Tarptent Moment or?

[Greyson Howard]

Hey BPL folks,

I'm looking at a lightweight 1 person tent, and am leaning towards the Tarptent Moment, but I figured I'd check in here to see if you have any other suggestions.

My criteria:
Fit my 6'3" self. I'm not looking for roomy (I've been a bivy guy in the past) but I don't want my bag hitting wet walls at the ends of the tent.

Not trekking pole dependent. I do use trekking poles on some trips, but not on all.

Free-standing. Living, hiking and camping almost exclusively in the Sierra, I don't always find myself in the best places for stakes – like on top of slabs of granite. I'd still anchor as best as possible, but I don't want to be dependent on stakes for structure (enter Moment 2nd pole).

Speaking of being almost exclusively in the Sierra, I imagine this mostly alleviates condensation concerns – I have been using a Golite Den 2, AKA the king of condensation, without much trouble.

Price: I can't afford a Hilleberg. Or a Copper Spur.

So, am I on the right track, or would you point me in another direction?

Thanks!

[Eric Blumensaadt]

Grey,

I own a (modified) TT Moment and love it. My "dream tent" is the same in Cuben fabric (Henry won't make it) or the Six Moon Designs Skyscape X in Cuben but SMD has the Skyscape in silnylon at an affordable price.

If you get the Moment check the BPL archives for photos of my mods. Tne main mod was to run the crossing pole inside the tent for better canopy support.

[Mark Ries]

Hi Eric you might want to check your spelling on that last post… you know being an english teacher and all :^) I think its spelled t h e :^)

[Franco Darioli]

I am pretty sure that Eric is not from England but was a teacher of English.
it's in his bio.
(we could be here all day just correcting each other…)

[Eric Blumensaadt]

OOoooo Mark! ya got me on that one. Guess I had it coming, "literary critic" that I am.

Hey, cut me some slack, I'm a geezer and typo s___ happens. I'm lucky I can remember to zip up.

[Mark Ries]

Sorry I just could not resist :^) I posted that fearfully knowing how easy it would be to get me back . This might be my last post :)

Self-standing makes teh list of shelters for 6'+ tall hikers a very very small list of available shelters.

Teh already mentioned SMD Skyscape does not qualify – pretty sure none of theirs would.

Nor does teh new ZPacks shelter for taller hikers.

Nor does teh HMG Echo shelter qualify.

Same goes for anything from MLD.

I am not positive about anything from GoLite, but pretty sure that would be a no too.

I have never seen any mention of the LightHeart SoLong 6 being self-standing.

GossamerGear use to have one that could be, but they pulled all of their shelters.

So yeah, got me stumped on this one.

[Brian Johns]

Is a great place to start, but I would reconsider free standing only as a requirement. I too hike almost exclusively in the Sierra. The SMD Skyscape tents are excellent. Low footprint, an if you're on granite, just put rocks on your stakes or tie off to a rock instead of a stake. My SMD Skyscape trekker (silnylon) is 23.5 oz. seam sealed and sets up anywhere in my experience. It's feature rich (inner net, pockets, vestibule large enough to cook in) and has served me well. I started out with the $125/34 oz. Scout, but liked it so much I upgraded. I too would really like the cuben X, but the Trekker is lighter than most tarp/bivy combos offering the same protection and so easy to pitch. On nice nights, i.e., most any summer might in the sierras, you can pitch with only 3 stakes and enjoy full bug protection and 360* views I the stars. I should note, that I often use trekking poles, but have the carbon fiber poles SMD offers and recommend them at only 3.6 oz. for the pair.

[Eric Blumensaadt]

John A. I'm SO happy to see you spell "THE " as "teh". Now I know I'm not the only dyslexic typist around. I do that constantly and always have to go back and correct.

THANK YOU! I don't feel alone any more. Misery loves company.

[Miguel Arboleda]

Eric, it isn't you. The "QWERTY" keyboard is to blame. It's a terrible layout for natural typing, and causes a lot of problems with spelling and speed. Isn't it strange, for instance why the most frequent keys used are all on the left hand side?

[Erik Basil]

You guys are like loosing it.

Confound this pernicious keyboard!

[Miguel Arboleda]

Er, "losing" it? =^)

John A. I'm SO happy to see you spell "THE " as "teh". Now I know I'm not the only dyslexic typist around. I do that constantly and always have to go back and correct. THANK YOU! I don't feel alone any more. Misery loves company.

lolol, yeah, sure thing ;)

For me it dates back to when myself and a few other guys were developing the phpBB project. We had three of us that were all working on some code and we all ended up typing "teh" the same day and submitting the code to the repo. Somewhere along the way we all realized we had all done the same thing the same thing. From there out, it just sort of became teh thing to do :-)

[Dean F.]

Well, if you're really set on the freestanding thing the Moment may not be for you. You see, it isn't freestanding- it requires two tie out points, one at each end. That said, I agree that you shouldn't be too obsessive about wanting a freestanding tent, both in general but also in particular regarding the Moment. You can ALWAYS find two spots to tie off to somewhere. I mean- finding any two points isn't like trying to find four points in the perfect geometry like you'd have to do for a mid- any two points will do. If you can't drive two stakes you can find two bushes clinging to the granite to tie to, or two big rocks, or make two snow anchors or whatever. Heck, half the time I didn't even take stakes, just two lines long enough to give me some options in tying off. I've pitched it in my living room using the couch and our breakfast table as tie off points. (And my wife complained about the smell of the seam-sealant for days…)

I eventually sold my Moment because I've sort of decided that I'm a mid guy, and I sort of grew out of needing a floor. (In my opinion- this week at least- a floorless mid or TrailStar plus a bivy if needed (bugs) is the Perfect Shelter Solution.) But I really can't say enough good things about the design of the Moment, if it is otherwise what you are looking for- a well made, stout, floored, bugproof 1P shelter. It is wicked fast to pitch. I did get massive condensation in it- once- but let's just say that at the time I was challenging it with the worst possible conditions. It hailed, it snowed, it rained, slush everywhere, high humidity with temperatures flirting with freezing, I laughed, I cried, etc. ANY shelter would have struggled. Other than that one time it never let me down re: reasonable condensation.

You'll have to ask others about whether it is fit for a sasquatch, though- I'm only 5'10" on a good day…

[Herbert Sitz]

". . . the Moment may not be for you. You see, it isn't freestanding- it requires two tie out points, one at each end. "

You're describing the Moment without the optional 7 ounce ridge pole. With the optional ridgepole, which runs perpendicular to center hoop the length of the tent, the Moment is indeed freestanding, the ridgepole is used to tension the end tieouts so no stakes are needed:
Tarptent Moment

You can see a picture here, in which they guyline on the hoop is not necessary. Not sure if there are stakes at ends of tent in this pic, but if there are they are unnecessary also:

[Dean F.]

Damn- y'know someone pointed that out to me before, and I had forgotten. (I even owned the long ridgepole when i had my Moment- I just never used it.)

[Sam Farrington]

The TT Moment is a super design.
Problem is, with a single wall tent, you need maximmum ventilation.
The Moment is limited. From front of vestibule to back.
Not enough room for a rear vestibule, even with the pointy, angled front door.
Had Henry designed a netting wall into the back, underneath a rear vestibule, it might have worked.
He could have put in a rear vestibule, at least a vent, even with only 7 feet to work with.
But he didn't.
He didn't, because, making the carbon struts more than 18"long would have required two pole sections, with a ferrule, and they could not have been incorporated as a permanent part of the structure, to be folded up with the tent.
He should havd realized from the git-go. that two, two-piece struts were needed at each end.
More space, more ventilaton, and room for netting on your other side, which beats facing a drippy silnylon wall.

[Dean F.]

EDIT– Wait, I get it- you're saying that he should have put another vestibule on the side OPPOSITE THE DOOR. You're not talking about the ends with the 18" carbon rods where the tent stakes go. So it seems like you're saying he could have ALMOST made the Moment a double-walled tent, right? One of those so-called 1.5-walled tents?

I don't think that was the design goal. And air certainly can circulate up under the tarp in the back- the bottom edge is high enough off the ground. I'm not sure how a back vestibule would help air circulation. Yes, as I mentioned, it is still a single-walled tent and thus condensation will always be a concern, but IMO the Moment is pretty well ventilated.

But I also think that if he made both front and rear vestibules that what you'd have is two uselessly small vestibules instead of one adequate one. But it seems that your greatest concern is brushing against condensation. Granted, I'm an N of 1, but I found the walls to be steep enough that I didn't have problems brushing up against that rear wall. Did you? There IS mesh on the back side- it just isn't very high. But high enough to keep me from brushing.

Eh, YMMV, I guess.

Personally, I have a hard time coming up with severe criticisms of the Moment. I guess it would be nice if it used trek poles instead of dedicated tent poles, but then the walls wouldn't be as steep and the problem that concerns you- brushing up against condensation- would be worse. I really do have a hard time identifying a better bug-proof fully-enclosed 1P tent- again, bearing in mind it's niche as a lightweight 3-season single-walled shelter. (But then, everyone rates such things according to their own priorities, eh?) The only reason I sold mine, as I mentioned, was because I decided to go simpler and lighter with my shelter system. Seam-sealed my Moment was pushing 30 ounces. I can almost halve that using a palatial mid.

[Miguel Arboleda]

Dean, Henry did make a Moment-like shelter with trekking poles. It's called the Notch. Very similar, plus it has double doors, and double vestibules. I have the Notch. I've never the used or seen the Moment in person, but I'd think the inner floor space is much bigger than the Notch, which is very narrow, just enough to fit a full-length sleeping mat. The Notch is a great shelter, but I personally would prefer bigger inner floor space.

[Dean F.]

Miguel-

Yeah, that's sort of what I was trying to say: It'd be nice if we could have a tent with all of the capabilities of the Moment, but using trek poles instead of a dedicated tent pole.

But we can't. Using trek poles imposes certain limitations.

That said, the Notch looks like a great shelter too, though it isn't "as freestanding" as the Moment, but I've no experience with it. And it hasn't garnered the accolades that the Moment has, for whatever that's worth. As you hinted, I think most people are willing to splurge on the ease of setup and more floor space.

And, I've gone 'mid, anyway… :)

[Roger B]

@Miguel and that is why I prefer my Moment over the Notch, more space inside, but less space outside.

[Franco Darioli]

"He could have put in a rear vestibule, at least a vent, even with only 7 feet to work with.
But he didn't."

If by "end" you meant the side, there is a "vent" option there too:

[Dean F.]

@ Franco- Yes, I think he means the back side, not the ends where the carbon stays are located. I had never thought of hiking up that rear edge like that- it looks like it would help considerably.

@ Sam- So, see how high the mesh is on that back side? I have a hard time imagining that anyone would have significant trouble brushing up against the silnylon on the back. And as I mentioned, not having a "rear vestibule" seems like a weak criticism IMO. I'd rather have one vestibule of decent size than two uselessly small ones. And I can't see how you'd need two vestibules (or two doors) in a 1P tent.

[Sam Farrington]

"And I can't see how you'd need two vestibules (or two doors) in a 1P tent."

Scarp. Until you've experienced rear storage, and had the full front vestibule for cooking, eating, and getting in and out, you haven't experienced the best that a solo tent can offer. All that front vestibule space is not so great if you have to clamber over and around your stuff (pack, camp chair, footwear, sopping raingear, etc.) to get through it.

"The Notch is a great shelter, but I personally would prefer bigger inner floor space."

That's what you'd get, on the Moment as well, were the carbon struts longer as earlier noted.

"I didn't have problems brushing up against that rear wall."

A number of folks have, and have posted about it here. Wouldn't it be nice to have a single wall tent that you don't have to constantly 'wipe down' inside.

Franco – it was election night in the USA, I had been celebrating, and shamelessly allowed myself to to drift once again into heretical observations about a TarpTent. The devil made me do it.

On a more positive note, I've been corresponding a bit with Roger about Warmlite's self-touted experiments decades ago with Mylar laminates to reduce condensation on its single wall tents. There were problems with delamination, and all was soon forgotten. More recently, Cubic Tech has been more successful with laminating Mylar with high tech fibers, and there have been a number of posts observing that less condensation has occurred with Cuben fiber single walls. But I think having your head, foot and sides protected from condensation in a single wall tent is still a big plus.

Sierra Designs tried what some refer to as a 'hybrid' between single and double wall. One iteration was called the "Baku," and another 'Velox,' I think. They got a lot of complaints about condensation also in these tents, and discontinued them. No matter what you call them, it's just possible that with vented netting walls front and back, and vented netting at head and foot as on the Moment, good shoulder and headroom, and a top-vented Cuben single wall canopy, condensation can be reduced enough to make a tent as comfortable as a full double wall. It's worth trying, I think, to cut out the weight of a full net inner. And the netting that remains is doing double duty to keep out bugs and provide access to entry, exit and storage.

[Eric Blumensaadt]

Dean, my Moment IS a "1.5 walled tent", having purchased the liner. the Moment liner does not cover the front side, which is all netting and protects you from condenbsation in teh vestibule. Thus the "1.5 walled" esignation is accurate.

I will say the liner gives the Moment a bit more warmth and certainly keeps the occupant from getting condensation on them.

Henry Shires has VERY cleverly designed the Moment to do many things well in a 3 season environment. My mods are merely decorations on the frosting of this tasty cake.

[Author]

Posts