters as well. Any thoughts as to how your shelter would fit a longer person?

….I had plenty of room, especially when I got better with pitching my Cub Den 1.5. I can only speak to the Cub Den 1.5, but the walls of the shelter are very much vertical, giving you a lot of usable space. But I am only 5-9.5 tall. In the video it looks like I had a bunch of space at the head and foot end: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E0YsRC4L4VU

Hexamid Length:
7 feet 9 in
9 feet

Cub Den 1.5 Length:
8.16feet
8.33feet

Looks like the Hexamid has more overall length if that is a concern, but not as square inside the shelter as the Cub Den 1.5.

Another thing to consider for tall folks is the headroom. When pitched directly to the ground in storm mode, the Hexamid is 41 inches tall. The Cub Den 1.5 is 44 inches tall. I can't speak to what it's like inside the Hexamid for real, but it was ~incredibly~ roomy inside the Cub Den 1.5 when I had it pitched in regular mode, awesome. But you pay for it with weight of course. Pick your poison. :p

Thanks Bryce. That's helpful.

Of course I am not the authority here and am going off memory from my last trip. Both John of Bear Paw Wilderness Designs and Joe from Zpacks have been great to speak with. I'd shoot each of them an email and get their thoughts. It wouldn't be in their best interest to sell you a shelter than you ultimately would not be happy with as word of mouth is God in this business. :) GL.

Appreciate it. Just looked at the Lair from Bear Paw too and it looks promising. Nice to see their products working well for you.