Double Rainbow vs. Lunar Duo

not to totally re-open the debate but…..

I'm planning a 2009 Appalachian Trail thru-hike for two, starting Feb. 29 finishing late July (inshallah).

First off, thanks to all for your informative posts. There's certainly plenty of great "food for thought" here…

Now, to get down to it. Basically I'm looking for information about these two tents when in use for 2 full-sized people (both ~6ft), 2 full thru-hiker kits of gear, and a wide range of variable weather from snowy smokies to muggy-buggy SE, to the summers of NE. That's the nature of specific information I'm really looking for here with these two innovative tarptents. We have by no means made up our minds but are looking to the peanut-gallery for help. Obviously both are excellent choices, excellent quality, excellent weights and comparable in a multitude of ways.

Yesterday we took a tour of the Double Rainbow and liked the ease of set-up, center-pole with high ceiling, overall stability, adjustable bathtub floor, and I suspect we'd use the porch feature a good bit during the warmer months. Also, I liked the interior attachments which I would retro-fit to accommodate a "gear hammock" out of mesh that could double as a headnet (…has any one else made a similar hammock?).

We do however have a few concerns about the RB:

-are the vestibules really substantial enough to host a backpack, hikers, some gear? what about in rains?

-full of 2 people, sleeping bags and random gear, we worry that floor vents would be covered thus creating problems with ventilation… has anyone else found this to be a problem?

-some post have mentioned problems with "splash-back" into the interior space during heavy rains…?

Now, regarding the 6MDs Lunar Duo:

-how much of a pain is set-up (obviously both tents have learning curve and require "tweaking" to get pitch just right)? Do the trekking poles offer too much of an obstacle for egress, overall comfort?

-is there a noticeable difference in size with the LD compared to the the rainbow? obviously there are a few inches, but can anyone speak to the difference in usability/aesthetics between the two?

-while the ceiling can be made higher in the LD, does the design of the tent allow 2 occupants to fully utilize the benefits of larger dimensions?

Finally, which of these tent performs better in inclement weather (i.e. snow), which is easier to adjust and tweak for bad weather, and which is easier to pitch in a pinch?

Thanks so much! You're advice is dearly appreciated by this newbie to BL!

Happy trekking
~Six Shooter & Galileo

Lauren I have the LD and can answer a couple of your questions:

Do the trekking poles offer too much of an obstacle for egress, overall comfort?

No problem whatsoever. Not even a factor. Forget about it!

while the ceiling can be made higher in the LD, does the design of the tent allow 2 occupants to fully utilize the benefits of larger dimensions?

It's generously sized for a 2 person tent. Plenty of space, all of it usable. Large vestibules. Space is one thing you don't have to worry about with this tent.

Finally, which of these tent performs better in inclement weather (i.e. snow), which is easier to adjust and tweak for bad weather, and which is easier to pitch in a pinch?

The lunar duo is excellent for rain, not so good for high winds and snow. For rain, you have large vestibules, and no chance of any rain splashing into the tent. Heaps of room to sit around in. You can slide the vestibule up and sit and watch the rain outside without danger of rain falling inside the tent. (You can do that with the double rainbow but you need to set up the porch… not quite as simple as just sliding the vestibule clip up and down).

I think the lunar duo is best in calmer and rainy conditions, because of the extra room you get. But if you're expecting to often see strong winds and snow it might be better to go with the double rainbow and put up with the smaller floorspace and vestibules. If you use trekking poles to support it think it would be more snow/wind resistant than the LD.

Lauren,

I feel slightly qualified to compare the shelters since I've owned both. I say "slightly" because I haven't actually used my new Lunar Duo yet – I just got it. In fact, if you look above, you'll see me mention almost two years ago how happy I was with my Double Rainbow. I actually owned two DR's (a second generation model was sold almost brand new, and a first generation model that saw most of my use).

There are 3 main reasons I sold the DR for the LD. The biggest one is that my hiking partner (my wife) didn't really care for it. Another other one was space. The LD has substantially more elbow room in it. The last one was the floor – we don't like 30D silnylon for a tent floor. 70D is an option in the LD, but not in the DR.

Differences I've noticed…

– The DR is very easy and quick to setup. After doing the LD at my residence a few times, I would say that if I were stuck setting up in the rain, I'd prefer a DR – it goes up faster and easier. That said, the LD is not difficult to set up, and is relatively easy. Also, when packing up, the LD slips into it's stuff sack easier, and I know I'll prefer it's shorter stuffed length in my pack. I wouldn't let the minor difference in ease of setup dictate my purchase.

– While the LD has a wider and longer floor, that's not the only space gain. If you look at the DR from the end, the mesh walls tilt in like this / whereas the LD mesh walls are vertical like this | |. For my wife and I, it's a big space difference. I am a side sleeper and normally have my back to her. When doing this, however, the mesh of the DR was right in my face because it drapes in at an angle. It drove me nuts. If I sat up without leaning toward the middle, I hit the mesh. It always seemed to be encroaching into my space. In setting up the LD, it appears these issues are non-existent. Other people may not agree – it could just me me.

– While I loved the porch on the DR at first, it created more effort to get in and out, and there were more guy lines to trip over. I also had to carry 2 extra stakes per porch to use them. If the porch was set up and it started raining enough to close it, I had to get out and re-stake that part of the tent. I eventually preferred to keep the vestibules wide open unless it rained, at which point I'd just close it up.

– I don't like the uber-light 30D floors. I felt the need to carry a ground cloth, which ends up being heavier than the 70D floor you can get on the LD. This is obviously a non-issue for many people. Also, the "bathtub" walls on the LD floor stand up as a bathtub better. I found the tub walls on the DR to be a little bit floppy. I do not know if this has to do with the heavier floor on my LD, if it's more due to tent design, or if it was my site selection and setup skills.

– With regards to storms, it may be a wash – we'll see. The LD has bigger areas of flat material that may catch more wind, but trekking poles are more sturdy than the DR aluminum ridge-line pole. That said, you can stabilize the DR with trekking poles as well. I'm guessing the DR is better for high winds. I won't know until I go out with the LD. I do, however like the fact that if I miss a spot seam sealing, there are no seams over head to leak on the LD. The LD ceiling is one solid piece of fabric. The DR has several seams in it that can leak if you are off in your sealing job. I had my DR leak on me (yes, it was my fault for not testing the seams, but I'm just sayin…).

Both tents are also very well made, and both are great shelters. I may have kept my DR had I not kept looking at Six Moon Designs website. I also haven't actually USED my LD yet, so it's hard to come up with much for complaints. I'm also excited about my new purchase. Keep that in mind with regards to my "couch" comparison and it's relative validity.

From reading this whole thread, it sounds like the Lunar Duo bests the Double Rainbow when, all other things being roughly equal, a primary concern is having enough space that your partner (who is a little less harcore than you) finds the place comfy/roomy.

Can anybody compare the Lunar Duo to the Rainshadow 2? The Rainshadow would appear to get you even more floor space (though less usable and less vestibule space) for about the same weight. So perhaps even better for luxuriating with the girlfriend, *IF* all other things are equal (i.e. if the Rainshadow is as good as the Double Rainbow). The latest "State of the Market" article seems to call the wind resistance of the Rainshadow into question, although the individual review on BPL makes it sound adequate with 2 hiking pole set-up.

Also i'm 6'2" with size 12 feet; I worry the rainshadow may be a little short, especially with the tapered end.

Anybody got any thoughts, able to shed some light on the Rainshadow? I gather from this thread it isnt as popular as the other two; from the specs it looks like it should be. Would love to know what I'm missing. Thanks!

I have also owned both the Lunar Duo and the Rainshadow. I returned the Lunar Duo because of a few quality control issues (the sewing came undone on a strap and the seam sealing job was very messy – I returned the tent for a refund, but I believe this poor quality was a rarity). Anyway, the Lunar Duo had a very large floor area and two nice vestibules, but it weighed a little more than the Rainshadow.

Now I own the Rainshadow. The floor area tapers at the foot end, but it tapers down to 5' (which is plenty for 2 or 3 pair of size 11 feet). The ceiling also tapers at the foot end, but at the head of the tent a very large person can sit up without touching the ceiling. The Rainshadow is considered a "tunnel" tent because you enter from the front and there is only one door. This is the only drawback to this style tent as compared to a "double side-entry" tent like the Lunar Duo. The Rainshadow is much lighter and packs smaller than the Lunar Duo, and the quality is top-notch.

I hope this helps. If there's something I missed, just ask.

Just a comment if you buy the Lunar Duo. My wife bought me a Lunar Solo for Christmas, and paid for the factory seam sealing. Don't waste your money. You can do it yourself in an afternoon, and do a much better job. In fact, I would expect a 10 year old to do a much better job. Mine is thick and peeling around the roof vent, and you can see spots all over the tent body where it was either folded wet, or spilled repeatedly.

Thank you Dennis. I'd love to ask you some follow-up questions if you don't mind.

1. How's the length of the Rainshadow? the SOTM Report lists it at 84, which would be altogether too short (my SD Lightning it 84.5 and its too short). Tarptent's website has it listed much longer. Good to hear that size 11 feet dont touch the wall, but how tall are the people?

2. I set out thinking I'd get two doors; really dont like the single side door on my Lightning. But I guess I was thinking that with the Rainshadow, even though its a single door, its so big that one person could get out in the night without disturbing the other. Sounds like in your opinion, this large top door is not a good substitute for dual doors?

3. Along the lines of 2, I've never used a tapering shelter like this. Is it hard to get up and get turned around to go out the front? That is, with girlfriend to my left that I'm trying not to wake and a wall to the right that I'm trying not to touch, is something going to have to give?

4. Speaking of touching the walls, it sounds like the Lunar Duo has a higher mesh wall, so is a little more forgiving for touching the walls (especially since you have mesh doors on either side, not the tarp as with the rainshadow). Does this result in the Lunar Duo 'feeling' effectively as wide as the Rainshadow, since you're a bit less worried about touching the sides?

5. How do you feel about the hybrid bathtub floor? I expect I'll leave it in bathtub mode most of the time, unless I really need the venting. I like the theory of it being adjustable, though some posting seemed to think the floor better on the Lunar Duo. Got any thoughts?

6. How's ventilation in the Rainshadow (particularly worst case scenario, when floors are fully up and tent is fully zipped up)?

7. Have you tried it in the wind? It didnt score well in the SOTM Report in the wind. But the individual BPL review made it sound like, though not excellent, its quite good in the wind with 2 trekking poles (which I would use).

8. I've never owned a non-freestanding tent. For a marginal/questionable spot, is one set up better than the other for getting these things pitched? (I have to imagine that there would be some performance difference between the rainshadow's curved pole/dual trekking pole setup vs. the trekking pole on each side configuration).

I'll stop there but any other thoughts you can offer would be helpful. Thanks so much, sorry for so many questions!

The rainshadow 2 is a 3 person tent that weighs 2.5 pounds. 3 men, myself one of them, used it on a 9 day high sierra trail hike and it worked just fine. for 2 people, it is a taj mahal tent. it is obviously more comfortable for 2 people than 3 but it does work for 3 people. have used it on a 15 day hike in 2007 for 2 people, and it was like I said, a taj mahal experience. Plenty long for someone 6'2" too. One of us was 6'1"

1. "How's the length of the Rainshadow?"
It is 7' long. While the "Hybrid" floor is supposed to lengthen, the edge is still molded into a bathtub so it really doesn't lay down much futher. Maybe the center length can stretch another 4-8".

2. "…I was thinking that with the Rainshadow, even though its a single door, its so big that one person could get out in the night without disturbing the other."
It is a rather large door (about 4' high), but the treking poles supporting the front of the tent are the obstacles. Using only one pole makes for less of an incumberance. I don't think you'd wake up your partner any more so with this one door than any other single door design. Like I said earlier, 2 doors is something I miss with this tent (but I still feel it's worth that sacrifice).

3. "Is it hard to get up and get turned around to go out the front?"
With only two people in the tent, you should have plenty of room to exit without touching your girlfriend or hitting the wall.

4. "Does this result in the Lunar Duo 'feeling' effectively as wide as the Rainshadow, since you're a bit less worried about touching the sides?"
I would agree that the higher side mesh walls give it a wider feeling, but that is negated by the Rainshadow's walls being steeper (they rise up and out of the way quicker – at least in the front of the tent).

5. "How do you feel about the hybrid bathtub floor?"
I tried to release the bathtub floor to make the floor wider, but the corners are built in such a way that they don't lay completely open. I plan on just leaving the floors in the bathtub config most of the time as well.

6. "How's ventilation in the Rainshadow"
As most single-wall tent owners will tell you, venting/condensation is more a function of location of set up than anything else. Never having used the Lunar Duo in the field, I would still estimate that more airflow moves through the Rainshadow (given the same location factors).

7. "Have you tried it in the wind?"
Not heavy wind. I am slightly concerned about how much everything moves when you tap on the roof slightly. I don't think I will ever stay in this tent overnight without using the extra guyouts. I believe the same could be said for the Lunar Duo.

8. "For a marginal/questionable spot, is one set up better than the other for getting these things pitched?"
The Rainshadow definitely wins this category in my opinion as well. The Lunar Duo uses 6-8 stakes, and I can get the Rainshadow up and ready in 2 minutes with 4 stakes (another 30 seconds for the extra 2 guyouts).

Hope this helps. Send me some more questions…..

Thanks very much for your reply.

Been taking a day to digest and read through all the reviews. I will definitely let you know if I have any further questions. I'm leaning Lunar Duo at this point, but Dennis, your extremely helpful comments have certainly ensured that I will agonize about this decision for quite a long time (and may ultimately come back around to the Rainshadow).

I do have a few more minor questions:

1. Does the "tunnel" design create a bit of a wind-tunnel effect on colder, windy nights? Obviously its a fine line because you need wind to keep the condensation out. But I'm wondering if tunnel/tubular shapes tend to create a wind tunnel effect that borders on uncomfortable on chilly nights.

2. Does the rainshadow really pack up significantly smaller than the LD?

Thanks again.

Since the Rainshadow 2 has been thrown in the mix, can anyone comment on how comfortable one would be in either of these shelters with a second person and a 75 lb Labrador retriever?

I like the "palatial" space of the Rainshadow 2, but think the 70D floor of the LD would hold up better to a dog's paws. Any thoughts?

I have the LD and my 80lb. Flatcoat retriever and I fit fine with plnty of room to spare. The LD is a great shelter.

Hi Bill. That appears to be a Rainshadow or Squall or similar in your background picture. If I'm not mistaken, since you own both that and the Lunar Duo, would you care to opine as to pros/cons between the two? Thanks!

I'm 6'6' and 270 and debated between the two shelters until I learned the Lunar Duo was bigger in most aspects. That was the key for me and I've never regretted my decision. It is quite roomy for one and quite workable for two.

>I like the "palatial" space of the Rainshadow 2, but think the 70D floor of the LD would hold up better to a dog's paws. Any thoughts?

Two points here:

1) We have neither seen nor heard of floor damage due to dog claws. It just doesn't happen. Cat claws are a different story, especially with mesh.
2) The Rainshadow 2 flat floor (bathtub walls up) measures 78"/68" x 84" (42.6 sq feet) — quite a big larger than ours (our others) two-person shelters.

-H

Shane, sorry that is a Europa 05 by SMD. So I really can't offer an opinion on the Rainshadow or the DR. I'm 6'3" and again the LD is palatial.

James K.,

What is the shelter in your avatar and how the heck do fit in that with your size??!!

Jeremy G. – That's the Gossamer Gear SpinnTwinn. Shortly after that photo was taken I got absolutely hammered with rain and decent winds. I was convinced I was going to be washed away. Except for some bowing on the ridgeline (poor pitching on my part), I stayed 100% dry. My only complaint was I got some rain splatter on my face. I ended up contacting GG and the end result was a third party sewing on an additional 40" of Spinn fabric on one end which now comes down at a point to help with any rain spray. Works great and is an ideal change for someone my height who is still trying to stick with lightweight shelters.

I'm about to pick up a Lunar Duo and wanted to know – what do most of you Duo owners and tarp tent owners in general prefer for fabric color? I'm not talking about fashion, but utility – I know light colors, like gray, can let more light in, but could look more pleasing on the inside and offer more reflected light at night; while lighter colors could let a lot more light in on bright mornings, potentially waking you up when you feel like taking a longer rest morning (I find even with an eye shade I'm a light enough sleeper to "feel" the light). Darker colors could also uncomfortably heat up a tarp tent by absorbing solar energy when you're taking a long morning.

Appreciate any and all thoughts. My wife and I can't wait to take the LD on a trip. It replaces the nearly 7 lbs Sierra Designs Meteor "Light" we used to use (also have a slightly lighter Hilleberg Allak which we use as a dedicated winter/mountaineering tent at 6 lbs 6 oz.).

1) Can anyone comment on SMD green versus gray for morning light penetration and heat buildup? Never had an opportunity to check them out in person.

2) Are there any customizations SMD can do on the Lunar Duo that are worth doing? I've asked them the same question, just waiting on a response.

3) I'm going to order the regular floor, not the lightweight option. With the regular floor would you use thin clear plastic disposable footprints (these last about 10 nights or so and are super light) or a Tyvek footprint? Will the thin clear plastic offer as much protection as the heavier Tyvek?

4) Do you suggest bungee tensioners?

5) How many stakes, what length and what type (make and model) would you typically carry with the Lunar Duo? Would you use SMD stakes that you can order with it?

With the regular floor I wouldn't take a footprint. In fact, I wouldn't take a footprint with the lighter floor either, unless I knew I was going to be camping on gritty rock or on sharp grass stubble or something. The whole point of the regular floor is that you shouldn't need to carry a separate footprint.

I would use bungee tensioners on the side pullouts.

I can't remember the exact number of stakes I used to use, but I preferred the 9 inch easton stakes for the two main ridgeline guy out points. Then 6 inch eastons on the side perimeter points. Depends how many points you are guying out. But don't skimp on the two main tie-out points where most of the tension is… some 9 inch eastons or MSR groundhogs do the trick.

Cheers, Ashley

"Are there any customizations SMD can do on the Lunar Duo that are worth doing?"

That's an awfully vague question — but lucky for you in this case, there is still a straightforward answer: No, SMD does not do customizations.

Well, that does make things easy. In researching tarp tents I kept reading about some customizations requested by customers and others people did on their own, so thought I'd check. Don't have much time for DIY projects nowadays – I'd rather order what I'd like or outsource a project and spend the little free time I have nowadays on the trail.

Ben, any thoughts on how the green versus gray will be for light penetration and heat buildup?

EJ:

Not an expert at all — but unlike black vs. white — my guess is that the difference in translucence and thermal properties between gray and green is probably not significantly noticeable.

To me, the choice boils down more to your own color preference.

I own a grey Rainshadow2 and a green Lunar Duo and would very much agree with Ben in that its simply a matter of color preference. By the way, I love both shelters…